Chapter 45

Victoria’s pupils shrank upon hearing so, and she looked at Christian with incredulity. Why did he let everyone misunderstand me when he knew the truth?!

Christian looked ahead and never even thought of sparing her a glance. It was like he was oblivious to the fact that she was looking at him.

At that, Victoria tucked her gaze away, and her countenance returned to usual.

What was I thinking? Bella is his beloved, while I’m just nothing to him.

“Actress?” Bella blinked innocently. “Are you referring to Victoria, Christian? If she wants to become an actress, then she’ll have to get rid of the scar on her face first, and no one can know she has been to jail, or she’d be damned.”

“With such great acting, it’s a shame that you’re not in showbiz, or you’d be an Oscar-winning actress.” Christian stopped in his tracks, looked at the woman in the wheelchair, then sneered before continuing his journey ahead.

“Since Christian thinks you have such potential, why don’t you give it a try?” Bella blinked. “Though there’s the fact that you’ve been put behind bars, you can still give it a go. At the very least, it’s a more respectable job than a hostess or a cleaner.”

“Is there a point in playing dumb?” Victoria asked.

Bella looked toward Christian’s back, and mixed emotions began surging beneath her eyes. “There has to be one even if there isn’t, or something I hold dearly would be taken away.”

Later, when the three headed out after Bella’s rehab session, her attending physician called out to Victoria out of the blue.

“Yes, doctor?” Victoria stopped in her tracks.

The doctor looked at her right leg and asked, “Don’t mind me asking, but your right leg… Is it dysfunctional?”

Shouts of prison inmates calling her lame rang in her ear, causing her face to blanch as she tucked her right leg in.

She had already tried her best to walk like any other person. Still, her disability wasn’t something she could hide just because she wanted to.

“I’m sorry, I don’t mean anything else. I was just asking,” the doctor explained because of the awkward atmosphere. “If so, I suggest that you get it checked. Maybe you have a chance at recovery.”

Victoria’s eyes lit up for a split second upon hearing so. No one would willingly live with a disability for their entire lives, after all.

On the other hand, Bella lowered her eyelids, concealing the malice that flashed across her eyes. She had visited tons of specialists only to get one result—her leg injury was irremediable. But lo and behold, Victoria’s bad leg could be corrected!

“That won’t be necessary. She was born with it. Nothing can fix it,” Christian said impa*sively and headed out the door before Victoria could say anything.

The hopeful light in Victoria’s eyes vanished in that instant, reignited with burning anger, but it could only be converted to unwilling resignation.

She had nothing to fight Christian. The only thing she could do was to please him and stay far away from him.

If he didn’t want her leg to be cured, then so be it, lest… he broke it again.

When they entered the car, Victoria had just pulled a piece of tissue out when Christian, who was sitting at the back, said, “There’s no need to be so wasteful anymore.”

She turned her head to look at his handsome face as her thick, curly eyelashes trembled.

With that, she hummed a response, put the box of tissue in front, and sat down.

“Christian.” Seeing so, Bella furrowed her brows but very quickly released them. “I’ve given it some serious thought, and I think that Victoria should treat her leg if something can be done about it. It’s already enough that my life is ruined. Don’t ruin hers too.”

“It’s the price she should pay for breaking your leg.” The sun shone through the car window, casting a ring of light on Christian.

It was a sight to behold, but Victoria had no mood to admire it, only feeling cold.

He was really dead set on ruining her.

Meanwhile, Bella sighed and looked at Victoria with pity.

However, that gaze only made Victoria’s stomach churn. Bella’s phony act was one that she could never master.

“By the way, I saw your brother and sister-in-law inside earlier. Why didn’t they come and say hi to you? Do they think you’re an embarra*sment because you were sent to prison?” asked Bella curiously.

Victoria pursed her lips tightly and drooped her eyelids. Her hands, which were on her lap, clenched her clothes involuntarily.

“They’re still your family, though. Isn’t it harsh for them to be like this?” Bella sighed, speaking insouciantly, “You haven’t gotten to meet the pigeon twins when you were locked up in prison for the last two years, have you? I’ve met them a few times. They’re pretty adorable; they’ve inherited your brother and sister-in-law’s good genes.”

Victoria clenched her clothes so tightly that her hand paled from it. She had been forcibly dragged to Delta Club after she had been released. What chance did she have to meet her brother’s twins?

Bella’s words were only a deliberate stab at her heart!

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Are you possibly… sad?” Bella leaned forward, bringing their distance closer. “Why don’t I talk to Mr. Coleman and Vincent—”

At the limit of her tolerance, Victoria shot her eyes wide open and interrupted Bella, saying, “Are you not tired of pretending to be someone you’re not every single day?! Do you not feel disgusted?! Now that you can’t dance anymore, do you have so much free time to repulse everyone and get their attention

Alas, Victoria regretted it the second she finished her words.

Christian looked at her silently in his seat on the right side of the back seat. His gaze right then was like a black hole, seemingly wanting to suck her into limbo.

Victoria’s anger gradually diminished, and it was replaced with fear and apprehension toward him. Her hands that had been clenching her shirt loosened a little, but her fingers shook barely visibly.

Perhaps the situation would alleviate if she apologized, but she didn’t want to, nor was she willing to do it.

“How can you think of me like that?” Bella spoke aggrievedly like she had been spooked. “I just want to help you as a former friend because I don’t want to see you and your family fall out like this.”

Victoria’s lashes quivered, and she tried her best to ignore the icy gaze on her. “I appreciate your kindness, Miss Spritz. There’s no need to trouble yourself with it.”

“No trouble at all. No need to stand on ceremony with me,” said Bella with feigned magnanimity, overlooking the fact that Victoria had lashed out at her. “I’m sure Mr. Coleman will let you see the kids if I ask him.”

“No need to proliferate your kindness.” Christian suddenly spoke up, emphasizing the word ‘kindness’. There seemed to be a hint of mockery in his voice, but his countenance made it impossible for anyone to tell.

Light flashed across Bella’s eyes, and she muttered, “Sorry, I got carried away.”

At that, she said no more.

The atmosphere in the car turned eerily silent, and the air seemed to have compressed, making breathing challenging.

Victoria covertly sized Christian up through the rearview mirror. The latter was looking out the window with a deadpan face, making it hard for her to tell if what she said had pissed him off.

With that, she tensed up her back muscles, and her whole body stiffened up like a fully drawn bowstring.

It wasn’t until ten-plus minutes later that she wiped the thin layer of sweat that had formed from who-knew-when seeing that he didn’t have any intention of giving her a hard time. However, her back remained tense.

Victoria got out of the Bentley after it pulled up in front of Delta Club. It was only after the vehicle disappeared from her sight that she realized she was covered in a layer of cold sweat.

“Tori!” Someone suddenly patted her shoulder.

Victoria turned around reflexively, and a hint of not-so-visible joy laced her eyes when she saw who it was. “Vince?!”