Chapter 1 A Situation Worse Than Divorce

Skye Crawford felt as if she had lost half of her life when the man left. At that moment, a cold wind blew in through the window, causing her to shiver as she lay on the bed and struggled to breathe. Skye trembled as she reached out and pulled the silk quilt over herself. Then, she sat up and looked at Warren Whitley, who was fastening his belt with his back turned to her. She tried to speak, but before she could, a layer of mist had already clouded her vision. After a year of marriage, he finally agreed to be intimate with her. However, it was rough and merciless. There was no tenderness and affection in such intimacy between them. It was merely an outlet for his frustration. Ten years of unrequited love, a year of sharing the same bed, and yet she couldn't even earn a shred of his affection! People said that the heart was the strongest organ in the human body, but at that moment, her heart felt like it was breaking apart piece by piece. Warren put on his shirt, picked up the divorce agreement that had long been prepared on the end of the bed, and threw it at her before saying coldly, "You've got what you wanted, so sign it!" Tears welled up in her eyes, but she raised her chin while holding her breath and swallowing all the bitterness. She refused to cry in front of him as she wanted to preserve the last bit of pride she had as the young lady of the Crawfords. She looked at Warren's sharp eyebrows, and she finally found her voice after a long pause. "I will sign it, but you have to promise me to spare my younger brother!" Warren narrowed his eyes and said angrily, "Don't push your luck with me!" Just three hours ago, she had said that as long as he slept with her, she would divorce him. And now, she was making conditions shamelessly! "Push my luck? Warren, you need to understand that I am your wife, and it is your duty as a husband to sleep with me. Otherwise, do you want me to spread rumors in the future that you have a hidden illness and can't even satisfy your legally wedded wife?" Veins popped on Warren's forehead as he gritted his teeth and said, "Skye! I have seriously underestimated your shamelessness. Let me tell you. The debts must be repaid, and a life for a life. Your brother intentionally ran someone over with his car, so he must bear the legal consequences. Do you know that Matilda was in several critical conditions while she was being treated in the hospital? The doctors said she would become permanently disabled. Do you know that?" The man's gaze pierced her like a knife. Skye felt like her chest had been torn open and left with a gaping hole after being scrutinized by the person she loved the most. She turned her head away and bit her lower lip hard to calm herself down before looking back at the man. "Scott said he didn't hit anyone. It was Matilda who got to the car on her own—" "Shut up!" Warren interrupted her as his face darkened. "You and your brother knew that there’s no surveillance camera along the street, and since Matilda is unconscious, you can frame her and tarnish her reputation, right? Let me tell you. As long as I'm here, none of you can bully her or make her suffer!" Skye felt like crying for a moment, but then she smiled. "Yes... Everyone in the Qrok knows that I, as the legitimate wife, am just a joke, and Matilda is the apple of your eye! Who dares to bully her or make her suffer? Everyone in our circle would only bow and scrape to her. They even wished they could address her as Mrs. Whitley!" She, Warren, and Matilda Clarke grew up together. However, she was the daughter of the prestigious Crawfords in Qrok, while Matilda was just the daughter of a servant in the Whitleys. She and Matilda were good friends in high school until that incident happened, and they fell out. But because of Warren, they had to maintain a superficial relationship whenever they met. She didn't understand. She was more beautiful than Matilda, better than Matilda in academics, and had a more likable personality than someone as unimpressive as Matilda. Why did Warren love Matilda and look down on her when they appeared together at the same time? Was it... Was it because Matilda was more fragile and needed more protection? Buzz... Buzz... Buzz... The sound of her phone vibrating broke the tense atmosphere. "Skye, you have no right to negotiate with me! If you don't sign this agreement now, I don't mind having a legal battle with the Crawfords!" After saying this, Warren took out his phone and answered it. "Hello!" Skye finally couldn't help but shed her tears silently. They dripped onto her collarbone, which was covered in bite marks, and onto the divorce agreement, where they glistened like crystal droplets in a place the man couldn't see. When it came to matters involving Matilda, he always stood by Matilda's side unconditionally. Skye's explanations would always be regarded as sophistry and malicious slander. She should have known that his heart was biased toward Matilda. Why did she only realize it today? It hurt. Every organ and every inch of her body hurt. Skye hunched over, and her frail back trembled helplessly under her silent sobs. Her throat was sore as if she had swallowed sulfuric acid, which rendered her completely speechless. That was how it was. The Crawfords couldn't withstand the pressure brought by two lawsuits, and she was tired, too! If he wanted a divorce... Fine. He would get a divorce. She agreed to it! Skye pulled out the pen from the document and was about to sign her name on the last page when Warren's sleek phone suddenly smashed against her hand! Her hand went numb, and it caused her entire arm to lose sensation temporarily. She looked up in astonishment. She was truly frightened by Warren's sinister and murderous gaze. In all the years she had known him, she had never seen him so angry. "Uh! Ah!" The man's slender, jade-like fingers gripped her throat and was suffocating her. The momentary blankness in her brain made her realize for the first time how close death was to her. And this feeling was brought to her by the man she loved the most! "Wa... Warren..." Her weak hand reached up to his hand as her face and lips turned pale. "Did you ask Matilda to meet you at Soledo? What did you say to her before your brother hit her? Did you boast about your prestigious status, insult her with a check, and force her to leave Qrok? Skye, I used to think you were just a bit stubborn, but now I know that you're not stubborn. You're wicked!" Warren mocked her. "You said you would agree to a divorce if I slept with you, but in reality, you wanted to keep me tied down so that the coffee shop owner you bribed could delete the surveillance footage and erase the evidence, right? Unfortunately, your plan backfired. The surveillance footage was only damaged in terms of audio quality, but the process of you giving Matilda the check and pressuring her was captured. The coffee shop owner also confessed that neither you nor your brother could escape. I will send both of you to prison!" A realization struck Skye. She understood everything. All of this was orchestrated by Matilda! Matilda had bribed the coffee shop owner first, and the audio quality of the surveillance footage wasn't damaged but rather tampered with long ago. Because if there was audio, others would know that it was Matilda who first asked her for the check! Scott also told Skye that he wasn't driving fast at the time, and Matilda deliberately rushed over to fake the accident. I am wicked? Hahaha... Skye gave up struggling and put down her hand. Then, she looked at Warren while laughing and crying like a madwoman. "How dare you laugh?!" Warren was furious. He wished he could strangle this ignorant woman right then and there. "You used to gather others to fight and play pranks on Matilda. I turned a blind eye to it. I didn't expect my tolerance toward you to escalate to the point where you disregarded the law and attempted murder! You're really something!" Skye's laughter abruptly stopped. Gathering others to fight? Play pranks on Matilda? When did she ever do these things... Warren pushed her away as if she were a dirty object, picked up his phone from the bed, and took two steps back. His handsome face was filled with gloom as he said, "Leave my place and wait for the court summons at the Crawfords' Residence!" "Cough. Cough. Cough." Skye lay on the bed and was too preoccupied with her discomfort to fix the fallen blanket. She covered her neck and coughed painfully. She was so vulnerable and defenseless as she was exposed in front of him unexpectedly. They had just been intimate, and Warren was still in a sensitive state. He couldn't help but feel his blood stirred up at this provocative scene. He clenched his fists and tried to calm down the resurfacing instinctive impulse. Skye's appearance and figure were widely recognized as rare beauties in their circle, and Warren had never denied her beauty. Unfortunately, she was a venomous beauty. No matter how good the exterior, it couldn't hide her inner ugliness! "Don't play dead here. Get lost!"