Chapter 2 An Unfair Deal

'What's going on?' Minnie was shocked. Everything had turned chaotic before she could make her move. Minnie glanced at the hidden weapon in her wristband that she hadn't launched yet.

She couldn't fathom the unexpected turn of events, but the situation had turned to her advantage. She decided to make use of it.

Minnie peered through the crowd in search of her child. Screams and cries pervaded the air, but she couldn't find Bruce. Panic surged in her veins.

She wondered if the crystal chandelier had crashed on him.

Minnie saw the chandelier tumbling and crashing in a different place. However, that didn't stop her from worrying. Countless thoughts inhabited her agitated mind. She ran to the spot where the chandelier had fallen to confirm if her child was there. In the process, she helped move away two guests who were hurt by the fallen chandelier.

'Oh my god! The bodyguards of the Lu family are here! The police have come as well. I'm trapped.'

Minnie's heart leaped to her throat when she heard the familiar sound of footsteps. She abandoned her searching spree and ran out of the place. But the moment she stepped out of the ballroom, a strong beam of light blinded her vision. Someone had pressed a gun against her head.

"Mr. Lu, I found her!" The cold metal of the gun sent a shiver down her spine.

"Ah! We meet again!" Michael leaned against the leather chair lazily as he raked his eyes across the woman's body.

Earlier in the presidential suit, he believed that Minnie was just a beauty without brains, but didn't know that he'd fall into her trap. There was something about her that seemed to captivate his interest.

She had an ordinary face with thick eyebrows. Her small nose and ruddy lips somehow made her look prettier. She looked like just another woman whom no one would notice in a crowd. But her dazzling eyes arrested Michael on the spot; he could see the raging storm beneath those sparkling orbs.

The emotions he hadn't felt in a long time surged in his heart when their eyes locked for a moment. Michael snapped out of his trance; his face turned cold as a mocking smile crept on his lips. 'She is just another woman whose eyes look like hers.'

Michael had captured all kinds of women who resembled his beloved woman in the last few years. Although some of them reminded him of her, no one could replace her. His life would return to normal once he fed his lust.

A flash of rage crossed Michael's eyes before his face broke into a lopsided grin. He rubbed his chin and looked at her wantonly. Minnie's face reddened as she followed his gaze.

The straps of her evening dress had slid down, revealing her milky skin because she had run at full pelt. Minnie glared at the man as she lifted the straps angrily.

"How dare you sneak into my place? I have a simple method of dealing with thieves like you." Michael gestured cutting her hand. "But I'm leaving the choice to you. Do you want me to cut your left hand or right hand?"

Minnie's eyes widened in shock. The man had assumed that she was a thief. But she hadn't even laid her fingers on anything that belonged to him.

Minnie felt so frustrated. Obviously, she wasn't the only one who had attended the exhibition with a special purpose. She had come only to find Bruce. As for the other party, she guessed that they were here for the blue diamond.

Michael wondered why the feisty woman had suddenly become silent.

He leaned forward and pressed the button beside the table. Minnie's every movement, from breaking into the garden, knocking the woman off, to sneaking into the ballroom, and making the chandelier shatter, reflected on the opposite wall.

The blood on Minnie's face drained in an instant. She didn't expect that her every movement was under Michael's watch from the beginning.

"Do you have an explanation for all this?" Michael asked, waving his hand at the wall that revealed her dramatic entry.

Minnie was innocent. However, the footage seemed to convey a different story. Her mind began to race as she wondered what to do next. The surveillance camera had been monitoring her the entire time, ignoring the other people who had come with a purpose. She had ended up becoming the scapegoat. Minnie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The other party must have already escaped while she was being caught by Michael's men.

"I am not a thief! I didn't steal anything." She threw her bag to Michael and gestured him to check it.

The man, however, ignored the bag. His burning gaze was fixed on Minnie's satin dress as if he were trying to see what lay beneath it.

Minnie hugged herself and began to squirm on the spot. 'Does he think that I'm hiding it in my dress?' she mused.

Michael snapped his fingers, gesturing for the bodyguards to assemble. "Check if she is hiding anything in her dress.''

The bodyguards surrounded Minnie. Two of them grabbed her hands, while the other squatted in front of her and held her thighs.

"Fuck off!" Minnie kicked the man in the front and shoved the two guards beside her. Her bravery surprised the men; they had no time to react.

"Mr. Lu, the police found Ms. Tang's body lying in the garden. She's dead. They are coming in to investigate the case," the security guards announced as they rushed in.

Minnie froze on the spot. She didn't kill anyone, but Ms. Tang's death would put her in danger.

Minnie turned to look at Michael. The man was eyeing her with suspicion. She could sense what he was thinking. The man doubted that she killed Ms. Tang and discarded her body in the garden.

"I thought you were just a thief but didn't expect that you'd kill someone for money," he remarked, grinning mischievously.

"I did not! You just watched the video. I only knocked her out, but didn't kill her," Minnie explained.

"Video? What video?" Michael smiled sardonically and pressed a button. The screen turned black in an instant.

He had deleted the video. The man had destroyed the only evidence that proved her innocence.

Minnie studied Michael's face and understood what the man was thinking. There was a murder at the party conducted by the Lu family. The police would take her away to close the case. They wouldn't believe her even if she explained because there was no proof or evidence to support her statement. Taking her to custody would be the best solution of the case for both the Lu family and the police.

"Please, don't do this. Don't hand me over to the police," Minnie grabbed Michael's shirt and pleaded.

"Why not?" He smirked, but his smile froze as soon as she pressed her lips against his.

His heart took a sprint; his mind went blank as their bodies rubbed together.

Michael wondered if this was a trap again. 'Is the woman overconfident, or has she underestimated me?' Anger rose in his heart.

No woman had dared to kiss his lips in the past years, but this woman had kissed him without thinking.

A wave of incomprehensible emotions crushed him.

Michael snorted angrily and clutched Minnie's neck. "How dare you! Are you not afraid of dying?" The ferocity of his gaze sent a shiver down her spine.

However, Minnie summoned the strength to face him. She straightened her back and stared into the man's eyes. "You are going to hand me over to the police regardless of how much I beg and plead. I'm going to die sooner or later. What have I got to lose?"

Her body had turned jelly. Everything seemed unreal; she felt as if she were floating in midair. Panic had settled in her heart, but she was determined to fight him.

In fact, Minnie was trying her luck. Michael was an arrogant man. She knew what she did would infuriate him to the point that he would want to keep the enemy under his control. This way, he would not hand her over to the police but torture her himself.

The two of them stared at each other in silence. 'Did I fail?' thought she. Five years had passed, and perhaps Michael was no longer the person Minnie thought him to be. Her heart sank at the sight of him.

The sound of faint laughter snapped Minnie from her reverie. Her heart began to race in her chest as Michael placed his finger under her chin, lifting her head. His gaze raked across her face before settling on her bright eyes, which seemed like an endless abyss, trying to suck him in.

"Okay, I can protect you this time, but under one condition."

"What condition?"

"Does that even matter? After all, this is the only way to save yourself." Michael glanced at her flushed face and continued, "Well, it's simple. I want you to stay with me for a month."

Minnie's jaw dropped in shock. "A month?"

"What's the matter? Is that not enough? Unfortunately, I get bored with women in a couple of days. But I'm giving you one month's time. It's a big deal, you know." Michael thrust his hands into his pockets and walked out of the room. Just before stepping out of the room, he turned back. "Wait here. I will be back soon."

His cockiness and arrogance infuriated Minnie. She bit her lip and glared at him as he left the place. She just wanted to know what if he refused to let her go after one month. But the man didn't give her a chance to speak and even misunderstood her.

Minnie didn't know how Michael had solved the problem, but his subordinates took her back to the villa. She was glad to have escaped from the police.

The crystal chandelier illuminated every corner of the hall of the villa. The white table was covered with a silky table cloth that had rose patterns strewn across its length and tassels hanging on its edges. The succulent rose flowers on the vase added a charm to the place. The luxurious Persian wool carpet sprawled across the floor added a cozy effect to the place.

The place hadn't changed since she left. Minnie sauntered across the hallway as memories of the past flooded her mind. She walked to the porch and stretched her hand to touch the oil painting.

"Stop!" Michael slapped her hand away before her fingers touched the delicate material of the painting. "You have no right to touch that!" he barked before adjusting the position of the frame.

"You can't touch anything in this house. Even an entire lifetime wouldn't make up for the losses if you ruin any of these by accident."

"It's just an oil painting by an amateur, not a masterpiece. Why are you making a big deal out of nothing?" Minnie rolled her eyes in annoyance. The next second, she lowered her head to hide the emotions in her eyes.

She had given the portrait to Michael when they were together. However, he remarked that it looked ugly and threw it into the trash can. Minnie was surprised to find the painting hanging there now.

"Go upstairs, take a shower, and wait for me!" Michael ordered, pointing at the second floor.

Minnie's body froze; she stared at the man with wide eyes. "What's wrong?" he scoffed. "Did you think I asked you to stay with me so that I could chat with you whenever I got bored?"