Celestial Roses

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Johnson and I met because of his daughter.

His daughter came to my beauty salon for treatments. One day, when Johnson came to pick her up, he happened to run into me.

It was love at first sight for him.

"Hold on—Johnson was a big-shot businessman surrounded by beautiful women.

"As far as I know, when he met you, he was still keeping several mistresses. How could he fall for you at first sight and even end up marrying you?"

I smiled. "Mr. Wilson, you should know men always fall for vulnerable women, especially when their vulnerabilities are strikingly similar."

Johnson came from a terrible background. He was born near the border, in a family where the elders were either involved in drugs or scams. To them, children were just commodities with price tags.

Johnson was forced to test and even transport drugs at a very young age. That he survived at all was nothing short of a miracle.

So, the first thing he did after making his fortune was to destroy that very operation and send his own family to prison.

Amid their desperate pleas, the public hailed him as a philanthropist, a hero who placed justice above family, a national warrior.

A man like that was absolutely ruthless.

"And I was the same."

I took a slow drag from my cigarette, my gaze distant. "My parents were gambling addicts. My father sold me—every time he did, they got to gamble for one more night."

I didn't elaborate.

"And then?" Eugene pressed.

"Then?

"Then my parents died. Our house burned down. All those men who bought me, along with my parents turned to ash."

My tone was eerily calm.

Eugene shuddered.

He probably thought I was the one who set the fire.

I laughed softly. "Why so scared? I wasn't even an adult back then—just a helpless little girl who suddenly lost both parents."

Eugene swallowed hard. "Fine, that's not important. Like you said, Johnson grew up in hell.

"A man like that should've clung to life at all costs.

"And I've looked into his case. His Celestial Cemetery was found to be running some shady operations, like o***************g. Some girls' bodies were even repurposed...

"And as the investigation went deeper, it turned out his ambitions grew. He wasn't just using fresh corpses. He started hiring killers to get them.

"He should've been terrified of death.

"After all that, he spent fortunes on spiritual masters and charity, trying to cleanse his sins.

"A ruthless, extreme capitalist like him, who saw nothing but himself, what could possibly matter more than his own life?

"What the hell did you say to make him give up everything and choose to die?"

Eugene's face loomed closer, his eagerness overriding his caution.

His throat dry from talking, he instinctively picked up the teacup and took a sip.

His expression instantly twisted.

I smirked. "What are you so afraid of? I have no reason to hurt you."

To prove it, I drained my own cup in front of him. "Relax. I still have a story to finish."

Eugene's face flushed with embarrassment.

I said in a flat tone,"What could matter more than his life? You're right. There was something. And that is what killed him."