Contract Marriage: My Callous Husband

Chapter 2

Amy slept all night in a dusty storeroom.

The next day, a maid remarked in surprise when she tried to retrieve the vacuum and saw her lying on the floor of the storeroom. Amy glanced at her wristwatch and immediately broke out in cold sweat.

She had forgotten to prepare breakfast for Charles!

Amy rushed to the kitchen with bruises all over her body, quickly toasted two pieces of bread, warmed a glass of milk, and brought the food into the study.

“Good morning, Mr. Fontbona...” She trembled involuntarily when she saw his expressionless face.

Charles turned around, stared at the contents of the plate, and reached out for the cup of milk.

“Don’t...” Amy reflexively covered her face with her arms, thinking that he was going to hit her again like last night. Instead, he just took the glass of milk.

Charles sneered, “I don’t think you understood what I said.” He grabbed her throat and pulled her in front of him. “Didn’t I tell you to get out of here and never let me see you again? You’re a stubborn one, aren’t you? It seems like I need to do something that you’ll never forget.”

He grabbed the back of her neck, and yanked her hair down to tilt her head up, her mouth naturally opened and then he began to pour the hot milk into her mouth.

“Drink it! Drink it up for me!”

The hot milk flowed straight into Amy’s throat and nasal cavity, choking her to the point that she could not breathe.

Cough... gasp... cough... “Don’t do this, please...” She pleaded desperately.

She was in a state of confusion after he poured the entire glass of milk onto her face. Before she could catch her breath, he began to jam the two slices of toast into her mouth.

“Hurry up and make sure you eat everything!” Charles paid no attention that she was already choking and forcefully pushed the toasts into her throat.

Amy felt as if her body had been submerged in the deep blue sea. No matter how hard she tried to breathe, she could not suck any air into her lungs.

She collapsed and began to twitch violently but Charles was unfazed and barely even flinched. Instead of realizing his errors and trying to help her, he just stared at her with disgust as if he could hardly wait for her to die.

Amy soon blacked out as she was asphyxiated to the brink of death.

Just before she lost consciousness, she saw Charles sneer disdainfully at her.

When Amy woke up, she found herself lying in the hallway. A passing maid saw her open her eyes and quickly approached to help her. Amy asked her what had happened and then realized that she had almost died. If it was not for the steward who happened to enter the study when she fainted, she would be six feet under by now.

Charles did not allow anyone to take care of her. Thus, the maid could only drag her out of the study and leave her in the hallway.

“Ms. Brown, here’s your phone. I have been keeping it for you,” the young maid said.

Amy thanked her repeatedly and quickly checked it. When she realized that she had missed several calls from the hospital, all her pain was instantly forgotten.

She quickly returned the call.

“Can’t you really delay it any longer? I’ll be able to raise the money soon... I beg you!” The hospital administrator apologized and hung up the call. She was in a daze and continued to hold the phone to her ear. The hospital could not continue to postpone her father’s operation as they waited for her to raise money for the operations. If the hospital did not get the payment within 3 days, her father would be forced to leave the hospital and he would die!

Amy had no choice but to call her stepmother again. However, the response was the same even after she did what she was told, which was to marry Charles.

“Mom, we have lived together for many years. Although we are not related by blood, I have always regarded you as my mother. Furthermore, Dad had treated you so well. How can you...”

Lucy said angrily, “Stop the nonsense. You are a Fontbona now and should concentrate on taking good care of that disabled husband of yours. Everything here does not concern you now! If you want money, you can exchange it for what I want.”

Amy was speechless. Her stepmother wanted her to steal information about a business deal that both the Fontbona and Brown Groups were trying to secure. They were in the bidding phase and every bit of information was crucial to determining who turned out the winner. How could she do such a thing? Her father had always been honest and straightforward in his business dealings. Since she was a child, he had always taught her to be honest and truthful in whatever she did.

She was at her wit’s end. Although it was a long shot, she could try to convince Charles to help her.

Charles had gone to the company. Thus, she had a lot of time to prepare. She went back to the room to wash up and treated her wounds. She tried to rehearse what she should be saying to maximize her chances. Unexpectedly, Charles had spent the night outside and did not come back till noon the next day.

“Mr. Fontbona.” Amy greeted him at the door. Charles did not even acknowledge her presence. “Mr. Fontbona, what do you want to eat? I’ll make it for you.”

Charles ignored her and she could only awkwardly maintain her smile.

She followed quietly behind him as he wheeled himself to the study. She did not give him a chance to pick on her.

As soon as they entered the study, she quickly knelt in front of him with a thud.

“Mr. Fontbona, I beg you to lend me some money. My father is seriously ill and needs surgery as soon as possible. I... I don’t have any money left. Can you help me, please?”

Charles remained expressionless and asked, “Are you talking to me?”

Amy said humbly, “Mr. Fontbona, I know that you hate me, but I’m really out of options. As long as you’re willing to lend me the money, I can do anything that you want me to do.”

“Anything?” He sneered and continued, “Then I want you to die, can you? If you die, I’ll give you money.”

Amy looked into his soulless eyes and felt a chill run down her spine. Did she just try to make a deal with the devil?

“Get lost.” He ordered and then opened his laptop to work.

Amy sat in the storeroom and tried to c***k her brain for any possible solution. It was a short mental exercise as she had few options and none of them was feasible. Her heart sank when she realized that there was no way for her to save her father.

In the evening, she heard the door of the study being opened, and Charles was being wheeled downstairs by the old steward, Arthur, for dinner. She came out of the storeroom nervously and saw that the floor of the study was a bit messy. She went in to tidy it up and saw a “Project Proposal” displayed on the computer screen.

She gasped and held her breath as she struggled within her if she should betray Charles. In the end, her desire to save her father overcame her integrity.

She quickly emailed a copy of the proposal to herself. Thereafter she forwarded it to her stepmother and quickly restored everything to its original state.

She heaved a sigh of relief. My father is saved!

Amy received the money from her stepmother and she immediately paid for the surgery fee. Her father’s surgery was scheduled to be conducted within a week. Although things had taken a turn for the better, she could not relax completely because the subsequent treatment costs were also a significant expense.

Amy was smart enough to keep a trump card.

She deliberately adjusted several important data, and as expected, the results of the bid caused a stir at the Brown Group three days later.

Amy received a call from Peter Scholl, a secretary who had worked for her father for many years, and immediately rushed to the company.

“Ms. Brown, you’re here,” Peter said.

Amy nodded and said, “Let’s go.” She took a deep breath, adjusted her clothes, set aside all the traumatic experiences of the past few days, and walked into the company confidently.

Almost everyone at the company knew her and that she was no longer the princess she used to be. Her father’s failure meant that she was no longer respected by anyone in the company. Furthermore, they knew that now she was Charles’ punching bag. Therefore, those who used to seek her favor were now disgusted by her presence. Even the receptionist cursed her as she walked by.

Just as she opened the door of the conference room, she saw Lucy slapping Grace in the face.

“Morons! I’ve given you Fontbona’s proposal and you still could mess up our proposal! Now those people are kicking us out of the board of directors! What should we do? What a bunch of idiots!”

Grace was too angry to speak but as soon as she saw Amy, she found a scapegoat and grabbed her hair.

“Did you do it? The bidding documents and Fontbona’s final presentation are different! You b***h!”

Since her father was now scheduled for surgery, Amy had the confidence to retaliate. She grasped Grace’s hand tightly and prevented her from causing her further harm. She then gestured to Peter to call the rest of the directors.

Soon, all the other directors came to the company. Grace’s major mistake resulted in the loss of large bonuses that should have been rewarded to them this year. When they found out about this, they were so upset that they surrounded Grace and wanted to physically throw her out of the company. Lucy rushed forward to stop them but was kicked and thrown out.

During the chaotic commotions, Amy seized an opportunity to kick Grace’s behind. It was truly satisfying for her to be able to vent her anger in such a manner.

Grace and Lucy were thrown out of the company onto a patch of grass by the side of the road. One of Grace’s shoes was missing and she was in a mess.

She glared fiercely at Amy and said, “I’m going to kill you! Kill you!”

Amy tidied up her clothes and took the shareholder agreement that belonged to her from Peter. “Grace, you’ve previously taken away my shares. Now, you’re no different than me. They will no longer be yours!” She tore the agreement to pieces and sashayed away amid Grace’s curses.

This felt great!