Private Marriage, Secret Love-Chapter 24: A Contest: Who Is More Cruel?

Raina’s back stiffened, and she turned around.

Miles Hawthorne sat down. "You must be joking, Fourth Master. What video?"

"That thing is useless now. You’re still holding onto it. Are you trying to watch me, or..." Ethan Lancaster looked up and pointed a finger at Raina. "Her."

’So Aristor Hall belongs to him. No wonder even Ethan couldn’t get those recordings completely deleted.’

Miles Hawthorne took out a pack of cigarettes. His slender fingers pulled one out and held it under his nose. Raina’s heart felt like it had been dealt a heavy blow. He used to do the same thing with a pen. ’To think I still remember so many of his little habits so clearly.’

"I think you’ve misunderstood, Fourth Master. I don’t have what you’re looking for."

"How about this? We’ll make a bet. If I win, you give me the video."

Miles Hawthorne’s expression shifted slightly. He didn’t seem the least bit outmatched among this crowd. "And what if you lose, Fourth Master?"

"What do you want?"

"Anything?"

Ethan Lancaster shoved the woman beside him forward. "Is she enough?"

Raina heard Miles Hawthorne let out a low laugh. "I’m not short on women."

’She couldn’t find a single trace of the boy he used to be in him anymore.’

Back then, his ears would turn beet red just from holding her hand. But now, just like the rest of them, he could speak of women as if they were just a topic of casual conversation.

Ethan Lancaster lit a cigarette and propped his cheek on one hand. "How about this? The night is still young. We’ll play a few games first and talk about the other business later."

"Fine by me." Miles Hawthorne leaned back slightly and saw Ethan Lancaster beckon to Raina. "Come here."

The woman next to him knew her cue. The moment Ethan Lancaster’s arm left her, she vacated her seat.

Raina walked over under everyone’s gaze. As she bent down to sit, a vague sense of humiliation washed over her. She was exhausted, body and soul, and she hated these kinds of games.

"What are we playing?" Miles Hawthorne was the first to ask.

Ethan Lancaster snapped his fingers. Seeing this, Cameron Fairchild had someone bring in drinks.

Soon, the empty bottles on the coffee table were cleared away. New bottles of liquor were opened in front of everyone. Cameron Fairchild goaded them on from the side. "Let’s play a new game. I just came up with this idea."

"What game?"

"Let’s see who’s the most heartless." This group never played anything decent when they got together. "You can tell your own story or someone else’s. We’ll compete based on the level of cruelty. How about it?"

The corner of Ethan Lancaster’s tightly pressed lips curled up. "Mr. Hawthorne, what do you say?"

"I’m in."

"Let’s do this. We’ll guess high or low. To be fair, we’ll have someone else roll the dice."

Ethan Lancaster’s hand landed on Raina’s back, sliding gently upward before gripping the nape of her neck. "You do it."

"I don’t want to."

"If you help us beat Mr. Hawthorne, he might just give you back what you want."

Raina was completely out of place in this environment, and she had no desire to be their entertainment. "Ethan, I don’t like this."

His expression clearly darkened. He sat up straight and pulled Raina in front of him. "What’s the big deal? It’s just a game. Are you that much of a spoilsport?"

Raina tried to back away. "I’m just afraid I’ll embarrass you."

"Don’t worry. If I’m not afraid, what are you afraid of?"

Miles Hawthorne was toying with the dice cup. Cameron Fairchild brought someone over. "Mr. Hawthorne, this person is an employee from your very own Aristor Hall. You can’t suspect us of cheating now, can you?"

"Like Fourth Master said, it’s just for fun. Why take it so seriously?" Miles Hawthorne said, placing the dice cup back on the coffee table.

The rattling of the dice was jarring, accompanied by Miles Hawthorne’s voice. "Ladies first. Mrs. Lancaster, if you please."

Raina was clueless about these things and could only take a wild guess. "High."

The cup was opened. Ethan Lancaster clicked his tongue. "Tsk, tsk. Look at that luck. We’ll have to admit defeat."

"Hey now, you can’t just make something up," Cameron chimed in. "If your story doesn’t pass muster with the rest of us, you’ll have to take a penalty drink."

’Isn’t this the same as being forced to open up old wounds for everyone’s amusement? And what kind of "good" story could possibly be described as heartless and cruel?’

Raina pinched the back of her hand. The words came out before she could even think. "I pushed my own sister from an upper floor of a building. She was crippled from the fall and is still in a wheelchair to this day. Well? Do you think that passes your test?"

Cameron Fairchild was taking a drink and sprayed it everywhere when he heard her. His gaze shifted from Raina’s face to Ethan Lancaster’s, his eyes wide with shock and disbelief.

Ethan Lancaster’s expression was grim. He had told her he believed her, and the Reddington Family had kept the matter completely under wraps. Yet Raina had just blurted it out in a place like this.

Miles Hawthorne sat frozen in his seat, listening to Raina’s words, his heart feeling as if it were being torn open. He knew what happened back then better than anyone. He was the one who had stayed by her side through all those days she’d spent hiding and crying in the fields after dark.

Ethan Lancaster’s expression was absolutely foul. Some people nearby began to whisper among themselves. Cameron Fairchild gave a dry laugh. "Something like that... surely not?"

"So, do I still need to drink this penalty?"

Cameron Fairchild’s expression tensed. The game had been his idea, after all, and he didn’t want to put Ethan Lancaster in an awkward position.

A hand reached out and grabbed a bottle of liquor from the table. Miles Hawthorne tapped his fingers on the glass a few times. "A bet’s a bet. I’ll take the loss."

He tilted his head back and poured the liquor down his throat, not stopping until the entire bottle was empty. Only then did he set it back on the table.

Raina was consumed by dark emotions, and a grim part of her heart began to swell. "Let’s continue."

The person holding the dice cup glanced at Ethan Lancaster, who gave a slight nod of his chin, signaling the official start of the second round.

It was Raina’s turn to guess again. She still chose "High."

When the cup was opened, Ethan Lancaster couldn’t help but lean forward, but his heart sank the moment he saw the dice.

All eyes turned to Raina, but she was staring intently at Miles Hawthorne. The sight of the few drops of liquor staining his white shirt made her own eyes sting.

"We can tell other people’s stories too, right?"

"Yes, of course," Cameron Fairchild said, being the first to relax upon hearing her words.

"Then let me tell you all a story." Raina didn’t want to revisit her memories, but the deepest, most unforgettable one had been dragged to the surface by Miles Hawthorne’s reappearance. "Once, there was a village facing demolition, but the developer’s terms were incredibly harsh. To show their resolve and stand united, all the villagers signed an agreement not to be the first to sell. But after a long standoff, the very family that had led the resistance unexpectedly tore down their own house overnight. They took a massive payout from the developer and were the first to move away, without so much as a goodbye. Tell me, would you call people like that heartless and cruel?"

Ethan Lancaster looked deep into Raina’s eyes, where he saw a trace of sorrow that she couldn’t seem to shake.