Love Contract

Chapter 52 Victor's Story

An ironic smile formed on Mary's lips as she covered her face with her palms. "I'm so useless, Victor."

"Really, now?" Victor glared at Mary. "So, you think you are useless just because he broke your heart? Where's your strength? Mary, when did you become like this? Huh?"

"I don't know." Mary's empty eyes stared at the scene before her eyes. "I thought I was strong...

I work hard at part-time jobs and take care of my sick mother without complaining. I could even endure the humiliation I suffered when I first came to the AJ Group. But I collapsed after meeting William. I was so proud of my strength, but it shattered just because of his icy cold eyes..."

"Mary, why do you love him so much?" Victor clenched his fists as words spluttered out through gritted teeth. "Is that guy worth your tears?"

"It's not just him. I can't handle my aching heart." Mary took a deep breath and said, "If I hadn't met you by chance today, I wouldn't have opened my heart to anyone. I'm so pathetic, aren't I? I don't even have a friend to share my feelings."

"Am I not your friend?" Victor's eyes softened as he rubbed Mary's head. "Don't shy away from sharing your feelings in the future. I don't have friends either."

"Victor..." Mary's nose went sore as she looked up to see Victor's eyes filled with emotions. Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

"Mary." He frowned and said after a long pause, "Are you crying because of what happened between William and Frank? You know about it, don't you?"

Mary's lower lip trembled. "V-Victor, you..."

"It has been a long time since I found out..." Victor pressed his lips in a thin line to suppress the hatred and pain in his eyes. "About them."

Mary's face turned pale. "You... Do you know everything?"

"I found out a long time ago. If you see it as I do, you won't feel anything." Victor stared at the distance blankly. "You will not be this depressed after hearing my story."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Victor leaned back on his seat and fastened the seat belt. Just as his foot stepped on the gas pedal, the car moved forward and paced on the road. "I'll take you to a quiet place. Some things are meant to be explained slowly."

Mary nodded silently. She was speechless by Victor's words. Did everyone know except Mary? Why would they keep her in the dark? Mary's eyes watched the vehicles passing by in a daze. Perhaps William signed the contract with her because he thought she was too stupid.

The car stopped before a private club at the People's Square in A City. Victor slipped out of the vehicle and entered the club, leading Mary to a private box.

"Do you want to eat something?" Victor sat on his leather seat, glancing at Mary.

"No, thanks." She shook her head. Her mind was focused on everything except food.

"Surely, you would be bored by listening to the story, but desserts can bring us some excitement." Victor turned toward the waiter standing beside him. "Two macaroons, one cappuccino, and one orange juice."

"Okay, please wait a moment."

Mary's gaze drifted outside the window, where she could see people walking back and forth in the square. The beach in front of the square was full of couples and friends. Many girls in swimsuits dashed toward the water as the morning sunlight of the summer embraced their bodies.

The sound of the door attracted Mary's attention as the waiter entered and served the desserts. He left the room, closing the door behind him. "I know they are gay." Victor silently gazed at the cup filled with drink and picked it up. "But you found out before I could tell you."

Mary tightened her grip against the cup.

"You didn't know anything about William and Frank before marrying him, did you?"

"No, I didn't." Mary sipped her drink that soothed her dry throat.

"I was wrong about you, thinking you worked with William and Frank. But then, I realized that you are innocent."

"Ah..." 'So this is why Victor said those words when we met for the first time. No wonder he kept asking whether I knew about Frank or not. This turns out to be the reason behind everything, ' Mary thought.

"Do you want to know what happened between them and me? Why do I dislike William?" Victor asked in a hoarse voice.

"Yes. Tell me." Mary nodded.

"I had just started my career five years ago. I had nothing back then." A bitter smile graced Victor's lips. "I played all kinds of roles, accepted several small advertisements, and even drank with clients."

Mary frowned. She had heard something like this after coming to AJ Group three years ago, but she didn't expect Victor to have also experienced such things. "When I joined AJ Group, you were already a big star."

"Well, you joined AJ Group too late." Victor's eyes softened as he looked at her. "It went on for a year. And then I encountered my turning point. It was on New Year's Eve, four years ago. My assistant told me that there was a job. I didn't want to go, but he assured me of William's presence."

He paused and sat back. "William, in my opinion, has always been beyond my reach, so I agreed without hesitation."

That guy had always been beyond reach for Mary as well. She silently agreed in her heart. No matter how long she had been with him, William remained the same.

"It was in a large private box inside a bar filled with men, women, unknown stars, and senior leaders of the company. That was when I met Frank for the first time.

He was sitting right next to William. I thought he was also a new artist, wearing a white designer shirt. After a while, someone finally told me he was the young master of Intoxicating South Restaurant Chain.

Back then, I had just brushed it off, surrounding myself with a lot of people. I drank so much that I had to rush toward the restroom. But when I opened the door, I found something that I could never forget. " Victor smiled bitterly. Mary could guess what he saw that day. He must have seen the same thing. Both of them shared the shock of seeing the live show.

"They were standing before the washbasin, with Frank facing his back to me. It didn't take time for me to find out what they were doing." Victor took a sip of coffee, lowering his eyes to gaze intently at the drink. "I was scared.

William glanced at me with his cold eyes. I wanted to close the door and run, but it was too late. He pushed Frank away, and the latter squinted his eyes at me. I instantly realized that I was finished."

Mary pursed her lips. She didn't want to listen anymore.

If Victor had found out the boss's secret, he should have been banished, or at least suppressed. But he reached new heights. How did that happen? Mary didn't dare to think about it.

"What's wrong?" Victor paused to see sympathy in Mary's eyes and smiled indifferently. "I have been hiding this secret in my heart for so many years, and today I can finally share it with you. You should be happy for me, you know?

Anyway, I was trembling in fear by the time I returned to the private box," Victor continued in a daze. "They didn't follow me immediately. Frank walked in after a few minutes and sat beside me. He drank wine silently without mentioning anything about the restroom. Of course, I didn't want to drink, but I had no say in this. No matter what his intention was, I had to bite the bullet and drink it. But I didn't expect the wine to be drugged."

Drugged! Mary's eyes opened wide in shock.

Victor was silently gazing at his cup for a long time. He could still feel lingering pain in his heart. "That night, I was sent to the hotel. I didn't know who carried me all the way to the room, but I could see strange men standing above me through blurred eyes back in the hotel. The drug took effect, and my limbs were too weak to stop them from whatever they were doing to me. So, I could only..."

"Oh my God!" Mary covered her mouth, not daring to imagine what Victor went through. It was too humiliating for a straight guy like him! No wonder he hated Frank so much!

The rims of Victor's eyes went red. He sipped his drink and tried his best to restrain his trembling voice. "Frank threatened me with a video. Even if he hadn't done that, I wouldn't have said anything

about them!"

"Victor..." Mary opened her mouth, but only air flew through her parted lips. She didn't know how to comfort Victor.

"When William came later, I thought he would help me. I am his employee, after all. But he made it even worse!"

Victor clenched his fists as veins popped on his forehead. "He looked at me coldly before putting the tape back in his pocket. After that, he said with an emotionless voice that he would make me the most popular star of the company. I will never forget that arrogant and self-righteous attitude. I don't care about his pity.

But I really didn't have any choice. In their eyes, we are nobodies, and they have the right to make decisions on our behalf. William kept his promise and made me famous in just three months. I held back my anger and could only go against him bit by bit. It was a lousy trick, wasn't it?"

"Don't say that, Victor..." Mary shook her head, "I didn't know you..."

"Will you despise me because of that?" Victor raised his head and stared at Mary with seriousness floating in his red eyes. He looked as if on the verge of crying, having a pitiful look on his face.

Mary put her palms on his hand and squeezed gently. "How could you think like that, Victor? How can I despise you? You look so handsome when you smile. You are the star that everyone admires most."

"But I'm dirty."

"No, you are not. You don't know how beautiful your heart is!" A playful smile formed on Mary's lips. "Don't worry. I won't share your story with anyone. In my heart, you are still the same as before. You are still the star I know: Playful, serious, and occasionally considerate."

Mary tried to break the tensed aura that was surrounding them in this private box.

The corners of Victor's lips curved up. "That's good. Do you feel better after listening to my story? Now that you know about the truth, you'd better be smart the next time. "

"Yeah..." Mary nodded. "I will be smart in the future. "

She squinted her eyes at the cup in her hands. Mary wanted to tell Victor about her contractual marriage. But on second thought, it was the matter between her and William. If he realized that Mary had told others about it, she would be fined with liquidated damages. She didn't want to spark the conflict between Victor and him.

Averting her eyes from the cup, she stared at the dark sky outside the window. It seemed that the two of them chatted in the club for hours, dispelling all the depression in their hearts.

A soft sigh escaped her lips. 'That's it. I should give up my hopes for peace.'

"How about I invite you to dinner?" Victor saw Mary raising her eyebrows at his sudden remark. "I miss the dinner we had in the sidewalk snack booth last time. "

"Okay." Mary nodded. She needed to find something to drown her sorrows.