10 Tortured

Danish felt that the presence of that village woman had ruined his life. It not only caused a schism between his mother and grandmother, but it also harmed his relationship with his grandmother.

He was relieved to have Ana by his side. That girl always found a way to shape a smile on his lips, as if she could read his mind. With this information, it was difficult to believe that his grandmother disliked her. And her admiration for that village girl who contributed nothing but pain was dubious.

After finishing his work, he went out to lunch with Ana and returned to his office in one hour.

Danish walked into the office building with his head up, eyes shooting ahead in pride, Ana's hand wrapped around his arm. It was common for the employees to witness such a scene. His position as CEO gave him the authority to do whatever he wanted, including display romantic affection in public.

"Good morning, Sir." When he arrived at the reception desk, the receptionist greeted him with a bow. "I came to send you this for your lunch just a few minutes ago, Ms. Luna Yang." She handed him a food package.

His resentment was triggered simply by hearing her name mentioned. He circled his hand around Ana's shoulder, not looking at it. "I've already eaten my lunch," he said coldly before leading Ana to the lift.

"What about the food, Sir?" The receptionist's words simply hung in the air. Danish had lost interest in it.

"Who exactly is Luna Yang?" That man in a white shirt sighed heavily in reluctance when he received that unexpected question while they were already inside Danish's room.

"She is the woman my grandmother insists on me marrying." Ana's chin lifted in surprise. Her eyes were puzzled by what she had just heard.

"That's why she's always opposed to our relationship."

"I apologize." His low intonation conveyed his repentance. Anna gave him a quick back hug, her hand affectionately draping his waist and sinking her face into his back.

"Babe, it's not your fault. I understand that your love is solely for me...forever."

"What if my grandmother continues to force me to marry that village woman?" Ana opened her mouth to console him, jerking her head up. Her soft voice echoed as sonorously in his ears as soothing music.

"Will your marriage change your feelings for me? So, what's the point?"

"What?" Danish turned to face Ana, who let go of his waist.

"We can still see each other; your marriage will have no effect on that. She is merely your status wife, the one with whom you will never share your love because you are only mine." His lips curled up as he listened to her words. There was a vicious smile there.

"You are correct. You are my one and only love, my life's love. Marriage is merely a social status. It will have no effect on anything that occurs between us. My true love is you." Danish drew her in closer and kissed her on the cheek.

Danish's kiss was completed by abrupt knocks on the door. His stern greeting words allowed the visitor to enter.

"In ten minutes, Sir, you have an important meeting with the director of Ahn Shan, a Korean company." As soon as his step brought him closer to his desk, that lanky man in a sharp suit informed him.

How could he have forgotten about that crucial meeting? All of the things that had accumulated in his mind had distracted him these days.

"OK, I'll be in the conference room in five minutes."

***

Along the way back to Grandma Li's house, Luna looked out the car window. Her thoughts drowned her out. In her heart, she wondered if Danish would eat the food she had sent for him.

Her lips flattened in a wry smile, mocking her naiveté in caring about the man who never saw her as a human being.

Danish must have had his lunch by the time I caught him with that girl.

That image of them together resurfaced in her mind. It only made me sad for no reason. What is the point of their romantic relationship bothering her?

Grandma Li had arranged their marriage, but this union would be free of pain and compulsion. She didn't deserve Danish's affection.

"Miss, we've arrived." While opening the door for Luna, the driver reminded her. Her reverie caused her mind to wander so much that she didn't notice the car had stopped in front of the massive structure. She climbed out of the car, smiling at the middle-aged man.

When Luna entered, she encountered no one. The maid informed her that Grandma Li was on business. She felt completely alone in this enormous house without Grandma Li.

She dragged her steps upstairs. But a Sandra stopped her from going any further. She returned her gaze to the woman sneering at her with hidden malice. Sandra Li marched idly toward her.

"Would you mind doing me a favor?" Her soft voice and small smile enchanted her for a brief moment, as if in a dream. Danish's mother was gracious to her.

"Sure," she said as she carefully descended the stairs. "What can I do to assist?"

"Come with me."

Sandra Li escorted her upstairs to her bedroom. Luna kept her mouth shut as she questioned why she had taken her there.

"Clean the floor in the bathroom. Make sure you finish it quickly. When you're done with it, you clean Danish's bathroom as well." Luna couldn't believe what she was hearing. She should not have put her trust in this woman. She had shown her disdain for her since the first day.

She bowed obediently with a puzzled expression, then carried out her instructions.

The shower room appeared filthy and sloppy, as if it had recently been hit by an earthquake. The clean floor had turned dark with dirt, and the toiletries were strewn about. Even the toilet smelled bad. To protect her sense of smell, Luna had to pinch the bridge of her nose.

Looking at the yellow liquid that had tainted the floor and the wall, she almost puked. It was revolting, not to mention the stench that pierced her nostrils.

She couldn't get out of here with Sandra in the bedroom. When her mother was not present, that woman relished torturing her.

Luna was not going to let her win this war. She must demonstrate that she is not capable of controlling and torturing her in this manner. That woman's attempt to eliminate her would be futile. She was, however, used to doing such things. Cleaning was not a difficult task.

Luna completed her task quickly after rolling up the sleeve of her shirt. That wicked woman dropped her jaw in awe as she saw the outcome of her work in such a short period of time. She had no idea what she was capable of. On the contrary, she might expect Luna to cry out in pain and exhaustion.

"It's no surprise you can do it so quickly and with such good results. As a village girl, this is the best job for you." She spoke harsh words about her hard work.

Luna clenched her fists in frustration. She wasn't going to let her rage out. That's what this woman was trying to get her to do. Instead of displaying her true feelings, she irritated it with a fake smile before entering Danish's room.

The woman appeared to have planned everything to bother her. Danish's bathroom was far worse than the previous one, which would sap all of her energy and take all day to clean. The toilet tissue was all over the place. Luna could no longer stand the smell of the bed, so she put on the mask to combat it.

The water flooded the entire area because the tap was still turned on when she entered. Her feet slipped as soon as she shifted her weight, and her buttocks landed tragically on the floor. In pain, she winced. Her pants were soaked by the filthy water. She must be in a bad mood right now.

She began cleaning while standing up in her totter and scanning around in frustration. She had been so preoccupied with her work for hours that she hadn't noticed the time passing so quickly or the door behind her creaking open. When she turned around, the scene in front of her eyes astounded her. A scream escaped her lips. The man in front of her yelled the same thing.

Danish, with his exposed broad chest, glared angrily at her.