Michael finished his meal without saying another word before he entered his study.
Seizing the opportunity, Sophia asked Nathan, âDid you snitch on us?â
Nathan rolled his eyes and replied, âDonât you realize that my Mom will send me here whenever sheâs going to have a fight outside?â
Only then did Sophia realize what was going on.
Justin would go with Celine whenever she had a fight outside. Since nobody could meet Nathan at the hospital, Celine would have Hale take Nathan to Michaelâs place in advance so that he could have dinner and stay the night there.
Having learned about it, Sophia patted her forehead. Iâm too careless!
Indeed, there was something wrong with the atmosphere at home after dinner. Even though everyone still watched TV together after dinner, nobody dared to say a word.
Sophia was also in a dilemma, but she had to join this timeâs fight no matter what.
Rosie and her people had left seven cigarette burns on her back. Even though she had gotten the scars removed via laser surgery afterward, she still remembered these scars; she even kept these scarsâ
positions in mind.
She remembered everything clearly, including the seven cigarette burns, the two instances where her leg was broken, and that particular night when she was forced to jump into the river to save her own lifeâ¦
This will be the last time I act wilfully. After beating them up tomorrow, Iâll wash my hands of this and never fool around outside with Celine again.
With that thought in her mind, she grew confident as she believed that justice was on her side.
It was already 10.00 PM when they finished watching TV. Since it was time to sleep, Sophia went back to her room.
Suddenly, Michael beckoned to her. âCome here, chica.â
This was the first sentence Michael had said to her after dinner. Despite her heavy heart, Sophia walked toward Michael upon hearing his words.
She knew that Michael probably wanted to persuade or scold her, but she was determined to goâ¦
Michael entered the cloakroom without saying a word, and Sophia followed suit.
Michaelâs cloakroom could be compared to a small department store with its ample space and superb collection of clothes and accessories.
Having entered the cloakroom on this day, Michael stood in front of the rack where the watches were displayed. After pressing a button, the display rack split in two, revealing a secret room inside.
Sophiaâs eyes widened in astonishment when she saw the secret room. Displayed inside were several firearms and cold weaponsâthere were boxing gloves, cudgels, brass knuckles, light submachine guns, and smoke grenadesâ¦
Michael entered the secret room with Sophia behind him. Her eyes shone with amazement as she looked left and right at the weapons displayed.
Michael opened a glass box using his handprint; inside the box was a golden vest.
He took out the vest and handed it to Sophia. He said, âThis is an âimpenetrable armorâ that I ordered to be custom-made. It canât be penetrated by ordinary cold weapons, but every inch of it costs a lot. Itâs expensive, so wear it only when you really need it.â
Sophia took the impenetrable armor from him with a dumbfounded expression on her face. Is this for me?
Following that, Michael took out a black skin-tight battle suit and said, âThis is bulletproof and tear-
resistant. The first thing that comes to a personâs mind when fighting with women is to tear their clothes, but this suit canât be torn. Itâs also comfortable to wear in the summer since it dissipates heat quickly.â
Huh?!
Michael took out a lot of equipment continuously. âThis is a brass knuckle; it protects your hand and hurts your opponent a lot when you punch them. This electric rod will inflict severe pain and render one unable to fight for 30 minutes upon touching the human body; use it with your insulated skin-tight battle suit. This is a teeth protector; it can be used to protect your teeth.â
Holding the pile of equipment in her hands, Sophia was puzzled for a while before she realized what was going on. Michael knew that he couldnât stop her, so he decided to find some better equipment for her instead. That way, she wouldnât be at a disadvantage when fighting outside.
Sophiaâs eyes gleamed as she stared at the tall figure standing before her eyes. Indeed, my hubby is the best!
Michael took out more equipment and said, âEars and knees are the weakest parts of the human body, so take care and protect your knees and ears well. Wear this helmet to protect your ears and headâitâll prevent your opponent from pulling your hair.â
The more Michael acted like this, the more guilty Sophia felt. She swore inwardly, This is definitely the last time! Iâll make sure to be a dutiful wife, loving mother, noble lady, and socialite after thisâIâll never fight again! Iâll fight just this once! Just once is enough for me!
The next day, everyone met at the agreed venue on time at 11.30 AM and set out together to the place where they would fight with Benâs men Among the several vehicles parked together, Celine and Justin shared a car. Justin wore a pair of boxing gloves without saying a word. On the other hand, Celine didnât wear any boxing gloves, for she liked to fight with naked fists. Otherwise, how could she get physical with the young boys?
Sean, Stanley, and Sarah were in the same car. They seemed to have just come from the company after work, for they were changing their shoes.
Seeing that Sophiaâs car had arrived, Stanley wound down the car window with a lollipop in his mouth.
He mocked, âHey, Sophia! I thought Uncle Michael locked you up at home since you didnât come to work today!â
Sophia wound down her car window to reveal a cold and beautiful face. Dressed in a black skin-tight battle suit, she wore a black helmet and brought a black electric rod with her.
This appearance of hers invited another round of ridicule from Stanley. âWow! Will you be fighting or attending a comic con? Who are you cosplaying as?â
âWhatâs wrong? Do you have any objections to this?â
A deep male voice spoke from inside Sophiaâs car, catching Stanley off guard and startling him so much that his lollipop fell out.
It was only then did Stanley notice someone sitting in the passenger seat of Sophiaâs car. Also dressed in a black battle suit, he had half of his face covered using a black face mask while staring coldly at Stanley.
âPfft!â Stanley was so frightened that his legs turned to jelly. âWhy are you here, Uncle Michael?â
What?! Is Michael actually here?!
Then, a third voice spoke from inside Sophiaâs car. âWhat do you think? Weâre here to fight, of course!â
There was another person in the back seat, and his flashy blonde hair shone with dazzling golden light that even the glass window didnât seem to be able to block.
Stanley felt that his worldviews were being challenged.
Michael and Harry are actually here to fight with a bunch of high school students?! Is it proper for an anonymous Bayside City citizen and Mr. Winston, the lord of Bayside Cityâs underworld, to fight with a group of high school students?!
Sophia had driven off first before everyone could respond.
They would be fighting with Benâs men under a bridge in Riverdale. Sophia happened to be familiar with the place since she had lived there previously.
Their cars soon arrived near the bridge, and everyone got out of their cars and walked to the place.
The bridge crossed the river, and it was very wide. Not only was the space under the bridge warm in winter and cool in summer, but it was also sheltered from wind and rain. Moreover, this place was secluded; several homeless people would live here.
Some gangs would also fight under the bridge since nobody would discover the dead bodies if there were any. Whenever the riverâs tide rose, this place would be flooded and everything would be washed away.
Standing under the bridge, Sophia recalled everything that happened in the past; it seemed like her blood had become frozen at that very moment.
She had stayed here for over a month before Joe discovered her here and took her away. However, she never expected to be back here right now.
Michael stood behind her as he patted her shoulder.
Since this place was near the riverbank, there were some strange-shaped jagged rocks here; one could build a makeshift home by putting something on top of two rocks as a sort of roof. Such a makeshift home was warm and sheltered from the wind, so it was suitable for the homeless people to take shelter.
My chica used to stay here⦠It must be very cold at night!