Ariel's heart pounded as she stared at her new husband, Rhysand. He worked as a bodyguard for the Ocean family and was super strong.
People said he could even take down ten men at once and had once broken the neck of a cheetah with his bare hands. That made him sound really scary.
Her Uncle Eric had always admired him and made him Joseph's assistant so he could learn how to manage the company.
But Ariel knew the real reason the family married her to Rhysand—it was because they wanted Rhysand to work for them.
They just needed to tie him to the family somehow.
Joseph was really surprised when Rhysand walked in suddenly. He stammered, "Rhysand, you…"
But Rhysand didn't let him finish. "President Aimes, the boss asked me to give you a message." His voice was calm, like nothing weird was happening. "There's a big client coming next month. You should take care of them properly." He then placed a fancy business card on the table without even looking at Joseph.
Joseph recovered quickly and gave Rhysand a mean smile. "So what if you're strong? You're just a dog raised by the Ocean family!"
Joseph pointed at the door impatiently. "Get out and close the door."
But Rhysand didn't move. He just stared coldly.
Joseph frowned and pulled out a black card, throwing it at Rhysand's feet. "Fine, I know what you really want—money. That card has three million. That's like thirty years of your salary. Go get some good wine and have fun with some girls tonight. Ariel is staying with me."
Ariel couldn't take it anymore. She yelled, "Joseph, shut up!"
Rhysand bent down and picked up the card without saying anything.
Ariel's mouth fell open in shock. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.
Joseph turned to Ariel and smirked. "See, Ariel? Your husband is just a poor guy. All he cares about is money. You'll have a miserable life with him. Why not be with me? I can give you everything except the title."
Ariel was furious. Her face turned red, and she slapped Joseph. "You're shameless!"
Joseph caught her arm and turned to Rhysand. "Leave, or I'll fire you tomorrow."
Then he turned around and shoved Ariel onto the bed.
Ariel's eyes filled with tears of anger. She kicked Joseph with all her strength, but she was only nineteen and not strong enough to move him.
Then suddenly, the air in the room felt cold.
Ariel looked up and saw Rhysand standing by the bed. His face was blank, but his gloved hand was holding the back of Joseph's head.
Slowly, Rhysand began lifting Joseph's head, inch by inch.
Joseph screamed, "Let go! Let go!"
Rhysand said calmly, "President Aimes, I'll wait for you to fire me tomorrow."
Then, without warning, he slammed Joseph's head into the corner of the table. Blood splattered everywhere!
Before Joseph could scream, Rhysand lifted his head again and slammed it down once more.
"Ahhhh!"
Joseph's screams echoed through the room.
Rhysand didn't stop. He kept slamming Joseph's head onto the table over and over.
No matter how much Joseph fought back, Rhysand's grip didn't loosen.
The sound of Joseph's head hitting the wood, mixed with his cries, filled the room.
The smell of blood made the air feel heavy.
Ariel was stunned, frozen in fear. She couldn't believe how ruthless and terrifying Rhysand was.
Finally, when Joseph couldn't make a sound anymore, Rhysand let go and stood up. He kicked Joseph aside like trash.
Joseph lay there, covered in blood, his eyes rolled back in his head.
Ariel's heart raced in fear as she looked at Rhysand's blood-stained face. His cold eyes made him look like some sort of dangerous monster.
As he walked closer to her, Ariel was terrified. She scooted back on the bed, trembling. "Don't… don't come closer…"
But Rhysand wasn't the type to just ignore what had happened.
"Ah!" Ariel screamed. She tried to run but tripped, twisting her ankle. Pain shot up her leg, and she fell.
Before she hit the ground, strong arms grabbed her waist and lifted her up.
Ariel looked up in a panic and saw Rhysand's serious face right in front of hers. Her mind went blank.
"You twisted your ankle. Don't move or it'll get worse," he said quietly, then carried her in his arms, heading toward the door.
Ariel stayed stiff in his arms, completely in shock.
Wasn't he supposed to be mad at her?
Was he going to hurt her?
Ariel clung tightly to his collar, terrified. Her heart pounded with fear, wondering if he was going to throw her out or even kill her later.
But Rhysand just kept walking, holding her like she weighed nothing.
His body felt warm, and the scent of mint from his skin was calming.
Ariel, despite being scared, couldn't help but feel a strange sense of security in his arms.
Two bodyguards stood by the door and greeted Rhysand when they saw him.
He tossed his black card to them and said, "Open a bottle of wine and get some girls for President Aimes. Spend all three million."
Joseph, still lying on the floor, twitched in fear when he heard that.
"Rhysand, you're crazy! You can't do this to me!" Joseph yelled, terrified. "I'm your boss! I'll fire you tomorrow!"
Rhysand didn't even reply.
He just walked out of the room and into the elevator, carrying Ariel like she wasn't even there.
Half an hour later, they arrived back at the Ocean family's place.
Rhysand carried Ariel toward a small, old house near the mansion and kicked open the wooden door.
The small house was in terrible shape, nothing like the fancy Ocean mansion next to it.
This used to be where the servants lived, but now it was Rhysand's home. Ariel stayed quiet, too scared to ask what was going to happen next.