Chapter 2

Emma was hospitalized. The next day, James personally brought breakfast to her hospital room.

“I’ve already called the police about last night’s incident. Intentional assault will get her in jail for years. Emma, I promise she won’t show her face in front of you again.”

A promise? Last night, he had made the same solemn promise that he had sent Charlotte out of Eldoria and now she was at the banquet.

After seeing James off, Emma received news. The necklace her mother had left her had appeared at an underground casino near the former Calderon Walled City.

This was her mother’s only keepsake and her heartache for many years. Without hesitation, Emma went alone.

But when she pushed open the door, sitting behind the velvet gambling table, was none other than Charlotte, who should have been in prison! Her makeup was impeccable and a mountain of valuable chips lay before her.

Where was the image of the impoverished cleaning lady? Emma gave a self-deprecating laugh. The so-called departure from Eldoria was a lie, the imprisonment was a lie; only James’s deception was real.

Their eyes met and Charlotte smiled smugly, opening her palm. “Mrs. Nicholas, what a coincidence, looking for this?” In her palm lay the jade necklace her mother had left her.

Emma felt her blood rush to her head, then freeze instantly. “Does James know you’re wasting his money in a place like this?”

Charlotte’s expression stiffened. “Mr. Nicholas arranged this job for me; I was just playing around…”

Emma ignored her, walking straight to the person in charge. “I want to redeem this necklace.”

She hadn’t even touched the supplementary card James had given her; she had easily won back the necklace.

Before leaving, Emma turned back and said calmly, “Please thank Mr. Nicholas for his generosity in keeping this necklace for me temporarily.”

That evening, as Emma was polishing the necklace, James returned. He loosened his tie and casually asked, “I heard you went to Calderon Walled City today and even gambled? You even humiliated a young girl, winning all her money and embarrassing her in public? Emma, when did you become so undignified?”

Emma paused, wanting to explain. But James didn’t give her a chance. He walked to the liquor cabinet, poured himself a glass of whiskey and looked at her with a mixture of disappointment and understanding.

“Charlotte worked as a croupier in the Norvanya casino back then because of financial necessity, just like... when we first came to Eldoria, didn’t you dance in bars in Lunaris to earn more money? Why make things difficult for each other, clinging to past embarrassments?”

The word “embarrassment” was like a resounding slap across Emma’s face. She jerked her head up, staring at him in disbelief.

Years ago, her family had fallen on hard times and she had come to Eldoria with James. After finishing work late at night, James would always squeeze into their cramped room in the tenement building, tenderly massaging her aching calves, vowing to give her a better life.

Those shared hardships they had endured together, through thick and thin, were now described by him as accusations of her being undignified and “shameful.”

That night, they parted on bad terms. The next day, Emma received a message from James: [Emma, the pendant on your mother's necklace is a little loose. If you want it, come to Calderon Walled City.]

Emma gripped her phone, her knuckles turning white. That place was the underground casino from yesterday. James wanted to use this method to force her to go back and face Charlotte.

Pushing open the casino door, Emma met a boss who had once been interested in her. That boss had tried to seduce her because of her beauty, but James had dealt with him with ruthless methods, after which he left Eldoria. She never expected their reunion to be in this way.

Lucas stared at her, then suddenly laughed. “Mr. Nicholas, you’re quite the gentleman. To redeem that female croupier, you actually used your own wife as a bargaining chip.”

Emma then realized that Charlotte had lost the bet and Lucas wanted to take her away.

James refused, so he used her as the wager to get Charlotte back. The game began. Emma, pale and cold, watched the man strategizing with such confidence.

Long ago, James had also made his fortune in this way, back when he didn’t have the power to control everything he had now. She had also been forced into becoming a bargaining chip. When she sat down at the table, James trembled. He was terrified that one mistake would cost him her.

Now, his calm and collected face showed no trace of tension. Lucas opened the pot, three sixes. James lost.