Chapter 4

"Adrian said you're allergic to wasabi. I thought he was exaggerating."

"Turns out it's true."

"So funny."

Adrian's face darkened, and he reached over to cover her mouth.

"Enough."

Lily pried his hand away, looking innocent and curious. "Why can't I say it? Didn't you tell me all this yourself?"

When I was little, someone deliberately played a prank on me. They mixed a huge amount of wasabi into my food, and I nearly didn't make it. After that, I rarely mentioned my allergy in front of others.

I never thought Adrian would take my pain and tell it to Lily like a joke.

Lily tilted her head at me. "Elena, does the beef with wasabi taste especially good?"

I raised my hand and slapped her hard across the face, then asked coldly, "How does my slap taste?"

Adrian stood up immediately and blocked her. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Lily was just joking with you. Besides, you're still alive, aren't you?"

I picked up my bag from the chair and gave him an indifferent look.

"Adrian Black, we're over."

He froze, instinctively trying to follow me, but Lily grabbed his wrist, crying.

"My face hurts so much. Will it scar? Will it leave a mark?"

Adrian stopped in his tracks and softly tried to soothe her.

"I'll take you to the hospital right now. You'll be fine."

I walked out of the restaurant and immediately flagged down a taxi to the hospital.

They probably knew I loved beef, so the wasabi in that plate was nearly fatal. I only took a few bites, but it still messed me up badly.

Even the doctor shook his head after examining me.

"You know you're allergic, yet you don't pay attention when you eat out. You don't take your own health seriously at all."

I took medicine at the hospital and lay there for a few hours. When I felt a little better, I got up to leave.

When I went to the front desk to pay, the staff handed my card back.

"Sorry, ma'am, but there's insufficient balance on this card."

I was momentarily stunned.

This card was the salary card I used specifically for savings, holding all the money I'd saved from years of work. And the medical fee this time wasn't even a thousand.

After paying with what little was left in my payment account, I immediately called Adrian.

Only he knew my payment password. It was his birthday.

Last month, when my phone broke, I'd logged into my bank account using his phone.

When the call connected, he didn't hide anything.

"I transferred the money."

"Lily's face is hurt from your slap. The doctor said she might need reconstructive surgery if it's serious."

"This is the compensation you owe her."

I could no longer keep my composure and cursed him out angrily.

"Adrian Black, have you lost your mind?"

"If I really had that much strength, I would have slapped her unconscious straight away."

"Transfer my money back right now."

Lily snatched the phone. Her voice carried a malicious laugh.

"If you want it back, sure. Come to the fourth floor of the hospital right now and let me slap you a few times to vent, and I'll have Adrian transfer it back."

"Impossible. In your dreams."

I refused outright.

Adrian's voice came back on, cold as ice.

"Then consider this money your compensation to Lily for emotional damages."

"When you're ready to come apologize, that's when I'll return it."

The call was cut off.

I was shaking with rage.

The next second, I dialed the police directly.

"I want to file a report."

"Someone illegally transferred assets from my account without my knowledge."

"The amount involved is three hundred thousand dollars."