William Thompson was genuinely furious this time. Was it really that hard to answer such a simple question?
Right hand or left hand?
Hearing those words, Kai Rodriguez felt utter despair.
How had he ended up in this situation?
How had things taken such a drastic turn?
And William's earlier promises to him had been the complete opposite.
Only now did Kai realize he had been deceived.
He had naively believed William would protect him, which was why he had risked provoking Liam Williams.
Now, it was clear he was trapped in a dead end.
With a bitter sneer, a voice filled with hopelessness echoed through the dark room. "The right hand..."
Emma Johnson's heart tightened.
They weren't actually going to chop off someone's arm, were they?
Her body trembled uncontrollably, her cold fingers gently grasping Liam's hand.
Emma bit her lip, her eyes filled with terror and dread.
Over and over, she silently pleaded in her mind, Liam, you have to say something. Help him.
But his face remained expressionless, as if he were completely prepared for this.
His eyes held a bloodthirsty glint, devoid of any sympathy or hesitation.
"Fine. Cut off his right hand. Let's see if he learns his lesson this time..." William waved his hand, and three burly men stepped out from behind him.
Two of them pinned Kai down, while the third picked up a thirty-centimeter blade from the table.
Emma stumbled back two steps, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.
Just as the blade was about to fall, her palms were slick with cold sweat.
Then, she heard a deafening thud—the impact of the blade against the table—followed by Kai's agonizing scream. Everything went dark before her eyes.
She didn't see anything. Not the blade rising and falling, not Kai's cries, not William's twisted face, and not Liam's cold, unreadable expression.
She didn't see any of it.
At that moment, Liam had reached out and pulled Emma close.
He raised his hand as fast as he could, covering her eyes.
He also shielded her from the bloody scene with his own body.
Emma felt a flash of darkness. When she opened her eyes again, Kai was being dragged out of the room by those men.
The strong, metallic smell of blood filled her nostrils, and the crimson everywhere made her nauseous.
For the first time, she truly witnessed such a scene—the cold indifference and cruelty of these people.
It was terrifying. Absolutely terrifying.
As soon as Liam and Emma left the back alley, someone entered and reported, "Mr. Thompson, what should we do now? Kai's hands are useless."
"Useless? Did you really think I could groom him? I have plenty of people under me. Do you think I'd waste my hopes on trash?" William sneered.
For William, the last thing he tolerated was unnecessary fuss.
What did it matter if one or two people had to be sacrificed to achieve his goals?
Besides, he had deliberately used Kai to destroy the Williams family's image. Through this incident, William believed he had discovered Liam's weakness.
With a man's intuition, he could sense that Liam—a man who seemed almost perfect—had a strange look in his eyes when he looked at that woman.
Once Liam had a soft spot, he wouldn't be as formidable as William had imagined.
Thinking of this, a gleam of joy flickered in William's eyes.
But he wasn't the most ruthless one. Looking at his subordinate, he said, "As for Kai... now that his hands are useless, what else can he do? Let him collect parking fees at the bar entrance from now on. That's the best I can do."
The people around him heard this, and even if they had opinions, they remained silent, not daring to say a word.
Emma, Liam, and Christopher walked out of the back alley together. Christopher noticed the sky had already darkened and ran ahead to open the car door.
Waiting for them.
Emma sighed and spoke slowly, "Liam, you could have saved him just now, couldn't you? But why didn't you help him? Is his safety so worthless in your eyes? Not worth your kindness?"
A good person doesn't do much wrong.
But now, he had lost his right hand. How could he spend the rest of his youth?
The more she thought about it, the colder she felt.
Sure enough, in their eyes, ordinary people were no better than dogs.
Liam glanced at her. Though a storm raged in his heart, he remained silent. "You'd better not ask too many questions about men's affairs."
This was a matter between him and William. Whether in public or private, Emma shouldn't be involved.
Besides, Liam had never expected William to make such a shocking decision in front of Emma. Fortunately, Emma hadn't been too frightened.
But reality was different. Liam didn't know how to explain it to this foolish woman.
In that scene just now, William wouldn't let him off easily.
Liam thought clearly. Only by letting William think he had the upper hand would he back off.
"A matter between men? Then why did you bring me along? Why drag me into this mess? Liam, what exactly are you thinking?" Emma said angrily, reaching out to open the car door and get in.
Although Liam's action just now had surprised her and even moved her, what was he really thinking?
One moment he was gentle as water, the next he was colder than an iceberg.
"You're my wife. If I don't bring you, who else would I bring?" Liam was annoyed by her barrage of questions and lost his patience. He simply replied, "Don't forget your identity, Mrs. Williams."
He emphasized the last few words heavily.
As if reminding her of her current position.
Emma swallowed, opened her mouth, but ultimately said nothing.
By the time they got home, it was completely dark.
Liam got out of the car first and walked straight to the bedroom.
Emma watched his retreating back and couldn't help but take a deep breath.
She had just lost her scared soul. If she hadn't been brave, she would have been frightened into illness by William.
The peculiar habits of these wealthy people were truly unbelievable.
When Charlotte saw them return, her eyes lit up with joy. "Madam, did you have dinner with the master outside? Why are you home so late?"
"Charlotte... we haven't eaten yet. If there's anything at home, heat it up and bring it to my room. Liam must be hungry too."
From work until now, she hadn't had a drop of water. Her stomach was growling with hunger.
So Liam must be hungry too, right?
Charlotte nodded and hurried to the kitchen.