chapter 2

Lucas's POV

When Lucas woke up, he felt a sharp ache in his head that temporarily rendered him speechless. Every single muscle in his body hurts. When he slowly opened his eyes to look around, he realized he was in an unknown place.

How the hell had he gotten here? he thought.

A single bed, a table, and the chair he was sitting on made up the small room he was in.

He struggled to stand up but noticed that his legs were tied tightly together in front while his hands were tied behind the chair.

He pondered how long he had been there as he noticed light leaking through the window. He must have probably been out all night.

His mind immediately began to replay the events of the previous evening. The mess up with Margaret's announcement that she was now engaged to Nicholas Rivers He could still remember making his way towards the stage when he was grabbed by two men.

After the party last night, did she search for him? Even so, she was still his wife. His intellect had convinced him that she had carried out the stunt last night to garner attention, yet something told him that this time it was genuine.

He stuttered, "Why?"

The word barely managed to escape his raspy throat and barely came out as a whisper. Why would Piper dislike him so much? Years ago, she had expressed her love for him. What changed? He thought as his eyes began to get moist.

He heard footsteps outside the room and immediately turned. When the doorknob was turned, Lucas heard the creak of the door being pushed open from the opposite side.

Lucas fought to get out of the chair, but the ropes securing his hands and legs didn't budge.

"Don't worry, you won't be leaving until I say to," Elton Ross said as he entered the room with the two men who had abducted Lucas the night before.

He was able to recognize their faces, and he wondered why he wasn't horrified when his father-in-law entered the space. He ought to have been aware of the man's strategy.

He asked, puzzled, "Why am I here?" as Elton sat on the table.

One of the men in the room handed the man a white envelope as he reached out his hand.

Elton smirked as he took a piece of paper out of the envelope and set it down on the table, as Lucas observed. He murmured, "You're here because I need you to sign this paper."

What paper?" questioned Lucas.

"Your divorce papers..." Elton said it with a devilish grin. "Let's imagine that you both now want a divorce because you regret getting married. You can leave if you sign this," he said.

" What?!" Lucas stumbled in disbelief. Divorce papers from who? He thought. He was certain that Piper would not consent to a divorce because he did not want one. He couldn't understand why her father would go to such trouble to make sure he signed the document.

Elton murmured, "Exactly what I said, Lucas."

"Piper and I never agreed to any divorce, so I don't know what you're talking about, sir," Lucas argued.

"Well, Piper already signed it; your signature is the only thing I need on this document," Elton chuckled. "I never have and never will like you. You made certain that my daughter, who is now married to you, experienced shame every day of her life," he stated.

What the earth was Elton saying? Lucas blinks in confusion. In their union, he was the one who suffered. He was the one who was subjected to daily insults, mockery, contempt, and mistreatment from them. Elton was joking if he believed he would sign the documents without Piper's consent.

"Elton, I won't sign those documents." He added it in a quiet voice. "Not until Piper tells me that this is what she wants."

Elton laughed indignantly and got up from the table. He approached Lucas until he was in front of him, knelt down at Lucas' eye level, and firmly held his jaw.

"Lucas, Piper has already filed for divorce. Don't drag this too far. If you don't sign the paperwork, I'll make you regret it." Elton forewarned.

Any other person would have been frightened of the man, but he wasn’t. Not when his marriage was on the line. He was not going to give in or sign those papers until Piper said that the divorce was what she wanted.

Elton must have noticed the seriousness in his eyes because he smirked and narrowed his eyes before standing up straight. He gave the two men in the room a nod before leaving.

Elton paused at the door, turning back to them. "Make sure he's ready to sign those documents by the time I return." He said this before shutting the door.

For what came next, Lucas was unprepared. The ropes restraining his wrists and feet were released, but before he could escape, he was yanked back and struck hard in the face, shattering his nose.

Before he could react to the blow, the other man kicked him by the side, causing him more pain than he had previously experienced. As they continued to kick and punch him from all angles, he covered his head with his arms when he could no longer take it.

He was unable to move or stand up after they were finished. He had never experienced pain like it in his life and questioned whether Elton would keep beating him up if he continued to refuse to sign the documents because it was agonizing.

He exhaled, and the sheer act of doing so caused him to groan in agony. He slowly shifted his hand to his side and saw that he now had broken ribs.

"Shit!" He cursed in pain as he fainted.

After a brief period of unconsciousness, he was roused by the sensation of cold water on his face. He detected a familiar aroma, and it took his brain some time to process who the voice belonged to.

"Sign the documents, Lucas... A loser like you is not someone I want to stay married to. You don't have anything to give me. To me, you are poor and useless. You don't own any real estate or property. I have to wed Nicholas. My family needs the cash." Piper sneered next to him.

Lucas struggled to stand up and straighten his back against the wall. He brushed away the tears that were about to flow as he stared at Piper. The hatred in her expression was evident to him.

" Money?" He fought to say, "You're... divorcing me... because of money."

"You have nothing to offer to me, Lucas," she mocked. "Absolutely nothing," she mumbled.

"I gave you my kidney," Lucas hissed. "What more could there possibly be?" he yelled.

Standing up, she sighed, "You only saved one life, Lucas... I would have gotten a donor even if you weren't there. Do not assume that since you donated your organ to me, I must continue to be married to you because you are not a hero." She yelled at him, hurling the divorce papers and the pen she was holding onto the floor next to him.

"Fucking sign the papers." She demanded.

He shook his head and refused to sign it silently, but they had different plans. The two men who had assaulted him approached and grabbed hold of him. The other person pushed him to sign the documents while holding the pen forcefully in his hand.

Piper took the papers away from him and walked out of the room without giving him a sidelong glance. He saw Elton with a sneer on his face standing near the window.

"It's finally finished," Elton said, clapping his hands together. "Get rid of this trash and make it clean,” he said to the men in the room before he departed.

Hold on! Lucas wanted to speak. Although he was in a lot of agony and unable to move, he still managed to say, "You will pay for this."

Immediately after Elton exited the room, events occurred quickly. One of the men reached for his revolver and pointed it in his direction. He opened his mouth in disbelief as the man fired the gun at him.

So this was his end, Lucas thought.