Chapter 29

Outside, the wind swept the fallen leaves off the ground, and dark clouds loomed. It felt like a storm was coming.

At Joshua’s place, Mariam noticed the dark clouds and couldn’t stop worrying about Shermaine. She tried calling Shermaine, but it just rang with no answer. She called three times but still failed to reach Shermaine.

Soon, the rain poured relentlessly, and the thunder cracked as the storm raged. Frustrated, Mariam had no choice but to report it to Joshua. “Mr. York, Mrs. York hasn’t come back yet. I’ve been calling her, but she’s not answering. The rain’s getting heavier outside.”

Joshua was in the middle of a business meeting with some important people from Basterel. However, no matter how important they were, their presence dimmed in comparison to his.

“I see,” Joshua said, wrapping up the call. He dialed Shermaine’s number. Just like Mariam said, it rang but no one picked up.

Shermaine didn’t intend to ignore the calls. She heard her phone ringing, but it was out of reach because her schoolbag was too far away to grab.

Meanwhile, Sheila, already battered with a swollen face and struggling to stay on her feet, was still pushing forward, trying to attack Shermaine again and again. She told herself not to give up, not to lose.

Shermaine, on the other hand, dodged with ease, keeping her distance, making sure not even the hem of her clothes got touched. Sheila wasn’t bad in terms of ability compared to others her age, but facing Shermaine, she was just a nobody.

Sheila’s punches started slowing down, yet Ronnie still kept yelling from the sidelines, “Sheila, what the hell is wrong with you? You can’t even beat this chick? You’re embarrassing the Leeds family.”

Seeing Sheila didn’t move, he added, “Get up. Stop playing dead there, okay? Go after her. Come on, you’re so lame.”

The insults hit Sheila like daggers, and her body started to go numb, like she was barely alive. Her head was buzzing from exhaustion.

Shermaine had enough of Ronnie’s nonstop yelling. She raised her foot, aiming a kick in his direction. However, Sheila staggered forward, stepping in to block her.

“I said if you’ve got a problem, come at me,” Sheila shouted, her face twitching, her eyes red like a furious, wounded animal ready to pounce.

Shermaine couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for Sheila, but she wasn’t about to show any sympathy.

Shermaine watched Sheila with cold gazes, waiting for her next move.

After a few minutes, Sheila could barely hold herself up anymore. Gasping for air, she dropped to her knees. She realized that Shermaine was just too strong, and there was no way she could win.

Sheila had lost to others before, but she never felt so defeated as today. It wasn’t because she lost to Shermaine–it was because of what Ronnie had said.

Sheila thought bitterly, ‘I’ve put everything on the line to protect him, but why can’t he see it? Why does he still talk to me like that? I’m his sister, not some expendable pawn to be thrown away.’

Her vision blurred, her body ached all over, and her chest tightened. Then, blood spewed from her mouth, and her body lurched forward, about to collapse.

Shermaine spotted a silver nail on the ground. If Sheila’s head hit it, she’d either be severely injured or be permanently scarred. Without hesitation, Shermaine rushed forward and caught Sheila’s falling head, yet her hand got pricked by the sharp nail.

Shermaine held Sheila’s heavy head with one hand and moved her aside before standing up.

Sheila, not fully unconscious yet, froze upon seeing the scene. She didn’t expect Shermaine to help her in the middle of the fight. Her emotions were a mess now.

The wound on Shermaine’s hand wasn’t deep, but the blood kept flowing. Shermaine’s hand hung by her side, with blood trickling down her palm, slipping through her fingers, and dripping onto the ground. It was a gruesome sight.

Shermaine turned around, her eyes locking on Ronnie.

“Sheila, get up. Do you hear me? Get the fuck up!” Ronnie’s face went even paler, his lips trembling as he shouted.

Shermaine started to walk towards him.

Ronnie couldn’t even crawl away. He could only feel the terror building up as Shermaine walked closer. He squeezed his eyes shut, but it was too late—he peed himself.

His whole body felt like it was falling apart. His face drained of color, and he was as stiff as a statue.

But Shermaine didn’t do anything to him again. She stepped over him, grabbed her bag, and helped Lily to her feet.

Before they walked out of the door, Shermaine said to Ronnie, “Thank your sister. If there’s a next time, no one will be able to save you.”

Compared to the last time when she broke his leg, Ronnie thought being forced to apologize in front of Joshua was a thousand times more humiliating.

Ronnie hated himself for being so useless, hated Sheila for not being strong enough to beat Shermaine, and hated Shermaine for always making him look so pathetic. He wanted her dead.

Outside, the storm raged on. Shermaine casually snatched a set of car keys from someone nearby, then got into the car with Lily and sped off.

Lily, clearly worried, spoke up, “Sheary, these people are rich and powerful. They won’t let this slide.”

“I’ve got it under control. Don’t worry about it,” replied Shermaine.

From the moment Shermaine saw Ronnie, she knew this wasn’t something that could be solved with just a fight. She understood exactly what kind of scum he was.

As they drove to the hospital, the rain began to ease up. Shermaine took her phone out of her bag and checked the missed calls. Mariam had called three times, and Joshua once. She immediately called Joshua back.

Joshua instantly picked up and said, “Always missing calls isn’t a good habit.” His voice was low, with that familiar authoritative tone.

“I was busy just now. Didn’t have the chance to pick up,” Shermaine explained.

Joshua could hear the sound of beeps in the background and guessed she was driving. “Get home soon,” he said, then paused and added, “It’s raining. Drive safe.”

“I’m afraid I can’t go back soon, but I’ll be careful. Just relax.” Shermaine’s tone softened a little, and then she added, “Hey, can you call Mariam for me?”

Joshua responded with a curt “OK.”

He thought to himself, ‘She’s pretty considerate. Mariam called her first, but she called me back instead.’

After Shermaine left, the group of rich kids called 911. They were sent to Yaleview Hospital for treatment, their faces twisted in pain and frustration. Sheila was the worst off–one of her ribs was broken, and both of her hands had soft tissue injuries, now in casts. After surgery, she was sent to a ward.

Ronnie still had the dart in his leg. They had to do surgery to remove it, and although the bone wasn’t hit, the wound was serious enough that it’d take at least a month and a half to heal.

His surgery was scheduled for last, so he was still in the operating room.

Coincidentally, Sheila’s bed was right next to Lily’s.

Lily couldn’t sleep due to the severe pain, and having Sheila so close to her felt creepy. Sheila was still under the effects of the anesthesia, deep in sleep. Two girls were standing guard beside her.

Soon, more people were brought into the same ward. When they saw Lily, none of them had the same bravado they had when they beat Lily. They kept their distance as far away as they could.

The only thing they were grateful for was that Shermaine wasn’t there. They had no interest in facing the nightmare of being on the receiving end of her wrath again. Some even began to wonder if Ronnie’s plan would work.

Amira heard about Ronnie’s trouble very soon because Ronnie had someone call his mother.

The man said, “Mrs. Leeds, Ronnie’s in trouble again. Shermaine beat him up. Please come to the hospital.”

“What? What happened?” Amira, still reeling from the last nightmare, tried to get all the details before making any decisions.

“Well, you know how Wendelyn was bullied by a sales girl at Grandview Mall? Ronnie wanted to stand up for her, so he brought her to our base.

“Turns out that sales girl knows Shermaine. When Shermaine showed up, she didn’t ask any questions but just beat us all up. Ronnie and Sheila got the worst of it.”

Amira completely exploded upon hearing the whole story. “This is outrageous. That bitch has gone too far. I swear I’ll make sure she regrets it.”