“Yes…” Alicia’s discomfort was clear, but Clarisse appreciated the gesture. She showed her around the house, pointing out where the kitchen was and other things she needed to know. Clarisse learned that Victor lived in the same compound with his family but in a separate building. They all had breakfast, lunch, or dinner in the larger building where his parents and siblings stayed. This meant she’d be seeing the family every day, and for some reason, that made her feel uneasy.
“It’s time for dinner,” Ally said, leading her to the dining area before leaving her alone. Clarisse wished she would stay, but now she had to take the next step. She entered the room and immediately felt all eyes on her. The others were eating without saying a word, and she stood there, unsure whether to keep standing, take her food, and head to her room, or sit and join them. But wouldn’t that seem rude?
“You’re already late for dinner. Are you going to keep standing there?” Her mother-in-law’s voice rang out harshly.
“No, Mum,” Clarisse said, walking toward the table. But Noely’s response stopped her halfway.
“Mum? Who’s your mother?”
“Huh?”
“From what I heard, they’re dead. Are you seeing ghosts?”
“I’m… I’m sorry, ma’am,” Clarisse apologized, biting her lip hard as she looked down at her feet.
“Ugh! I don’t care how you do it. I don’t want to feel your existence in my home,” Noely said, dropping her cutlery and walking away. “It stinks here.” Bree eyed her before leaving the dining room.
“You guys made me lose my appetite,” Arthur followed.
The only person left at the table was Victor, seething with fury. He sprang up and walked briskly toward her, grabbing her hair as tightly as he could and dragging her back to their apartment.
“Ahh! Stop! Please stop! It hurts!” she cried, holding onto his hand and begging him to stop, but he was deaf to her pleas. It wasn’t until they reached their apartment that he shoved her to the ground, spraining her ankle in the process.
“What did I warn you about? Didn’t I tell you to make yourself invisible?”
Clarisse remained on the cold floor, sobbing.
“Count your days, because I’m going to kill you very soon,” he threatened.
This was the worst wedding night.
Just as the family wanted, Clarisse became invisible. She didn’t leave the house from morning till night, and the only time she ventured out to fetch food was at midnight, knowing that was the time she was least likely to run into anyone. She avoided Victor the most, sleeping on the couch every night, and sneaking into the storeroom very early in the morning so he wouldn’t see her, as he had ordered. She would only come out once she confirmed that he had left for work, and at midnight, she would turn off all the lights, just as he had instructed, so he wouldn’t spot her when he came home.
She lived like this for about two weeks until one night-a night she would never forget.
Victor was enjoying himself at the club with Klaus, relishing the company of the women around him. He was having a blast when he spotted a figure that looked like Alice. He pushed one of the women off him and quickly stood up, following the figure whose arms were wrapped around the man she was with. He took a closer look and confirmed his suspicion. He followed them until they reached their lodge, watching them kiss and grope each other hungrily as they entered the room. He clenched his fist tightly, furious.
What he had just seen was indeed Alice and Ramses.
He was richer than Ramses, yet she had chosen him over Victor. His anger boiled over.
“It’s all her fault, it’s all that devil’s fault,” he gritted his teeth in rage, punching the wall so hard that his knuckles bruised. He returned to the party, seeking solace in alcohol.
Meanwhile, Clarisse was at home, using needle and thread to carefully sew the clothes she had been working on. She was nearly done. Humming a song to herself, she suddenly heard clattering sounds. She rushed to the sitting room to see what was happening and found Victor, drunk and reeking of alcohol.
“Victor?”
“Alice, she left me,” he sobbed, nearly falling over. Clarisse quickly rushed to his side and helped him stay on his feet. She guided him to the bedroom, laid him down on the bed, and began to help him remove his shoes.
“Alice!” he cried out.
“She’ll come around,” Clarisse said, unsure of how to console him. But he grabbed her wrist tightly.
“It’s all your fault.”
“Huh?”
Before Clarisse could say or do anything, he pounced on her and began kissing her neck.
“What are you doing?” she gasped.
“It’s all your fault,” he yelled, grunting. “And I’m going to make you pay.”
He tore at her dress, shredding it into pieces. It was only then that his intentions became clear to her.
“No, please, please don’t,” she begged, pleading and crying for help. She scratched at his face and back, but he grabbed her by the wrist and pinned her to the cold floor.
“I’ll give you this morning to be visible. Don’t let me see you by the time I’m back,” he said, putting on his suit and grabbing his bag before walking out. He left her on the floor, clutching the blanket tightly to her chest.
She felt as though her soul had been ripped from her body, leaving behind an empty shell. Every second felt like an eternity of pain and shame as she replayed the events of the assault in her mind. Her body ached from the violation, but her heart ached even more from the loss of her innocence. She curled into a ball, her tears flowing endlessly, washing away the last remnants of her dignity.
Ally bowed as she bumped into Victor, who was on his way to work. She had an errand for Clarisse from Bree, so she made her way to the room. When she reached the door, she could hear Clarisse’s quiet whimpers. Upon entering, she immediately understood the situation. Her heart sank, and she rushed to Clarisse’s side, pulling her into a tight embrace. But Clarisse felt no presence, no comfort.
She took her to the bathroom and gently began to scrub her body, but it did little to ease the overwhelming sense of dirtiness Clarisse felt. She felt worthless, utterly alone. She wanted to scream, to rage, to disappear into nothingness, but the weight of her trauma was too much to bear.
“Ally?”
“I’m here with you,” Ally whispered, holding her close. “I’m with you, Clarisse. You’re not alone. I’m going to stay with you.” She continued to scrub her body for her, trying to offer some sense of comfort.
“I want to run away. I want to run as fast as I can, run to a place where there’s no one,” Clarisse sniffled.
“We’ll be fine, Clarisse. We’ll heal. We’ll get through every hardship this world throws at us.”
“But I’m… tired,” Clarisse’s breaking voice pierced Ally’s heart. “The universe? My parents? They’ve all forsaken me. I’m invisible to everyone.”
“Not to me. I see you, Clarisse. I see you,” Ally said, hugging her tightly, letting herself be drained by the weight of Clarisse’s pain. But she didn’t care. She allowed Clarisse to cry and weep as much as she needed to on her shoulder.
“We’ve gotten the signature from Arthur’s family; we can now begin the project,” the CEO said. “But the investment is still too low. We’ll need sufficient funds and additional support once we start.”
“Start the construction.”
“But, sir, the funds are not enough, and there are no investors. Without these, the project will fail prematurely, and that would be disastrous for our reputation. Losing interest and approvals is already a sign of failure.”
“And what have you done so far regarding that?”
“I’ve gathered all the necessary information to approach major investors and have been looking for the perfect opportunity to bring one on board.”
“How rich is he? We don’t just need any investor; we need someone who can invest big. This is an international project, and we should have started by now.”
The CEO chuckled, as did the director, who smiled. “He is the third richest person in the United States, a billionaire.”
This immediately captured Ferdinand’s interest. “The third richest?”
“Yes.”
“How can we get someone like that to believe in us, let alone invest?”
“Well, we have the universe on our side. There’s a perfect opportunity to get him on our side.”
“How? This seems impossible.”
“His grandfather is searching for a bride for him. The man is on his deathbed and wants to see his grandson married before he passes.”
“So…”
“This is where your daughter comes in.”
Ferdinand collapsed back into his chair. “If I’m not mistaken, the person we need is the imbecile-the invisible billionaire, Christian Charles?”
“You’re absolutely right, Christian Charles.”
Ferdinand sighed. “This is not going to be easy.”
(A month later)
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.