Chapter 5 As Long As You Accompany Him for Ten Days

"William, what the hell are you talking about?" Laura's eyes were red, tears streaming down her face like broken pearls.

"When did I ever fall for someone else? Mom and Dad wanted me to marry you, so I waited. When did I ever have the chance to like someone else? You... you get up, get up and talk!"

William's eyes were bloodshot, a near-madness flickering in them.

"Laura, I want you... I want you right now..."

Just then, a series of urgent, powerful knocks on the door broke the tense atmosphere in the room like a thunderclap.

Following that was the worried and anxious voice of William's mother, Olivia Martinez: "William! Laura! What's going on in there? Laura, are you okay?"

Laura's heart tightened, as if a savior had arrived.

She mustered all her strength and shouted, "Mom! Mom! Help me! William, he..."

Before she could finish, William rudely interrupted her.

But in his crazed eyes, there was also a flicker of fear towards his mother outside the door.

"Laura! William! What's going on in there? Laura!" Olivia's voice was filled with urgency and determination, as if it could penetrate the door and reach inside.

"Mom! Come in quickly! William, he... he looks so scary..."

"William! Open the door!" Olivia's fists pounded on the door like raindrops.

She had noticed the door was locked from the inside, so she screamed in desperation, "I'm telling you, if you dare hurt Laura, I won't forgive you! Open the door!"

"William! Open the door right now!" William's father, John Smith, was also pounding on the door, "If you don't open the door, I'm going to break it down!"

"Get away! Everyone get away! No one is allowed to come in!" William's voice was distorted by alcohol and anger, he screamed madly, "Laura is mine! She can only be mine! No one can take her away! She's mine! Mine!"

The situation was critical, and John didn't hesitate any longer. He took a few steps back, gathered his strength, and charged at the door.

With a loud bang, the door finally gave way under the continuous impact.

Without hesitation, the two of them rushed in. Olivia quickly turned on the room's light.

The sudden bright light made William squint, and his actions paused for a moment.

Taking advantage of this gap, Laura used all her strength to push him aside, grabbed her nightgown, and ran behind Olivia, crying out in fear, "Mom! Save me! Mom! William almost... it was so scary!"

"Laura! It's okay, it's okay..."

Seeing her disheveled and disordered appearance, Olivia's heart ached. She quickly hugged her tightly, gently patting her back and comforting her softly, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, Mom's here, don't be afraid."

"Mm," in Olivia's embrace, Laura's emotions gradually stabilized. She nodded, sobbing softly, her body still trembling slightly, clearly terrified.

"Mom, you need to check on William. What's wrong with him? He... he never used to be like this. Why would he come to my room in the middle of the night and try to..."

Before she could finish, John, already furious, grabbed William by the collar and lifted him up, shouting angrily, "You little punk! What the hell are you trying to do? Huh? How dare you bully Laura, are you tired of living?"

"Smack!"

As soon as he finished speaking, John raised his arm and slapped William hard across the face.

William was left dazed, his face burning with pain as if it were on fire.

Soon, his cheek swelled up, with five bright red finger marks clearly visible, and a trickle of blood slowly oozing from the corner of his mouth, a shocking sight.

The pain from the slap sobered William up a bit from his drunken stupor.

He shook his head, the scene before him gradually coming into focus, and he saw Laura's terrified expression.

At that moment, he seemed to realize what he had done. He broke free from John's grip and stumbled towards Laura.

"Laura, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have treated you like that! But... I... you have to save me! I don't want to die, I really don't want to die!"

"What? Die?"

William's words shocked everyone in the room, as if they had heard something unbelievable.

"William, what are you talking about? What do you mean die? Who's going to... kill you?" Laura, no longer caring about her exposed body, asked in a trembling voice.

"I..." William couldn't help but think of that cold face, shivering all over, and shouted through gritted teeth, "Laura, you have to save me! I... I owe a lot of money, and if I can't pay it back, he's going to kill me, kill our whole family..."

The bloody words left everyone stunned, as if the air had frozen.

After a moment, it was John who first regained his composure. He gave a simple order, "William, come with me. Olivia, help Laura get dressed. We'll talk in the living room."

The living room lights finally came on, illuminating four faces filled with despair.

As William recounted his story in broken sentences, everyone felt a disaster silently approaching, inescapable and unavoidable.

Laura's face was pale, but her voice was unusually calm.

She looked at William's shame-filled face and asked quietly, "William, are you saying... you secretly gambled to win more money to marry me, and ended up losing... over two million dollars?"

"Yes..." William hung his head, unable to look at Laura's stunning face, like a child who had done something wrong.

"Laura, I just wanted to win more money so you could have a good life after marrying me. But... I didn't expect to lose so much..."

"Gambling always has more losers than winners. Didn't you know that?" Laura laughed bitterly, tears streaming down her face.

"Besides, I agreed to marry you. Did you think I was after a rich life? William, you..."

What could she say now? It was too late for anything.

"I was foolish..." William hesitated, knowing it was too late to say anything now.

They were just ordinary people. William was just a small cashier. Laura was just a regular teacher at a school for the deaf. John and Olivia ran a small clothing store. Their combined income barely covered their living expenses.

Over two million dollars was an astronomical figure for them.

How could they repay it?

Olivia looked at her son, crying even harder than Laura, as if she could already see William's tragic end.

"William! You idiot! Owing that much money, even selling you wouldn't be enough! How can we help you?"

William looked up at Laura, his lips trembling, unable to speak.

But he knew very well that if he couldn't repay the money, that man would really kill him!

With a heavy heart and gritted teeth, he said in a trembling voice, "Mom, there's only one person who can save me, save our whole family now..."

After speaking, William's eyes were fixed on Laura.