The Substitute Bride

Looking deeply into Sue's eyes, Sheryl continued, "I understand. After all, she is your mother and we can't change that but, if you find it hard to reach a decision, we can act as if we never even talked about this and we'll just follow through with my original plan. If ever something goes wrong. we can take action. What do you think, Sue?"

The atmosphere between them was heavy and Sheryl sensed Sue's hesitation. Nevertheless, Sheryl tried to expel Sue's worries, "Mimi, don't think about it too much. Those people know what to do and they won't kill Peggy for real but, terrorize her just enough for her to learn her lesson."

It took a moment until Sue had finally reached her decision. Raising her head, she had courage and resolution in her eyes.

"Alright. I'll follow what Mr. Lu has arranged for me."

It never bothered Sue that Peggy and Allen had been leeching on her but, it struck odd for Sue now that they had gone even further. Their greed was insatiable. Adding to the team was a foxy sister-in-law. Situations were bound to escalate if Sue remained idle and silent.

Born with a kind and loving heart and taught to never fight violence with violence, Sue had finally put her foot down and decided to fight back. "Regarding the money," Sue started, "I'll make sure to pay you back. But, you know Sher, I'm new here and there's no way for me to gather a group of people who are willing to do that for me. Will you be still be able to help me find people who are willing to do this, Sher?" Sue asked.

"Of course. Like I said, I'm here for you." Sheryl beamed. "So, let's focus on this, okay?" Nodding her head firmly in response, Sue clenched her fists tightly. "They've treated me as if I'm just an animal. I'll spare no hint of mercy towards them. I'll never let them have their way with me anymore. I've learned my lesson and it's highly time for them to learn theirs as well." Delighted at Sue's display of prowess, Sheryl smiled. "Great! Don't worry, I'll handle this for you so, there's no need to worry about anything!"

Turning to Sue, Sheryl continued, "Oh, and about the money? You don't have to pay a single penny for it. Your mother and brother will be paying for it instead."

"It's beyond their capability," retorted Sue. A thought struck Sue and it was that, no matter how badly Peggy and Allen had treated her, they were still family. How could Sue stomach the thought to see them die right under her nose? No one wanted to stain their hands dirty thus, all she could do was to offer a deal for an undisturbed, peaceful life. For Sue, that was priceless.

"I'll definitely pay you back, Sher," Sue asserted. Seeing how Sue was set on paying Sheryl back, Sheryl knew she couldn't say no. "It won't be easy but, I hope you'd be patient with me about it," Sue added in, weakly laughing as she did so.

Innumerous times had Sheryl helped Sue throughout her entire life. It was, as if, Sheryl was the only person who had looked at her as an equal. No words could express how Sue was thankful for Sheryl. Despite how thankful Sue was for Sheryl supporting her, Sue still wanted to thank her in return, which was to pay that amount to the best of her abilities.

Everyone knew that 500, 000 was, in no way, a small sum.

"Let's settle all of that on

ue, who failed to hide her bitterness as Peggy trotted away with the bank card in her hands. "My goodness. She acted as if she was going to die if she stayed any longer." Sue wryly smiled and sighed.

Patting Sue's shoulder, Sheryl tried to lighten up the mood. "It's alright. It's not the first time you knew her true colors, so don't feel sorry. She's not even worth your attention or your emotions."

Turning to Sheryl, Sue had a smile etched on her profile, but it wasn't one of happiness. Rather, it was a smile of pity. "I don't feel hurt. I just pity her," Sue responded.

As soon as Sue finished her sentence, she turned her heel and headed back upstairs. Despite her words, Sheryl knew that Sue was once again victimized by her mother. As Sue's friend, Sheryl chose not to follow Sue up the stairs and decided to give her personal space as Sue needed time to take in her emotions, after all.

From there, Sheryl found the time to send the note to Charles and left him to handle everything as he had her complete trust.

Despite having a nice house to live in, Sue still had to attend work every day. It wasn't all bad, as with Sheryl, Sue was not alone.

Noticing that Sue and Sheryl were terribly close with one another compared to the past, Holley quickly asked Sue to get in her office and got to the bottom of things between Sue and Sheryl. The moment Sue arrived, Holley didn't spare a second for Sue to even greet her and shot the question immediately, "What has gotten into you?"

"What?" Sue replied with a confused expression. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm asking about you and Sheryl." Holley frowned. The questions kept on coming. "I think I made myself clear. You understood and agreed, didn't you? Since when did you and Sheryl become friends again?" Holley spat out, her words growing more firm. "Aren't you afraid that she'll..."

"Miss Ye," Sue cut Holley off. With eyes full of resolve, Sue continued, "I have made a big mistake. Sher was never the person I perceived her to be. I had gravely misunderstood her. Sheryl is a woman with a good heart and it pained me to only know that now as I was blinded by my own judgement. I'm terribly sorry."