Chapter 5. Jack’s True Identity
Seeing Mira say nothing and quietly watching her, Jacintha sighed softly and said, “You have school tomorrow, so try to sleep early.”
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Mira remained still, then suddenly asked, “Sis, who called you just now? Was it those loan sharks? Are they threatening you again by using me and Jack’s safety?”
“No, it was just a friend of mine,” Jacintha replied vaguely.
But Mira wasn’t easily fooled and pressed on firmly, “How much do we still owe those loan sharks?”
“Not much.”
“How much is ‘not much’?”
“Why are you asking so many questions? Don’t you trust me?” Jacintha pretended to be angry, shooting Mira a sharp look. “Anyway, go to bed quickly. I know how to make money to pay off the loan sharks now.”
Mira clenched her fists so tightly her knuckles turned white. She had never felt so helpless and weak before. She couldn’t help Jacintha carry even a fraction of the burden. In fact, Mira knew exactly what “way to make money to pay off the debt” Jacintha was talking about—she would probably have to turn to that man named Raphael again.
But Mira couldn’t expose this truth, because once spoken, it would be like stabbing her sister in the chest. Sometimes, Mira just wished she could die and be done with it. Because if she were gone, the burden on Jacintha’s shoulders would lighten a little, and Jacintha would no longer have to sacrifice her pride by begging money from that wealthy man.
Jacintha and Mira had been together for more than ten years, so Mira knew exactly how high Jacintha’s pride was. She had moral standards she would never break, but for Mira and Jack, she had ‘sold herself’ and become the kind of person she hated most.
Tonight, both Jacintha and Mira tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
Jacintha lay restless in bed, her mind in turmoil. Sometimes the hateful gaze of Raphael flashed through her thoughts; other times, she thought of the heavy, unpayable debt. Over the years, she had only been able to rely on Raphael’s favor to get a small benefit to make ends meet. But now, Raphael no longer needed her services. How could she possibly come up with six hundred thousand dollars in the next three days?
What was she to do now? Should she find a new sugar daddy? Just the thought made Jacintha feel nauseous. She suddenly felt filthy and worthless. No wonder Raphael hated her so much that he bluntly threw her out the moment she confessed her love for him.
Or... should she tell Raphael the real identity of Jack?
That thought suddenly sprang to mind, and Jacintha’s mind involuntarily went back six years. Back then, her parents had passed away, and she could only rely on her younger sister Mira. Mira had a congenital heart disease, her condition worsening, and urgently needed a large sum of money for surgery. None of their relatives were willing to lend her money; some even urged her to borrow from loan sharks.
That year, Jacintha was only eighteen. Even so, she knew well that borrowing at exorbitant interest rates was no different from being drained of blood. It was easy to borrow money but never possible to repay the debt fully. Therefore, she decided to “sell” her virginity for six hundred thousand dollars. This was not a small amount, so she advertised for a whole month without any buyer. Just as she was about to lower the price, a woman claiming to be from the Wulfhart family came to find her and said she wanted to buy her virginity immediately.
The woman transferred the six hundred thousand dollars to Jacintha as soon as she contacted her. Despite being terrified of what might happen to her, Jacintha still went alone to the Wulfhart mansion and allowed them to blindfold her and examine her body.
That night, she trembled beneath the powerful and vigorous body of Raphael. The pain of having her hymen torn for the first time, the tightness inside her womb filled by his large cock, all etched deeply in her memory, and she fainted under his relentless torment. After that fateful night, Raphael disappeared from Jacintha’s life. When she woke up, she found herself lying in front of her house, her pants stained with blood, nearly causing Mira to faint. She had to endure the pain that almost brought her to collapse and lied to Mira, saying she fainted because of menstrual cramps.
Jacintha didn’t know that her lie was soon uncovered by the torn wound on her lip and the bruised handprint on her neck. That night, Mira cried a lot, worsening her condition, and the six hundred thousand dollars was barely enough for temporary treatment.
Because she had to take care of Mira, Jacintha forgot to take her birth control pills, but a few months later, she was horrified to discover that she was... pregnant. This news filled her with fear and confusion. She wanted to find Raphael to tell him about it, but she was afraid he would force her to have an abortion. Thinking about how he had sexually assaulted her, Jacintha didn’t believe he was a kind man. Although living in poverty, she treasured this special gift from God and didn’t want to end the tiny life of the baby on her own.
So, Jacintha had no choice but to continue borrowing from loan sharks. It seemed fate was mocking her because when Jack turned three, she met Raphael once again. At that time, she was cornered by the loan sharks and forced to serve Raphael sexually once more; after that, she became his mistress—until tonight, when he grew tired of her and discarded her.
Her thoughts slowly returned to reality, and Jacintha gave up the idea of telling Raphael the truth about Jack’s identity. She had sold herself many times before, but how could she use her own son to exchange for money? Besides, it seemed Raphael was pursuing Sharon, so he absolutely could not accept Jack as his son right now. In fact, it was very likely he would hate this suddenly appearing child. After long consideration, Jacintha decided she would find Raphael tomorrow to apologize.
Although she had drunk a cup of hot tea, Jacintha still ran a high fever in the middle of the night from getting caught in the rain. She groggily dragged herself out of bed, took a fever pill, then sank back into a heavy sleep. The next morning, Jacintha’s fever had not subsided. Nevertheless, she had no time to go to the hospital because today she had to find Raphael.
Jacintha had served Raphael for two years, yet she still had no direct way to contact him and didn’t know where he currently was. She could only reach Raphael through Lucas.
After calling, Jacintha expressed her wish to meet Raphael. Lucas replied coldly, “The boss is very busy and doesn’t have time to see you.”