From Sneers to Cheers: Anthea’s Ascent

Chapter 518
If the system were still with her, she wouldn't be stumbling from one dead end to another.
Just then, her phone rang.
Rebecca took a deep breath and answered. "Dad?"
"Rebecca, how's it going? Did you see Mr. Christensen and Mr. Robinson?" Daly's voice was taut with worry.
She forced herself to sound steady. "Dad, try not to worry. I promise I'll sort this out!"
It had only been a day, and yet half of the Morris Group's assets had already vanished. Of course Daly was panicking.
"Hurry, then. I'll be waiting for your news."
"Okay." Rebecca hung up, her brows knitting in frustration.
Suddenly, a thought struck her.
Midnight Bar.
She remembered the system mentioning once that Daniel was a regular there—- he dropped by several times a week.
So, if she went to Midnight Bar, she'd almost certainly run into him.
It wasn't long before her car pulled up in front of the place.
At the same moment, the black sedan that had been tailing her all afternoon rolled to a stop at the curb as well.
Five burly men stepped out and headed into the bar, one after another.
Inside, the air was thick with neon and the pulse of music-glamour and vice woven together.
Rebecca scanned the crowd, searching for Daniel's familiar face.
Nothing.
Daniel, who was usually so easy to find, had vanished like smoke.

Even so, she refused to give up. She made her way to the bar and ordered an Azure Tropics.

She was gambling-gambling that Daniel was here. If he was, she knew he'd notice her.
Rebecca had barely settled onto the tall barstool when a middle-aged man sidled up. "Hey there, beautiful. All alone tonight?
Mind some company?"
She shot him a look of pure disgust. "Do you really think you're worth my time?"
She didn't notice that, as she looked up, a man standing nearby used the cover of serving drinks to drop a small white pill into
her glass.
It dissolved instantly, leaving no trace.
By the time Rebecca lifted her drink, the pill was already gone.
Azure Tropics wasn't a strong cocktail, but after just one glass, Rebecca's head was spinning.
Her limbs felt heavy, her skin flushed and feverish.
She pressed her fingers to her temples and stumbled toward the restroom.
"Miss, are you alright?" The same man who'd hit on her earlier was suddenly at her side, catching her as she nearly fell.
Rebecca's mind was foggy now, her body limp in his arms. "Hot... so hot..."
The man exchanged a knowing glance with his companions.
Four more men closed in, and together, they led Rebecca out of the bar.
No one paid them any mind-things like this happened all the time in places like these.
The men took Rebecca to a dingy motel on the edge of town.
When Rebecca finally woke again, her head throbbed and her whole body ached -sore, weak, and wracked with pain.
She remembered ordering an Azure Tropics at the bar. After drinking it, she'd gotten drunk.
And then...?

Strangers had led her away.
Suddenly, blurred flashes of the previous night surfaced in her mind-images too awful to bear.
Rebecca's face turned deathly pale.
Was it just a nightmare?

Her hand clenched the sheet beneath her.
Sheets? Where did these come from?
She looked down-and what she saw made her blood run cold. She screamed. "Ah!"
Who were these five men?
How had she ended up in bed with a group of strangers?
Smack!
One of them slapped her hard across the face. "Shut up, you little tramp!"
The pain was sharp and blinding, but it was nothing compared to the terror and shame flooding her.
Trembling, Rebecca choked out, "You monsters! What did you do to me?"
The men burst out laughing.
"Hey, guys, she wants to know what we did last night. Maybe we should help her remember, huh?"
As Rebecca stared at their sneering
faces, then
memories came flooding
back scene after scene replaying in her mind like a film on fast forwarde
She remembered everything.

In that instant, humiliation and horror crashed over her in waves.
Rebecca clutched the blanket to her chest and began to sob.
I'm calling the
call the
Wt belongs to ot
"Go ahead One of them tossed her a phone. If Ms. Morris doesn't care about her reputation, what do a few years in prison matter
fous nobodies
Rebecca froze.
No.
She couldn't call the police.
If she did, it would all become public.
And in families like hers, reputation was everything.