Chapter 5

Instantly,Leo clung to me,crying out at the group.“You bully my mommy,and my grandpa will never forgive you!My grandpa is Marcus Thorne!”

His words were met with a brief silence,followed by an even louder roar of laughter.

“Marcus Thorne?The'Ghost of Wall Street'who never appears on any magazine cover?You little liar,you might as well say your grandpa is Superman!”

“This kid is full of lies.His mother must be a terrible influence!”

Leo was overwhelmed by the vicious voices.He kept crying,“I'm not lying!I'm not a liar!”

He had grown up surrounded by the love and protection my father and I had built for him.He had never seen how ugly people could be.

He buried his head in my chest,his body trembling with sobs.“Mommy,I'm not a liar…Why are they saying that…?”

Seeing the situation spiral out of control,I had to back down for Leo's sake.“I'm sorry,everyone.My son doesn't know any better.We'll pass on the necklace.”

But as I tried to leave,Damian's teammates surrounded me.

“Trying to leave now?Too late!”

“Weren't you acting all high and mighty?Scared now?”

One of them,a blond player,looked me up and down crudely.“Or,you could spend a night with each of us,and maybe we can chip in and buy you a replica of the necklace,hahaha.”

Just as his filthy hand was about to touch me,there was a sharp snap.The lucky bracelet Damian had worn for years suddenly broke,its beads scattering across the floor.

He stared at me,furious.“Ava,five years and you've fallen this low?You'll sell anything for money?And have a child with another man?”