Yumi glared at him exactly when he faced Luke who seemed enraged with her actions. "You know that it's hard for me to leave that job. I might die soon if I stopped pleasing men. And of course, I'm saving enough money so I could take my aunt away with this gloomy house of yours. I will do my best to make her stop from being your slave."
"Mother Lingling worked here wholeheartedly and she didn't sell her body. She was working decently to earn. She's honest and—"
"Stop comparing me to my aunt. She's old while I'm young and at her age, night clubs won't accept her if she applies for the job that I'm doing right now." Yumi was also enraged when she cut those words of her ex-boyfriend. Luke really intended to crush her over and over again with his hurtful words. But even so, Yumi still has to take heart because her success depends on if she still treats Luke well despite his bad behavior.
"Instead of letting some men pay you, why can't you just be with me instead?" His voice was full of resentment and agony. But deep inside, he wanted her to stop from leaving and simply take care of her. He really couldn't bear to see how Yumi endured anything for that kind of job every night.
"All I can say is, I'd rather die than be with you, Luke. You aren't that special. It's given that you can pay me well because you have your own company. But I know that I will never satisfy you and you are gonna let me pay for that mistake. Bye." She flipped her hair before she turned her back on him. She quickly went outside the mansion to go outside and wait for the taxi despite the sudden rainfall.
Luke was quick to act and followed Yumi outside. He forcibly grabbed her hands and took her inside his car. "I'm gonna take you there. I want to see how those men's flashes gleam in their eyes whenever they see you. Or if you would allow me, I want to see how they disrespect you, Yumi."
"Can you just let me go, Luke? This is getting out of hand. And I want to clarify that part. Those men didn't disrespect me because I allowed them to pay me while touching me in every part they wanted!" Yumi growled and slightly pushed Luke away from her. Earlier, Luke was trying to kiss her but she succeeded in avoiding him. She's afraid to feel the temptation within her. She couldn't admit to herself that she didn't love any guy like he did to Luke.
"How much do they pay you? I will make it thrice! I asked you not to leave!" Luke angrily held Yumi's wrist tighter than he could.
Instead of answering Luke's insulting question, Yumi slapped his handsome face twice. "When I left this mansion before, I promised that when I come back, I will never allow anyone to humiliate me. Even if we had that past, it will never give you the right to treat me like this just because I am working as a courtesan! I'm not a rag, I'm a human!"
Yumi did her best to get out of Luke's car. At least, she didn't cry in front of him and she thought that she became tougher than she was.
***
Yumi only waited for a taxi when she was completely away from the mansion. After waiting for a few minutes, she got into the taxi and told the driver to take her to a fancy bar in Taguig.
He also quickly sent a message to Madam Sylvia about the progress of his search for Siana.
"Madam, I'm going to a bar where Shiana is located. Someone sent a message of her picture so I might be able to track her down tonight," she said in the text message. She was not satisfied yet and she thought of adding to the message because of what was bothering her.
He clutched his chest as he sat quietly inside the car. After a few minutes, Madam Sylvia finally replied to her message.
"Thank you, Yumi. What else can I help you with? Just tell me, let me know. Huh? Please."
Yumi hesitated first if she would share her problem about the unknown sender who sent her a message about the place where Shiana was located.
"I would like to ask if you know who the owner of this number is?" Attached to the message is the forwarded number of the unknown sender in her message.
Thirty seconds later, she received a message from Madam Sylvia. "Yumi, I'll try to trace this number on the business cards I've saved. Or I'll look for it in my call logs. I'll let you know. Okay? Thank you for your great help."
"Thank you." She put her phone in her pocket for a while as she was gazing at the view outside while the taxi was still moving. Somehow, she was thinking about Madam Sylvia's relationship with Shiana and why she sounded too concerned to the young lady. It seems like Madam Sylvia has been protecting Shiana like her real daughter since then.
'I don't want to assume that they were relatives. I know that Madam was just purely kind even when it comes to other people who aren't blood related to her. But her relationship with Sir Dante is not a secret to me. She asked me to accept her kind offer to study a Criminology course so when I finally finished it, I would be able to find a job where we can seek justice and revenge towards him. But what could be the purpose of revenge when he's already gone? She's still sticking her nose to my mission of spying on Luke's company which he inherited from Dante.' Her thoughts were vivid—but somehow, she has a strong feeling that it all makes sense. Maybe not from now but for sure, her assumptions would surely lead her to a clearer path ahead of her mission.