Their Queen's Back - Chapter 17: Chapter 17

Sophia's eyes widened in shock, her gaze locked onto Skye's face—that aloof, noble beauty that could topple cities.
Skye said firmly, "If someone wrongs you, you make them pay."
Sophia smirked, strode forward, and landed two resounding slaps—one on each of Linda's cheeks.
Linda was completely stunned by the two slaps. She never expected that this little bitch would dare to hit her.
"Sophia! How dare you hit me!" Linda shrieked in outrage.
Sophia pointed at Linda and screamed, "So what if I hit you? Who told you to run that filthy mouth? Linda, how dare you talk about me? You're the disgusting one, the morally corrupt slut! You shameless bitch!"
"Y-you! Sophia! How dare you speak to me like that! You...!"
"How dare she!" Linda fumed, unable to believe the audacity.
Linda pressed a hand to her burning cheek, seething with fury.
Skye crossed her arms over her chest in a leisurely posture, her beautiful eyes shimmering with faint traces of amusement.
"Perfect," Skye murmured approvingly.
"Double it. Make sure Linda pays for what she did to my sister," she ordered. At her command, one of the bodyguards strode up to Linda and delivered a series of sharp slaps across her face.
Linda couldn't even muster a scream—her face was grotesquely swollen like a balloon from the excruciating pain. Before she could process what had happened, she heard Skye speak again.
"You're all fired," Skye declared coldly.
Skye turned to the people who had just grabbed her—all Linda's recruits. Their desperate eyes locked onto Linda, silently pleading for help.
Gritting her teeth through the pain, Linda snarled, "How dare you fire them? They're my people! Skye, I'm your father's lawfully wedded wife!"
Skye's next words shattered Linda's arrogance: "Married? Only people with a marriage license are actually married. So tell me, did you two even get one?"
Linda's face turned ashen, then flushed with rage as she glared daggers at Skye.
Skye was certain that Richard and Linda could never have gotten a marriage license—if they ever did, Richard would have to give up his shares in Hughes Corporation, and that greedy bastard would never part with them.
"Mother made the wisest choice," Skye thought. "Even after her death, she made sure that scumbag couldn't use her money to marry another woman."
"Hey Richard, what's the big rush dragging me to your place? Seriously, what's your problem?"
Richard dragged in a pot-bellied, balding man by the arm.
As soon as Sophia saw the man, the color drained from her face, as if old scars were being peeled away layer by layer, exposing the pain she'd tried so hard to bury.
Linda smirked triumphantly and taunted, "Take a good look, Sophia. You should recognize this man."
Richard panted heavily. No matter how problematic Sophia was, she was still his daughter. How could he just stand by and watch her get bullied?
"George Hill, you goddamn bastard! I trusted you as a friend, and you dared to assault my daughter!"
George was taken aback, spreading his hands in feigned confusion. "Richard, my friend, what are you talking about? I don't understand a word of this."
Richard glared at him and snapped, "Cut the act! Nine years ago, I invited you into my home as a guest, and you dared to lay a hand on my daughter. Are you out of your mind?"
George's face stiffened. Seeing Sophia, it dawned on him—they were digging up old dirt. 'Let's see if you can even make anything of it. That was ages ago. Ridiculous!' he thought with a sneer.
George scoffed, "I have no idea what you're talking about, Richard. If you're going to accuse me, you'd better have proof. Where's your evidence?"
Skye gently wrapped an arm around Sophia and patted her shoulder. "Don't be afraid. He never succeeded. Let's take out the evidence and put him behind bars, okay?"
Sophia's nose tingled as she fought back tears. She nodded firmly and declared loudly, "I have proof!"
"Back then, all the surveillance in the Hughes house was removed—but ours remained," Sophia thought. She kept that evidence for nine years, knowing her father wouldn't help; even if she brought it out, it would be useless, as Linda could easily dismiss it with just a few words.
A flicker of panic crossed George's face. "You little brat! That was ages ago—still spouting nonsense? Richard, control your daughter. Just look at what she's turned into!"
Skye picked up the teapot from the table and smashed it directly onto George's head. In an instant, blood gushed from the wound, streaming down his face.
Linda screamed in horror at the sight.
Skye tossed the teapot aside with a clatter, glaring at George. "You sick monster! I'll make sure you pay for this."
"Y-you...!" George clutched his bleeding head, staring at Skye in terror. "Margaret? No... Margaret couldn't possibly be this young!"
Officer: "George, we've received a report of violence against a minor. Come with us."
As the police clamped the handcuffs on George's wrists, he struggled and protested, shouting, "Why me? What evidence do you have? What evidence?"
Officer said sternly, "We've obtained surveillance footage of your crime. If you keep resisting, we won't hesitate to use force."
Sophia whirled around to face Skye, eyes wide with shock. "Sis, how did you even get...?"
"That surveillance footage... I was sure I'd stored it somewhere safe!" Sophia thought in shock.
Skye ruffled Sophia's hair and smiled. "That's what big sisters are for."
Last night, when Skye heard Sophia say that someone had tried to sexually assault her at sixteen, she immediately ordered Lauren to investigate. But at first, no evidence was found.
Then Skye remembered—Sophia's room had originally been equipped with a surveillance camera.
Skye had Lauren check if Sophia had ever mailed anything out. Sure enough, they found surveillance footage of her mailing something nine years ago.
Sophia nodded and stood quietly by Skye's side. As George was taken away, the fear in her eyes gradually faded, and the secret she'd kept buried for so long was finally brought into the light.
Sophia gazed at Skye, who seemed to shine like a beacon in the darkness—the savior who had finally pulled her out of that living nightmare.
"Dinner is served, Miss Skye, Miss Sophia," the butler announced.
"Very well," Skye replied.
Linda couldn't believe there was still evidence from all those years ago. Fuming, she thought, 'That little bitch Sophia is just too damn lucky!'
Richard gazed at Sophia, his eyes heavy with remorse. No sixteen-year-old should ever have to suffer such trauma.
I remember she tried to tell me, but instead, I slapped her and shouted at her for being a troublemaker, accusing her of making things up for no reason.
"George was a grown man," Richard had thought bitterly at the time. "How could he possibly lay a hand on a teenager like her?"
Back then, swayed by Linda's honeyed words, Richard didn't bother to investigate further. Little did he know the truth was this horrifying.
At this thought, Richard's gaze toward Linda turned cold.
Linda reached out, trying to grab Richard's arm, but he brushed past her without even a glance. Her face darkened with rage as she clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms.
Linda seethed inwardly, "Skye, did you really think these few things could take me down?"
"Dream on!" Linda scoffed inwardly.
Seeing that none of the dishes on the table were to her liking, Linda frowned and snapped, "How could you mess this up? I gave you specific instructions for tonight's meal!"
Unexpectedly, neither the butler nor the housekeeper even spared her a glance—they completely disregarded her words.
"How dare you!" Linda shrieked.
Richard served Sophia a piece of meat, his eyes brimming with remorse.
"If only I had shown Sophia even a little care nine years ago, instead of ignoring her... she wouldn't be the way she is now," Richard thought with deep regret.
After a moment's hesitation, Sophia finally ate the piece of meat.
While Skye, Sophia, and Richard were happily enjoying their meal together, Linda sat alone, her face livid, fists clenched in silent rage, feeling utterly left out.
Linda seethed inwardly, "Just you wait, Skye. I'll make you pay for this!"
Skye caught a glimpse of Ms. Collins's seething resentment out of the corner of her eye, then smirked and ordered, "Someone! Since this meal isn't to Ms. Collins's taste, let's spare her the discomfort of eating it."
As Skye finished speaking, two bodyguards immediately sprang into action. Before Linda could react, each grabbed an arm, gagged her to muffle her protests, and forcibly dragged her out, tossing her unceremoniously right outside the door.
Richard opened his mouth as if to say something, but after everything that had happened today, he just lowered his head and silently focused on his meal.