After taking a deep breath, Sophia calmed down considerably. She said, "Marcus, you and I have been friends for many years. I do know you a little. Don''t retaliate against me. I will be a good person from now on."


    "How will you prove it?" Marcus asked as he simply pulled out a chair and sat down.


    Sophia had always been timid back then, never daring to resist when Ivan and Ruby bullied her. She kept everything bottled up inside. In other words, she was just a weak and vulnerable bullied pushover.


    "I''ll call Ms. Walker over right now and tell you two who the father of my baby is, as well as the whole story."


    As Sophia spoke, her eyes started to be red-rimmed again. "This whole situation involves both of you, but ultimately, it''s my own fault. I can''t me anyone else. Maybe this is Heaven''s way of punishing me for falsely iming credit!"


    Marcus was speechless, but before he could respond, Sophia picked up her phone and called Natalie.


    "Hello, Ms. Walker? Are you avable toe over for a bit? I have something very important to tell you. Marcus is also here. This matter concerns both of you, but that''s irrelevant. It''s just that I need your help," Sophia exined.


    She looked at Marcus and said, "I''m willing to confess everything. You shoulde over!"


    After a short pause, Sophia nodded. "Okay, I''ll be waiting for you."


    She hung up the phone and smiled at Marcus. "Ms. Walker will be here in a bit. Take a seat!"


    Marcus pulled the chair over and sat down. He was curious to hear what else Sophia had to say.


    Could a person really change this much in such a short time?


    Not long after, Natalie arrived. When she saw Marcus, she didn''t say anything else and simply nodded slightly at him.


    "Sit down." Marcus quickly grabbed another chair over and gestured for Natalie to sit.


    Natalie raised her eyebrow. After all, it was rare to see Marcus being this considerate.


    "Ms. Walker, please sit." Sophia stopped eating and leaned against the headboard. Her eyes still had a faint red tinge to them.


    From the moment Natalie walked in, the fear she had felt when facing Marcus alone hadpletely disappeared.


    "My child''s father is Shane Morgan. He''s the son of Cindy Meloney, the housekeeper from the Walker residence. He''s also Emma''s number onepdog," Sophia revealed.


    Her tears began to stream down uncontrobly as she continued, "When we were kids, after Ms. Walker ran off to find an adult, I falsely took credit for Marcus'' rescue. However, Shane saw it all.


    "Later, when I went to the Walker residence to look for Sky and build a rtionship, Shane found me when no one else was around and used this to ckmail me."


    Natalie looked at Marcus. Now, there was no need to hide anything-everything had beenid out in the open, crystal clear.


    Sophia began, "Shane forced me to be his girlfriend, but because he''s Cindy''s son, he didn''t dare openly admit he was deceiving Sky. He and Emma went to and from school together. He was basically her studypanion.


    "But more than that, he was her faithful dog. Whatever Emma told him to do, he did.


    "Two months ago, my father forced me to go to the Walker residence to foster a rtionship with Sky. That''s when I saw Emma in Sky''s arms, crying uncontrobly. I stepped forward to interrupt them, and Emma looked at me with a gaze full of malice.


    "I was about to leave after Sky and I finished our scheduled meeting, and Emma had Shane escort me out. But when Shane was escorting me, he dragged me into one of the housekeeper''s quarters. There, he assaulted me."


    Tears continued to stream down Sophia''s face as she spoke. "He even threatened me, saying that I was his girlfriend and it was because he loved me too much that he did such things. However, when he was assaulting me, Emma called him, and he answered the call right in front of me.


    "Emma told him not to put a condom on and to not let me take morning-after pills. She said he had to ensure I got pregnant and gave birth to the baby.


    "As long as I got pregnant with Shane''s child, Sky and I won''t be able to be together anymore. The engagement between our families can be invalidated, and the me would fall entirely on me. When the time came, Sky could also take the opportunity to impensation from the Sinirs.


    "I was very scared. I didn''t want the child at all. just wanted to get rid of


    as


    it, but Shane threatened me. He has Emma backing him, and Emma the daughter of the Walkers. Her influence was beyond my reach. I could only turn to Marcus for help."  swnovel


    While covering her eyes with her hands, Sophia said, "I don''t have a good life in the Sinirs, and Shane knew that too. If my father found out about this, I''d be done for. Not to mention, Ruby and her mother would also ruin mepletely."  swnovel


    Natalie and Marcus listened quietly. Neither of them had expected that Sophia,


    the eldest daughter of the Sinirs, would have been ckmailed by a housekeeper for so many years.


    "It''s my own fault. I deceived Marcus in the beginning, and my own selfishness ended up harming me.


    "Natalie, Marcus, I''m so sorry to you both," Sophia said before sobbing uncontrobly.


    "I''m really sorry, Marcus. I shouldn''t have lied to you. If I hadn''t lied to you when we were kids, you would have found your true savior.


    "Natalie, I''m sorry. I shouldn''t have impersonated you, pretending to be his lifesaver. If Marcus had found you when we were younger, you might not have been treated like a walking blood bank by the Langleys."


    Sophia began crying harder as she spoke. If it hadn''t been for the mistake she made when they were younger, perhaps the fates of the three of them would have been different.


    "I made one wrong move, and after that, I no longer dared to speak up again. I just kept falling deeper under Shane''s threat.


    "Marcus asked before who the father of the child was. Natalie, you also said the child''s father had the right to know. But that bastard''s a rapist! I would rather die than give birth to the child of a rapist!


    "But the child kept growing inside me. The mother and child bond we shared, my own blood and flesh... At times, I would soften up for a moment and be hesitant.


    "I don''t know what to do. When the car ident happened at the Walker residence, and I lost the child, that was a good thing to me. It''s better without it. I didn''t have to hesitate anymore."


    Sophia seemed like a dam that had broken. After saying the first sentence, she could no longer hold back the flood of emotions. She said all the things she had kept bottled up inside for years.


    "The only people I''m sorry for are you and Marcus. I lied to both of you, so the universe is punishing me. I deserve it, but I also want to live a good life."


    Sophia covered her eyes with both hands, choking on her sobs as tears streamed down her face. "I am weak, powerless, and indecisive. All these years, I''ve been clinging fo Marcus like a parasite, afraid that one day he would find out the truth and want to burn me alive.  swnovel


    "Now, I''ve confessed. Marcus, whatever revenge you want to take out on me, I ept."


    Natalie sighed and walked forward. She wanted to give Sophia a tissue to wipe her tears, but Sophia just kept crying. Finally, she just embraced her.


    "Don''t cry. It''s okay!" Natalieforted.


    "It''s all my fault. It''s my mistake. I hate myself!" Sophia choked out, "I deserve to


    be in this current situation."


    Natalie didn''t respond to Sophia''s words but instead turned to look at Marcus. "Marcus, will you me Sophia for this?" she asked.


    Marcus stood up. "You''re my lifesaver. I''ll listen to anything you say."


    "What?" Natalie was momentarily stunned, feeling something was off. Marcus looked at her, and his deep, maic voice slowly sounded. "Natalie, I owe you my life. Whatever you want me to do, I''ll agree to it." Natalie thought about it for a moment and then asked, "So, when you had Elijah block the entrance of Goodwill Pharmacy, saying you were looking for someone, it was actually just to see me?"


    "Yes. Saying I had to search for someone was just an excuse."


    Marcus openly admitted, "When I came to meet you, I already knew you were my savior. Natalie, you saved me when I was a child, and you saved my grandfather after we grew up. My life is yours now."


    His gaze on Natalie gradually became more intense. "As for Sophia lying to me, just say the word, and I''ll let the matter go entirely."


    Thus, she should quickly say it. Whatever she wanted him to do, he would.