Chapter 4 Loss of Virginity

Emery was born in a small town up north. That summer, when she was in high school, a group of unfamiliar faces had suddenly returned to the town. It was a large procession with quite a grand display. The elderly patriarch of the prominent Carter family, Marlon Carter, was on his deathbed, and his dying wish was to return to his roots and be buried in the Carter family's mausoleum. And so, the Carter family had relocated back to Carter Estate and waited for Marlon's passing so that he could rest peacefully in his hometown. It was impossible for Emery not to notice their presence. After all, Sarah was the town's undertaker. She worked hard all year round to make a living, and she took Emery to almost every funeral. The Carter family had specifically sent someone to hire them. But this time, Emery hadn't been too eager to go. As soon as she stepped inside the room, she noticed a man sitting in a chair, and his gaze on her was thick with unwanted attention. Through the introductions, she found out that he was the eldest son of the younger generation of the Carter family, Nelson Carter. He was commonly referred to as Mr. Nelson. It was the height of summer, and Emery was wearing a thin short-sleeved shirt, her developing chest clearly visible. Nelson, who was sporting a buzz cut, had looked at her with narrowed eyes and smiled wickedly. "You're Ms. Young, right? You're very pretty." The questionable, unsettling look in his eyes made Emery feel uneasy, and she had hummed flatly as a response. After the members of the Carter family left, Emery had tried to find an excuse not to go to the funeral. But Sarah had yelled at her while holding the money in one hand, "If you won't do it, are you expecting your dead father or your little brother to go instead?" Emery's father had passed away from illness, and her brother was still only an infant. Their family was struggling to make ends meet, and Emery was the only one who could help with this job. Marlon passed away at the age of 100 in early autumn, and the Carter family was bustling with activity. It was a bittersweet occasion for a life well lived. Many people came to mourn the deceased. Sarah attended to funeral matters in the front hall, while Emery handled burning the farewell letters written by the family—as a symbolic act of saying goodbye to Marlon—in the back courtyard. It was mid-afternoon, and the sky was overcast. When the wind blew, it lifted the papers burning in the brazier. Emery had an ominous feeling, and she was worried that the flames might catch on to something. She immediately began searching for something to put out the fire. There weren't many people in the back courtyard, but as Emery turned a corner, someone suddenly covered her mouth and dragged her to an outbuilding. She was thrown onto the floor, and she heard the door slam shut. Then, Nelson pounced on her, with one hand tugging at her pants. He feared that she would scream, so he desperately covered her mouth with his hand. He breathed heavily as he leaned in and said, "My dear girl, you're so fair." Terrified, Emery grabbed something from nearby and, without looking, smashed it into Nelson's face. She took the opportunity and ran outside, but she was seen. A sharp-eyed elderly lady, who had come to help out with the funeral, noticed her and asked, "What happened? Why are your pants torn?" Immediately after, loud curses from Nelson rang out. Everyone turned toward the sound and saw him running out while holding his pants up. As a result, the funeral held by the Carter family turned into a disaster. The whole neighborhood on the street had witnessed the scene firsthand. Within a night, the news of Emery losing her virginity spread everywhere. Sarah's face twisted with anger as she called Emery a burden, but no matter how much Emery tried to explain, no one would believe her. Sarah had then somehow found a way to gather a group of reporters, and she had kneeled at the entrance of Carter Estate, causing a scene. She had wailed loudly, demanding that the Carter family take responsibility. It was only after the incident that they learned the Carter family had specifically brought Nelson back home. It turned out that he had gotten into trouble elsewhere and had come back to hide from it. Nelson had assaulted a female employee at the company, and the employee's family had reported it to the police. The Carter family had spent a lot of money to settle the matter. They thought that Nelson would change for the better, but they didn't expect him to be a reckless habitual offender. This was the result of all the coddling and spoiling from Logan Carter, Nelson's grandfather. Logan cursed at his family's misfortune and sent someone to summon Nelson, only to find that he had packed up and fled overnight. There was no news of him. Nelson's repeated damage to the family's reputation caused the Carter family's stocks to plummet, and Logan could hardly bear it. Logan thought he could settle things with money, but Sarah was not that easy to placate. She demanded that Emery must marry into the family. After all, back in those days, small profits were never enough. Emery tried to kill herself once, but she failed. Just as she was hanging from the beam, someone suddenly climbed through the window and grabbed her, pulling her down by the waist. Emery had almost passed out, but the person introduced himself, "Hi, I'm Kieran Carter, your husband." She was terrified and ran toward the door, just in time to bump into a cheerful Sarah and a few members of the Carter family. They had arrived to propose a marriage agreement. However, the engagement wasn't with Nelson, but with the young Kieran who had just been brought back. Logan justified it with good intentions. He said that since Nelson was older, and since Kieran and Emery were of similar age, it was more appropriate for them both to nurture a relationship. Emery thought that it was ridiculous. She insisted that she could go and get examined to prove that she wasn't raped, but Sarah had held her pants up and publicly said, "Then, tell me. If you weren't on your period, where did the blood on your underwear come from?" Emery couldn't explain herself, and the matter was hastily settled. However, the price of calming this public uproar was that Emery was forced by Sarah to publicly admit that she had seduced Nelson. Meanwhile, Sarah moved into Carter Estate with her son, and they lived a life of being waited on. From that day on, the town's opinion of Emery changed. … At the mention of Nelson, Emery's face turned pale. She subconsciously rebutted, "Don't you know whether he touched me or not?" Upon hearing this, Kieran raised an eyebrow. He tilted his head and glanced at her with an unreadable gaze as he replied, "And?" Emery was stunned for a moment, and her heart sank as she saw the disdain on Kieran's face. It was as if he was implying that restoring her maidenhood was no longer a difficult procedure these days.