bChapter /bb46 /b

Ste was trapped in a cage, treated no better than an animal. The brutal beating left her unconscious for hours. It wasn’t until someone entered the room that evening that she slowly stirred awake

She thought Henry wouldn’t send someone to bring her food. But to her shock, Henry himself appeared at the door, carrying a meal.

The meal was sumptuous–a piece of steak, chicken drumsticks, fresh seasonal vegetables, a whole fish, and a te of spaghetti, with four kinds of fresh frat on the side

Henry said with a fake smile, “Go on, bSte/b. It’s all yours for dinner.”

Ste reached her hand out from between the cage bars and took the food. She thought, I have to eat. Otherwise, how am I supposed to escape this hellholer

But she could barely stomach any of it. After just a few hites, she pushed the lood away. bShe /bcouldn’t eat anymore.

Henry’s gaze bore into her. He asked, “Why aren’t you eating?”

Steshook her head weakly and whispered, “I can’t eat anymore.”

make your mouth water!” He thrust the chicken drungick

Henry put on a fake smile and coaxed, “Come on, just blook /bat this juicy drumstick. Doesn’t it make your n ather, his eyes gleaming with false concern as hemanded, “Eat”

Ste hardly ever got bto /beat meat in the small townb, /band every time she did, it made her feel violently ill. Staring at the drumstick, she felt no temptation, only disgust at the greasy sheen costing its surface.

“I can’t stomach this anymore,” Ste whispered faintly.

Henry coaxed Ste with feigned gentleness, “Eat a bit more. It’ll help you regain your strength.

bSte /brefused.

Perhaps after several feigned attempts to coax her, Sto’s repeated refusals finally wore Henry’s patience thin. He seized Ste by the jaw and forcibly

showed the chicken drumstick into her mouth.

He snarled, “Eat when I say cat. Where do you think all that bloodes from? Swallow it now, or I’ll fucking kill byou/bb” /b

Ste had long since stopped trusting anyone, but Henry drove that lesson home brutally.

As Staged and tried to spit it out, Henry struck her across the face again.

He snarled, “You fucking whore. I’m feeding byou/b, and you dare to throw it up? You will eat everyst bite. Even if you puke it out, you’ll swallow it back down

Ste had suffered through hell, and a single sentence from Henry utterly crushed any lingering bhope /bshe had of escape.

Henry sneered, “Don’t even dream your family wille to your rescue. Before we got here, I called and told them you were staying out with me. They were thrilled, told us to have fun

“Honestly, they can’t wait for you to get pregnant with my kid. That’ll cement our rtionship.”

Ste thought she had no more tears left, yet they still fell, one by one. She screamed inwardly, “Why? Why is this happening to me? in their eyes, am I really that unimportant?

Even at full health, Ste could never have Inished that much food. Wet Henry kept force–feeding her, shoving it all down her throat.

As soon bas /bHenry left, Ste couldn’t hold it in any longer, bshe /bvomited violently. But that was the least of her worries

The real agony was in her stomach. She hadn’t eaten this much in three long years. Overwhelmed by the pain, she didn’t even know how to bear it

Ste thought in despair, “What’s even the point of living anymore P

Back at the Hayes residence, when Eleanor took her seat at the table, she found Ste was nowhere to be seen. She asked, “Wh her room?”

Others exchanged a few nces,

Then Fiona, with a practiced smile, said to Eleanor, “Ste isn’t back yet”

“Not back yet?” Eleanor asked. Her voice was sharp with suspicion.

Sha? in sha podt bin /b

Fiona replied, “Yeah, Henry just bcalled/b. They’re having fun at Crescent bVi /band won’t be back for a while. Let the kids enjoy themselves

“Not evening back tonight?” Eleanor demanded sharply.

Anna gently ced her hand over Eleanor’s and said, “Grandma, Ste’s all grown up now. She can take responsibility for herself. Maybe you should just blet /bher do what she wants. After all these years, she’s been out on her own.”

Eleanor coldly brushed Anna’s hand away, her face hardening. She said, “Ste truly wanted to stay out, I wouldn’t say a word. But what I doar is that certain people here simply don’t want her toe back.”

Fiona quickly bsaid/b, “Mom, how could we possibly not want Ste back? She’s finally home after all this btime/bb, /bband /bI bjust /bwant to make up for the three byears /bshe wasn’t by bour /bside.”

Eleanor’s face darkened further. She said, “So she’s noting home tonight?”

Fiona said, “Ste doesn’t drive, and it’s already sote, She’s noting back tonight. Don’t worry, Henry knows his limits. Besides, bthey’re /bpractically engaged banyway/b. Mom, you’re being too old–fashioned.”

Eleanor mmed her palm down on the table, startling everyone. She demanded, “Call Henry now. I want to hear Ste say it to me herself”

Andrew said helplessly, “Mom, don’t be like this. If Henry had any ill intentions, he wouldn’t have called us at all. The fact that he did shows he knows bwhat /bhe’s doing, We can’t just not trust him, can we??!

Eleanor snapped, “You trust him? I don’t. Mary, summon the car, I’m going to Crescent vi myself”

Mary replied, “Yes, Mrs. Hayes. With that, she went to summon the driver

Eleanor stood up to leave, sending Andrew and Fiona into ba /bpanic.

Andrew said, “Mom, please don’t do bthis/b.”

Eleanor wouldn’t hear a word of it

Andrew cast a desperate nce at Fiona, silently urging her toe up with a n.

Fiona

a was at her wits end. Completely overwhelmed, she shot a desperate nce at Max

Max paused thoughtfully, then said, “Grandma, how about bthis/bb? /bI’ll go to Crescent Vi right away and see how Ste is doing myself.”

Eleanor said, “Bring Ste back,”

Max nodded and said, “bYes/b, Grandma.”

Eleanor fully relented.

While Eleanor wasn’t looking, Fiona slipped out after Max. She sneaked a nce inside and whispered, “Are you really bgoing/b? We can’t bafford /bto offend

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Henry. He has promised the investment. But what if you go and

Max said, “bDon’t /bworry, Mom, I just make a quick trip out and, when I get back, I’ll bell Grandma that Ste refused ine home with

Hearing this, Fiona’s face lit up as she gave Max an approving pat on the shoulder. She said, “That’s my boy You are always so resourceful. Alright, horry up and go now.”

Max hummed in agreement.

Ste had lost all sense of time in her agony when voices suddenly pierced through the hare

Aman wrinkled his nose in disgust and said, “What’s that stench? It’s foul.”

Another sneered, “Look at that she puked. Fucking bdisgusting/b”

The first man sneered, “Shit, is she gonna die or what?”

The second man replied, “Who cares if she dies? She won’t be the first. Look at her scrawny little body, she’ll probably be the quickest to kick the

bucket.

The first man asked, “How many days do you think she‘st?”

The second man scoffed, “From the looks of it, she’s got a week, tops.”

The first man bsaid/b, “My money’s on four days”

Ste kept her eyes shut, but she could sense the two men looming over her

The first man said, “Hey,)

y, byou /bdead or what? if not, open your damn eyes.”

Ste kept her eyes tightly shut

One bof /bthe men crouched down, put his hand under her nose to check for breath, and then suddenly pped her hard across the face. He said, “Quit faking it. Get bthis /bcage open.”

je boss said we’re not supposed to open it.”

The other man muttered, “The l

The first man snapped, “What the hell are you scared of? We opened it before, and nothing happened. I haven’t seen a woman in ages. Don’t tell me you’re not itching for some fun?”

The other man replied, “Hell yeah!”

The first man said, “bExactly/b. Heard this bitch crawled out of some backwater town. Christ knows how many men have had her. If they all got a turn, why the hell can’t we?”

The other man said, “You are right.” Grinning wickedly, he pulled out the key and unlocked the cage door.

E