Freda knelt before her parents‘ grave and bowed deeply three times. “Mom, Dad, Cyril’s in love with someone else. I’m gonna leave him and get out of this place.”
“He’s been waiting for Jolie to grow up for five whole years, and I was completely clueless. They’re married now–the kind where there’s no divorce, only death do us part.”
“Don’t worry about me, okay? I’ll be fine on my own. I’m sorry I can’t take you guys with me, but once I get settled somewhere, I promise I’ll come back and visit.”
Freda’s voice was steady and calm. She could face Cyril’s betrayal now, but thinking about leaving her parents
behind made her break down in tears.
Cyril never showed up the entire day.
The cemetery was in a remote location–she’d have to walk quite a distance to catch a ride. After saying goodbye to her parents, Freda slowly made her way toward the main road.
She’d only walked a short distance when she felt someone following her. She quickened her pace and pulled out her
phone to call the police.
Before she could dial, someone caught up with her from behind and pressed a cloth over her mouth.
Freda struggled violently, then everything went black as the chloroform knocked her unconscious.
A bucket of ice water hit her, and Freda jolted awake with a gasp.
She was tied to a post with her hands behind her back, a black cloth covering her eyes, her body shaking uncontrollably from the cold.
“Who are you? Why are you kidnapping me?” Freda shouted, her voice trembling as terror consumed her.
“Say something! Who are you?!”
“You want money, right? I have money–lots of it! Just give me an account number and I’ll transfer it right now.”
Freda couldn’t see anything, and no matter how much she pleaded, she was met with silence.
Her clothes were soaked with ice water, and every gust of wind cut through her like knives. She grew more panicked, struggling desperately.
“Let me go! Who the hell are you?”
“Ah!” Freda suddenly screamed as someone struck her abdomen hard with a stick.
“You don’t need to know who I am. You just need to pay for what you did.” The person raised the stick and slammed it into her stomach again. She felt like her organs were being crushed together, the pain bringing tears to her eyes.
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Chapter 7
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The person stopped speaking and continued beating her stomach with the stick, each blow delivered with full force, as if trying to shatter her insides. She passed out from the pain, only to be jolted awake by more agony.
By the end, she was numb to the pain. Blood had soaked through her pants and stained her shirt…
The attacker seemed tired of beating her. He dropped the stick, untied her from the post, and she collapsed like a broken doll. Blood quickly pooled beneath her as she lost consciousness completely.
When she woke up again, no one was around. She pulled off the blindfold and saw a projector set up in front of her.
On the screen, Cyril was holding Jolie, kissing her forehead repeatedly, comforting her. “Don’t cry, sweetie. The baby’s fine.”
“Cyril, I just can’t believe it. I can’t believe Miss Freda would actually try to hurt me. She’s always been so sweet–how could she do this just because I accidentally bumped into her?” Jolie was crying pitifully.
“Maybe people change.” Pain flashed in Cyril’s eyes. “The evidence is right there. Freda hired someone to teach you
lesson. If you hadn’t called the police in time, who knows what could have happened.”
“Even so, you can’t take revenge for me. You can’t hurt Miss Freda.”
“You’re still looking out for her even now. Don’t worry–I’m just making sure whoever hurt you gets what’s coming
to them. As for Freda, I’ll find a chance to warn her.”
Cyril looked completely disappointed. He was convinced that Freda had hired someone to hurt Jolie.
Freda lay on the ground, her body convulsing with pain. She stared at the faces on the screen, feeling like her heart was being ripped directly from her chest, bloody and raw.
Cyril, who once trusted her completely, had now condemned her based on Jolie’s lies and had someone brutally
beat her.
When love dies, everything dies with it.
She laughed through her tears, the sound hollow and broken.
Cyril, when you finally discover the truth, will you drown of your regret?
Chapter 8
