Chapter 14
“Whatever you did to Aaliyah, you’re gonna get it back tenfold.”
As he spoke, two bodyguards stepped forward and grabbed Caroline. Before she could react, Claude’s assistant walked up to her.
“Claude, what the hell are you doing?!”
Caroline struggled in panic, instinctively sensing something was wrong, but Claude said nothing.
The next second, the assistant raised his hand and slapped her face hard. The sharp crack echoed as her head snapped to the side, her eyes widening in disbelief.
But before she could say anything, the assistant’s slaps kept coming one after another, hitting her until blood trickled from the corner of her mouth and she creamed in agony.
Claude! Stop it! It hurts, Claude!”
The more she screamed, the harder the assistant hit her. Claude showed absolutely no mercy.
You think you can call me Claude? Without Aaliyah, you’re nothing, and you actually had the balls to threaten her.”
fis eyes narrowed, and then Caroline got it-Claude was having her beaten for Aaliyah’s sake!
ut why? Why for Aaliyah?
Caroline was absolutely stunned. She took all 99 slaps before the bodyguards released her. By then, her face was swollen and bloody, but what she found even
Larder to believe were Claude’s next words.
That’s not nearly enough. What you’ve pulled during this time was way worse than this. Caroline, you’ve got some real fucking nerve.”
Now that Aaliyah’s actually gone, you’re completely useless to me.”
he man’s ice-cold words made her suddenly understand everything.
ut it was already too late.
Without even a moment to catch her breath, the bodyguards pinned Caroline down, pried open her mouth, and force-fed her an entire jar of peanut butter. oon, Caroline broke out in angry red welts all over her body, her breathing becoming ragged.
Claude, I’m… I can’t breathe…”
he gasped desperately, her whole body on fire with itching and burning, but the bodyguards held her down tight, preventing any escape as they shoved more eanut butter down her throat. Only when her eyes rolled back and she was nearly dying from anaphylactic shock did Claude nod for his assistant to get the
nedicine.
Caroline was dumped on the floor like trash, barely alive.
That’s your punishment for setting Aaliyah up with that fake allergic reaction.”
laude’s voice was like something from hell. “And then there’s the little matter of you hiring those thugs to beat her up. Get to work.”
Before Caroline could even try to explain, fists and boots rained down on her like a hailstorm. The bodyguards were way more brutal than those street thugs.
ach blow landing on her most vulnerable spots.
Crack-her ribs shattered, and she coughed up blood, sobbing as she begged for mercy.
‘Claude, I’m sorry! I fucked up! Please, just stop!”
But the man remained stone-faced.
We’re nowhere near done, Caroline. You’ve got a hell of a lot more to pay for. Until Aaliyah comes back, you’re gonna feel every bit of the pain you put her through.
He turned and walked away, but the bodyguards didn’t stop-they kept kicking the woman curled up on the floor..
After what felt like hours, when Caroline felt like every bone in her body was going to shatter, she finally passed out.
Chapter 14
When she came to, she was in a hospital bed.
She weakly opened her eyes and saw the IV tubes in her arms-but they were drawing her blood!
Caroline wanted to scream and fight, but all her limbs were strapped to the bed. She could only watch helplessly as bag after bag of her blood was drained, her vision spinning as she showed signs of being in critical condition.
“Mr. Preston, if we keep this up, she’s gonna die,” the nurse said nervously.
‘Keep going. This is what she owes Aaliyah,” Claude said without emotion.
Caroline weakly looked up at him, tears streaming down her face.
n that moment, she finally truly understood Claude-his heart belonged only to Aaliyah! But if that was the case, what the hell did all his flirting and sweet talk nean? He was the one who didn’t push her away, he was the one who didn’t trust Aaliyah!
he let out a broken sob, but then immediately slipped back into unconsciousness from blood loss.
