Chapter 4

Broderick' s face was a thundercloud as he scooped Kacey, fragile and trembling, into his arms. He hurried her away, his back a rigid wall of disapproval. Kacey, ever the damsel, managed a weak, pained whimper. She was a delicate flower, he believed, easily bruised.

The next thing I knew, my bedroom door burst open, slamming against the wall with a force that rattled the entire house. Broderick stood there, his eyes blazing, a storm brewing behind them. He strode towards me, his hand clamping around my arm, yanking me roughly to my feet.

"You wicked, evil woman!" His voice was a low snarl, each word dripping with disgust.

I stared at him, my eyes burning with unshed tears. A bitter laugh escaped my lips. "Why don' t you just strangle me then, Broderick?" I challenged, my voice raw. "End it."

Tears blurred my vision, but I didn' t blink. "I never betrayed you," I whispered, the words a hollow echo of a truth he refused to hear.

A sharp, searing pain tore through my abdomen, and I gasped, my body trembling uncontrollably.

He merely sneered, a cruel twist of his lips. "Do you truly expect me to believe your pathetic lies, Celina? After all you' ve done?" He leaned closer, his voice laced with venom. "Why would Justin Neal, a man from a family as powerful as his, give you money, if not for some sordid transaction?"

The pain was overwhelming, stealing my breath, stealing my voice. What was the point? He wouldn't believe me anyway. He never had.

I forced a brittle smile. "Believe what you want, Broderick." I spat the words, the defiance a desperate shield against the crushing despair.

I pushed his hand away, trying to stand, to escape this suffocating torment. But before I could, he slammed me back onto the bed, his body pressing down on mine. I struggled, my hands flailing, but his weight was crushing.

His mouth moved to my ear, his breath hot against my skin, but his words were chilling. "You' re disgusting, Celina. Tainted." His voice was laced with pure contempt.

My heart, already a fractured thing, shattered. His hatred, his disgust, pierced through me, leaving me hollow, bleeding internally.

His hand went to the buttons of his shirt, undoing them one by one. "Perhaps," he murmured, his eyes cold and calculating, "I should properly 'examine' what you' ve become."

A fresh wave of terror washed over me. My body thrashed, my hands pounding against his chest, but it was like hitting a brick wall. I bit down hard on my lip, trying to scream, to cry, but no sound escaped.

Then, the pain. A dizzying, nauseating agony in my stomach, forcing me to curl into a fetal position.

"Still faking it?" he sneered, his eyes narrowed in disbelief.

"My stomach..." I whimpered, the words barely audible through clenched teeth. "It hurts... so much."

My mind screamed for the painkillers. I had to get to them. With a desperate surge of adrenaline, I shoved him. He stumbled back, crashing into the nightstand.

My purse, which I' d carelessly tossed onto the bed earlier, tumbled to the floor. The painkiller bottle, along with a stack of papers, rolled out.

His eyes, sharp and predatory, fixed on the scattered documents. He bent down, his hand reaching for them.

"No!" I cried out, my voice raspy with panic. I lunged forward, trying to snatch them away, to protect my secret.

But he was faster. His fingers closed around the papers, pulling them free. His gaze, once cold, now filled with a strange, dawning comprehension as he read the words.

Terminal diagnosis.

My body went limp, collapsing onto the floor. My secret, exposed, felt like a gaping wound.

He picked up the small pill bottle, examining the label, then looked back at me, his face a complex mix of emotions I couldn't decipher. The silence stretched, thick and suffocating.

Then, with a sudden, violent motion, he hurled the papers and the pill bottle onto the bed. "Another one of your pathetic tricks, Celina?" His voice was a vicious lash. "Forging documents for sympathy? You truly are despicable."

He stooped, his hand reaching out. For a moment, I thought he might help me. But his touch was cold, his fingers gently wiping away the sweat from my forehead. It was a gesture of mocking tenderness.

"Even if you were to die, Celina," he whispered, his voice devoid of pity, "it wouldn' t pain me in the slightest." He scoffed, looking at me with disdain. "You' re just imitating her."

He shook his head, a cruel smile playing on his lips. "You' re too young for a terminal illness, Celina. This is just another one of your elaborate lies, isn't it?"

He turned and walked out, leaving me alone on the cold floor. I dragged myself to the bed, my fingers fumbling for the abandoned pill bottle. I dry swallowed a handful, the bitterness now familiar.

I stared at the ceiling, a single, mirthless laugh escaping my lips. Tears streamed down my face, hot and endless.