Chapter 99
Tears welled up in my eyes, my body trembling uncontrollably beneath him. The silk bindings cut into my wrists as I struggled, my valen breaking with plea,
This wasn’t the man I had married—this was a stranger, his eyes darkened with a primitive rage I had never seen before.
My fear seemed to feed something dark within him. Rather than softening at my tears, his expression hardened, a cruel smile playing at the corners of hie mouth. The thin trail of blood from his forehead wound gave him an almost demonic appearance in the dim bedroom light
“Hate me?” he whispered, his voice chillingly calm as he brought his face closer to mine. “You think I care about your feelings anymore, Sophia?
His hand traced a path down my bare stomach, making me flinch away from his touch. “I’ve given you everything–a name, a home, protection for your bastard son. And how do you repay me? With constant suspicion and disrespect.”
I closed my eyes, unable to bear the contempt on his face.
Just as his weight shifted, positioning himself to force entry, his phone rang again–Isabella’s distinctive ringtone breaking the tension in the room.
Henry cursed under his breath, momentarily distracted by the persistent ringing.
“Ignore it,” I whispered desperately
“If
Jou really don’t care about her, ignore
it.”
The phone continued ringing insistently. With a frustrated growl, Henry reached for it, his other hand still pinning me down.
“What now?” he barked into the phone.
The frantic voice on the other end was loud enough that I could clearly hear the panic. “Mr. Harding, you need to come immediately! Miss Scott has collapsed! The doctors are rushing in, her vitals are dropping rapidly!”
Henry’s expression changed instantly, his body tensing. “I’ll be right there.”
He hung up and immediately began dressing, all thoughts of our confrontation apparently forgotten. I watched in stunned silence as he hastily buttoned his shirt, combed his hair, and straightened his tie–transforming back into the polished businessman in mere seconds.
As he headed for the door, I called out, my voice hoarse from crying, ‘Henry! Untie me!”
He paused, turning to look at me with cold indifference. His eyes traveled over my bound wrists, my tear–streaked face, my exposed body–and he simply walked out, closing the door behind him with a decisive click.
I lay there, shocked beyond comprehension at what had just happened. He had left me tied to the bed, helpless and humiliated, all because Isabella needed
him.
When Henry arrived, the hospital corridor buzzed with frantic activity. Doctors and nurses rushed in and out of Isabella’s private suite, medical equipment beeping urgently. The chaos stood in stark contrast to the usual hushed atmosphere of the luxury wing.
Henry stood at the entrance, momentarily frozen by the scene before him. Isabella lay unconscious on the bed, oxygen mask covering her pale face, medical staff gathered around her.
‘What happened?” he demanded of a nearby nurse.
‘Her blood pressure dropped suddenly,” the nurse explained hurriedly. “She’s stabilizing now, but it was touch–and–go for a while.”
A weight of guilt settled in Henry’s chest. Had his neglect caused this? Was he responsible for Isabella’s deteriorating condition?
When the medical team gradually filtered out, leaving only essential monitoring staff, Henry found himself alone in the balcony outside, lighting a cigarette with slightly trembling hands.
He stepped onto the small
The nicotine did little to calm his racing thoughts. Strangely, as he stood there watching smoke curl into the night sky, it wasn’t Isabella’s pale face that occupied his mind, but Sophia’s tearful eyes. The image of her bound to their bed, tears streaming down her face, pleading with him not to make her hate
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Chapter 99
him
In six years of marriage, he had never seen Sophia truly cry. She had always maintained her dignity, swallowing her pain, fatige his collonss resilience. Tonight was different. Seeing her tears had awakened something primal within him not compassion, but a disturising desire to complete possess her.
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