On his frail body were over a hundred scars of various kinds. He had pondered over how arduous her time had been during that hour, but when he watched the video, under the intense visual impact, he realized that his previous thoughts barely scratched the surface.
Wide-eyed, he watched Elisa in the video being tormented and humiliated. He witnessed her being subjected to dry ice, watched as the man with a devil mask used a knife to carve fresh, red wounds on her thighs, observed her back being corroded by sulfuric acid, and heard her hoarse cries as she was injected with five doses of medicine while strapped to a plank, her neck veins bulging.
Even in her last moments, that man didn’t spare her; he pierced her fingertips with steel needles, tore through her nail beds.
And in fear, she curled up on the ground, her fingers bloody, repeatedly calling him.
How desperate was Elisa at that time? Her hope was extinguished bit by bit ten times over, ultimately plunging into an inferno of torment.
The video was fragmented in places, but it didn’t hinder the viewing.
Hamish’s gaze never left the video from start to finish. He struggled to compose himself, but his breathing grew increasingly labored, and his face unknowingly turned as cold as ice.
Watching the entire ordeal of Elisa’s agony and despair in the video felt like a dagger stabbing into his chest, making every breath painful.
Just watching the video caused him immense suffering. It was easy to imagine how Elisa endured that long hour.
No wonder Elisa went mad upon waking, preferring death over life, constantly clamoring to commit suicide, terrified of needles, and feeling watched when facing a camera.
Hamish clenched the phone tightly, burying his face in his hands, this was what he had been avoiding seeing all along.
Finn, damn it!
But he was even more damned, just as Finn had said. He was the one who had, with his own hands, delivered Elisa to that place to endure such torment; he was the instigator.
After Elisa’s amnesia, he had tried to make amends, but could he truly atone for the harm he had caused her?
And today, he had exploded at Elisa over a few photographs, forcing himself on her, causing her pain and making her cry.
He was nothing but a-beast!
Hamish didn’t know how long he had been sitting outside. He stared blankly at the faint light upstairs, feeling as if he had lost his soul, with only the pain in his heart reminding him that he was still alive.
It felt as if his blood had turned to ice, coursing through every corner of his body, leaving him frozen.
The temperature difference in Chiwood was significant-twenty to thirty degrees during the day, dropping to around ten degrees at night. But even in this cold weather, it shouldn’t have frozen him to the core.
He touched the area over his heart. The coldness came from within, so it wasn’t because of the weather. Even if he wore thick clothes, it still felt chilly.
Hamish put down his phone. His face was numb from the cold, and he couldn’t even feel the pain from his wounds. He staggered back into the villa.
Elisa’s room was slightly ajar, with a warm yellow light spilling out, the interior silent. He wasn’t sure if Elisa was asleep.
During the time he spent with Elisa, he always went to work on time or even early, never staying out late. It was the first time he had returned so late since her amnesia.
He knew Elisa feared being alone, so he always came back early to keep her company, hoping to help her forget her fear of darkness.
Hamish gently pushed the door open, his gaze falling on Elisa lying on her side, her back turned to him, the warm light casting a forlorn and restless shadow over her.
He walked in, noticing a slight movement in Elisa’s body as she had not yet fallen asleep.
Hamish didn’t know what to say. Countless words were reduced to silence and the weight of guilt pressing down on him.
He walked straight to the edge of the bed, then knelt down on both knees. His subtle movement seemed particularly loud in the quiet room.
Hamish remained kneeling quietly, not knowing how long he had been there. His injured thigh felt even more uncomfortable due to poor blood circulation.
Elisa opened her eyes, pursing her lips. After a while, she turned over, and her half-closed eyes widened at the sight of the wounds on Hamish’s face.
She subconsciously bit her lip, then stopped herself.
Hamish’s expression shifted slightly when he noticed the bruise on Elisa’s neck, which reminded him of the video on the phone, making him feel even more wretched than a beastHe realized what he had done. Jealousy had clouded his vision. He knew Elisa wasn’t like that, she wouldn’t have feelings for another man, yet he had hurt her.
What had he done that was any different from Finn? He was even worse than Finn.
“I’m sorry, I was wrong,” he said.
Elisa’s eyes welled up slightly, she sniffed, and during the hours that Hamish had been away, she had thought a lot. She had planned how to manage their marriage, how to move forward with Hamish, but ultimately, she had mostly thought about separating.
She had already prepared the words to part ways with Hamish, but when Hamish, setting aside his pride, knelt down to apologize, she found herself unable to speak.
She was so useless, like a useless weed, and yet like a saint. She knew the saying “the wolf is coming,” but she couldn’t let go of Hamish.
She loved Hamish, willingly demeaned herself. He was her only family in this world and the meaning of her existence.
She slowly sat up, feeling stiffness and aches in her body. She was wearing a loose silk nightgown, and as she moved, the neckline slipped down, revealing her round shoulders and a large area of skin on her chest, along with the marks. Her skin was fair, making the scars appear particularly sinister.
Elisa’s body didn’t retain scars, bruises like these would fade, but the old coldness and the wounds on her collarbone wouldn’t disappear.
Months had passed, and the scars had only lightened a bit.
“Hamish, can you forgive me?” he asked, his voice strained.
Elisa turned her face away. “Do you know where you went wrong?”
“Yes.”
“Where did you go wrong?”
Hamish spoke each word earnestly, “I shouldn’t have mistrusted you, misunderstood you, forced you, or hurt you.”