She hastily climbed down from the bed and rushed to open the door, pushing all her pain aside.
But before she could open it, Dan stopped her by grabbing her arm and covering her mouth from behind.
“Don’t even think about telling Andrew anything, or you know what I can do,” he murmured in her ear. She glared at him over her shoulder, her eyes full of rage.
“Sunshine, what’s wrong? Please, tell me. I can’t bear your silence.” He was banging on the door, growing more restless and frantic. He felt lost without her, not understanding what had suddenly happened. “What did I do to make you so angry? Chloe, open the door and talk to me.”
She clenched her fists, squeezed her eyes shut, and cried, feeling so helpless. She wanted to tell him everything, but she couldn’t-she had to save her Aunt first.
“Sunshine, I love you. I know you love me too, and you’re doing this because you’re in trouble, something you can’t tell me. Whatever it is, we’ll figure it out together. Please, open the door.” He begged, tears streaming down his face.
“Tell him to leave,” Dan ordered, removing his hand from her mouth. He was asking her to do the impossible. She couldn’t tell Andrew to leave, especially when she desperately needed him.
She sobbed, staring at the door, her heart dying to open it and hug him tightly.
“Sunshine, please.” Andrew implored, knocking on the door again. “If you don’t want to talk, fine, but at least open the door.” She was just crying, feeling utterly helpless.
Dan stepped in front of her and grabbed her arms. “Tell him to leave,” he ordered again, his voice filled with anger as he dug his nails into her arm.
“Go away, Andrew!” she yelled before bursting into hysterical sobs, covering her mouth. Dan smiled wickedly at her misery.
“No, I won’t leave until you open the door,” Andrew said stubbornly.
“Please, go!” she cried out.
He already sensed that she was in pain, and now, after hearing her sorrowful cry, he was convinced that she was struggling with a serious problem.
“You’re forgetting I have a spare key. I’ll be right back.” He left to retrieve the spare key to her room.
“Don’t you dare say a word to him,” Dan warned her before leaving the room.
She locked the door and cried, resting her forehead against it. “I’m so sorry, Andrew, for hurting you. I wish I could tell you.” She sniffled, her heart breaking.
She put her dress back on, hissing as the fabric rubbed against the welt marks on her hips. She strode to the bathroom and splashed water over her face. Her mind was spinning, consumed by memories of her traumatic childhood and the torture she had endured today. She was weakening, and it was killing her inside.
When the door opened, she flinched. She turned off the tap, taking a deep breath to steady herself. She saw Andrew in the mirror, walking toward her.
Before she could turn to say anything, he hugged her tightly from behind, unknowingly pressing against the wound on her stomach and the belt welts on her hips. She shut her eyes to endure the physical pain, but mentally, she felt soothed by his embrace. Fresh tears began rolling down her cheeks. He hugged her tighter and tighter, pulling her closer and closer as if he wanted to keep her in his arms forever. Though he was unknowingly hurting her physically, she felt peace, like his touch was taking her to a place of love and peace.
“What’s wrong, Sunshine?” he asked softly in her ear, still holding her tightly. His words brought her back to reality.
Suddenly, an idea popped into her mind. She deliberately pulled on the necklace, breaking it, and let it fall to the ground. She turned around and placed her foot on the necklace before wrapping her arms around him and hugging him tightly.
“Andrew,” she sobbed, holding him as tightly as she could. He hugged her back, pulling her closer. She had been dying to hug him, to let out all her pain in his arms. She found profound relief in crying against him.
“Shh… calm down, Sunshine. I’m here with you,” he assured her, gently rubbing her hair. She cried louder, her body shaking with sobs.
“Da-Dan…” she tried to tell him, but they pulled apart as they heard the fire alarm.
Dan and Mike burst into the room. Chloe’s brows furrowed as she stared at Dan. Andrew grabbed her hand and stepped out of the room with her.
Andrew asked, “What happened, Mike?”
“Boss, I think it was a false alarm, but the security team is checking just to be sure,” Mike explained, and Andrew nodded in response.
“Andrew, I need to talk to you about something. Do you have a moment?” Dan asked deliberately because he wanted to take Andrew away from Chloe.
“Yeah, of course, Uncle,” Andrew replied.
“I’ll be right back.” Andrew kissed her forehead before leaving, and Dan scowled at them.
***
Chloe paced around the room, thinking about Dan. She couldn’t let him continue torturing her or keeping Andrew away. She was sure Dan had triggered the false alarm. She wanted to kill him for torturing her and indirectly hurting Andrew.
When she heard the door unlocking, her eyes darted toward it. The door opened, and Dan entered with an evil smile. She glared at him.
“You were planning to tell Andrew everything, weren’t you?” he asked, striding toward her. She sneered at him.
He yanked her head back by her hair and grabbed her jaw harshly with his other hand. “I guess you still haven’t learned your lesson. Now, you’re going to pay,” he growled.
“Do whatever you want; I don’t care, asshole,” she spat at him. He slapped her hard across the face, sending her crashing onto the cold floor.
He called one of his men and ordered, “Cut off Zia’s finger.”
Chloe glared at him with pure hatred in her eyes.
Dan bent down and tugged her hair again. “If you act smart, next time, I’ll have them slit your aunt’s throat. Do you want her to die because of your bitchy attitude?”
“I’ll kill you,” she thundered, and he pushed her to the floor in a fury. She hissed as her head hit the cold surface.
He pinned her hands above her head, pressing her down. “Now I’m going to fuck you so hard you’ll beg me to stop, but I won’t stop until you apologise for your bad behaviour.”
“Fuck you!” she spat in his face and kneed him hard in the crotch several times.
He groaned in pain, clutching his groin. She quickly stood up and grabbed the vase from the table.
“You bastard,” she yelled through trembling lips, and she smashed the vase over his head.
Just then, Andrew stepped into the room, his eyes widening in utter shock.