Tatiana’s scream pierced the air. Her eyes shut tightly, and her breath hitched. It seemed the same happened to everyone else because the place turned silent.
Oh heavens, what just happened?
Tatiana’s eyes flew wide open when Dylan’s voice broke the silence.
“Mom!”
She raised her head, only to see that the girl hadn’t stabbed her son. The lady had an unreadable expression, her eyes scrutinizing Tatiana closely.
Tatiana watched as the girl released Dylan. The moment that happened, Dylan ran towards her, and Tatiana did the same.
A wave of relief washed over her as she felt her son in her arms again. She cried, knowing she had almost lost him.
“Are you okay?” she asked, her eyes roaming over his body.
Dylan nodded, and she hugged him again.
“I’m so sorry. I’m deeply sorry, my love,” she whispered.
Slowly, Tatiana’s red eyes shifted to the lady who had already been caught by the guards. It seemed she didn’t even try to run; she just stared at her.
Leaving Dylan with Jolene, Tatiana marched quickly towards the lady and delivered a hard punch to her face.
The lady’s mask fell off, and she laughed as she spat out blood. Her eyes danced with amusement.
“Nice strength you have there, Tatiana-” her words were cut short as Tatiana swiftly delivered another punch to the same spot.
“Shit,” the girl spat out blood again.
“How heartless of you, holding a goddamn knife to an innocent little boy’s neck. You’re insane, and I will make you regret ever touching my son,” Tatiana uttered through gritted teeth, her voice dripping with venom.
The lady seemed young, around nineteen. She wasn’t from this country-she looked Spanish, maybe.
Her skin was pale, and Tatiana noticed some scars around her neck and one on her right cheek.
She spat out blood again. It seemed the punch had caused internal bleeding inside the lady’s mouth.
“This was the only way to get your attention. I wasn’t going to hurt him. I’m not a prick like your father,” the lady’s eyes shot up and met Tatiana’s.
“You emotionally hurt him,” Tatiana glared.
“He should get used to it. What? Am I the first person to threaten your son? One thing is-” the lady paused and tilted her head. “You’re just like your father. Vengeful and selfish.”
Tatiana’s jaw clenched. “What do you want?”
Before the lady could respond, a voice caught their attention.
“Rosa?”
They both shifted their gaze to Jolene’s father, Rowen. He was staring at the lady with wide eyes.
“You know her?” Jolene asked him with a frown.
“Yes, very well, actually. From Spain,” Rowen nodded.
“Rowen, long time.”
Tatiana let out an annoyed scoff, her eyes throwing daggers at her.
“Tatiana,” Rowen greeted; this was the first time they had met since his return.
Of course, Tatiana knew the pain this man had caused Jolene, and since Jolene had said she forgave him, Tatiana agreed to see him today.
“I’m sorry,” Rowen apologized.
“Hm… Since Jolene forgave you, I do too. However, who is this lady who almost killed my son?” Tatiana returned her gaze to the lady, who smirked.
“What?” Rowen’s eyes widened. “What did you do, Rosa?”
“Have you forgotten the woman I told you about? She thought I was crazy when I tried to talk to her at first. This was the only way to meet her. She is a celebrity; she has guards everywhere.”
“I still strongly think you are crazy,” Tatiana cut in.
“Tatiana, she is not like that. Rosa might act impulsively sometimes, but she can’t hurt a fly,” Rowen replied. Rowen faced Rosa and scolded, “You should have acted calmly; Tatiana is not like that.”
“Yeah, I just realized that,” Rosa said sarcastically.
“Let’s talk somewhere private,” Tatiana said.
—
“Rosalie Torres. I spent my childhood days in the orphanage. They said my mother abandoned me in the forest, that I was almost eaten by a bear and got saved by a hunter. When I turned seven, the same hunter came to adopt me. He taught me how to hunt, how to weave my way quietly before wild animals. I was a quick learner, and I loved the man very much until one cold stormy night… He was killed…
Mr. Perez, my fatherly figure, was slaughtered before me just because of his debt. He was supposed to pay a week earlier, but those monsters never warned or listened to him. They took his life, and they took me as a replacement for the debt. I was taken to the human farm. A place where women are forced into prostitution and giving birth. I was fourteen when I had my first child, a child I never saw.”
Tatiana, who was sitting before her, eyes wide. What in the world? She felt her heart rip in two. Just how cruel.
“Every day, we were forced to serve men in the brothel. Please and satisfy them. I thought I could weave my way out of the shithole since I had training, but I was wrong. The place was heavily guarded, and I made a mistake trying. Chained like an animal, I was forced to sleep with three men a day, even when I fell pregnant again.
“They stopped when I was close to labor. And when I did, I never saw what I gave birth to. My children were sold off. Some of us died while giving birth because of the trauma we faced in this hellish world. We all knew there was nothing left for us. We were beaten if we disrespected. All I know is the leader of the chain was a family called… The Wallingtons.”
Tatiana’s fist tightened into a ball. Jolene, on the other hand, had tears in her eyes, and Rowen was just quiet.
“A strange girl joined us last year. She was acting weird. She was rambling on about killing every single man who slept with her. She was just like me, wanting to escape. I told her not to act like a fool if she wanted to live. That was when she mentioned you. Tatiana Wallington. She said you were different and that she could save us if we found you.”
Tatiana frowned slightly. Was the girl someone she knew in the past? Tatiana had saved a lot of people, even before meeting Nathan.
Her father liked her for her vengeful personality but hated it because it was always against him. She was like a double-edged sword.
Rosa continued, “She talked about you a lot. Crying alone while whispering your name. I never knew her, but her words about you made me feel like there was still hope. She was mounted by many men, tortured by many, and yet… she was still whispering your name.”
Tatiana fell into a trance. Her heart clenched, realizing someone out there needed her help, and here she was doing nothing.
She had a dream and got scared of fighting her father. Deep down, she hated herself for letting many suffer.
“What’s her name?” Tatiana asked, and Rosa shook her head.
“She never mentioned it. I called her Raven, and she called me Fearless. She slowly grew hatred for you, Tatiana, but I promised to find you if I ever got out because I knew I would. My prayer seemed to be answered when a strange man took me for the night… He was weak, and his household was not heavily guarded. When he tried to have sex with me, I took control and twisted his neck. I don’t know if he’s dead.
“I escaped his home, and while roaming the streets, I met Rowen. He fed and clothed me. I told him my story, and he told me his, about his daughter,” Rosa spared Jolene a glance.
“We got separated when I spotted the Wallington men looking for me. I didn’t want to put Rowen in trouble, so I left… It took me a whole lot of shit to get into Australia. That’s why I was so upset to see you building fame instead of trying to help someone who was waiting for you.”
As she concluded, Tatiana’s eyes were already teary. Her heart ached as she heard how cruel her father was.
He was indeed a devil.