Felix stepped closer, whip in hand, looking at me. For a second, he hesitated. His eyes narrowed slightly, like something felt off. The lights were dim. Maybe he saw it. Maybe he felt it. That something about me was familiar.
Then—
“Honey…” Shannon hugged him from behind, her voice soft and trembling. “Thank you for standing up for me. That woman… she hurt me so much…”
I knew why he didn’t recognize me. I never wore servant uniforms and I always kept my hair long, the way he liked it. The woman in front of him now had short, uneven hair and a cheap uniform, and there was no way, in his mind, that I could be his Danica. I saw it in his eyes, the moment that thought settled in, everything warm in him disappeared. What was left was cold and violent and insane.
“If you dare touch my wife, I’ll make you suffer a thousand times worse! You fucking hear me?! I’ll make you wish you were never fucking born.”
The whip cut through the air. “Smack!” The first hit landed hard and my back snapped straight, the barbs tearing into my skin like claws.
Pain exploded through me and I screamed, but it came out muffled behind the tape. The second hit came and my vision blurred instantly, it felt like hot metal was pressed into my flesh, burning and ripping everything apart. I couldn’t breathe, or maybe I was breathing too fast, I didn’t even know anymore.
The third hit made me bite down so hard I tasted blood, my whole body curling and shaking, pain sinking into my bones with no escape. It didn’t stop. Again and again and again.
By the time he reached ninety-nine, I wasn’t fighting anymore. My body was soaked in blood, twitching like it didn’t belong to me. My mind drifted somewhere far away and I remembered something. He once said he’d punish her, said he’d tie her up and whip her and make her pay for what she did to me. He promised. So why… why was I the one here? Why was I the one bleeding under his hands?
“Shannon,” his voice came through the haze, calm like nothing happened. “How many men did she bring to mess with you?”
“…Ten,” she whispered.
“Good,” he said coldly. “Then I’ll make it worse.” My heart dropped.
“Bring in a hundred of the filthiest guys you can find,” he ordered. “And give her something to make it more fun.”
He stepped forward and kicked my chin hard. “You think you can touch my wife and walk away? I’ll fucking ruin you.”
The mask fell off.