Chapter 6

Valerie's world was darkness, her body limp and helpless. But as she fell from the bed, something within her stirred. Her eyes fluttered open, and she found herself on the cold, hard floor.

The familiar creaking of the bed frame above her. The faint scent of stale air.

A figure loomed over her, its features twisting into a snarl.

"Valerie, you lazy girl," her stepmother, Regina, spat.

Valerie's gaze drifted to the side, where Jenna, Regina's daughter, stood. Jenna's eyes blazed with venom, her hand clutching a belt.

"You think you're some kind of princess, sleeping in late?" Regina sneered, her foot drawing back.

Valerie flinched as Regina's kick connected with her stomach. The air rushed out of her lungs.

"Who do you think will do the household chores?" Regina taunted. "You think you're above it all?"

Jenna took a step closer, the belt quivering in her hand. "You're nothing but a servant, Valerie."

Valerie's voice trembled, pleading. "Please, Regina... I have a fever. You beat me with the belt last night. I can barely move because of the pain."

Regina's expression twisted, her eyes flashing with anger. "You think you can talk back to me, you ungrateful bitch?"

Valerie's words were laced with desperation. "I'm not talking back, Regina. I just can't take it anymore. The pain... it's too much."

Tears slowly fell from Valerie's eyes, her body shaking with sobs.

Regina sneered, her voice dripping with venom. "You're pretending to be the victim, as always. You think you're so innocent?"

Jenna stepped forward, her eyes mirroring her mother's malice. "You tore my dress last night, Valerie. On purpose."

Valerie's eyes widened, protesting. "No, Jenna, it was an accident. I swear."

Regina's face reddened. "You're just jealous of Jenna's beauty and my success. You've always been jealous."

Valerie's tears flowed uncontrollably as Regina's words cut deep.

"You're nothing but a pathetic, unwanted stepdaughter," Regina spat. "You'll do as you're told and be grateful for the roof over your head."

Jenna raised the belt, her eyes glinting with cruelty.

Valerie flinched, expecting another blow.

Regina's voice stopped Jenna. "Not now. She needs to be able to work."

Valerie's body trembled, her heart racing with fear.

Regina and Jenna departed, Valerie's body crumpled to the floor, overwhelmed by despair. Tears streamed down her face, mingling with the dirt and dust.

"When will this hell end?" she whispered, her voice barely audible.

The silence was oppressive, punctuated only by her sobs.

Valerie's thoughts darkened. "It will end when I die."

The memory of her mother's tragic fate loomed, a haunting reminder.

Sometimes, Valerie considered following in her mother's footsteps, escaping the agony through suicide.

But her mother's words echoed in her mind: "Be strong, Valerie. Never lose hope."

Valerie clung to those words, even as desperation clawed at her soul.

She remembered the promise, the one person who vowed to return and rescue her.

He had promised to take her away from this nightmare.

But he never came.

Valerie's heart hardened, shielding itself from further pain.

"No one is here for me," she whispered, the words etched in her mind like a gravestone.

Abandonment and isolation suffocated her.

Valerie's thoughts were a jumbled mess when the creaking door shattered the silence.

A tall, imposing figure entered, his piercing gray eyes commanding attention.

His aura was dominant, exuding power and control.

Those unforgiving eyes locked onto Valerie.

"Take her with us," he ordered, his deep voice firm.

A burly man stepped forward, his expression emotionless.

Valerie's fear spiked as he reached for her.

She recoiled, struggling to break free.

But his grip was unyielding, his hand clamping around her wrist.

She kicked and squirmed, desperation fueling her resistance.

The gray-eyed man watched, his expression unchanging.

The burly man dragged Valerie toward the door.

She dug her heels into the floor, but he was too strong.

As they reached the hallway, Valerie's screams echoed through the house.

"Help! Someone, please!"

The gray-eyed man swooped in, effortlessly lifting Valerie onto his shoulder.

She pounded his back, her cries muffled against his jacket.

He strode down the hallway, his long strides devouring distance.

Valerie's world became a blur of panic and fear.

The gray-eyed man's grip tightened, holding her firmly in place.

Valerie's screams grew hoarse, her body trembling with exhaustion.

As they exited the house, the cool night air enveloped her.

A black vehicle waited, its engine purring softly.

The gray-eyed man tossed Valerie into the backseat.

She scrambled to sit up, but he pinned her down.

"Don't struggle," he warned, his voice low and menacing.

Valerie's heart raced, her mind reeling.

With loud thud he close the car door,

Valerie's eyelids fluttered open, revealing a sterile hospital ward. The beeping machines surrounding her bed created a cacophony of sound.

Grogginess clouded her mind as she struggled to sit up.

A sharp pain stabbed through her left shoulder, making her gasp.

Her gaze fell upon the bandages wrapping her shoulder and arm.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she cried out in pain.

Her throat felt parched, dryness irritating her vocal cords.

"Water..." she whispered, her voice barely audible.

Valerie's eyes scanned the empty room, searching for someone – anyone.

The silence was oppressive, punctuated only by the beeping machines.

She tried to move, but a wave of dizziness washed over her.

Valerie collapsed back onto the pillow, exhaustion overwhelming her.

The hospital room spun around her.

Memories began to resurface – the ambush, Viktor's cruelty, and...

Everything went black.

Valerie's thoughts were fragmented, her mind struggling to piece together the events leading up to her hospitalization.

Valerie's memories came flooding back – the brutal attack, the excruciating pain, and...

Her hands instinctively flew to her stomach.

She frantically felt for the familiar curve of her baby bump.

But it was gone.

Panic set in.

Tears streamed down her face.

"No... no... no..." she whispered.

Desperation gripped her.

She touched her belly, tracing the flatness.

"Where's my baby?" she moaned.

Valerie's voice cracked.

"My baby... my baby..."

Her hands trembled.

She felt a void within.

A sense of loss overwhelmed her.

The beeping machines seemed to fade into the background.

The hospital room dissolved.

All that remained was Valerie's anguish.

She rocked back and forth.

Tears drenched her face.

Grief wracked her body.

"My baby... why did they take you from me?"

Valerie's cries echoed through the empty hospital room.

Valerie's screams pierced the air, shattering the sterile hospital room's calm atmosphere, as she frantically searched for answers about her baby's fate.

Kael rushed in, his expression somber and etched with concern, but his eyes revealed a hint of helplessness.

"Valerie, calm down," he urged, his voice soft but ineffective in soothing her anguish.

But Valerie's eyes were wild, her face contorted in despair, as she sobbed uncontrollably.

"Where's my baby?" she wailed, her voice cracking under the weight of her grief.

Kael's gaze dropped to the floor, his shoulders sagging in defeat, and Valerie knew she had her answer.

The silence was deafening, confirming her worst fears, and Valerie's wails grew louder, echoing off the hospital room's cold walls.

Just then, the door burst open, and Dominic stood in the doorway, his towering figure commanding attention.

His eyes, once filled with love and warmth, now burned with hatred, the coldness in his gaze striking Valerie like a slap.

"Dominic..." she whispered, her voice trembling with hope and desperation.

But he didn't respond, his eyes seeming to bore into her soul, searching for something to fuel his anger.

No care, no love, only venom.

Valerie's heart shattered, her world crumbling around her.

"Dominic, my baby..." she pleaded, her voice breaking under the weight of her sorrow.

But Dominic's expression twisted, his jaw clenched in rage.

"Your baby is gone," he spat, the words cutting deeper than any knife.

Valerie's cries echoed through the hospital room, a haunting melody of despair.

Dominic's words hung in the air, poisonous and destructive.

Kael stepped forward, his eyes locked onto Dominic's.

"Dominic, stop," he warned, his voice firm but laced with caution.

But Dominic's glare silenced him, its intensity warning of impending storm.

Valerie's eyes locked onto Dominic's, searching for the man she once knew.

But she saw a stranger, a man consumed by darkness.