Chapter five

The next morning, a sharp tug pried my heavy eyes open. I looked up to see two girls in servant uniforms glaring at me.

The sight triggered haunted childhood memories I had tried so hard to forget.

"Wake up and take a bath, Princess. You stink," one of them said, her voice like ice.

"Shut up, Rose. The boss says we should attend to her needs," the other one said calmly, laying fresh clothes on the bed.

"Attend to the needs of a traitor who trapped the cook's daughter in a nightmare for life?" Rose spat, her eyes full of rage. "Rachel's stuck in a psychiatric ward because of this venomous witch, Marie!"

The words hit me like a physical blow.

What had Aria done? I knew Marie’s calm demeanor was supposed to be a comfort, but she made me even more uneasy than the loud, angry Rose.

"He said to attend to her needs," Rose stated. She climbed onto the bed and yanked the covering off my body, leaving me bare and exposed. "He didn't say we couldn't have a little fun while doing it.

After all, she stood there and watched those men violate Rachel."

She reached out and violently grabbed my breast, squeezing it with a brutal force.

I screamed as pain flooded my entire body. I was still so sore from everything Alexander had done to me, and this pain didn't hold a single drop of pleasure.

"Rose, stop!" Marie yelled.

"She fucking deserves this!" Rose screamed back, her eyes shining with tears. "Poor Rachel will never be normal again.

Aria handed her to them and watched as they each took turns on her! Her moans were fueling her twisted desires.

Marie, I saw everything! I watched through that box as she kept thrusting her fingers inside herself whenever Rachel screamed!"

My heart stopped. My sister wasn't just a spy; she was a monster.

"You need to calm down, Rose," Marie warned. "Remember, the boss doesn't know you were there, too. We don't want him finding out."

"If I knew what she had planned, I wouldn't have gone," Rose sobbed. "She told us it was just a game. How was I supposed to know we were pawns in her sadistic play?"

"Let's get out of here, Rose. Come." Marie reached for her hand. After an eternity, Rose finally released me.

The two of them looked at me with pure contempt before walking out. I finally released the breath I’d been holding and slumped back onto the bed, completely drained.

I lay on the bed for hours, unable to move a single muscle.

I was physically broken and emotionally hollowed out. Everything had happened so fast.

I wanted to run, to get away from my family, from Alexander, from this house. Yet I felt a crushing weight for everything Aria had done.

A soft knock sounded at the door before the knob turned. A middle-aged woman in a chef’s uniform entered. Mrs. Margaret, I realized. The cook.

Panic flared in my chest. She could hurt me much more than Rose had. This woman was Rachel’s mother.

The woman whose child Aria had destroyed. Whatever punishment she handed out would be nothing compared to the hell my sister had put her through.

I expected her eyes to be filled with fire, but they held a haunting warmth as she approached the bed. Without a word, she helped me up and guided me to the bathroom.

She helped me bathe and gave me pain relievers and birth control pills.

She helped me into the flimsy gown the girls had brought earlier and walked me back to the bed. As I lay down, tears trickled down my cheeks.

The character I was playing didn’t deserve this kindness.

Not from her.

Mrs. Margaret brought over a tray of food and moved to feed me. I hesitated, a dark thought crossing my mind. What if it’s poisoned?

Mrs. Margaret seemed to read the fear in my eyes. She shook her head, took a bite of the food herself, and then scooped up another spoonful for me. I ate hurriedly after that; I was starving.

"I told those silly girls to bring you down for breakfast," she said quietly. "After hours of waiting, I decided to do it myself."

I was speechless. I didn't know what to say to this woman.

Her daughter was in a psychiatric ward because of Aria, and yet here she was, tending to the welfare of the "vicious woman" who had stood and watched her little girl get violated.

"Eat and rest. Alexander won't be back until late tonight. The pain pills should give you some relief before he arrives."

I nodded, my voice a mere whisper. "I'm sorry."

The words slipped out before I could stop them. Aria never apologized unless she was terrified or playing a game.

"I'm sorry for bothering you with the painkillers and the birth control pills," I quickly added, wondering why she added the birth control pills.

She probably thought Alexander had slept with me last night. "It must have been stressful to get them." I continued.

I hoped Aria had, at least once, been human enough to say sorry for an inconvenience. It's too early for anyone to start noticing anything.

Mrs. Margaret just nodded and handed me a bottle of water. I gulped it down as fast as I could, placing the empty bottle on the nightstand.

"Why did you do it?" she asked suddenly. "She adored you."

I reached for the water again, needing a distraction.

This woman needed closure, and I didn't even know who Rachel was or what had happened that day.

She wanted to be a psychiatric nurse she believed people who are mentally derailed need extra care and attention.

It's a cruel coincidence, don't you think? That she's actually in the hospital now. As a patient, not a nurse."

My muscles tensed. I swallowed hard, staring at the sheets. It was better than staring at a broken mother.