Elizabeth’s POVThe phone was pressed against my ear, cold and hard, as if it could somehow transmit the weight of the world into my bones. My hands were still tied, my mouth gagged, and my heart thudded in panic.The voice on the other end made my chest tighten. My mother.“Elizabeth,” she said, her tone sharp, accusing. “Why do you make everything so difficult? Why can’t you just… be easier for me?”I froze. The words pierced me more than any whip ever could. I wanted to scream, to beg her to see me, to understand that I had never asked for this life, for her hate.“I… I’ve never wanted to hurt you,” I said, my voice muffled, trembling with tears. “I just… I just want you to care, to love me. Is that too much?”There was a pause on the line. My heart leapt. Maybe, just maybe, she would soften. Maybe she would finally see me as her daughter, not as a problem to blame.Then the coldness returned. “Care for you?” she said, her voice sharp, cutting. “You’ve caused me nothing but shame a
Last Updated : 2025-10-26 Read more