Chapter 2

2.

I ignored my own state and crawled through the muck to reach Old Silas.

Lydia gave the guards a sharp look.

"Drag her out of here! She's an eyesore and she's staining the Galt Group's property!"

The two guards grabbed my arms and yanked me up.

They didn't care that I was struggling. They dragged me across the gravel path.

The sharp stones ripped through my pants and shredded the skin on my knees.

Burning pain flared through my legs as they tossed me onto the roadside like a bag of trash.

I tried to push myself up, but Lydia walked over in her elegant stride.

She raised her sharp heel and slammed it down onto the back of my hand.

Then, she ground her heel into my flesh with a slow, sadistic twist.

"Ah!"

I screamed. I felt the bones in my hand creak and nearly snap.

This was the hand I used for experiments, for writing reports, for saving lives!

Lydia leaned down and whispered in my ear with pure delight.

"Still want to play hero? Still want to play doctor to a cow's ass?"

She straightened up and looked down at me.

"Trash like you can't even save yourself, let alone others."

"I'm going to make sure you know exactly what happens when you cross me and the Galt family!"

She pulled a wet wipe from her designer bag and slowly cleaned the bottom of her shoe.

Once finished, she flicked the dirty wipe onto my face.

"Clean yourself up, 'fiancée.' Oh wait, you won't be that for much longer."

The guards stood around, chuckling.

I lay in the dirt, broken and full of hatred, unable to move.

My consciousness started to blur from the pain and the sheer humiliation.

Suddenly, the screech of tires echoed through the air.

A black Maybach pulled up, kicking a cloud of dust into my face.

The door opened, and a pair of polished leather shoes appeared before my eyes.

A tall figure loomed over me like a cold statue.