Chapter 7
At this moment, I had been so brutally humiliated and beaten by Dixie and her parents that I was covered in blood and barely recognizable.
Even my own father didn’t recognize me right away.
“What exactly did she steal?” he asked. “And how’d she even get in? I mean, forget the security at the gate–just the fences alone aren’t something an ordinary girl could sneak through.”
My dad voiced what everyone had been wondering.
Othello shot back, “Isn’t she that underprivileged student you’ve been sponsoring, Mr. Constable? The one you invited over for dinner?”
Loreena also shot me a cold, vicious glare and said, “Mr. Constable, if you ask me, a petty thief like her doesn’t deserve your support.”
“You should just cut her off and let her fend for herself,” she suggested boldly.
But what happened next shocked everyone.
Dad shook his head, frowning deeply.
“I haven’t sponsored any students in a very long time… aside from Dixie,” he clarified. “And I certainly didn’t invite anyone else over for dinner other than your family.”
Loreena and Othello exchanged uneasy glances.
Then Dad pulled out his phone, his voice tense as he mumbled, “What’s going on? I haven’t been able to reach my daughter at all.”
He turned to one of the villa staff. “Falcon, can you please check Snoopy’s room and see if my daughter’s in there?”
Falcon nodded and hurried off.
Meanwhile, a flicker of panic showed on Loreena’s face. She stepped closer to Dad and cautiously asked, “Mr. Constable… what daughter?”
“My biological daughter,” he answered plainly. “Her name’s Chastity. She’s been studying in Belgium for the past few years, which is probably why you haven’t heard me mention her.”
“I invited you all over tonight because I wanted to introduce her to everyone.”
Just as Dad said that, Falcon, who had gone to look for me, rushed back in a panic.
He looked terrified, his voice trembling as he reported, “S–Sir Huck, I–I couldn’t find Miss Chastity or Snoopy. There’s blood… There’s blood all over Snoopy’s room!”
“What?!” Dad roared. His face turned a terrifying shade of
grey.
And in that split second, it was like everyone suddenly connected the dots. All eyes turned
to me in unison.
Dad’s expression turned as dark as thunder. He turned his terrifying gaze toward Dixie’s parents, asking, “Where exactly did you find this ‘thief‘?!”
Chapter 7
2/2
70.0%
83%
Othello and Loreena started trembling. They couldn’t get a word out, stumbling backward in fear.
By then, Falcon and a few maids had managed to untie me from the tree.
I collapsed weakly to the ground, barely clinging to life.
The excruciating pain surging through my body drowned out every other thought.
I honestly all I could think of was I was going to die right there.
Dad trembling, came over and knelt halfway to the ground. He gathered me into his arms.
Then, with shaking hands, he brushed aside the blood–soaked hair stuck to my face.
At last, he saw my face–horrifically swollen and disfigured.
The second he recognized me, his eyes widened in horror, and from his mouth came a wail of utter anguish.
“Chastity!”
Right then, everyone saw Dixie, who had disappeared earlier.
She came in carrying a big steaming bowl of casserole.
Clueless about what had just happened, she cheerfully set it on the table and looked around the room.
Looking at Dad’s back and the other guests around, she beamed like she was showing off a prize.
“Uncle!” she called excitedly. “Try the casserole I made! I know you’re all gonna love it!”
The room was dead silent.
It wasn’t until both her parents collapsed to the floor that Dixie finally realized something was wrong.
“M–Mr. Constable, we’re so sorry! We really didn’t know she was your daughter!” Loreena apologized.
She scrambled toward Dad on her hands and knees.
Her face had turned ghostly pale. Her voice cracked with sobs as she pleaded desperately for mercy.
Chapter 7
