Chapter 13%
The hospital director was already drenched in sweat from fear and rushed to lead Norris to the surveillance room.
It turned out Gabrielle had secretly moved his mother out of the hospital. By the time the nurses realized something was wrong, she was already gone.
Norris immediately ordered them to keep digging and called Gabrielle without delay.”
However, she only hung up on him.”
Seconds later, a text message arrived.
[Gabrielle: SwiftStore Warehouse. One million.]}
Norris cursed and kicked the wall in frustration.
He ordered Frank, his driver, to bring Matthew along and headed straight to the warehouse.
He had been tricked by Gabrielle once, but never again. So instead of bringing any money, he came fully prepared and let his men
surround the warehouse.}
Sure enough, Gabrielle’s amateur attempt at a kidnapping was riddled with mistakes.
Looking through a back window, Norris spotted his mother tied to a chair, unconscious. His heart’dropped.}
“Shoot,” he instructed.
Immediately, his bodyguard fired a tranquilizer dart.}
Gabrielle was still nervously pacing when it struck her in the neck. Her gut told her things were about to go very wrong.
And she was right. The door burst open the next second, and Norris stormed in with his men.”
He rushed to his mother first, checked her condition, and ordered his team to get her back to the hospital immediately.
Afterward, he turned to Gabrielle. She was still groggy on the floor when he yanked her up and slapped her twice.
“Gabrielle, I was actually willing to let you off the hook out of respect for your father. But you brought this on yourself. What, you don’t want Matthew anymore either?!”
The guards shoved Matthew into the room. But Gabrielle didn’t even look at the child. She just let out a cold laugh and said, “If you want him, take him.”&
The moment those words left her mouth, Matthew burst into tears.
Norris couldn’t believe it. She was actually willing to throw away her own child.}
Then again, it made sense. She had only ever cared about herself.
And if that’s how it was, then he had no reason to show her mercy either.§
He ordered his men to lock her up, then returned to the hospital to check on his mother.
It was only then that he learned what his mother had been through.>
When he saw the bruises and welts covering her body, his chest clenched in pain. He held her hand tightly, heart aching.
His mother had struggled with depression and insomnia for years. But recently, she’d started sleeping through the night. He’d thought Gabrielle’s treatment was finally working.
But the truth was horrifying. Gabrielle had been electroshocking her and feeding her dangerously high doses of sedatives.
That wasn’t therapy. It was torture.
Norris’s hatred for Gabrielle deepened. The thought of Clarissa, who had suffered so much because of her, only made it worse.
He brought his mother home and arranged for a private doctor to take over her care.
Once she was settled in, he headed straight to the basement, where Gabrielle had already been thrown in.
She was still unconscious on the floor, but Norris had no patience left.
Bucket after bucket of freezing water was dumped on her until she woke up, gasping and shivering.
But before she could even catch her breath, her hands were shoved into scalding water.
“Ahh!”
The unbearable pain tore a scream from her throat. She cried, looked up at Norris, and begged through her tears, “Norris, I was wrong! Please, I’m begging you. Let me go. I’ll leave the country right now, I swear–ah!“}]
At that time, a red–hot branding iron was pressed against the back of her hand, and the stench of burning flesh filled the air. Her hands trembled violently, her face ghostly pale.
Meanwhile, Norris sat calmly in a chair, watching without flinching. As he remembered how Clarissa had been burned by this woman’s cruelty, he felt like this was barely enough.
“You set up Clarissa again and again,” he said coldly. “This is just the beginning.”
Gabrielle shook her head desperately, crying out in defense.}
“I didn’t set her up! I just… I guided her to discover the truth about the child. I never thought she’d react like that. If she couldn’t handle it, that’s her problem, not mine, Norris!”
USSA
