Chapter 15: He Wants Me to Kneel and Apologize

Chapter 15: Chapter 15: He Wants Me to Kneel and Apologize

I don’t know how much time passed before it grew quiet outside the door. I thought they had all left, but Julian Fletcher suddenly threw the door open and burst in.

Frightened, I propped myself up and tried to shrink away.

Julian Fletcher sneered. "My mom is gone. Let’s see who’s left in this house to protect you now."

"Julian Fletcher... Julian, let me go. I’m begging you."

He was incredibly strong. He grabbed me by the collar and dragged me toward the bathroom.

"You’re filthy! Get yourself clean!"

’He was furious. He probably thought I was utterly defiled after being groped by those drunkards last night.’

The icy water rained down on me, and for a moment, I couldn’t breathe.

My fever still hadn’t broken, yet he was dousing my body with cold water.

My head was spinning. I fell to the floor, not knowing how to fight back.

My entire body was trembling uncontrollably.

"Erin’s awake. Today, you’re coming with me to kneel and apologize to her!" Julian Fletcher threw the showerhead at me in disgust, demanding I apologize to Erin Whittaker.

"I won’t go..." I don’t know where I found the courage, but I stubbornly refused. "I didn’t do anything wrong..."

"Cecilia Caldwell!" Julian Fletcher sounded like he had reached his limit, as if he thought I was a lost cause.

"I’ve already applied for a spot to study abroad. In two months, I’ll be leaving. Please, let me go..." I stared at Julian Fletcher defiantly, my eyes devoid of the love they once held for him.

’I hated him.’

"Was it Frank Walsh who helped you get that spot? Heh. Cecilia Caldwell, how many times did you have to sleep with him to make him so devoted to you?" Julian Fletcher grabbed my chin, forcing me to look at him.

I stared in despair at his furious eyes.

"Yes... We’ve been together. I’ve fallen in love with him. From now on... I won’t bother you anymore."

I looked at him defiantly, refusing to back down.

"Good. Just wonderful!" Julian Fletcher grabbed my hair and slammed me to the floor. "It seems you’re just a natural-born slut. I guess I haven’t been satisfying you enough, have I?"

He was so strong. Every touch felt like he was venting his rage.

’I didn’t understand why he was acting so crazy.’

’He clearly didn’t love me, but sometimes his madness gave me the absurd impression that he was jealous...’

’Heh. As if.’

"Cecilia Caldwell, you will spend the rest of your life atoning for your sins." He was like an insatiable beast, moving as if he wanted to tear me to shreds.

I screamed and begged for mercy.

But it was no use.

Eventually, my throat was raw, and my mouth filled with the taste of blood.

Slowly, I stopped screaming. I stopped struggling.

’I’ll just consider this my repayment for the Fletcher family’s kindness.’

"What will it take... for you to let me go."

After he had tormented me for over an hour, I lay numb on the floor and asked him what it would take for him to let me go.

"Go apologize to Erin." He was insistent.

"Fine..." I agreed.

’The truth didn’t matter anymore.’

"The Fletcher family has supported you all these years, cleaning up your family’s messes and paying off its debts. When you’ve paid back what you owe me, that’s when I’ll let you go." Julian Fletcher took a shower, then left the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist.

’I understood what he meant. He wanted me to sleep with him. He’d let me go when I’d paid back the money I owed him.’

"I’ll pay back the money..." ’But I have to get away from here.’

’I’ll work hard and earn the money to pay him back. I won’t be his mistress. I won’t sleep with him...’

...

「Meridia Hospital.」

At four o’clock that afternoon, Julian Fletcher took me to the hospital.

I clutched the bouquet of flowers that Julian Fletcher had carefully selected from a flower shop for Erin Whittaker and walked numbly into the hospital room.

"Julian." Erin Whittaker, her face pale, smiled at Julian.

But when she saw me trailing behind him, her expression changed instantly. "Julian... what is she doing here?"

The group of rich kids surrounding Erin Whittaker also began to shout.

"Get her out of here! After pushing Erin down the stairs, she still has the nerve to show up?"

"How dare you show your face?" a rich girl demanded, shoving me.

I lost my balance and fell to the floor.

A sharp pain shot through the wound on my foot.

Julian Fletcher frowned. "That’s enough."

The rich girl looked at Julian Fletcher. "Are we just going to let it go after she hurt Erin? We should call the police! She deserves to be in jail!"

"June, it’s alright. Don’t worry about me. It’s not that serious..." Erin Whittaker said softly.

"Erin, you’re just too kind!" the rich girl fumed.

Julian Fletcher’s expression darkened. He glanced at me. "She’s here to apologize."

"Hah. And what good will an apology do?" the rich girl sneered.

"An apology?" Barry Zane and the other rich kids chimed in. "Is that how you apologize? Shouldn’t you be on your knees?"

Erin Whittaker chuckled, feigning protest. "Oh, stop it, you guys."

"Erin, with a vicious woman like her, this is the only way."

Numbly, I used the wall to pull myself to my feet, clutching the bouquet tightly to my chest.

"Didn’t you hear me? Kneel. And apologize!" Julian Fletcher ordered.

I refused.

I stubbornly lowered my head, saying nothing.

"I told you to kneel!" Julian Fletcher roared, striding forward and dragging me to Erin Whittaker’s bedside.

Erin Whittaker looked on as if she were watching a play. "Julian, don’t be so harsh. Cece is still just a child."