Chapter 72: THE BREAKING OF ICE

ANNABEL

This was a joke—definitely it was a joke. My fingers shook with every swipe I made, my heart shattering at the images in front of me.

This was definitely not real. It couldn't be. But the video... I played the video again, and there he was. His voice sounded the same—that same husky voice he used when he stared at me as he fucked me. That same way his hands were possessively around me, those same hands were now on Janet, fucking her, and it looked so intense, so hot, so betraying.

I didn't know when tears started streaming from my eyes. My legs shook as I sat on the bed, sobs rocking through my body like violent waves.

She did it, and he was like every one of them. There was no difference between him and Mark and Michael, and fuck, I didn't want to be here anymore. I felt so suffocated by his lies, and all I could feel was hate, anger, and that gnawing, chilling feeling I didn't know I could ever experience.

That I could ever feel for him.

Just then, my phone rang. My hands shakily grabbed the device—it was Christiana. I closed my eyes tightly, taking a deep breath as I picked up the call.

"Hello, Cherry! What's popping?" Her voice echoed with happiness, so abstract from my current situation.

I covered my mouth with my hand, trying to suppress the sobs that were about to break out.

"Anna, are you crying?" she asked, her voice suddenly filled with concern.

"Christiana..." I said, my voice sounding different from what I'd known it to be, breaking up with each syllable.

"Christiana, are you okay? Do you want me to come over?" Her worry was palpable through the phone.

"No, no, Christiana, I'm fine. You don't need to stress yourself over that," I whispered, and I heard her sigh over the phone. But all I could look at were the images—I kept swiping through each one, still wishing this was fake, but it wasn't, and I broke into another wave of sobs.

Fuck, I needed to leave here. I felt so choked up.

"Annabel, where are you? I am coming to pick you up—you are fucking crying!" Christiana screamed over the phone.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry you. I'm still here. Come over to this address, which I will send to you. I'll come meet you outside," I said, breathing slowly as I closed my eyes.

"Alright, I will be there soon. XoXo," she said, ending the call.

I walked to the glass table, tearing out a piece of paper, and wrote 'FUCK YOU, DAMON' in bold letters.

I dropped it on the bed next to the phone with those damning pictures and quickly changed into a simple outfit before walking out of the room.

The mansion was secured, but I wasn't a prisoner either.

"I'm heading to the mall. You don't need to inform Sir Damon about it—I just want to grab one or two things," I said to one of the security men, who looked at me for a minute before nodding.

"Alright, ma'am. Do you want the driver to take you there?" he asked politely, his gaze not leaving mine.

"No, no, I don't want that. A friend will come pick me up," I said, and he nodded in understanding.

I walked out from the mansion, and when I looked ahead, I saw a white GLE parked in the distance.

I quickly walked toward it, desperately wanting to get away from this place and all its lies.

"Hello, Christiana," I said as I sat in the car, my face not looking at hers as I stared into the distance.

"Anna, are you okay? What's going on?" she asked, worry etched in her voice.

"Can we leave here, please?" I asked, and she nodded, igniting the car and steering away from the estate.

It took about five minutes to leave the estate completely, and I could see the concerned look on Christiana's face growing stronger with each passing moment.

"Okay, so can you speak now?" she said as we drove past the estate gates. I didn't know where she was taking me, but I didn't care to ask.

"He cheated on me," I said, trying so hard not to think about what had just happened, but it was impossible not to—the evidence was right there, burned into my memory.

Christiana's eyes widened as she turned to look at me briefly, confusion laced across her face, then she turned back to the road.

"What? Who would cheat on you? You had a boyfriend?" she asked. She had every right to be confused—I had never told her about Damon.

"It's complicated..." I said, staring outside the window, now clueless about where we were headed and becoming conscious of my environment. It was the city, but the route didn't look familiar.

"Where are we going? I don't recognize this area," I said, and she smiled at me.

"You're coming to my place. I feel like you need some cake or something to keep you sane. My mother loves baking and she was so excited to meet you. Plus, you look exhausted—I don't mind you sleeping over," she said excitedly, but her hands seemed a bit tense on the steering wheel. I ignored it.

"You don't have to do that for me, Christiana," I said, and she gave me a quick stare before turning back to the road.

"I am your friend, Annabel. We'll say fuck men and have some fun as girls," she said, and I nodded my head, again ignoring how tense her hands were on the steering wheel. I was mostly happy she didn't question me any further.

I just needed some music and silence. As if on cue, she played some music, and I turned to smile at her gratefully.

The ride continued in relative quiet, but my mind was in complete chaos. Even the music wasn't helping to calm the storm inside me.

All of a sudden, the car stopped. I turned to look at Christiana, confusion laced on my face as I looked out the window. I couldn't see any house around, but we were somewhere near the mall area.

"Are we at your house already?" I asked, and she shook her head, her head now resting on the steering wheel. Then she turned to look at me, her face now shimmering with tears, and I was confused.

Had I done something wrong or said something wrong?

"Christiana..." I hadn't completed my words when something heavy hit our car, sending my head flying into the headrest. Christiana's eyes widened in shock.

"Christiana..." I whispered dizzily, now scared and disoriented.

"I'm so sorry, Annabel..." she said, tears now streaming down her face.

Just as she said that, three huge vehicles surrounded us, and four hefty men emerged from the cars. I couldn't move—not after hitting my head on the headrest and having blood dripping from my forehead. The men dragged me out of the car. I struggled to break free from their hold, but one of them gave me a vicious slap that made stars dance in my vision.

I heard Christiana scream and come toward me, her voice now sounding repulsive to my ears.

"I'm so sorry, Annabel! I am so sorry—they forced me to do it!" she said as she tried to come close to me, but the men pushed her away roughly.

"Why are you sorry, Christiana? You promised you wanted to get rid of her too," I heard a familiar voice say, and I felt my world freeze completely.

Slowly, I raised my eyes to look at the last person I'd never thought I would see in this nightmare.

Janet. She was standing there in a red, skimpy black leather skirt and a white top, giving me a smirk that was different from the ones she'd given me before—this one was pure malice.

"Hello, best friend," she whispered with venom dripping from every syllable.