Chapter 179 179
A deafening crack of thunder split through the sky, jolting Jacqueline awake.
Her eyes fluttered open as she blinked rapidly, trying to clear the haze of sleep. For a moment she simply lay there, staring around the unfamiliar room.
Slowly, she pushed herself off the bed and padded across the floor toward the large window. Outside, the sky was choked with scattered masses of grim, gray clouds that looked almost menacing. Rain poured down relentlessly, drumming against the earth in an endless downpour.
She wasn’t sure whose room this was.
Then the memory returned.
It was still fresh, vivid enough to warm her chest.
A soft smile bloomed on her lips as she pushed the window open. A rush of cool air swept into the room, stirring the loose strands of her hair. She stretched her hand outside, letting the raindrops splatter across her palm.
Though her eyes watched the rain, her mind drifted elsewhere.
Back to the quiet moment they had shared.
They had been lying side by side on the bed, both strangely awkward, neither quite sure what to do. Their hands had rested close together, so close that her pinky finger brushed lightly against his.
The next moment, his large hand had closed around hers, enveloping her small fingers in warmth.
They had simply lain there like that.
Hand in hand.
The silence between them had been soft and peaceful, more intimate than anything else that had happened that night.
It had felt… unreal.
Comforting.
Safe.
And somewhere in that quiet, she had drifted into sleep.
Jacqueline glanced back at the bed now.
It was empty.
He must have slipped out sometime during the night.
But strangely, the sight didn’t upset her.
Even the smallest step from Damien felt like a monumental victory.
“Look at my little slut.”
The voice shattered everything.
A violent jolt of pure terror shot down her spine. Every muscle in her body locked instantly as icy fear flooded through her veins.
She froze.
Her body refused to turn around.
She didn’t need to.
She knew that voice.
He found her.
Panic clawed at her chest, her thoughts dissolving into raw terror. She tried desperately to speak, to scream, to do something but her throat felt clogged shut.
She couldn’t breathe.
She couldn’t move.
Her tongue felt heavy, like stone.
This couldn’t be real.
For so long she had endured everything he had done to her. She had survived the pain and humiliation with grim endurance.
But now… now she had tasted something different.
Freedom.
Happiness.
And that made the fear suffocating.
Deep down, she had always known this moment might come.
Her life had never been kind.
Why should it start now?
Her eyes widened when she suddenly felt hands on her waist.
They slid slowly around to her stomach before jerking her backward against a chest that wasn’t really there.
His fingers dug cruelly into her flesh.
Her body refused to respond, trapped in paralyzing fear, yet she could feel his disgusting touch crawling over her skin.
Tears spilled down her cheeks as she bit hard into her lower lip.
Outside, the rain had faded, leaving only violent bursts of thunder crashing through the dark sky as if the heavens themselves were witnessing her nightmare.
If this was destined to happen… why had God allowed her those fleeting moments of happiness?
Why had fate been so cruel?
Everywhere he touched, it felt like insects were crawling across her skin.
Her stomach twisted violently with nausea.
Then suddenly she was shoved forward.
She crashed onto the floor.
Scrambling backward, she dragged herself away while sobs tore from her throat. Her eyes were wide with terror as she stared into the empty space before her.
He was gone.
Vanished.
But she could still feel him.
His hands still crawled across her body.
“No… no… stop!” she screamed.
She clawed wildly at the air, trying to rip his invisible touch away from her skin.
His laughter echoed through the room dark, mocking while his voice promised to ruin her life… to destroy her completely.
Where was Damien?
He left her.
This was happening because he wasn’t here.
He left her.
“Stop!” she shrieked again.
The sensation of his hands burned across her skin. She began rubbing her arms frantically, trying to wipe the feeling away.
Rubbing turned into scratching.
Her nails tore into her own flesh, dragging deep enough to break skin.
Blood welled beneath her nails.
But it didn’t matter.
No matter how hard she clawed, the feeling remained.
His laughter boomed around her.
This was happening again.
She couldn’t let him do this again.
Stumbling to her feet on trembling legs, Jacqueline rushed toward the bathroom. She yanked open a drawer and grabbed a small blade, gripping it like a weapon.
But the air remained empty.
She couldn’t see him.
Only feel him.
With a piercing scream of agony, she drove the blade into her own skin.
The sting cut through the phantom sensations.
She slashed again.
And again.
With every cut, his voice seemed to fade further away.
It was working.
But then
An hour earlier…
Damien stirred awake in the middle of the night.
The first thing he noticed was Jacqueline’s hair, spread across the pillow like dark silk.
He turned onto his side, propping his head against his hand as he looked down at her sleeping form.
For several quiet minutes, he simply watched her.
Like a complete creep.
But he couldn’t help it.
She looked… beautiful.
With a quiet sigh, he eventually slid out of bed. He walked toward the door and stepped into the hallway, closing it softly behind him.
Moving down the stairs, he headed into the kitchen.
He was still wearing his slacks.
Earlier that night, Jacqueline had shyly insisted that if he planned to sleep beside her, he needed to at least be decent.
So he had reluctantly put them on.
And here he had been thinking she might have a little rebellious streak in her.
Damien opened the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water, taking several long gulps.
The last few hours had been one hell of a storm.
Rafael and Dominique had pushed him dangerously close to losing control.
Watching Jacqueline anywhere near another man had stirred a level of jealousy and fury he hadn’t even known he possessed.
In that moment, he had genuinely wanted to kill them.
His wolf had reacted violently, pushing against his control until it nearly overwhelmed him.
And then she had dropped another bomb.
She had talked about leaving.
The mere thought had twisted something deep inside his chest.
That was the moment he realized the truth.
He didn’t want her to go.
He wanted her to stay.
With him.