Chapter 156 Savor the Hurt
The moment the scent lure dispersed through the air, the three dogs in the cage went berserk.
They slammed against the bars with savage force. Steel rattled and shrieked. Their roars filled the basement, guttural and deafening, saliva spraying in all directions.
Alexander walked slowly to the cage and pulled the door open himself.
Three black shapes exploded outward, launching straight at the maid on the floor.
"No! Help! Mr. Hamilton, please! God—my leg! My arm! Somebody help me!"
Her screams tore through the cold basement, sharp and raw, mingling with the stench of blood.
Alexander stood a few feet away, watching with cold detachment.
He watched the three dogs he had always considered loyal, well-trained guard animals transform into savage beasts tearing into living flesh—all because of a vile chemical compound.
Just like him.
He had become a monster too. He had brutalized Caroline over hatred that had been wrong from the start.
Hatred and violence—both so easy to amplify.
A low, bitter laugh escaped his throat.
Halfway through, tears blurred his vision.
He saw it now—the inhuman torture Caroline had endured. The systematic destruction of her body and mind until she had shattered completely.
"Enough."
Alexander's voice cracked like a whip through the basement.
The guards moved in immediately, wrestling the blood-crazed dogs back into the cage and slamming the door shut.
The head maid lay in a spreading pool of blood.
Her body was a canvas of torn flesh. Barely breathing.
Alexander picked up a crowbar from the floor and walked toward the servants cowering against the wall.
"Why did you do it?"
He stopped, his gaze cutting across each face.
"Give me one reason. Or you all die here tonight."
The servants were already broken. Their cries rose in a chaotic chorus.
"Mr. Hamilton, mercy! It was her! She forced us! We didn't have a choice!"
"Mr. Hamilton! I used to serve Ms. Edith Neville! You brought me from the Neville mansion yourself! I just—I could not stand seeing the woman who killed Ms. Edith Neville taking her place! I was not thinking straight!"
"Mr. Hamilton, please understand! We thought you did not care about Mrs. Hamilton... We thought we could teach her a lesson and you would be pleased..."
"Mr. Hamilton! We were wrong! We will never do it again! Please spare us!"
Alexander listened to their desperate babbling, a smile spreading wider across his face.
"Good. Very good."
"Guards."
"Sir!"
"Take these people."
He raised the crowbar slowly, pointing at the servants collapsed on the floor.
"Lock them up. Everything in those videos—everything Caroline went through every single day—I want them to experience it themselves. Exactly as it happened."
"And remember. Do not let them die. I want them to savor every moment."
"Yes, sir."
The guards responded instantly, hauling up the broken servants like corpses and dragging them away.
"No! Mr. Hamilton! Have mercy! We will never do it again!"
"Mr. Hamilton! Please! I have served you for years!"
"Mr. Hamilton! I was Ms. Edith Neville's maid! She loved the way I trimmed her flowers! Mr. Hamilton, let me go!"
The screams faded down the corridor. Only the thick smell of blood remained.
Liam watched Alexander standing in the center of the blood-soaked floor, still gripping the crowbar. Anxiety clawed at his chest. He took a cautious step forward, his voice rough. "Mr. Hamilton, this place... it is a slaughterhouse. You should go upstairs, take a shower, change your clothes. You are covered in blood. If Mrs. Hamilton wakes up and sees you like this, she will be terrified."
The metallic clang of the crowbar hitting the floor rang out sharply.
Alexander did not respond. He just dropped it.
He looked down at his shirt, spattered with blood, and grabbed the front with both hands. With one violent motion, he ripped it open.
Fabric tore. Buttons scattered across the floor. He threw the expensive shirt into the blood at his feet, exposing his bare chest.
"You. Come here."
He kicked the bottle of scent lure Liam had tossed aside earlier.
It rolled across the floor and stopped at Liam's feet.
"Mr. Hamilton!" Liam's voice broke, raw with panic.
Alexander slowly raised his head.
"Put it on me."
Liam's eyes went wide. "Mr. Hamilton?! What... what are you saying?"
"I said."
Alexander took a step forward, closing the distance.
"Take that stuff and put it on me."
"No! Mr. Hamilton! You cannot!"
Liam stumbled backward in horror.
"That is a scent lure! Those dogs are not even calm yet! You cannot—"
"Do it!" Alexander roared.
"That is an order, Liam! Or are you refusing me?"
Liam stared at him, tears welling in his eyes.
Alexander had lost his mind completely.
The weight of his guilt had crushed him.
He was not just punishing others anymore. He was punishing himself.
"Mr. Hamilton..."
Liam dropped to his knees, pleading.
"You cannot do this..."
"Either do it, or get out."
Tears streamed unchecked down Liam's face.
He bent down and picked up the bottle, its contents reeking and vile.
"Hurry up."
Alexander's voice was sharp with impatience.
Liam bit down hard on his jaw, his heart breaking.
He staggered to his feet, dipped the brush into the thick, foul-smelling liquid, and with trembling hands began applying it to Alexander's bare skin.
The moment the scent filled the air again, the dogs erupted.
They threw themselves against the cage with renewed fury, saliva flying, eyes bloodshot, barking and snarling at Alexander with murderous intent.
"Mr. Hamilton... that is enough... please, that is enough..."
Liam sobbed as he hid the remaining liquid.
Alexander opened his eyes slowly and waved him away.
"Get out. Close the door behind you."
"Mr. Hamilton! No!"
Liam fell to his knees and wrapped his arms around Alexander's legs.
"You cannot do this! You will die! Mrs. Hamilton needs you! She is carrying your child! Do not do something you cannot take back!"
Alexander looked down at Liam, his face wet with tears and snot.
"Liam, if I do not atone for what I have done, how can I ever hold my child?"
His tears streamed unchecked.
"Get out." Alexander closed his eyes.
"That is an order. Do not make me say it again."
Liam looked up at his resolute expression and knew there was no stopping him.
Alexander had made up his mind. He was going to use his own flesh and blood to understand the pain Caroline had endured.