Chapter 132 Doll up

Chapter 132 Doll up
NANCY’S POV

My stomach dropped at that statement. I could smell the bullshit from miles away, but while I already had an inkling of what was about to go down, my parents looked confused.

My Dad’s brows were pulled together.

“Tonight?”

I was sure he wanted to ask Hudson where we were going and why I needed to look my best, but he didn’t ask because he didn’t know how the latter would react to his question.

My Dad feared Hudson more than he cared for me. That wasn’t news any longer, although it still pained me to see the manifestation of that statement.

However, even though my dad didn’t ask, Hudson surprisingly clarified what he meant by that statement, staring at me first, as if he was mentally stripping me and putting something else on me before looking back at my dad.

“You didn’t think I would keep her hidden forever, did you?”

My Dad considered the question for a moment, then shook his head, but something in his expression said that he didn’t completely agree with Hudson, and it made me want to laugh.

Why else did my dad think he’d asked to take someone as young as me as his wife? Clearly, because he was a vain, ugly, insecure man who needed to feel good about himself and feel like he was standing at the pinnacle at all times, and his way of doing that was to have someone nubile and young like myself to cover up his inadequacies.

Now, it made me wonder exactly how he could submit to a higher authority. It just didn’t make sense that there was an even more powerful group behind him when he himself was already acting like the power that superseded all.

Although something told me the reason he wanted Mr Landon dead wasn’t just because of me.

Thinking of Mr Landon made my heart clench painfully. It would be a lie to say that I was over him even in the slightest because I wasn’t sure how I would get over my feelings for him.

And it had only been two days.

I pulled myself out of my thoughts to focus on what was happening in front of me, only to hear Hudson say, “She's going with me.”

He said that in response to whatever my dad had said, and even though I didn’t hear it, I refuted him immediately.

“I’m not going anywhere with you.”

His gaze slid to me, slow and deliberate, giving me the urge to curl into myself.

I didn’t. I ground my teeth instead and gave him a deathly stare.

His lips curled coldly. “That’s not your decision to make.”

“I don’t care,” I hissed. “I’m not going anywhere with…”

“Oh, darling, but you will.”

His gaze slid to my mom right after he said that, and the way he looked at her, it reminded me of a lion stalking a deer.

My mom, when she met his eyes, stumbled backwards, cowering behind my dad as if she could hide from him.

The threat in Hudson’s eyes wasn’t obvious, but it was enough to pass a message to me.

If I didn’t comply, he would hurt my mom

Now, when it came to my mom, I was just as mad as her as I was at my Dad. If the truth were laid bare, she wasn’t exactly the driving force that had sold me to Hudson, but in all of this, she had taken a backseat, choosing to be a fiddle for her Husband.

I hated my mom because she had never once stood up for me and Nathan. She was a hundred percent the woman I didn’t want to be.

A woman who lacked a voice and who was too scared to speak up to save even her own skin. I abhorred her character, and more times than I could count, I had promised myself never to end up like her, and I guess that made my Dad dislike me more.

Simply because he was too used to my mom’s deferential nature and couldn’t handle ‘defiant children’ like myself and Nathan.

I held Hudson’s gaze, refusing to back down.

“I’m not your property,” I said.

“You can’t drag me around like I am.”

My Dad sucked in a deep breath, while my Mom’s gaze spun to me in shock, eyes widening.

I could bet my ten toes that was something she would have never done. In her case, she would have nodded in affirmation.

“Well,” Hudson dragged out. “Darling, I didn’t say that to get your permission. I don’t need your opinion either.”

He turned to my father, speaking in an even colder, commanding tone.

“I don’t care what you do, get her ready, or you’ll face the consequences.”

Oh, how I hated how my Dad’s head dropped immediately. And that nod of affirmation he instantly gave, it irked my soul.

Hudson swept a glance towards me once more.

“I’ll advise that you listen to your parents, Nancy. You’ll like that much more than if I have to get you ready myself.”

His voice promised a torturous process, and I could already imagine how that would play out.

I wondered if he would slap me a couple more times, though. Would he really risk having more bruises on my face, displayed for the world and whoever would be at that Godforsaken event to see?

Or, would he hit me elsewhere?

Maybe in places my clothes would cover. Thinking of it, I couldn’t even make myself imagine what I would wear in that type of situation, because I didn’t want to envision myself actually going anywhere with him.

His gaze alternated from me to my Dad.

“You know what to do,” he said to him, right before he turned around and walked out.

The silence that followed his departure was suffocatingly quiet. My parents shared looks before turning to me.

Dad spoke first.

“You heard him, we have to get you ready for an event.”

My lips curled into a slow smile.

“Didn’t you hear me? I said I wasn’t going anywhere. Not with him, and certainly not with you. Unless it’s somewhere far away from all of you.”

As an afterthought, I added, “I don’t mind even if it’s hell. Anywhere I don’t have to see your disgusting faces will do.”

Dad’s face turned an even uglier shade. I thought he was about to curse me out, but he stepped closer instead, lowering his voice in warning.

“Nancy, stop. Don’t make this worse than it already is.”

“This was never good; it might as well get worse,” I bit back.

“You should have taken all variables into account before deciding to sell me like a swine.”

“You’ll go and get ready now. I don’t care what you think, just do as I say.” He insisted angrily.

“You’ll get dressed and dolled up, and behave yourself for once. Might as well cover up those bruises, too; they’re an ugly sight.”

I think the latter part of his statement made me angrier than his whole sentence did.

Teeth gnashing, I yanked myself free of his grip.

“How about you get dolled up for him instead?”