Hearts Remember What Minds Try To Forget by Rex Wilder 3

3 

“She killed my dad!” My vision blurring red, I shrieked at Lucas. “She shattered my family! Am I wrong to want to hit her? I want to kill 

her!” 

Lucas’s brow furrowed, his face darkening. He sighed softly. “You’ve already signed the settlement agreement. Don’t make this difficult 

for me.” 

Ha. 

A humorless laugh welled up inside me. 

I was making him difficult? 

Who was truly making things impossible for whom?! 

I trembled with fury, but Chloe suddenly stamped her foot. “Lucas,” she snapped, annoyed, “I think I should just go. This is clearly Mrs. Thorne’s domain. I can’t possibly stay here when she’s threatening to kill me.” 

Lucas slowly extended a hand, halting Chloe in her tracks. 

He adored Chloe’s brazen petulance, her blunt, no–holds–barred candor. 

Lucas’s arm circled Chloe’s waist, drawing her gently into his embrace. “No one will ever touch you, not while I’m here,” he murmured, 

his voice a low caress. 

“Then prove it,” Chloe challenged, her gaze unwavering. 

Lucas’s gaze swung to me, sharp and cold. He abruptly released my wrist, then shoved me away with brutal force. 

I crumpled to the ground, the impact jarring my bones. 

Lucas fixed me with a look that was more an exasperated sigh than true regret. “Time to make amends for that little display, wouldn’t 

you say?” 

I froze. 

I couldn’t believe my ears. 

Chloe seized the moment, her voice dripping with venom. “Mrs. Thorne, you just threatened my personal safety. You owe me, big time.” With a flick of her wrist, and Lucas’s silent assent, she waved over several members of the household staff. 

Chloe’s finger jabbed in my direction. “Strip her naked,” she commanded, her eyes glinting. “Take pictures. And make sure they go straight onto the internet.” 

My lips trembled, the words barely escaping. “Chloe, you’re insane! You wouldn’t dare-” 

Lucas’s voice, cold and detached, cut through my terror. “Cover her face,” he commanded, “so no one can tell it’s her.” 

Before I could react, the maids were on me, pinning me against the cold floor. Hands tore at my until I lay exposed. Then came the cameras, snapping away at my nakedness. 

clothes, ripping fabric from 

my 

skin 

Click! 

Click, click, click! 

Each camera flash, a blinding, icy slash, ripped through my soul like a thousand knives. 

18:02 

1.1% 

< 3 

Blindfolded, gagged by the fabric, I could only manage choked, helpless sobs. 

I felt my heart bleeding out, the life force draining from me with every passing second. 

Each beat of pain consuming me, atom by atom. 

Menu 

The agony became too much. I collapsed, my naked skin pressed against the frigid crystal tiles, the cold seeping into my bones, making me shiver uncontrollably. 

From somewhere above me, I heard Chloe’s sickeningly sweet voice. She held the photos, a triumphant smirk on her lips, and pressed a satisfied kiss to Lucas’s mouth. “Darling,” she purred, “I’ll be waiting for you in the bedroom.” 

Once Chloe had gone, Lucas slowly leaned down, peeling away the cloth from 

my face. 

His eyes landed on the tracks of tears on my cheeks, and Lucas let out a slow sigh. “Wife,” he began, “I have no real demands, just that you learn to live peaceably with Chloe.” 

“If you can just manage that, I promise I’ll love you. Got it?” He reached out, his thumb brushing a tear from the corner of my eye. 

My jaw clenched tight, and I refused to utter a single word. 

Lucas, however, gripped my chin, forcing my jaw open, a smile playing on his lips as he prompted, “Wife, answer.” 

His fingers squeezed my cheek, pain blooming across my face. I could only nod. “Understood,” I choked out. 

Satisfied, Lucas gave my cheek a final, soft stroke, then instructed the maids to help me back to my room. 

He, meanwhile, turned and walked towards Chloe’s guest room. 

My eyes burned into Lucas’s departing figure, and hot tears of humiliation spilled down my cheeks once more. 

In that instant, a silent vow solidified within me: 

Lucas, I’ll make you lose me completely. Forever.