Despair and rage surged in Clara’s chest,threatening to consume her.Yet when she looked at Snowball’s fragile form,every scream of defiance lodged in her throat.She couldn’t risk it.Not while Snowball was still in their hands.
Humiliation burned her eyes with tears,but she forced them back.
Under Adrian’s cold stare,beneath Vanessa’s malicious gaze,Clara’s trembling fingers pulled down the zipper of her dress.
The gown Adrian had once chosen for her with his own hands slid to the floor,leaving her standing in nothing but her undergarments,her body shaking.
The chill of the air wrapped around her,but it was nothing compared to the ice inside her heart.
She remembered the day he had bought this dress,whispering in her ear:
“Clara,you look most beautiful in white.Like my bride.”
And now,in her own home,she was stripped of dignity like some mistress caught in the act,driven out the door.
Clara bent down to pick up the fallen dress.
“Don’t touch it!”
Vanessa’s sharp voice rang out.“That’s mine now!”
Clara’s hand froze in midair.
She cast one last look at Snowball,still hanging high above,its cries weak and broken.The pain in her chest was so sharp it almost convulsed.