He only wanted to drag me back to continue serving as Chloe’s substitute—to bear children for her.
They searched every corner of the cottage. Inside, it was empty, even the paint peeling off the walls.
Clearly, no one had lived here for a long time.
After waiting so long without finding me, Daniel’s patience began to run thin.
“Get out here, now!”
“Even if you were healing from injuries, it’s been long enough. How much longer do you plan to hide?”
He had long heard of Ryan Brooks’s violent temper—how his three previous wives had all divorced under his abuse.
Daniel assumed I had returned here just to recover from the beatings.
I drifted bitterly behind him.
My ashes had already been mixed with dirt and buried beneath the cobblestone path.
Every step they took trampled on my remains.
But Daniel remained oblivious.
He kept his head down, still sending me messages.
“Emily, I’ll give you five minutes. Come out immediately.”
“If you don’t reply soon, I’ll have your little cottage blown up so your foster parents won’t even have ashes left.”
I floated nearby, looking at the empty chat screen with a bitter smile.
Oh, Daniel Reed…