Chapter 4
Vivienne's POV
The next morning, the storage room door suddenly opened.
I shrank back instinctively, expecting Celeste coming to humiliate me again. But it was Dominic standing in the doorway.
He was drenched in sweat, his voice urgent. "Ma'am, we need to move. Now. Boss is in the East District—won't be back for at least two hours."
I struggled to my feet, my voice hoarse. "They'll kill you for this."
"I know." Dominic steadied me. "But I can't let you die in here. East Pier, two years ago—you saved my life. I owe you."
"Go. Use the back entrance. My car's waiting." He pressed a set of keys into my palm, then hurried away.
I took a deep breath and headed for the stairs. Sunlight streamed through the windows, stabbing at my eyes. Freedom was right there.
"Sis, where do you think you're going?"
Celeste's voice rang out from the top of the stairs. She stood there, staring me down.
I didn't answer. Just kept walking.
"STOP!" She blocked my path and suddenly screamed, "Mom! Dad! Vivienne's trying to ESCAPE!"
Helena and Marcus immediately rushed over. "Grab her!" Celeste commanded.
Helena lunged for my arm while Marcus closed in from the other side. I fought desperately, but my body was too weak.
"LET GO of me!"
"Think you can just walk away?" Celeste sneered. "If you leave, Dante will never stop thinking about you. You need to stay so he can see how VICIOUS you really are!"
I took a step back. My foot slipped. I was about to fall down the stairs—
Celeste suddenly reached out and grabbed me. For a split second, I froze. She was saving me?
But the next moment, I saw a flash of malicious satisfaction in her eyes. She let go and threw herself backward.
"AAHHH—!" She screamed as she tumbled down the stairs, her body slamming against each step.
"Celeste!" Helena and Marcus cried out in unison.
Dante's voice echoed from below. "CELESTE!"
I watched Dante kneel at the bottom of the stairs, cradling Celeste in his arms.
He looked up, his eyes blazing with fury. "VIVIENNE! What the FUCK did you DO?!"
They dragged me down to the wine cellar.
Cold. Damp. The air reeked of rust and mold. Torture devices hung on the walls. The floor was stained with dried blood, dark brown and crusted.
Helena spoke first, her voice shrill. "Dante, it was HER! ALL her! She tried to run—Celeste caught her—so she PUSHED her down the stairs!"
"I didn't—"
SLAP!
Marcus charged forward and struck me across the face. "You're STILL lying? Celeste's eye is ruined! The doctor said she might go BLIND!"
"You evil BITCH!" Helena wailed. "We raised you, fed you, put a roof over your head, and THIS is how you repay us? You wanted to DESTROY your own sister!"
I looked at them and suddenly burst out laughing. Laughed until tears streamed down my face.
"RAISED me? You call that RAISING me? My whole life I wore her hand-me-downs, ate table scraps, slept in storage rooms! You bought HER a piano, sent HER abroad. Me? I worked THREE jobs just to pay for community college! You only ever saw Celeste. You NEVER saw me!"
Helena's face flushed red. "Well, Celeste always worked harder—"
"Enough." Dante's voice cut through the air. He walked slowly toward me, his eyes terrifyingly cold.
"Vivienne. Celeste needs a cornea transplant."
I froze.
"What? No... what are you saying?"
"Her left retina is destroyed." He stared down at me coldly. "Without a transplant, she goes blind. Permanently."
My blood ran cold.
"Dante, you can't—"
"Can't?" He laughed coldly. "You did this to her. So you'll give her your eye. Simple as that."
"I didn't TOUCH her!" I thrashed against their grip. "She threw herself down! It's a TRAP! Can't you SEE that?!"
"Boss!" Dominic stumbled into the cellar. "She didn't—she never—"
A gunshot rang out.
Dominic's shoulder exploded in a spray of blood. He staggered and fell.
"Think I don't know who let her out?" Dante's voice was ice. "Get out. One more word and you're dog food."
They dragged Dominic away, his eyes filled with despair.
Dante turned back to me.
"Get Dr. Romano here. Now."
"No... please no..." I screamed. "Dante... I'm begging you..."
But he'd already turned and left.
When I woke up the next day, I'd lost my left eye completely.
The next days blurred into hell. Stale bread. Murky water. Every single day. My body grew weaker. The wound where my eye used to be festered, reeking of rot.
No one came. No one cared whether I lived or died.
I numbly ate the inedible food, numbly drank the filthy water. Pain, despair, rage—all those emotions dulled with each passing day of torment.
I didn't cry anymore. Didn't beg. Just survived. For my baby.
That afternoon, the cellar door suddenly opened.
It was Celeste, wearing an elaborate white wedding dress.
"Vivienne, look at me." She spun in a circle. "Beautiful, isn't it?"
I leaned against the wall, staring at her with my remaining eye. Said nothing.
"Dante and I are getting married tomorrow." She smiled. "At the family estate. Too bad you can't attend, so I came specially to show you my dress. Custom-made in Paris. One of a kind in the whole world. Dante said only the best is good enough for me."
I stared at her coldly. "Congratulations on getting what you wanted."
"Oh, I have you to thank for that." She crouched down, voice dripping with venom. "If you hadn't given me your eye, how else would I have gotten Dante to marry me so fast? And thanks for the eye. I'll put it to good use."
She suddenly pulled out a small vial from her pocket.
"Oh, one more thing. Dr. Romano told me you're pregnant. What a surprise, sis."
My heart seized. "What are you going to do?"
"Get rid of that little problem, of course." She opened the vial. "Come on. Down the hatch."
"NO!" I struggled desperately, but she grabbed my jaw and forced the liquid down my throat.
Cold liquid slid down.
"No... NO... please..." I choked. "My baby... don't... please don't take my baby..."
Celeste released me and stood up, smoothing her skirt.
"Well, I need to go prepare for my wedding. Enjoy yourself, sis."
The door slammed shut.
Sharp pain tore through my abdomen like knives ripping me apart.
"No... please no..." I curled up on the floor, clutching my stomach. "Baby... hold on... please..."
Warm liquid trickled down my thighs. Then... nothing. Just emptiness.
"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." I sobbed. "I couldn't save you... I couldn't..."
On the estate lawn, the wedding ceremony was underway.
A sea of white flowers. Elegant music. An elaborately decorated arch. Celeste walked down the red carpet on Marcus's arm while guests rose to applaud.
Dante stood at the altar in a tailored black suit, his expression stern.
Father Gabriel smiled. "Today, we witness the union of Dante Moretti and Celeste Quinn—"
Suddenly, loud horn blasts shattered the moment.
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! Let's hear it for the HAPPY COUPLE!"
A group of people in clown costumes swarmed into the estate, blowing horns, banging drums, throwing confetti and releasing balloons.
"What is this?" Guests cried out in alarm.
The lead clown held up a megaphone. "CONGRATULATIONS! Courtesy of Mr. Xavier Kane! He sends his WARMEST regards!"
Dante's face turned thunderous. "GET THEM OUT!"
Guards rushed forward, but the clowns scattered, creating chaos. Fireworks exploded on the lawn. The entire ceremony descended into mayhem.
Celeste screamed. "Dante! Get rid of them! They're RUINING everything!"
The chaos lasted nearly ten minutes. Finally the guards drove the clowns out and order was restored.
Father Gabriel mopped his brow. "So... shall we continue?"
Dante nodded, his face still dark.
Meanwhile, outside the estate gates.
A black sedan sat parked by the roadside. Xavier opened the back door and carefully lifted my barely-conscious body inside.
"Thank you..." I whispered weakly.
"Don't talk. Save your strength." Xavier tucked a blanket around me gently. "Just rest now. You're safe."
The car slowly pulled away from the estate. Through the window, wedding music drifted from the distance—the Wedding March, cheerful and celebratory.
I closed my eye—my only remaining eye—and tears fell silently.
The sun was bright. The music was beautiful. Everyone was celebrating. And I was finally leaving this hell.
Dante, this is the last time we meet like this. Next time, I won't be that broken woman begging at your feet. I'll make you regret every single thing you did to me.
Goodbye, my hell.
