Chapter 71
strongly suggest you shut the fuck up, because see this hand in my pocket? It’s staying there for now to keep me from getting your blood all over my skin when I break every bone in your piece–of–shit body.”
Alexander lets out a sharp, cold laugh and continues.
“This whole crowd is full of sons of bitches laughing while a woman gets publicly humiliated by a bastard like you. I was raised to respect women, especially never to lay a hand on one.”
Some guests shout in protest, but a single look from Alexander silences them. His presence and charisma are innate.
“The only reason I’m not tearing you apart right now is because my suit doesn’t deserve to be trashed with your blood.”
Hakim clenches his fists.
“Everybody out of this house now! I don’t want to see anyone here in the next thirty seconds!” Alexander orders.
All the guests run for the exit as if Alexander were the owner of the villa with full power to kick everyone out.
And where the hell is Khalid? Ever since I got on stage, I haven’t seen him. Now only the three of us are left in the living room.
“I’d better go home before I start a massacre.”
He turns to me and gives me a soft smile.
“You should go put on something decent before you catch a cold.”
I give him a small, discreet smile in return.
“That dog! Tell your master I want to speak to him very soon – and he better make himself available!”
Hakim still says nothing.
Once Alexander is gone, I land a huge slap across Hakim’s face.
“What just happened – you’re going to pay for it with interest.”
His head jerks violently. I follow it up with a massive kick square to his nose.
I take off Alexander’s jacket and toss it to the floor.
“This is how you wanted to see me, isn’t it? Half–naked like a bitch?”
I pick up the scissors he dropped earlier and stab them straight into his thigh. He screams like a wounded animal, and I start laughing at his pain.
“You’re lucky I didn’t stab you in the throat or in the eye, you bastard!”
I’ve never felt so much pleasure hearing someone scream. It’s exactly what he deserves.
A hand suddenly yanks me back violently it’s Khalid.
“What the hell did you just do? Are you insane? You want to kill him, is that it?”
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“He deserves to die, that bastard! He humiliated me publicly! Where the hell were you when that happened? He stripped me in front of all the guests! He disrespected me, and that humiliation will be burned into everyone’s memory – especially mine!”
Khalid looks me over and then walks to Hakim. He yanks the scissors out of his thigh with a harsh pull, intensifying his pain–and- my satisfaction.
“I know what he did to you because I’m the one who planned it.”
–
My mouth falls open. My eyes widen. My heart feels like it’s about to burst.
Not a trace of sorrow or remorse in his voice.
How could he do something so vile to me?
This is officially the worst thing he’s ever done to me.
“Don’t overreact, Inara. It was nothing more than a little joke.”
I stare at him in disgust as tears rise. I bite my lip hard to keep anything from spilling. I roll my eyes and clench my fists with all my strength to stop myself from losing control.
“Why? What did I do to deserve such filthy humiliation?”
My voice is shaking and weak.
“I needed to remind the criminal world where your place is. Ever since you stood up to Omar, they’ve all been talking like you’re the biggest criminal in the world. They even thought you might try to take my place. I had to show them you’re nothing in this gang- that’s where this fantastic idea came from.”
He just destroyed a lifetime’s worth of reputation to feed his inferiority complex.
“This party… it was just a pretext to gather them all here, wasn’t it? You planned it all? Everything was calculated from the start…”
My voice is cracked, as if it’s about to vanish.
“You just ruined my reputation. A reputation I built for years. I’ve fought all my life to make sure I wouldn’t be seen as just a whore in this gang and you destroyed it in just a few minutes.”
I place my hand over my heart, which is aching horribly. I try to breathe properly, but the air has become unbreathable.
“Stop the act, it’s not that bad! You’ll get over it, and at worst, if all those people think you’re a whore, what’s the problem? I don’t see one,”
I can’t believe it. Our eyes meet, and when he detects all the hatred I feel for him, he breaks eye contact and slaps me hard.
I barely feel the pain because of the rage 1 feel toward this heartless man.
“I don’t like that insolent way you’re looking at me.”
Without thinking about the consequences of my action, I sent a violent punch straight to the middle of his face.
“Go fuck yourself, Khalid!”
He groans in pain. I hear Hakim gasp in surprise.
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Chapter 71
I know I’m going to regret this bitterly, but it’s over. I won’t let this dog walk all over me anymore. This is the last time he disrespected me and treated me like garbage.
“You’re just a son of a bitch! My grandmother must have been a real slut to give birth to scum like you! I’m ashamed to share your- blood–you’ve disgusted me since I was a child! I have monster’s blood in my veins!”
I start trembling with rage, my hatred intensifies. All the resentment built up over the years against this bastard is surfacing.
I’ve always done everything to be worthy of being his daughter. He’s the one who never deserved to be my father.
“I always thought you had at least a sliver of affection for me, but you hate me! Every day, I curse the fact that I have a father like you! You’re a bitch, Khalid! You have no idea how good it feels to finally tell you what I think of you! This hatred has been eating me up for too long! You deserve to have the scissors that cut my dress shoved down your throat! I would’ve offered to cut your balls off, but they don’t exist! Just limp balls, pure liquid!”
He stares at me in shock for a moment, but then the hatred boils over in him. He grabs my head violently and slams me against the
wall.
“Come on, hit me if it’ll keep me from seeing your damn face! Kill me! I never want to see your disgusting face again!”
“You want to die? Then die, bitch! Ungrateful brat! You’re just like your mother, a damn whore! You look exactly like her!”
He punches me violently in the stomach and I keep screaming insults at him. The more I insult him, the harder and faster his punches come. But they will never hurt as much as everything he’s done to me since I was born.
Hakim yells at him to stop, but he’s completely enraged.
“Stop, Khalid! You’re going to kill her! You’re hitting her too hard! Her stomach’s purple!”
I feel my legs give way, but I don’t stop opening my mouth.
I’m going to die with honor.
“I’m the one who gave life to this slut, I’m going to take it back! This whore dared raise her hand against me and insult me like I was
her kid!”
One more hit and it’ll all be over.
The last blow before all this suffering ends.
1 give a reassuring smile that says I’m ready to go.
1 just want to rest.
Khalid raises his fist, ready to strike my neck, when he’s suddenly thrown away from my body. I gasp for a few seconds. My eyes
meet those of…
…Alexander.
I don’t have time to speak before he grabs Khalid violently and throws him to the ground. He climbs on top of him and starts beating him.
“I always knew you hit her! You almost killed her, you fucking bastard! Look at what you did to her! How can you hit your own blood?”
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Alexander grabs Khalid’s head and slams it repeatedly against the floor while Khalid screams in pain and Hakim yells for Alexander
stop. In vain.
My lips tremble while my eyes are red.
This is the first time someone has stopped him to save me from his blows.
“You’re not ashamed of hitting a woman–your own daughter? I hope you shit yourself like the piece of shit you are!”
“Don’t touch me! Stop hitting me!”
Alexander isn’t himself anymore–it’s like Khalid beat him instead. My head and stomach hurt too much for me to step in.
Alexander slams Khalid’s head one last time against the floor, cursing him. In a final blink, Khalid closes his eyes and doesn’t reopen them. A few seconds later, Alexander checks his pulse and stands up mechanically.
“Is… is he dead?” I manage to say.
“Unfortunately not.”
“Shit! Khalid!”
He glares at Hakim, who just spoke.
“Someone already dealt with you, that’s why I’m not adding to it.”
Hakim lowers his eyes and says nothing.
Alexander walks over to me and lifts me gently. I instinctively rest my head against his muscular chest and close my eyes without a word.
I need to be taken somewhere safe. In his arms, I may not be safe, but I feel good.
When I open my eyes, I’m in the passenger seat of his car. He drives without a word. He’s covered my aching, nearly naked body with a blanket.
“How did you know? I thought you left.”
“I had planned to climb into your room through the tree once everyone was asleep. I heard screaming and yelling, so I came in.”
1 say nothing.
I’m leaving the villa for good,
What just happened marks the end of my path with Khalid.
We’re no longer connected, he and I–except by blood.
Were we ever connected by anything else?
He will never forgive me for the state Alexander left him in. As for me, I’ll never forgive the humiliation and violence he just made
me endure.
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