Chapter 3

"You clumsy, pathetic fool," Nathan hissed.

He dragged me away from the wreckage. I stumbled. My ruined dress tangled around my legs. The jazz music faded as he pulled me through the silent, staring crowd. I heard their gasps.

He hauled me down a hallway and shoved me forcefully through a heavy oak door.

The door slammed shut, cutting off the shocked whispers. We were in a private VIP room, the air thick with stale whiskey.

Nathan shoved me hard. I collided with the sharp edge of a heavy mahogany table. I collapsed onto the floor.

"Are you proud of yourself?" he snarled. His voice vibrated with pure, unadulterated rage. "You just had to ruin her special day, didn't you? You couldn't stand to see her happy for just one single night. You had to make a scene. You had to make it all about you."

I sat on the floor, cradling my hands. The physical pain was nothing compared to the hollow ache in my chest. The stranger standing above me was a monster.

"Her special day?" I asked softly. My voice was steady. It was entirely devoid of the frantic panic he expected from me. "It was supposed to be our day, Nathan. It was my wedding. You were supposed to marry me."

"Shut up," he snapped.

I lifted my chin, facing his voice. I wanted him to see the damage he had done.

"Do you remember the promise you made?" I asked. The words tasted like bitter poison on my tongue. "When the bandages came off? When I gave you my eyes so you wouldn't have to live in the dark? You said you would cherish me. You said you would be my eyes. You swore on your life."

A suffocating silence filled the room.

When Nathan finally spoke, his gentle, protective facade was completely gone. It shattered just like the champagne glasses on the marble floor. There was no guilt in his tone. There was only disgust.

"Look at you," he said. His voice dripped with cold, absolute disdain. "You look like a stray dog begging for bones."

I froze. The air left my lungs. The insult struck me harder than his physical blows.

"Did you really think I could spend the rest of my life tied to a cripple?" he sneered. His words sliced deeper than the glass in my palms. "You are a burden, Maureen. A heavy, suffocating burden. I am tired of pretending. And looking at your empty, lifeless eyes makes me nauseous."

The door clicked open. The sharp scent of overly sweet jasmine perfume flooded the room.

Taylor.

"Nathan?" she whimpered. Her voice trembled perfectly. It was a masterful performance. "Nathan, is she okay? I was so worried."

I heard the rustle of her silk dress as she rushed to his side.

"I'm fine, baby," Nathan said. His voice instantly softened. The monster vanished, replaced by the doting husband.

"She threatened me, Nathan," Taylor cried. The fake tears were evident in her breathless sobs. "Before she fell, she whispered that she was going to ruin everything. She said she would make me pay for taking you away. She did it on purpose. She tried to hurt me."

"I didn't say a single word to you," I stated coldly.

"Don't you dare lie to her!" Nathan roared.

He crossed the room in two large strides. He grabbed me by the collar of my torn dress. He hauled me to my feet. My bleeding hands smeared crimson across his pristine tuxedo shirt. I did not care.

"You are out of control, Maureen," he spat. "You are bitter and jealous. You need to cool down."

He did not let me speak. He dragged me toward the door.

"Nathan, what are you doing?" Taylor asked, feigning innocent concern.

"I am teaching her a lesson," he replied.

He pulled me out of the VIP room. We bypassed the main lobby. He dragged me through a side exit. The heavy metal service doors crashed open.

The deafening roar of a torrential downpour hit me instantly. The freezing rain lashed against my bare skin like tiny, icy whips. The wind howled, tearing at my hair and my ruined veil.

Nathan dragged me down the concrete steps. We were in the back alley of the hotel.

With one final, violent shove, he threw me forward.

I hit the wet pavement hard. My scraped knees took the brunt of the fall. I slid into a deep, freezing puddle of muddy water. The icy rain instantly soaked through my dress, chilling me to the bone.

"Stay out here," Nathan commanded. His voice barely rose above the roaring storm. "Stay in the rain until you learn your place. Do not come back inside until you are ready to apologize to my wife."

The heavy metal door slammed shut. The lock clicked.

I was alone.

I lay in the freezing rain. The mud seeped into the pristine white silk of my gown. My hands throbbed. My knees bled. My heart, the foolish, naive organ that loved him enough to give up the world, shattered into a million irreparable pieces.

He took my sight. He took my dignity.

I pressed my forehead against the cold, wet concrete. The rain washed the blood from my palms. I did not cry. I had no tears left to give him. I was empty. I was a hollow shell left in the gutter.

Suddenly, the roaring of the wind was pierced by a sharp, electronic hum. It wasn't a hallucination. It was the wireless earpiece Israel had given me, still hidden beneath my soaked hair.

My phone, tucked inside the hidden pocket of my ruined dress, was dead from the water. But the earpiece was still alive.

It didn't sound like the standard accessibility feature I was used to. The mechanical, genderless voice bypassed my ears entirely, echoing directly into my mind—cold and entirely precise.

[System Binding Complete.]

I froze. The freezing rain beat down on my back, but I did not feel the cold anymore. I felt a sudden, terrifying surge of adrenaline.

[Host, do you want to retrieve your eyes?]