Chapter 6
ELODIE’S POV~
“That little humiliation won’t end her life. She’s okay.”
Those words wouldn’t leave my head. Calhoun’s voice...so calm, so certain kept ringing ceaselessly in my ears. Not Carmela’s cruel laughter. Not the gasps or the whispers of the guests. Just him. Over and over, like a knife twisting in my chest. My tears wouldn’t stop, falling freely down my cheeks as I clutched the shredded remains of my dress to my chest, trying in vain to cover what had been ripped away from me.
The crowd that had gathered to witness my humiliation began to disperse slowly. One by one, they left me there, and no one offered to help. No hand reached out. No sympathetic glance lingered. I was utterly alone. My sobs grew louder, spilling out of me in ragged, desperate gasps. I could feel my body shaking with shame, my chest heaving uncontrollably as I watched them walk away.
I tried to stand, my knees wobbling, my body weak and trembling. And then a jacket landed squarely on my face. Blinking through my tears, I looked up to see the waiter who had carried Carmela’s silver tray toss it toward me and walk away without a word. No apology. No acknowledgment. Nothing. Just another reminder that no one cared, that I was invisible, unworthy of even the smallest kindness.
I wrapped the jacket around me, but it did nothing to stop the tremors coursing through my body. Shock. Pain. Fear. Humiliation. They clung to me like a second skin, seeping into my bones.
The world outside was gray, heavy with rain pouring, and as I stumbled into it, the heavens themselves seemed to join in my punishment. Rain pounded down, soaking the jacket, drenching the scraps of fabric that still clung to my skin. My tears mixed with it, but I had no strength left to cry. My mind had gone numb. My body moved on autopilot, dragging itself across the nearly empty streets, soaked and exhausted, my vision blurring.
I was approaching a dark alley, a shortcut home when a car honked beside me. I froze, my heart thudding painfully in my chest. Slowly, I turned. There was Calhoun. Clutching the steering wheel, his gaze locked onto me with that piercing intensity I had once craved, and he waved for me to get in.
Fresh pain, hatred, heartbreak, it all surged through me at once. My chest felt like it had been torn open. I wanted to scream at him. Fuck you. Go to hell with your ride. But the words caught in my throat. Did they even matter anymore? My vision was already swimming with black dots. My body felt like it was disintegrating, piece by piece, under the weight of everything.
So I ignored him. My feet dragged through the puddles. Rain pelted my head and my soaked jacket, but I barely noticed. I was already broken. Already numb. My heart hardened a little more with every step, my soul turning colder and colder.