Chapter 5
Realizing Ryan hadn’t noticed anything, Thea casually tossed the empty vial in the trash with some other stuff before turning around.
“Here, take this.”
He held out allergy medication to her.
Thea didn’t move to take it. Ryan’s jaw tightened.
He continued. “Lyra’s finally got an appetite. Make that pork and yam soup for the next few days.”
She’d always been allergic to tons of stuff, so Ryan kept antihistamines around just in case.
But she’d barely ever needed them-he’d made sure anything that triggered her reactions never made it into the house.
At this moment, her fingers and wrists burned like fire, the pain spreading to her chest. Her eyes stung with tears.
But thinking about the last three vials left made it hurt a little less.
Over the next few days, Lyra never stopped tormenting her.
Made her scrub every floor in the house on her hands and knees, claiming she was better than the cleaning lady.
Forced her to shell walnuts by hand until her fingers bled, then threw them at her in disgust.
Thea’s wounds kept piling up. She got quieter each day.
At dinner, she set down the yam soup laced with the fourth vial.
“You’ve been working so hard, sis. Have some soup too.”
Lyra reached for the ladle, then “accidentally” slipped. Scalding soup splashed across Thea’s arm.
Burning pain shot through her. Thea went white as a sheet.
Ryan started toward her, but Lyra suddenly cried out.
He spun around quickly. “What’s wrong, Lyra?”
Tears filled Lyra’s eyes. “The soup splashed me too. It hurts so bad.”
Ryan scooped her up immediately. “Don’t worry, baby. I’m taking you to the ER.”
Thea shook from the pain, stumbling to the kitchen to run cold water over her arm before driving herself to the ER.
Her shirt was fused to the burns, blisters covered her skin. Even the doctor looked horrified.
He had to pop the blisters, clean the wounds, cut away the fabric stuck to her flesh…
Every second was agony.
“THEA!” Ryan’s furious voice echoed through the hall.
The next second, Thea was yanked to her feet as Ryan ripped off the fabric stuck to her burns.
Tears immediately streamed down her face.
“Why does Lyra’s in agony after drank your soup?! What the hell did you do to it?”
Thea was soaked in sweat, too destroyed to speak.
“The patient’s wounds aren’t-”
The doctor tried to stop him, but Ryan dragged Thea out anyway.
He moved fast, not caring that she could barely keep up. Maybe he noticed she was stumbling. Maybe he just didn’t give a shit.
Outside Lyra’s room, Ryan finally let go and had his guys force Thea to her knees.
“You stay on your knees until Lyra’s okay.”
At his words, Thea’s eyes went wide. Pure rage shot through her.
Like hell she was kneeling for that bitch.
She tried to stand, but the bodyguards kept shoving her down until she had no fight left. All she could do was watch Ryan walk into the room without a backward glance.
His soft voice carried through the door.
“Come on, you’re not a little kid. It’s just a shot.”
“I know it stings, baby. You’re doing great.”
Thea’s nails dug into her palms until her wounds split open, blood pooling on the hospital floor.
The physical pain was deeply engraved in the heart.
But it was nothing compared to the whispers around her.
“Holy shit, making the wife grovel? That’s brutal.”
“Wait, I thought she was the side piece.”
“Either way, this is fucked up. How’s she gonna face anyone after this?”
Thea’s vision went black.
“BENG!”
She collapsed face-first onto the tiles, meeting Ryan’s eyes through the doorway.
