The Wedding Day He Ran Away

The day I was supposed to marry Liam, he ran off with the woman hed always loved.
As if to taunt me, he sent a postcard home from every new city he and his lover visiteda picture of them, smiling.
I was getting a manicure and sipping afternoon tea flown in from Paris when their ninety-ninth postcard arrived. Then, after three years of silence, Liam suddenly reappeared.
He stormed in, pointing a trembling finger at a wedding portrait on the wallone of me with another man. "You've been shacking up with some bastard while I was gone!" he roared.
I almost laughed. "What bastard? That's my husband. We've been married for three years."
I arched an eyebrow. "Liam, you didn't actually think I'd be waiting for you all this time, did you?"
1
Liam's eyes bulged. "You think I'll believe that pathetic excuse?" he snarled, grabbing my arm. "Tell me! Who's the piece of trash you've been screwing? I'll make you both pay!"
His grip was brutal. A sickening crack echoed from my arm, and I hissed in pain as fire shot through the joint.
The commotion brought my mother-in-law out of her room. Seeing a strange man assaulting me, she rushed over. "Who are you? Let go of her right now!"
Liam glanced at the plainly dressed older woman and instantly dismissed her as one of our housekeepers. He shoved her hard. "Stay out of this, you old hag! This is between me and her."
I watched in horror as my mother-in-law stumbled and fell, landing hard on the floor. "Mom!" I cried out, my voice tight with panic. "Are you okay?"
Liam froze for a second when he heard me call her 'Mom.' Then, the fury in his eyes intensified, his fingers digging into my arm like steel clamps. "Mom? That's your mom? And here I thought you'd landed someone important." He sneered. "Judging by the rags she's wearing, your new man must be a real loser."
Tears streamed down my face from the pain. A dark, angry bruise was already forming on my skin. "Are you insane? You vanished for three years! You left me to face everything alone, and now you have the nerve to come back and do this?"
"And don't forget," I spat, "we never even had the ceremony. We were never legally married!"
My words seemed to stun him for a moment, but then he started dragging me towards the door. "Everyone knew our families were merging. You think you can just say we weren't married and make it true?" he bellowed. "This villa is mine! You moved your boy toy in here and you dare to talk back to me? You've got some nerve!"
He dragged me out of the house, through the manicured lawns of our exclusive estate, all the way to the main crossroads where the traffic was heaviest.
He threw me forward. "Claire! You shameless whore! The second I'm out of the country, you're spreading your legs for another man!" he shouted for all to hear. "This villa is mine! I want you out, and I want five million dollars in back rent!"
"Otherwise," he leaned in, his voice a venomous whisper, "I'll drag your name and your family's name through the mud until there's nothing left!"
Through the gathering crowd, I saw a familiar faceJenna, the woman he'd abandoned me for. She gave me a smug, triumphant smile, her eyes dripping with contempt.
A bitter, humorless smile stretched across my pale face. Liam had humiliated me when he left, and now he was back to do it all over again.
I had agreed to marry him to save my family's business. I thought the alliance would secure the investment we desperately needed. But he left, the money never came, and my family's company went bankrupt.
The people who lived in this neighborhood were all wealthy and influential. Hearing Liam's accusations, they were already whispering, their minds made up.
"So that's why she's such a recluse. Hiding her kept man in the villa!"
"And I thought she was some high-society lady. Turns out she's just a gold-digging slut living off her man's money!"
2
Just then, my mother-in-law came limping out of the house, clutching her hip. Her face was a mask of fury. "You let her go this instant! Just wait until my son gets home. He'll make you regret this!" she threatened. "Claire, don't be scared. Mom's here to protect you."
Liam laughed, unfazed. He gave my arm a vicious tug, making me stumble and scrape my knees on the pavement. "You're threatening me, you old bat? I don't care if the President himself shows up. You're squatting in my house! Now pack your shit and get out!"
The sharp gravel tore at my legs, leaving bloody trails on the asphalt.
"Liam, this house is mine!" I screamed, desperation clawing at my throat. "Go home and ask your parents what really happened! I'm warning you, let me go, or you're finished! And she is not our maid. You have no idea who you're messing with!"
Before Liam could retort, Jenna pushed her way through the crowd. She stalked towards me, her face twisted in a vicious sneer, and kicked me squarely in the chest.
"You pathetic little tramp, still playing the victim?" she shrieked. "Trying to seduce the rich men around here? Isn't cheating on Liam with one boy toy enough for you?"
The blow knocked the wind out of me. A dull ache spread through my chest, and it felt like my throat was stuffed with cotton, choking me.
Seeing Jenna attack me, my mother-in-law threw herself over my body, shielding me. "Claire, are you okay? Just hold on, I'll find a way to help you!"
Enraged that someone dared to interfere, Jenna grabbed my mother-in-law by the hair and slapped her hard across the face, again and again. "You old bitch! You really think this is your house now, don't you? Let me tell you something. I'd do the same to your pathetic son if he were here!"
My mother-in-law crumpled to the ground and lay still.
Covered in dust and grime, she looked so fragile. "Mom!" I screamed, a raw, primal sound torn from my lungs. I turned on Liam and Jenna, my voice shaking with fury. "If you have a problem, take it out on me! Don't you dare touch my mother! She's over sixty years old! Are you even human?"
My words only seemed to provoke Liam further. He grabbed a handful of my hair, yanked off his belt, and began whipping me with it, over and over.
I lay on the ground, the world blurring as the blows rained down. I could barely move, vaguely aware of the shifting shapes of the crowd around me. I closed my eyes, a wave of despair washing over me. This is it. I'm going to die here.
Suddenly, a man from the crowd stepped forward. "Hey! Stop that!"
Liam looked up at the burly man and sneered. "What, are you one of her clients too? You seem pretty concerned. She must be good in bed, huh? All you men seem to fall for her." He turned to the society wives watching. "Ladies, you better watch your husbands! This woman will sleep with anyone. She'll have their souls before you know it!"
His words hit their mark. The pity in the women's eyes turned to cold contempt. They looked at me like I was something vile they'd scraped off their shoe.
The kind stranger stood between me and Liam. "Sir, you need to watch your mouth. No matter what, you can't just beat a woman in the street!"
Liam's eyes darted between me and the man. Then, with a roar, he lunged forward, smashing his fist into the man's face. He straddled him, raining down punches. "You think you can scare me? I'm going to kill both of you today, you cheating whore and your lover!"
3
Through a haze of pain, I forced my eyes open. The kind man's face was already a swollen, bloody mess.
"Stop it..." I whispered. "Don't drag innocent people into this. Just come at me."
Liam let out a cold laugh. He walked over to me, planted his foot on my face, and began to grind his heel into my cheek. "Innocent? Don't worry, I'm not done with you or this old hag! You're all scum, and I'm going to enjoy taking my time with you. This is what you get for squatting in my villa!"
Then he and Jenna descended on us. He held me down while Jenna slapped my mother-in-law, who had just regained consciousness. I felt a tooth loosen under the force of the blows. My mother-in-law was old and weak; she was no match for Jenna's fury. Soon, her face was a bloody mask.
I watched in horror as her head lolled to one side, lifeless.
The shock and terror triggered my asthma. My chest seized, and I began to gasp for air. "My... inhaler..." I choked out, clawing at my pocket. "Please... get my medicine!"
I couldn't feel the pain anymore. All I knew was the terrifying sensation of being strangled, of my lungs screaming for air they couldn't get.
Liam ripped my hand away, fished the inhaler from my pocket, and hurled it into the distance. "Medicine?" he sneered. "Stop the pathetic act. I never knew you had asthma."
Jenna draped herself over his arm, laughing. "Liam, honey, she put you through hell. Why should we care if she lives or dies? If she kicks the bucket, it's just karma catching up with a slut like her."
Together, they hauled me up and began ripping at my clothes. "You love being a slut, right? Well, today you're going to put on a show for everyone!"
They tore my dress open, exposing me to the gawking crowd. I could see the glint of phone screens, people recording my humiliation. Breathing was a monumental effort now, but I forced the words out, begging Liam one last time.
"Give me... my medicine... or I'll die..." My voice was a faint rasp. "Please... I'll forget everything... just give me the inhaler..."
Liam looked at me as if I were the punchline to a great joke, then dropped me to the ground like a sack of garbage. "You'll forget everything? I'm the one who should be settling scores with you! What a joke!"
"You're getting out of my villa today, and you're going to pay me five million dollars! If you don't, I'll make your life a living hell!" His eyes dropped to my exposed chest, and he licked his lips. "You know, if I'd known you were hiding all this under your clothes, I would have slept with you before I left."
His voice dropped to a greasy whisper. "But it's not too late. You give me a good time right now, and maybe I'll give you your medicine." He dangled the inhaler in front of my face, then scooped me up and started carrying me back towards the house.
"No! Don't touch me! Please, let me go!" I pleaded, trying to cover myself.
Liam's eyes roamed over my body. "Begging me now, are we? Too late! You just make sure I'm satisfied, and I might forget about the last three years of rent."
He threw me down on the lawn, his weight pressing down on me, the foreign smell of him filling my senses. I closed my eyes, surrendering to the void.
Suddenly, the sharp, insistent blare of a car horn cut through the air.
A limited-edition Maybach screeched to a halt in the driveway.
A man of commanding presence stepped out, his voice sharp and cold. "Stop!" he ordered. "What the hell is going on here?"
Liam's sneer instantly melted into a fawning, obsequious grin as he recognized the man. He scrambled to his feet. "Mr. Holt! What brings you here?"

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