Claire’s POV
I was stunned when I heard Gloria’s voice from the other side of the call. My whole body shivered, and my hand holding the phone started to shake. It felt as if ti had stopped, and I was frozen in place, trapped in the mories I had fought so hard to bury.
But no, I couldn’t let her see the scared, submissive version of . Not anymore. I clenched my free hand into a fist, trying to steady my voice.
"Mrs. Kensington, if you have nothing to say, then I am hanging up," I said firmly, though my voice was slightly shaky. Before she could reply, I ended the call.
The mont I hung up, the strength I had mustered disappeared. My phone slipped from my hand and hit the floor as I collapsed onto my knees with a loud thud. My breathing beca heavy and erratic, and despite the cold weather, I was drenched in sweat.
"Hah..." I gasped, struggling to pull air into my lungs. Tears blurred my vision and spilled freely down my cheeks. I felt utterly powerless, the mories of the past pressing down on like a heavy stone.
"What happened?! What was that sound?" Sissy’s voice called out from the other room, laced with concern.
I tried to pull myself together. I couldn’t let her see in this state. My hands scrambled against the floor as I tried to push myself up, but my legs were weak and trembling. My body refused to cooperate.
When Sissy ca around the corner and saw , her eyes widened in shock. "What the hell? What’s wrong with you?" she exclaid, rushing to my side.
I couldn’t answer her. I couldn’t even look her in the eye. All I could do was sit there, shaking as the remnants of fear and panic clung to like a suffocating blanket.
Sissy dropped to her knees beside , her expression shifting from shock to deep concern. She hesitated for a mont before wrapping her arms around in a tight hug. Her warmth and presence helped , even if just a little, but my heart was still pounding wildly in my chest, refusing to calm down.
"I am here, Claire," she whispered softly. "It’s okay. You are safe now." She wasn’t aware why I was in this state, but she was still comforting , which made want to cry even more.
Safe. The word felt hollow at that mont. As Sissy held , the mories I had tried so hard to suppress began to flood my mind, breaking through the barriers I had built around them.
Gloria, my mother-in-law, had been a nightmare. A woman with a sharp tongue and a cold heart, she had made it her mission to make feel worthless. I rembered the way she used to criticise everything I did, her voice dripping with venom.
"You are a disgrace," she would say with her piercing gaze burning into . "How could my son have married soone so useless?"
It was her who made this marriage happen, and yet... She blad it on and Evander.
"Why are you even alive?"
Her verbal attacks were relentless, taking away my confidence day by day. But the words weren’t the worst of it. Gloria had gone further, crossing lines that no one should ever cross.
There were tis when she would grab my arm so tightly that her nails dug into my skin, leaving marks that lasted for days. She once shoved into a wall during an argunt, the force knocking the air out of my lungs. Her anger was unpredictable, and I was always walking on eggshells around her, terrified of what might set her off next.
I rembered one particularly horrible day when she locked in a small storage room for hours after I accidentally broke one of her expensive vases. The darkness and suffocating air made feel like I was losing my mind. When she finally let out, she smirked and said, "Maybe now you will learn to be more careful."
The scars she left weren’t just physical. They were deep, invisible wounds on my soul. No matter how much ti had passed, the fear she instilled in still lingered. It was always ready to resurface at the slightest trigger just like her voice on that call.
"Claire, talk to ," Sissy said gently, her voice pulling out of my spiralling thoughts. She pulled back slightly, holding my face in her hands, so I couldn’t avoid her gaze. "What happened? Who was on the phone?"
My lips trembled, but no words ca out. My throat felt tight, like it was closing up. I wanted to tell her everything, but I didn’t know where to begin.
"Was it... her?" Sissy asked cautiously, as if she already knew the answer. "Was it Susan?" She asked, but her mind didn’t go further than that woman.
I shook my head as I held onto her, trying to feel her warmth.
"Who could it be?" Sissy muttered as her eyes widened when realisation hit her. "Was it Gloria?"
I nodded slowly, fresh tears spilling down my cheeks. "It was Gloria," I whispered as my voice was barely audible.
Sissy’s eyes hardened, and her protective side flared up. "That woman has no right to tornt you anymore," she said firmly. "You don’t owe her anything, Claire. Not a damn thing."
Her words were comforting, but the fear still lingered. Gloria’s shadow was hard to escape, and even now, I felt like I was still trapped under her control.
"Get up!" Sissy demanded as she took my hand in hers. She helped rise to my feet and looked directly into my eyes. "You are not weak, and there is no need for you to be scared." She said as she helped sit on the chair nearby.
"I am going to teach her a lesson!" Sissy declared and turned to leave when her cell phone rang and...
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