Her body shook with rage. She took a slow deep breath and said, "I do, but not like this. I won't sink to her level—I'd never do anything so cruel."

"Perhaps," Sean said. "But this seems especially fitting, no? If it upsets you, you should go to bed."

​​

"And leave you alone to watch it by yourself?" she asked. "I bet you enjoy it!"

"Enjoy?" he asked. "What is there to enjoy?"

"Madison's breasts, her body, her pain," Catherine spat. "Is this like porn for you?"

Sean's eyes darkened, and his lips curled into a frown.

"Do you get off to this kind of thing?" she shouted.

Wordlessly, he grabbed his phone and tapped out a quick message. Catherine glanced back at the screen and saw Adam straddling Madison on the bed. With his remaining hand, he grabbed her neck, choking her the way he'd done in the hotel room. Unconsciously, Catherine pressed her hand to her own bruised throat.

Suddenly, Adam stopped. He released Madison's neck and climbed off the bed. With a grunt of pain, he climbed up onto the windowsill and disappeared out the open window. Madison lay still in the bed, panting for breath.

Catherine turned to look at Sean. His eyes were closed, and his face was drawn and pale.

"What happened?" she asked.

"You were right," he whispered. "I got carried away."

"Carried away?" she asked.

He nodded, "I just ordered Drew to stop Adam." He opened his eyes and gazed at her with an intensity that made her shiver. "I need you to understand something," he said. "There was nothing I enjoyed about that horrible scene, but sometimes my anger gets the better of me."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Oh, honey," he breathed. "When I saw him on top of you in that hotel room, I could barely think. I wanted nothing but his blood. It took everything in me to leave him alive. Even now, I want to find him and beat him until life drains from his eyes."

Catherine shivered, "It's okay. He didn't hurt me."

"I know that," Sean said. "But he wanted to."

"And Madison?" she asked.

"I just wanted her to experience the same fear you had," he said. "Adam was just supposed to threaten her, but you're right, I let it go too far. I'll think of another way to punish her. To punish them both."

Catherine's heart hammered in her chest. Sean's face was twisted with a mixture of pain, regret, and rage. Gently, she placed her palms on his cheeks, tugging his head down. Feeling suddenly shy, she leaned in and pressed a very gentle kiss to his forehead. He sighed and closed his eyes.

They sat like that for a long time. She didn't want to move, and Sean seemed lost in thought. Finally, he cleared his throat.

"I have an idea," he said.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I think I know what I'm going to do to Madison," he said.

She shivered, "What?"

"Do you trust me?" he asked.

"I think so," she said, uncertain if she was telling the truth or not.

***

Madison woke in her bed. Light poured in through the window, and she shivered and sat up. She rubbed her eyes in confusion—she'd had the strangest dream. Slowly, she sat up, feeling the brisk morning air on her bare breasts. She froze and looked down at her chest. Her nightgown tangled around her waist.

She screamed and clutched the fabric to her chest, looking around the room in a panic. She scrambled out of bed and rushed to the mirror—deep purple bruises covered her neck in the shape of a handprint. She gasped for breath and rushed to grab her phone. A single unread text waited for her from Adam.

She opened the text and read, "We have unfinished business. I'll be seeing you around."

She took a deep breath and typed a response, "If I see you again, I'll kill you."

Adam responded immediately with a winking emoji, and her stomach churned. She dropped her phone onto the bed, tugged on her robe, and charged toward the bedroom door. She was surprised to find that it opened easily. She walked down the short hallway and stopped outside her parent's door. She raised her fist and knocked once and then again. A low groan came from within.

"Mum?" she shouted. "Dad?"

"What?" her mother grumbled.

"Are you there?" she asked.

"Of course we're there," her mom said. "Now leave me alone—I have a bloody awful headache."

She sighed and returned to her room. She paced the small room looking for signs of Adam's break in, but she couldn't find a single thing. With her phone in her hand, she started to dial the police. The phone rang, and an operator answered.

Suddenly, her throat went dry. What if Adam was right? What if the police were useless? If Sean was behind it all, she couldn't rely on them.

"Hello?" the operator asked. "Hello?"

She ended the call and began to pace her room again. She checked the lock on the window and the lock on her bedroom door, but they both looked the same as they always had. She padded down the hall to the bathroom and examined herself in the mirror.

Under the fluorescent light of the bathroom, she looked even worse. Her face was puffy and blotchy from crying, and her lips were split and cracked. Her hair clung to her head in sweaty, tangled clumps, and the bruises on her neck looked even darker. She stared in disbelief at her face and pinched her arm.

She gritted her teeth and propped her hands on either side of the basin. "I'll take my revenge," she said to the mirror. "You'll be sorry you ever met me, Catherine. Sean will be mine, and when he is, I'll make sure you suffer every humiliation known to mankind."

She splashed warm water on her face and then returned to her room, plotting her revenge as she went. She climbed into her bed and closed her eyes, trying to think of a plan. A knock sounded at her door, and she jumped.

"Who is it?" she asked.

The door creaked open, and her mother's face appeared. Melanie looked pinched, tired, and paled. She pressed her hand to the side of her head and narrowed her eyes at Madison.

"What are you doing in bed?" Melanie asked.

"I'm tired, Mum," Madison said. "I didn't sleep well last night. By the way, did you hear any strange noises or anything like that?"