Chapter 9 Chapter 9 After David left, Helen stepped out from the side. "See that, sis? He loves me! If I were you, I'd leave him." Helen taunted, waving her phone. "All I did was lie about you hiring thugs to harass me. Look how frantic he got." "Save your tricks. Take the trash if you want it." Lisa replied calmly before turning to pay respects at her parents' grave. Helen fumed at her composure. "Who do you think you are, acting high and mighty? You're just a deserted wife! David waited five years to marry me. You were the joke all those years. You're nothing without him!" Lisa paused. Though emotionally drained, the words still stung. She turned, fighting back tears. "Without David, I'm still a Davis. Even as Mrs. Green, you'd have no right to shout at me. Helen, remember this: I'm leaving David, not because you drove me away, but because I chose to discard him." "Lisa Davis!" Helen's eyes burned crimson as she glared at Lisa's retreating figure. "You'll regret this!" Ignoring her, Lisa knelt before her parents' tombstones to bid farewell. She recounted the past five years with eerie calmness, not shedding a single tear. "Mom, Dad, I don't love David anymore. Don't worry about me. I'll take care of myself." Dusk approached when she reluctantly left the cemetery. David never came. No call came through. The remote graveyard required walking down a narrow path to reach the main road. After her final goodbye, Lisa trudged toward the highway. Within minutes, footsteps echoed behind her. She quickened her pace, pulling out her phone to dial emergency services. Before she could press call, a handkerchief clamped over her mouth from behind. Lisa thrashed violently until darkness swallowed her consciousness-chloroform fumes overwhelming her senses. Icy water crashed over Lisa, jolting her awake. She found herself bound backward to a pillar, eyes blindfolded, body trembling violently from cold and fear. "Who are you? Why am I here?" Her voice shook as primal terror seized her. "Answer me! Who's doing this?" "Want money? I have plenty! Give me account details-I'll transfer it now!" Met with crushing silence behind the blindfold, Lisa thrashed against her restraints. Her soaked clothes clung to her skin as the wind bit deeper into her bones. "Let me go! Who the hell-" "Agh!" A rod smashed into her abdomen, stealing her breath. "No need to know who I am. Just pay for what you've done." The rod struck her belly again-vital organs twisting in agony, tears springing unbidden. "I don't understand..." No response came. Only the relentless battering of the rod against her stomach, each blow landing with bone-shattering force. Pain bludgeoned her unconscious, only to revive her moments later with fresh torment. By the end of the beating, she was numb with pain. Blood from her lower body soaked her pants, and blood from her mouth stained her clothes... The man seemed exhausted. He dropped the stick, untied her, and she collapsed like a torn rag. Blood quickly spread on the ground as she passed out cold. When she woke again, no one was around. She removed the blindfold and saw a projector set before her. On the screen, David held Helen, kissing her forehead repeatedly. "Don't cry, baby. You're safe now." "Brother, I can't believe it. I won't believe Lisa would hurt me." "She's so kind. How could she harm me just because I accidentally pushed her?" Helen wept, tears streaming like rain. "Maybe people change." Pain flickered in David's eyes. "The facts are clear. Lisa hired thugs to attack you. Without your timely call to police, it'd have been disastrous." "Even so, don't seek revenge for me. Don't hurt Lisa." "You're still defending her now? Relax, I only taught your attackers a lesson." "As for Lisa, I'll warn her when I get the chance." Disappointment filled David's gaze-he was convinced Lisa had hired people to harm Helen. Lisa convulsed in pain on the floor, staring fixedly at the screen. Her heart felt ripped raw from her chest, bleeding freely. David, who once trusted her utterly, now framed her with false charges because of Helen-ordering her brutal beating. When hearts change, everything follows. She laughed until tears fell. David, if you ever learn the truth, will you regret this? Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!