---- sharks. Furious, they vented their anger on me, making me slap myself, only stopping me when my cheeks swelled and were barely recognizable, and I could feel my teeth aching. And because my cheeks were too swollen, even eating suddenly took effort. I couldn't even chew the buns they threw at me, so they stomped them into tiny pieces caked with dirt before shoving them into my mouth. My stomach was churning again at the thought, but I fought against the impulse to retch and shook my head. "Sorry, there's nothing I want." Stella lifted a brow suspiciously, and growled threateningly, "I gave you a chance but you spurned it. Just don't bother me later-I'm not that patient." "No, I won't," I replied quietly. All I wanted was for her to leave right then. "you'd better not," she snorted. ---- For her part, she didn't insist-perhaps because she was reluctant to reward me in the first place. She strode off, but paused a few paces away, "And don't bother Uriah anymore. There's nothing between us." With that, she was gone before I could respond.