Chapter 5

The silence that followed Charlie's scream was deafening. I stood on the balcony, my chest heaving, listening to the muffled chaos rising from the gardens below. There was no regret, no fear, just a cold, hollow satisfaction. She had pushed me too far.

I smoothed down the skirt of my red dress, adjusted a stray strand of hair. My movements were slow, deliberate, almost serene. My pulse, however, still throbbed like a drum against my temples. I turned to leave, my escape route already planned. The back stairs, a taxi waiting a few blocks away.

But then a hand clamped onto my arm, hard, jerking me back. Griffin. His face was a mask of furious disbelief, his eyes blazing.

"Hayden! What did you do?!" His voice was a strangled roar, barely controlled. "Did you push her?"

I looked at him, my expression blank. "Yes," I said, the word calm and steady. Just "yes." No explanation, no excuse. Just the simple, brutal truth. "She deserved it."

His grip tightened, his fingers digging into my flesh. "You... you're unbelievable! You can't just go around assaulting people, Hayden! You're out of control! Apologize to her! Now!"

"Apologize?" I scoffed, a bitter laugh escaping my lips. "For finally getting what she deserved? Never. She had it coming."

His eyes narrowed, a dangerous glint in their depths. "You are incorrigible. You are beyond redemption." He pulled out his phone, his thumb flying across the screen. "You need to be taught a lesson. A real one." He barked orders into the phone, his voice tight with rage. "Security! To the back balcony! Get her into the main fountain! And make sure she stays there until she learns some goddamn manners!"

My eyes widened. The main fountain. It was a massive, ornate structure in the center of the gardens, filled with icy cold water, even in summer. "Griffin, no!" I struggled against his grip, but it was useless. Two burly security guards appeared, their faces grim. They grabbed my arms, their hold like iron.

"Let go of me, you brutes!" I screamed, kicking and thrashing, but they were too strong. They dragged me down the elegant marble stairs, past horrified guests who parted like the Red Sea. I saw my father, his face pale with shock, and Eleanor, her mouth agape.

They didn't try to stop it. No one did.

I fought with everything I had, but they were merciless. With a heave, they tossed me into the frigid depths of the fountain. The shock of the cold water stole my breath. It was like being plunged into a block of ice. I gasped, sputtering, the heavy silk of my dress dragging me down.

I thrashed, trying to find my footing, to climb out, but every time I reached for the edge, one of the guards would push me back in. "Stop it, Hayden!" Griffin's voice, cold and unyielding, echoed from the edge of the fountain. "You will stay there until you calm down and reflect on your actions."

"You bastard!" I screamed, my teeth chattering, my voice hoarse. "You absolute bastard!"

Minutes stretched into an eternity. My limbs grew numb, my fingers stiff with cold. My beautiful red dress clung to me, heavy and unforgiving. My teeth chattered uncontrollably. I could feel the cold seeping into my bones, stealing my strength. The humiliation burned hotter than the freezing water.

Then, a wave of agony shot through my abdomen. A sharp, cramping pain, familiar and unwelcome. I looked down, my vision blurring from the cold. Red. Not the red of my dress, but a darker, more visceral red blooming around me in the water. My period. And it was heavy.

One of the guards, noticing the dark stain spreading in the water, leaned over. "Sir," he said to Griffin, his voice hesitant. "She's... she's bleeding. It looks like her flow."

Griffin's face remained impassive. His eyes, however, flickered, a momentary hesitation. But it passed quickly. "Let her bleed," he said, his voice hard, devoid of any warmth. "Perhaps it will finally teach her a lesson."

The words hit me harder than any physical blow. Let her bleed. My heart, already numb from the cold, shattered into a million icy pieces. Despair, thick and suffocating, wrapped around me. This wasn't love. This wasn't even anger. This was cruelty. Unadulterated, chilling cruelty.

My vision tunneled. The cold seized me, pulling me deeper. My strength gave out. I felt myself sinking, the dark water closing over my head. The last thing I saw before darkness claimed me was Griffin's cold, unchanging face, outlined against the harsh glare of the gala lights.

Hayden POV: