Chapter 20
News that the younger generation of the Ziegler, Lawrence, Chandler, and Wade families had all their right hands cruelly broken spread rapidly.
On that very same day, when Julia was on her way to the company, she suddenly passed out right after she got into the car.
When she woke up, the room she was in felt eerily familiar.
She thought hard for a while and finally remembered that it was the room she had stayed in five years ago when Dylan brought her back to Schneider Villa.
With that realization, it was obvious who had drugged and brought her here.
She got up and walked toward the door, only to find it had been locked from the outside. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t open it.
“Ms. Thalman, you’re awake? Please wait a moment, we’ll go get Mr. Schneider.”
Before Julia could respond, hurried foot could be heard fading away beyond the door.
exit had been blocked. With no options left, she simply accepted her situation and decided to let things be.
She glanced around the room. Every
She would like to see what Dylan was
Julia didn’t have to wait long. After as
- to.
bedroom door opened, and Dylan stepped in, dressed sharply in a suit.
1/1
Upon seeing her sitting quietly, he couldn’t help but smile, showing a hint of warmth.
Given the familiar person and setting, he would have been stunned by the scene had he not mentally prepared himself long in advance.
“Jules…”
He called her name instinctively. She turned to look at him, but her eyes were dull and emotionless.
Dylan acted as though he didn’t notice. With a smile, he began to tell her everything he had done.
“Jules, I restored this room completely. Look, it’s just like when we lived here before, isn’t it?”
It really was identical..
Even the photo frame they had accidentally broken during a fight–it had a chipped corner back then was clear just how much thought and effort he had put into it over the years.
–
was replicated exactly and placed in the same position. It
However, that did not change the fact that things had ended between them. No matter how hard he tried, they would never go back to how they were.
“Why did you bring me here? What exactly do you want?” she asked with a frown.
Silence hung between them.
Dylan lowered his gaze and forced a bitter smile. His voice carried a tinge of helplessness and pain.
“Jules, do things between us really have to be filled with hostility?”
Julia said nothing, but her silence was already an answer on its own.
After a long pause, he sighed. “I’m already trying to prove my feelings for you. Jules, those people who crushed the bones in y your hand back then… I’ve caught them ali. I destroyed theirs. Next… it’ll be Kaitlyn.”
Disregarding her resistance, he stepped forward and grabbed her hand, then took her to the basement with him.
Unlike the familiar bedroom she had awakened in, the basement was damp, dark, and filled with the stench of mold. It was clearly abandoned and uncleaned for a long time.
In the very center of the basement was Kaitlyn, with her hands and feet chained. She looked disheveled and dirty.
She looked up instinctively when the door opened, still foolishly hoping it was Dylan coming to rescue her,
Dylan did arrive, but it was not to set her free.
Along with their entrance, another man was thrown into the basement. He had just been released from prison, but was now tightly bound and tossed into the room.
“Jules, how do you want to punish them? I’ll do whatever you say. Don’t be afraid, I’ll always be here with you.”
Dylan’s voice was tender and passionate. It rang out clearly in the basement, reaching everyone’s ears,
The first to break down was the man who had just been thrown in. He clung to Dylan’s leg, sobbing uncontrollably as he begged for his life.
“Mr. Schneider, I didn’t do anything, I swear… please, let me go…”
But before he could finish, Dylan kicked him away in disgust.
Julia recognized that man.
The memories she had tried so hard to suppress suddenly came flooding back. She instinctively stepped back, her face turning pale as a chill ran down her spine. A sudden warmth spread from her wrist in the next second, grounding her. She looked up from her hand to see Dylan’s face, full of remorse and concern. “Jules, this is all my fault. I didn’t think it through. Let me take you out of here, okay? Just leave them to me. I promise, everyone who ever hurt you… will pay.”
