A Forsaken Soul

Finnegan Churchill grabs me by the hair and drags me to a staircase with 99 steps. He orders me to crawl my way up as an apology to his true love, Colette Brooke. At the same time, I'm supposed to pray for her.

He has no idea I'm the one who cared for him during the three years he was blind.

Last month, at the dinner event, Colette Brooke lost her balance and fell down the stairs.

There had only been the two of us present at that time. When Finnegan Churchill rushed over, Colette told him that I was the one who pushed her down.

After begging many specialists and surgeons for treatment, Colette could finally walk again. However, her dance career was ruined, and she could no longer fulfill her dream of being a professional dancer.

Of course, Finnegan immediately thought that I was the culprit who ruined her dreams. So, he rushed over to demand an explanation from me.

I lived in a run-down apartment in a very old residential building. Half of the building had been declared unsafe and demolished, so there weren't many people living here anymore.

I had only managed to find this place after asking around for ages.

Although the ceiling was leaky during rainy days, it was good enough for me because the monthly rent was just less than a hundred dollars.

At that moment, I was eating a stale bun that the bakery owner downstairs, Gordon Combe, left for me, thinking that I should look for a second job to help with my daily expenses.

"Winter Brooke, you've always been high-and-mighty in the past, but at least you'd admit what you'd done. What's the matter with you now? Why are you such a coward?"

I could hear Finnegan's low, dangerous voice coming from outside my door. It sounded like a huge impending thunderstorm to my ears. A short while later, my door was kicked open by a few men.

Finnegan entered my home with a few bodyguards. His leather shoes trod onto my cement floor as he walked in, dressed from head to toe in an expensive-looking suit and blazer.

He stood out like a sore thumb against my yellowed walls, dim lighting, and shaky overhead light that looked like it would snap in two very soon.

I winced, feeling sorry for my bank account. That front door of mine hadn't been of the best quality, but at the very least, it was still a layer of protection against the world outside.

I would have to cough up most of my savings to repair that door, which meant there was even less cash flow for me for the month.

I set my stale bun down and hurriedly got to my feet, wanting to grab the notebook that I'd always used to write in. However, Finnegan marched over toward me and grabbed me by my wrist, harshly yanking me back.

"Mmh…"

"Did I say you could leave?" Finnegan asked, nearing me with a dangerous look in his eyes.

My arm hurt, but I still kept signing to him that I was only going to get my notebook.

Finnegan scoffed. "Don't lie to me. I know you can speak."

Sure, I could speak, but my voice sounded terrible because it had been ruined when someone poured boiling water down my throat.

But judging from what he said, maybe he wanted to hear me speak?

"F-Finnie…" I croaked, suppressing the discomfort in my throat as I slowly and carefully tried to speak.

My voice cracked and sounded frightening.

Finnegan was stunned for a moment when he heard me. Then, a look of mock and disdain appeared in his eyes. "Disgusting."

I was shocked. Did he mean that he was disgusted by my voice or by the fact that I'd called him "Finnie"?

People always said that once someone hated another person, they would find every aspect of that person disgusting or revolting to the bone.

The hate in Finnegan's eyes didn't seem fake. Although I kept staring at them, keeping my hopes up that the look would disappear, the fact didn't change that he hated me.

Finnegan was in love with Colette, after all. Not me.

I looked away in disappointment. However, Finnegan got increasingly aggressive with me. He didn't look like he was about to let me off the hook.

"Bring her to the car."

Two bodyguards marched toward me, sending me into a panic at once. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Finnegan taking out a napkin from somewhere, wiping the hand he'd used to touch me on it, and throwing it onto the ground.

"Ah!"

I began to struggle. I was frightened, afraid that they would bring me to Colette.

Every time I tried to keep my distance from them, Colette would bring my name up again and again before him, framing me for all the things I never did so that Finnegan would keep getting more and more disappointed in me.

I struggled like a madwoman, lashing out at the bodyguards at every chance I got.

Since I struggled so much, and also because I was a female, the two bodyguards paused in their movements, looking like they were in a dilemma.

Finnegan just said coldly, "Don't go easy on her. She deserves to get hurt."

With that, the bodyguards no longer held back and immediately grabbed me by force. My arms were twisted behind my back, and it stung as soon as I tried to move.

"Ah, ah, ah!" I cried out in agony, trying to beg Finnegan for help, but he didn't care about me. Instead, he left the apartment and went into his car.