Elora's small body trembled as she backed away to the dark corner of the room, her hands shaking, her tearful eyes unable to believe what was happening. The commander approached her with cold steps, as if crawling from the heart of hell.
"Please... don't kill me... please... I'm still young..." she said, her voice broken, barely audible from her small throat.
He paused for a moment, staring at her with empty eyes, then whispered bitterly, "And I was young too... Did anyone ask about me? Did anyone save me?"
She clung to the last vestiges of hope and whispered,
"Today... today is my birthday... I don't want to die..."
He chuckled, a laugh like the creak of an old door in an abandoned house, then said,
"Me too... I had a birthday when I was your age... But no one brought me a cake, no one sang to me..."
He moved closer, his eyes blazing with hatred,
Then, in a voice as low as poison, he said,
"Don't be afraid... I won't kill you... I'll do something worse to you..."
Elora screamed, she cried, she ran to find a corner to protect herself,
but there was no protection in the wolf's cage.
She cried,
"Father... Mother... they're waiting for me... Please, let me go back to them..."
He froze for a moment, his gaze shifting, then his features hardening, as if a mirror had shattered inside him,
He roared angrily,
"You will go back to them... Don't worry... But they won't recognize you anymore!"
Then he lunged at her, like a beast unleashed.
She screamed... she fought... but her small hands were powerless.
She saw nothing but dark shadows... then she glimpsed the tattoo on his chest, a strange, small tattoo, like half a dragon, etched beside his heart...
Then...
Then a strange, muffled song began to play from an old radio in the corner... a song that would forever be etched in her memory, becoming part of her pain.
Time froze.
The light died in her eyes.
And in that moment, a broken child was born... who would grow up to be an unforgettable woman... and unforgiving.
They weren't satisfied with her tears... or her pleas... or her blood on the ground.
They picked up their phones, as if filming some kind of spectacle... as if what they had done to her was some immortal achievement.
Their laughter filled the air... "Look at her... a child! Crying like a kitten!"
"Everyone's going to see her... she'll be famous!" "Share this... Let the world know who she is!"
The click of the record button... The camera flash... And the echo of her trembling scream, from which all hope had been stolen.
At Elora's family home, decorations hung, and party lights danced across the walls.
Roses adorned the tables, and gifts were lined up, awaiting their recipient.
Marisa made sure everything was in its place, while Ziad watched the enormous cake, decorated with "Elora" inscribed on it with pride.
Guests began arriving, children ran about, and laughter filled the air... but Rami sat in a corner of the garden, glancing at his watch for the tenth time.
"Elora's late," he said, his voice trembling as he gazed at the gate. "That's not like her."
Marisa approached him, gently placing her hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry," she said. "Maybe she had an extra class, or she was out with a friend and lost track of time. You know her; she always loses track of time when she's happy."
Ziad raised his head and said with a small smile, "Yes, Dad... don't worry, she'll definitely come."
But that underlying worry still lingered in Rami's expression. And suddenly...
Whispers began to rise among the guests.
The party guests, who had been laughing just moments before,
were now looking at their phones...
then at each other...
then at Manisa and Rami.
Disgusted, tense looks, holding a thousand unspoken questions.
One of the women stepped forward and whispered in Sabiha's ear,
handing her her trembling phone.
Marisa opened the phone... As soon as she saw the picture, her voice caught in her throat, and she nearly collapsed.
"Rami..." she whispered fearfully, handing him the phone.
Rami stared at the screen,
then his face changed... it reddened, then paled,
then he shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Get everyone out of here!"
"Everyone out! The party's over!"
Marisa followed him, shouting frantically:
"She's embarrassed us... our own daughter has embarrassed us!"
Ziad stood stunned, not understanding what was happening.
The whispers of the crowd grew louder.
"Is that Elora?!"
"Oh my God!"
"What a disgrace!"
Marisa abruptly turned off the music and shouted angrily,
"All of you out! Out!"
In the midst of this chaos,
the sound of a car stopping in front of the house was heard... Heavy footsteps approached the door...
Then... soft knocks.
Everyone turned towards the door in heavy silence.
Rami reached out and slowly... began to open it.
There she was...
Elora, lying on the ground...
They had dumped her in front of the door.
Her small body was piled up at her doorstep,
like human garbage...
like she was nothing more than a fleeting moment in their sick instincts.
They drove off in their cursed car, leaving her there,
in the silence of the morning...
on the very day of her birthday.
Minutes that felt like an eternity.
Elora opened her eyes with difficulty…
Everything hurt…
The street, the air, the echo of laughter in her ears…
Everything inside her screamed, "Why?"
She lifted her head with difficulty…
She saw him… her father.
For a moment, she thought salvation had arrived.
Tears preceded her words,
"Father… Father, help me… I… have been kidnapped!"
She ran to him with every last vestige of her strength,
but… what she received was not the embrace she longed for.
Instead…
A slap.
An angry hand crashed against her cheek like a whip.
He screamed at her with all the fury in the world:
"Shameless! You've disgraced us! You've dragged the family name through the mud! Your pictures are everywhere! You've made us a laughingstock!"
She trembled, almost collapsing from the shock.
"But… I'm… a victim…" she whispered, barely able to speak.
But no one heard the whisper.
Moments later, her mother, Marisa, called out, her voice filled with worry and confusion: "Rami, people will talk... We have to leave here immediately. We can't bear their stares anymore; they've all seen the video... The scandal's out!"
"I'll come with you... Take me with you..." Elora cried, tears streaming down her face.
But Marisa said coldly, "Where to? You're the reason for all this. The clan won't forgive us if we take you. They'll make Jawdat pay."
"I'm your daughter!" Elora cried, her voice breaking. "How could you do this? I'm scared. I can't stay alone!"
She looked at Ziad, her eyes pleading, begging, pleading.
Ziad approached with angry steps, torn by his inner turmoil, his gaze oscillating between pity for his sister and rage at what had happened.
But Rami cut through his hesitation with a stern, uncompromising tone:
"We don't have time! Pack your things. We're leaving now!"
Everyone moved quickly.
No one even glanced at Elora.
No one offered a hand.
Not even a goodbye look.
They left her... They left their broken child weeping at the doorstep as if she weren't one of them, as if she had never called them "Mommy... Daddy."
She stayed there, curled up, weeping unbearably, her cries echoing through the place, but no one heard her...
Or perhaps... they heard, but chose silence.
They left her at the doorstep...
And she hadn't even turned fourteen yet.
Elora...
In her torn dress,
With bruises on her heart, not just on her skin. With her childhood buried,
And her dignity crucified at the gates of cowardice and shame.
She curled up, weeping bitterly,
As if the whole world had turned against her.
Elora rose.
With heavy steps, as if the earth groaned beneath her from the weight of the betrayals and wounds this child carried.
Her face was pale, her eyes swollen from crying,
The air lashed at her as if reminding her that there was no warmth in this world.
She went out into the garden...
And froze.
Colorful lights hung.
Pink balloons.
A table laden with cakes and sweets.
"Happy Birthday, Elora," read on a decorated banner.
Everything seemed... beautiful.
Fake.
Poisonous.
As if she were in a bad play,
And the audience laughed at her moans backstage.
Suddenly, the volcano inside her erupted.
She screamed, her voice shattering the silence:
"Lies! All lies! You never loved me!"
She ran to the table,
overturning it with trembling hands.
The juice spilled, plates flew, candles shattered.
She kicked the balloons, tore the decorations,
She screamed, she cried, she shouted:
"Where were you?!
While I was screaming and crying?
While I begged you not to leave me?
You left me alone as if I were nothing!"
Her tears mingled with her voice... a child bleeding unbearable words.
The scene was as painful as a flower crushed under merciless feet.
But in that moment...
Amidst the pain and betrayal,
something new was born in Elora...
A woman was born, from the ashes of the broken child.
A woman who would not forget... and would not forgive.
And the day would come... when she would reclaim everything that was stolen from her, and more.
Elora remained on the ground, clutching her small, trembling body in her arms, dust clinging to her tattered dress, tears silently and painfully streaming down her cheeks. The ground was cold… but not colder than the hearts of those who had abandoned her.
She didn't know how much time had passed, but one thing she felt intensely… loneliness.
Suddenly…
"Tick… tick… tick…"
The sound of elegant heels began to approach slowly and steadily. Confident footsteps, unlike any she was used to. It wasn't her father, or her mother, or anyone from the clan… This sound was unfamiliar.
Elora raised her head heavily, tears still blurring her vision. Through the hazy veil of her tear-filled eyes, she glimpsed an elegant woman, wearing an expensive coat, her gaze stern and unappreciative, studying her from head to toe.
Elora felt something strange creep into her weary heart… For the first time, the person's gaze wasn't filled with blame or shame.
It was… steady, cold, but devoid of judgment.
Her lips trembled, and she whispered in a barely audible voice, "Don't leave me..."
End of Part Two
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I know this chapter was painful... I apologize for that.
But some stories are born only from pain,
and from it begins the journey of strength. 🤍 Share your thoughts and comments with me.
I'm eager to know how you feel after this chapter...
To be continued... ✍️