Hostage for Her, Betrayed by Her

After my wife, Eleanor Vance, was kidnapped, the captors demanded *me* in exchange.

For my daughter and the company, I didn't hesitate to take Eleanor's place, enduring brutal torture from the kidnappers.

I'll take good care of our daughter, and don't worry about the ransom. I'll find a way to get it.

But a whole year passed. It was like she'd vanished, never showing her face.

I fought for my life and finally escaped, only to discover her marrying her childhood sweetheart, Spencer Gray. My parents and hers were there, celebrating joyfully.

Lost in the crowd, I spotted Jolene, the head kidnapper who'd tortured me for a year, raising a toast.

And my precious daughter? She was being treated like a servant, her expression blank as she served drinks to guests, constantly kneeling and begging for mercy at the slightest provocation.

I choked back my agony, turning to call the person who rescued me.

"Just get my daughter out of there, and I promise I'll help you take down her company!"

As I pushed open the door, the cheerful music inside instantly died. All eyes snapped to me.

The moment she saw me, Eleanor's hand, holding a wedding ring, froze. But she quickly composed herself.

"It's a beautiful day, darling. Whatever it is, it can wait until tomorrow. Look at you, all dirty. Don't ruin our guests' mood!"

I couldn't believe my ears. Shouldn't she be explaining what the hell was going on?

Why was she standing there in a wedding gown, happily exchanging rings with her childhood sweetheart?

And why was Jolene, the head kidnapper who'd abused me, attending *their* wedding?

Eleanor's mom's shrill voice jolted me back to reality:

"Where in the world have you been, you good-for-nothing?! Eleanor was so good to you, and you go and cheat with a kidnapper, gone for a whole year before you bothered to come back! You might be shameless, but our Vance family still has a reputation to uphold!"

Cheating?

It was laughable. So this was how Eleanor was covering up her betrayal.

Just then, Jolene, holding a champagne glass, draped an arm around me, squeezing my arm with a vicious, chilling fake smile.

"Still keeping our little secret, are we? You're a naughty one."

Her voice was laced with blatant threat and warning.

My body froze, my eyes wide and vacant.

Seeing the scene unfold, the guests started buzzing:

"No wonder Ms. Vance is marrying Mr. Gray. It turns out this scumbag cheated first. Poor things."

"Cheated for a whole year and didn't even go home once? I've never seen such blatant nerve. The King family might be struggling and a disappointment, but *he's* even worse!"

"Hmph, Ms. Vance's mom was bending over backward for Ms. Vance and Mr. Gray's wedding. And here her daughter is, playing a little servant at the wedding. What a family, right?"

Hearing the room erupt into chaos, Eleanor finally hurried over to me, her voice low and impatient.

"Couldn't you have waited until tomorrow to come back? It's just a wedding for Spencer! I've been working so hard planning this for a year, and it's the last step. Are you deliberately trying to embarrass us?"

Just a wedding

But what about me?

This past year, I'd been beaten relentlessly, old wounds layering new ones. When I was hungry, I had to lick stale food off the ground like a dog.

So all my suffering, all the torture, even the shame of being branded a cheater, was just to pave the way for their lavish wedding.

I despairingly closed my eyes, then reached out to grab my daughter, Lily.

"Come on, Lily, let's go."

But Lily recoiled as if shocked, then suddenly fell to her knees in panic, bowing her head and muttering:

"No, no, no, Lily can't leave! I have to stay and serve Ms. Vance and Mr. Gray well! I want to be their most obedient little dog!"

Seeing my daughter so terrified, so willing to humiliate herself, I was stunned.

She was only seven

As she kept bowing her head, I noticed the dark bruises hidden beneath her clothes.

Alarmed, I rushed forward to help Lily up, but she started slapping herself, seemingly oblivious to the pain.

"Lily was bad, Lily deserves to be hit! I'll go to the cold room for three hours right now!"

I slowly turned my gaze to Eleanor, desperate for an explanation.

But before she could speak, Spencer Gray hugged Lily, acting like a doting older brother.

"You're misunderstanding! Lily and I just play house like this sometimes. Sometimes I'm the servant, sometimes she is. Today's just her turn."

My hand shaking, I pointed at the dark bruises on Lily's neck. My eyes burning, I demanded:

"Are *these* marks part of your game too?! Is this how you treat my daughter?!"

Seeing Spencer's face darken, Eleanor shoved me away, her eyes full of reproach.

"What are you making such a fuss about?! Do you have to cause a scene like a madman? Do you really think Spencer is as calculating and manipulative as *you* are?"

"Those are just paint marks Spencer got on Lily when they were drawing. They're proving impossible to wash off! You, her own father, didn't do your duty, and Spencer kindly looks after her, and *this* is how you repay him? Are you trying to make trouble?!"

Seeing Lily's obvious fear of Spencer, my heart ached to the point of suffocation. Tears blurring my vision, I looked at Eleanor.

"Can't you see how scared she is? And you still think it's just a game?!"

Eleanor fixed her gaze on Lily, observing her for a long moment, a flicker of doubt in her beautiful eyes.

At that moment, Spencer's eyes reddened, his voice choking up.

"I thought if I treated Lily well, I could smoothly integrate into this family. But it turns out I'm just an outsider, destined to never be truly a part of it, to always be pointed at and judged. Maybe we shouldn't get married after all. I'm just a complete joke, aren't I?"

With those words, Spencer took off the boutonnire from his lapel, thrust it into Eleanor's hands, covered his face, and ran towards the bedroom.

The groom running off sent the entire room into an uproar.

But the guests' murmurs were all directed at me, calling me disgusting.

Watching Spencer's retreating back, Eleanor's brow furrowed with unconcealable annoyance.

"Is this the example you set for our daughter? It's just a ceremonial wedding! Do you have to turn everything upside down?!"

"And your own daughter, who you raised yourself, pretending to be abused by Spencer in front of everyone? Such deep manipulation at such a young age, what will she be like when she grows up?! She should really thank you for being such a father!"

Leaving that thought hanging, Eleanor quickly followed to comfort Spencer.

Seeing her publicly scold me, Eleanor's parents only joined in, blaming me for "cheating," hating me for not being able to keep my wife content.

I didn't argue another word. Wrapping my bruised and battered arms tightly around my daughter, tears streamed uncontrollably from my eyes.

"Don't be scared, Lily Daddy will get you out of here right away. You won't suffer any more injustice."

I immediately messaged my lawyer to draft divorce papers and called the person who rescued me.

"Help me this once. I'll help you take down the company"

Back in Lily's room, I quietly packed up all our documents and some essential items.

Just as I lay down, ready to hug Lily to sleep, I heard footsteps stop by the bed.

"Still mad at me, hmm?"

Eleanor's cool voice drifted into my ears. She sat on the edge of the bed, speaking softly.

"Leo, I only arranged that kidnapping to fool you because I was worried you'd get jealous and cause trouble for Spencer. Besides, Jolene's my friend. They wouldn't *think* of hurting you."

The woman sounded utterly convinced, as if she were showing off how well she'd protected me.

But if she'd bothered to truly look at me, she'd have seen that there wasn't a single uninjured spot on my entire body.

I reluctantly looked away, deliberately keeping my distance, and asked calmly,

"So, from now on, I'm supposed to be their punching bag, and let Spencer be Lily's stepdad, right?"

Sensing my attitude, Eleanor clearly lost the last shred of her patience, though she didn't overtly erupt.

"Don't say such unpleasant things. If Lily calls Spencer her stepdad, people will talk even *more*. I'm just having a wedding with him so people won't spread rumors about him seducing me."

She thought my words were unpleasant because I called Spencer a stepdad, not because I called myself a punching bag

I'd heard enough of her pointless excuses and couldn't be bothered to respond.

Eleanor, finding herself ignored, scanned the room with a puzzled expression.

"Why are you packing? Where are you going?"

I was just trying to come up with an excuse when Spencer's phone call suddenly came through. His piteous, crying voice was audible.

"Eleanor, Leo came back and immediately posted about me online, saying I stole his wife, saying I'm shameless, ruining the peace of the family, and even forcing me to leave"

"Please, beg him for me. Spencer really knows he was wrong. I'll never mention having a wedding again. If I offended him today, I'll go out and kneel to apologize right now. Please don't make me leave"

Eleanor opened the link Spencer had sent, her eyebrows knitting together.

The post was from an account with my profile picture, every word a threat against Spencer.

I was about to explain, but a sharp slap landed on my cheek out of nowhere.

"Spencer grew up in an orphanage, with no parents. And you tell him to get out?! How is he supposed to live alone?! You think too highly of yourself!"

With that, Eleanor walked out, trying hard to control her anger, while using the gentlest tone to comfort Spencer.

The immense contrast left me stunned.

I wondered, when she threw me to the kidnappers all those years ago, did she ever think about how *I* was supposed to live alone?

Did she ever worry if I'd run into any danger?

I forced a bitter laugh, the metallic taste of blood spreading in my mouth, but my heart had long since grown numb.

I spent the night sitting there, patting my restless daughter with one hand.

The next morning, Eleanor knocked a few times on the bedroom door, then spoke in a commanding tone.

"Spencer specially prepared a yacht party for you. First, to apologize, and second, to welcome you back. Hurry and bring Lily downstairs."

The time had come. Finally this was about to end.