Three Years After They Abandoned Me novel Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Stella took a step back, heart pounding. She needed to leave now. Then a voice cut through the chatter. “Is that… Stella?”

The room went quiet. Every head turned. Whispers erupted like wildfire.

“It’s really her. God, look at her-three years did that to her?”

“I heard she snuck out that night and got Anna kidnapped too. Serves her right.”

“Shh! The Hayes family isn’t some small-time family anymore.”

“But it’s true. Rumor is the kidnappers sold her off to some small poor town. You know what happens to girls like her there. Honestly, she might have already had a child with some poor guy.”

“Thank God the Hayes family never gave up. Persistence pays off, I suppose.”

“Stella!” Fiona rushed forward, her legs nearly giving way beneath her. Andrew caught his wife just in time as she reached out, her face twisted in anguish.

Stella took a deliberate step back and gave a stiff bow. “Mother.”

Fiona’s hands froze midair before finally settling lightly on Stella’s forearm. Then her breath hitched.

“You’re nothing but bones now,” Fiona wept. “You used to be healthier than Anna, but now, look at you. You must have suffered a lot.”

Her fingers trembled over the lattice of scars, old and new, some still raw. Hot tears splashed onto the wounds, but Stella didn’t flinch. This wasn’t the girl who’d once wailed over skinned knees.

Fiona reached out instinctively, and then jerked her hand back. Her throat tightened. “Doesn’t that hurt?” she whispered.

After so many times, the body learned. Stella shrugged. “No.”

Fiona sobbed harder, convinced Stella was being brave for her sake.

“Stella.” Anna’s voice cut through, thick with tears. She looked genuinely distraught, as if the scars were her own. “I’ve been so weak. This is all my fault. If they’d taken me instead, you wouldn’t have suffered like this.”

Max suddenly grabbed Stella’s arm, his grip punishing as he examined the damage. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me at the police station?” he demanded. “We could’ve gotten names. Made them pay.”

Stella wrenched free, exhaustion weighing every word. “You never asked. You didn’t even come inside to get me. How could you know?”

Stella’s sharp words humiliated Max in front of all their guests. “Why are you being so cruel? You know I’m covered in scars, yet you made me come out dressed like this. I get it—you resent me. But did you really have to embarrass us in front of everyone?”

“When we got home, you just left me there and told me to change. I spent ages digging through my closet, and this dress has the longest sleeves I could find,” Stella said, her tone flat.

Fiona had picked out all the clothes, so Max shot her a look.

Fiona quickly averted her eyes. “Stella always used to love dresses like this. Since she’s been gone so long, I bought a few for her. I heard she was doing fine in that little town, so I didn’t think much of it-this is all my fault.”

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Then she reached for Stella’s arms again. “Don’t worry, Stella. Max will find the best doctors for your scars. Everything will go back to normal.”

Stella pushed her away coldly. “I was doing fine? Who told you that?”

Max hated how Stella treated Fiona. He pulled Fiona back, keeping her at a distance in case Stella lashed out.

He sneered, “Who told us? The police. The news. They all said they’d never seen a woman like you-sold off but still managing to live so well. Did you expect us to feel sorry for you?”

Stella shot back, “Just surviving means living well now? If I hadn’t convinced them I was more useful advising them than being raped, do you think they would’ve left me alone?”

Modern society didn’t obsess over a woman’s “purity” anymore, but the Hayes family was old-money respectable. Their daughter being sold off for three years-no one would believe she came back untouched. If word got out, she’d never marry well. The gossip alone would ruin her.

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