Bought For A Baby, Kept For A Lifetime-Chapter 107: Hidden Enemy

"Don’t close your eyes sis, remember what Mom said; If you’re strong, your little brother will be too, if you cry, your little brother will cry too, so be strong, be strong for your brother and yourself."

She smiled bitterly hearing those words, the tears that trailed down her face this time was warm. Warm with memories.

"Be strong sis, I can only return to you if you fight."

All along Anne had kept her mother’s words in mind.

She was raised as Kristen’s protector, she had always kept him safe, her mother told her to be strong so he wouldn’t be weak, that was why she had always had the strength to fight whatever challenge came her way.

Right before her eyes, the image of her brother disappeared like fragments into the air.

She raised her hand towards the particles of him that flew away hoping to catch just a piece of him to keep close to her heart.

When every piece of him was gone from sight she remembered the real him who was still in the hospital, if she left the world now what would happen to her brother who was still alive there waiting for her?

Wouldn’t people like her uncle finally have the chance to finally get rid of him?

Emotions can fuel physical strength, especially during challenging moments when it’s needed the most.

Anne struggled and pushed herself up with all her might, she gazed around weakly looking for something, anything to help her find a way to escape.

The doors to the cold room were tight, designed to keep all the cold inside and not leak out otherwise all the things saved there would be spoilt.

Her gaze still wasn’t clear enough for her to see everything, she wobbled unsteadily with every step.

Her gaze eventually landed on a large block of ice on one of the shelves, whatever had frozen over like that must have been kept in there for weeks to have become such a solid block of ice.

Regardless, Anne picked it up.

She had already lost sensation in her hands so holding the ice didn’t make her feel any more cold but her skin had already cracked terribly, blood seeping out staining the large ice block she carried as it slipped from her unsteady hold several times but she determinedly lifted it bringing down forcefully over the knob.

She went over like that several times, the sharp edges of the ice cutting her skin open but she didn’t stop hitting the door knob until it fell off clattering to the floor, the door slid open with nothing to keep it locked.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Anne slumped against the wall weakly pushing herself out of the cold room to find herself in an unrecognizable part of the hotel.

Being outside, a wave of heat suddenly hit her as if being ushered indoors after being outside in a snow storm.

Her legs gave and she fell to her knees, her palm landing on a clean white sheet of paper kept right outside the doors of the cold room on the floor.

Who would have kept a letter out here? Was it kept there by the person who locked her in?

Her blurry gaze focused slowly to settle on the words written on the sheet.

"Trash will always be trash, don’t you dare think you can change your destiny. Stay in your place as a low piece of trash because that’s where you belong."

Anne read the words with confusion in her eyes.

She could tell the piece of paper was written to her even if her name wasn’t written on it.

Someone had done this to her deliberately with the aim to put her down. It was the pettiest most disgusting thing anyone could ever think of doing to another.

Who had she offended? She hadn’t said a single word to anyone here, nor had she done a thing to anger anyone so why was she being targeted?

She trembled where she was kneeling, feeling an aftershock from the immense cold she’d just been exposed to wrack her whole body from head to toe making her grunt in pain.

She couldn’t believe that someone had done this to her only for a petty reason of playing a dumb trick on her just for her to feel low and unworthy of being in a place like this.

Even an animal didn’t deserve such a degrading treatment, yet someone had viewed her lower than an ant and decided to step on her by making her suffer.

Her bloodied fist slowly clenched tightly. A different kind of rage showing in her eyes.

Who had done this to her? Who could have been so cruel?

But no matter how much she thought about it, she didn’t think of someone who would dislike her this much.

A stranger wouldn’t suddenly plot to give her pain, a stranger would consider her insignificant, however someone who truly disliked her would use the ploy of putting her in her place just to make her go through this much suffering.

She realized now that she had an enemy, one who was out to get her, but who that enemy was, she didn’t have a clue.

One thing was absolutely certain, she would never let her guard down like this ever again. The world could indeed be cruel and if she didn’t fight for herself, no one else would.

Anne waited in that dark corner for a few minutes, conserving her strength and trying to get some warmth in her body, after which she forced herself up walking on bare feet with so much difficulty down the empty halls even though she didn’t know exactly where she was going. She didn’t come across a single soul on the way to ask for help or directions.

Suddenly, the world felt too big and she felt too small, smaller than a tiny speck. She had thought that perhaps she wouldn’t have enemies, she used to think that if she didn’t hurt anyone no one would hurt her too but she was wrong.

There was someone in the shadows who wanted to bring her down, the first time when they plotted to make her appear like a thief at the Sterling estate, now here also at a Sterling family event.

But what she found ridiculous was the fact that this enemy fought her from the shadows, hurt her with other people’s hands.

Anne smiled weakly, staggering and holding onto a wall to support herself after walking for too long.

She could have gone around in circles several times by now because she had no idea where she was going, in the end she stopped walking all together leaning against a wall as she breathed heavily. She couldn’t tell how long she’d stayed there for, but eventually she seemed to hear someone coming from a distance in her direction.

This person seemed to have come out of an elevator at the end of the hallway, their footsteps long and certain, even though she wasn’t looking, she somehow felt herself breathe out in relief, relief because she knew the person coming towards her wouldn’t cause her harm.

"Where the hell have you been? Don’t you know that I’ve been looking all over for..." The familiar voice suddenly spoke, but stopped halfway as the person reached where she was standing.

The giant tornado, she recognized his voice instantly.

He’d been looking for her?

Anne suddenly felt tears sting her eyes, she’d felt abandoned, felt completely alone.

She’d felt so small, like someone who couldn’t be seen, who couldn’t be cared for, however suddenly hearing the rigid trace of concern in this man’s voice, emotions she didn’t know she was holding back suddenly engulfed her and she couldn’t hold back a sob from escaping her lips.

She was too tired, too cold, she could barely breathe, barely walk. All of it hit her at once and she let herself cry.

She couldn’t see how rigid the man had gone, nor notice how pale he looked the moment he heard a sob from her. He stood still like someone frozen in place for a long time, his eyes darkening, only after some time did he finally speak.

"What happened to you?" The rigidness in his voice would have chilled her to the bones if she wasn’t already feeling cold and frozen inside.

Anne wanted to speak, but she didn’t have the strength to.

In the moment she was helpless and alone she had pushed herself to stand up and be strong, now seeing someone weakened her. There was someone who’d actually looked for her.

"I’m talking to you damnit, what happened, who the hell did this to you?" She sensed the anger emanating from him but she could also tell his anger wasn’t directed at her.

She wanted to reply but she couldn’t say a word.

She didn’t see how his hand faltered as he reached for her hesitantly but he seemed to catch himself, as if afraid his touch would cause her more pain.

His eyes landed on the blood dripping from her fingertips and his face hardened even more as he suddenly reached for her hand with a swiftness that he couldn’t stop himself.

The moment Anne felt the warmth of his hand against her own, her sobs suddenly seized.

"You’re bleeding, how the hell did you get hurt?" His words came out swiftly and sharply, she could feel how tenderly he held her hand and something inside her snapped.

Perhaps it was her seeking warmth, or just the comfort of another person even if that person was this man whose temper could get very fickle, but she had no thoughts stopping her at this moment, so she found herself moving over and letting herself fall into his embrace.

He stiffened, but instead of pushing her away like she thought he would, he remained motionless and silent.

She suddenly felt like she could finally rest, right here against his firm warm body she could rest.

Though the man had yelled at her, though he emanated a kind of rage that could rile up a storm, a feeling of safety welled up inside her and she finally rested her eyes. Her body further weakening and an endless darkness beckoning her in.

"Annelise, Anne..." She could faintly hear him calling her name but she was drifting out of awareness his voice disappearing into an endless void as her senses shut down.

As the woman slumped weakly in his arms, a bloodthirsty glint suddenly flashed in his eyes.

She felt too fragile, and dead cold his hand shivered as he touched her face.

Guilt instantly washed into him.

How had she fallen into this state?

Who the hell had done this to her?

Swiftly feeling how her temperature continued to fluctuate and change from hot to cold, he carried her in a bridal style not caring about how wet her clothes were against his own as he rushed away.

....

"Has he let her out yet? The plan was to teach her a lesson right? She shouldn’t stay in there for too long or she might die, I don’t want to be part of a murder." Alicia, one of the aristocratic young ladies who had been along on the plan asked the group who had already left the ballroom heading outside the hotel.

Trish suddenly joined them, looking calm as ever.

"Relax, she isn’t dead, in fact I think she found a way to escape. He went to release her so she won’t die in there but she was already gone, the door was broken."

All the young ladies exchanged looks in relief not knowing they had just messed with a storm and it was coming to sweep them all away.