— Alex, please, don’t do this… Let me go, I swear I won’t tell anyone! — Emily pleaded, her voice trembling as unfamiliar, burly men gripped her arms and legs tightly.
As she watched Alexander unbuckle his belt with a mocking smirk, Emily realized the grave mistake she had made…
***
Emily met Alexander three years after her parents’ tragic deaths in a gas cylinder explosion. The technical report concluded that a faulty regulator was to blame, but such news did little to ease Emily’s pain. She was left utterly alone in the small, rundown house her parents had managed to buy just a couple of years before their passing. Having worked their entire lives at state-owned enterprises, they never had much money and taught their daughter that wealth was a source of evil.
Raised in austere conditions, Emily often altered her neighbors’ or mother’s old clothes to have something new to wear. Her parents’ colleagues pooled what little money they could to fund a modest gravestone, which they gave to Emily.
Determined to start anew, she sold the house for a nominal sum and moved to a larger city, returning twice a year to visit her parents’ graves. Today marked her fifth visit…
Sitting on a bench before the graves so dear to her heart, Emily sat in mournful silence, recalling how her father used to take her fishing and how her mother would scold her for catching a cold while swimming in chilly water. Yet, once Emily recovered, her mother took her to the market and picked out the most beautiful dress—a vibrant blue frock adorned with ruffles and a wide silk sash. That dress remained in Emily’s suitcase long after she outgrew it, a poignant reminder that her life had once held moments of joy.
— Mind if I join you? — a young man’s voice broke her reverie, and Emily looked up to see a tall, broad-shouldered figure with strikingly pale blue eyes and shoulder-length dark blond hair standing beside her.
Emily shook her head, though the idea of meeting someone at her parents’ gravesite was far from her plans. The stranger’s intense gaze never left her. Like a seasoned predator, he sensed her vulnerability and sought to confirm it. Emily was beautiful, though she was unaware of it. Her late mother had always taught her that a woman shouldn’t flaunt herself or draw attention.
— The man who needs you will find you as you are. No need to doll yourself up like a mannequin. Don’t chase attention; wait for a man to approach you. Otherwise, people will say you weren’t raised right. Who’d want you if you’re tarnished?
Emily nodded but secretly yearned for the day a tall, handsome man would sweep her off her feet, marry her, and build a happy life together.
But after her parents’ deaths, reality proved far less romantic. Her classmates at the economics college noticed flashy, bold girls, while quiet, unassuming Emily went unnoticed. She excelled academically but had no friends to confide in.
The student dormitory, where Emily shared a room with two other girls, buzzed with noise from morning to night, punctuated by the dorm supervisor’s shouts demanding order.
— Emily, why don’t you ever hang out with anyone? — her roommates asked. — You’re always alone, buried in books. You’re so pretty, but you dress like a grandma. Don’t you have any trendy clothes? Where do you even shop?
Emily was too ashamed to admit she had no clue how to choose clothes and relied on pushy market vendors who often sold her garish or outdated dresses that turned her slender frame into something shapeless and ageless.
Working part-time at a local mall, Emily caught the eye of a boutique owner horrified by her wardrobe. After sizing her up critically, the woman marched her into the store and insisted:
— I’m going to help you dress properly; you’re a walking tragedy. Look at all these dresses on the rack—pick something. What was your mother teaching you?
— She’s gone, — Emily mumbled, eyes downcast. — My parents died a few years ago.
The woman faltered but pressed on:
— I’m sorry, that’s awful. But you still need to choose something. Try this dress, this turtleneck, these jeans… and this blazer. It should fit well… — Ignoring Emily’s protests, she ushered her into the fitting room.
When Emily saw her reflection, she barely recognized herself. Gone was the frumpy woman she saw daily in the mirror. Everything she tried on fit her slim figure perfectly, accentuating her large gray eyes and fair, delicate skin.
— Now that’s a transformation, — the boutique owner’s voice came from behind.
Emily turned to see the woman beaming with approval.
— Come out here, let me see you.
Blushing under her scrutiny, Emily stepped forward and froze. The woman circled her and made an unexpected offer:
— With your looks and figure, you could be a fantastic model for our catalog. Here’s the deal: I’ll give you everything you tried on, and you start working for me. No more scaring people with those granny outfits—there are enough dowdy types around.
And so, Emily unexpectedly became a promotional model. She warned the owner she could only shoot in the evenings due to her accounting studies, and the woman agreed. Emily never imagined how much she’d learn.
Within a year, she was unrecognizable from the timid girl who first stepped into the photo studio. After earning another paycheck and an offer to work with a different agency, Emily visited her parents’ graves. That’s where she met Alexander…
***
He sat in his car, waiting for the stranger to emerge. Unfamiliar with the city, he’d come at the request of his old schoolmate, Nathan. Driving through the streets, he’d noticed a beautiful girl with a melancholic air buying flowers and boarding a bus to the cemetery. When Emily lingered, Alexander decided to enter the cemetery and find her. Spotting her by a grave, he couldn’t take his eyes off her. His phone was on silent, and it took him a while to answer a call:
— Hey, Nate… Yeah, I’m waiting for someone… Cool, we’ll catch up later. I’ll call you back…
He approached Emily and struck up a conversation. From her first words, Alexander sensed her inexperience with men, and the thought thrilled him.
After exchanging names and a few casual remarks, they left the cemetery in silence. Emily headed toward the bus stop, but Alexander blocked her path with a smile:
— Don’t take this the wrong way, but I think we should talk more. I’ve got my car, and the bus won’t come for a while.
Emily glanced around and realized he was right. Nodding, she moved to open the back door, but Alexander gallantly opened the passenger door:
— This way, we can chat more easily. Otherwise, I’ll feel like a cab driver, and I might even charge you for the ride.
— I can pay if you want, — Emily said hesitantly, and he burst out laughing:
— No way! I’ve never pictured myself as a driver… You’re pretty cool, though.
Emily gave a shy smile and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. Despite the spring day, it was chilly, and she wore a beret that made her look like a model from a French magazine.
Alexander chatted breezily the whole drive, and by the end, he brushed her knee with his hand. Emily flinched, and he smirked to himself:
— Look at this shy one! Makes it even more fun…
Back in the city, he noted where Emily went and called Nathan:
— Dude, I just met this girl… Stunning, but kinda clueless. Her name’s Emily. Know her?
Nathan didn’t but was intrigued:
— What if we throw a party to celebrate? Know where to find her? I’ll bring a couple of guys…
— There’s a country house nearby where my folks stay in the summer, — Alexander said, studying a map. — Can you set up there? I’ll send you the address. Bring food, drinks, maybe some girls if you’ve got any. We can party till morning. Sound good?
Nathan agreed, and Alexander texted him the address. Parked outside Emily’s hotel, he watched for her room’s light. His patience paid off: a light flicked on in a third-floor room on the left. Guessing her location, he strode to the reception desk:
— I need to see the girl who just checked in. Beautiful, gray eyes, dark beret. Her name’s Emily. She left her phone in my car… His confident tone and privileged demeanor raised no suspicions, and the staff gave him her room number.
Emily was stunned to find the guy who’d driven her standing at her door.
— How’d you know where I’m staying? — she asked warily, but Alexander flashed a wide grin.
— I’m not dumb enough to let a beauty like you slip away, — his reply made her blush. — Sorry for barging in, but I couldn’t help it. Look, it’s my buddy’s birthday tonight, and everyone’s bringing a date except me. I was gonna sit it out until I saw you… Will you come with me?
Emily hesitated; something about him felt off, but she chided herself for judging a stranger too harshly.
— I need to rest. I’m leaving tomorrow, — she said, trying to close the door, but he was persistent.
— How about in three hours? Meet me downstairs. I’ll drive you there and back, — he pressed, and Emily relented under his insistence.
— It’ll be kind of late, — she protested, but Alexander laughed it off:
— Late? That’s practically early! Don’t worry, we’ll head out together tomorrow. Just tell me where you’re going.
Three hours later, he waited at the reception desk, presenting her with a bouquet of roses with a bow. Emily blushed—nobody had ever given her flowers. He escorted her to his car and drove to the country house where his friends were gathered.
To Emily’s dismay, she was the only woman there. The looks from Alexander’s friends, and Alexander himself, filled her with unease and a desperate urge to flee. She tried to run to the road and flag down a car, but the men grabbed her, laughing, and dragged her to an upstairs room…
***
— What do we do now? — Emily vaguely heard the men muttering among themselves through a haze.
It was over, and now they were plotting how to dispose of their recent plaything…
At a turn on a rural road, a large vehicle stopped. Two men carried an unconscious young woman far from the road.
It was Alexander and his friend Nathan, who, after their night of debauchery, were focused on erasing all evidence.
Dragging Emily into the woods, they tossed her into a shallow pit and covered her with branches. Seeing she still showed no signs of life, Alexander nodded:
— Let’s go. This isn’t our problem anymore.
— What if she wakes up? — Nathan gestured at Emily.
— Even if she does, it won’t help her, — Alexander sneered. — Shame, she was gorgeous…
They drove off. Emily lay unconscious until she felt a hand touch her face…
She came to in a dimly lit, unfamiliar room, a figure leaning over her.
— Finally awake. I was starting to worry you wouldn’t come around, — a gravelly male voice made Emily flinch.
Struggling to focus, she saw a man in his sixties looking at her with concern:
— How’d you end up in such a mess? You from out of town? I haven’t seen you around…
Emily mumbled incoherently and passed out. The forester’s simple question, “What’s your name?” sent her into a panic… she couldn’t remember, though she knew it was short and resonant…
***
Out of sheer helplessness, Emily sometimes cried but forced herself to do chores to avoid sinking into despair. The forester, whom she called Old Ben, treated her like a daughter, taking her on walks in the woods and showing her which plants were used for what. Emily noticed she limped slightly, and Ben explained her leg had been injured when he found her:
— Looked like a dislocation… Your ankle was the size of a soccer ball, all red and swollen. Probably fell… your skin was all scraped up…
Ben didn’t tell her that he’d pieced together what had happened. The signs of violence on her body were unmistakable, and he was quietly relieved she couldn’t remember.
— God forbid anyone else endures this, — he thought, watching her body slowly heal.
Her bruises and cuts filled him, a man who’d seen much in his life, with shame and rage at those who’d done this to a defenseless young woman.
— You’ll be alright, dear. You’re young, healthy, you’ll heal… and they’ll get what’s coming to them, mark my words…
Emily spent the entire winter in Ben’s cabin. She was surprised when he left for a day and returned with a jacket, warm boots, pants, and a sweater.
— I wasn’t sure of your size, so I got what I thought might work so you can at least go outside.
She was grateful. Still unable to recall her name, she happily answered to Clara, the name Ben gave her.
— That was my only daughter’s name, — he shared. — She died in childbirth… and the baby didn’t make it either…
One day, Ben went to check the glades where grouse nested. When darkness fell, he finally returned—or rather, crawled back—his leg bloodied, his clothes soaked.
— Foolish old man, didn’t see the trap, — he cursed as Emily tended to him.
In the dark, he’d stepped into a trap. His thick boots and gaiters softened the blow, but he’d broken a bone. Knowing he’d die in the forest overnight, Ben had crawled back to the cabin. Luckily, he hadn’t gone far, and no animals were nearby.
— In a spot like that, even a gun wouldn’t help, — he chuckled. — And I, cocky fool, left my rifle at home, thought I’d be quick. Could’ve fired a shot, and you’d have found me faster…
That night, Ben developed a fever, and Emily knew she had to act. At dawn, she walked to a nearby settlement for help. The guard there listened to her frantic story and said:
— The hospital’s a long way. I’ll call our guys; we’ll get a car and take the old man where he needs to go.
Emily rode with Ben to the emergency station, where he was rushed to urgent care. Hours later, the doctor reported:
— The patient’s life isn’t in danger, but he needs care. Can you find a nurse, or will you stay with him?
With nothing waiting for her at the empty cabin, Emily stayed to look after Ben. When he woke, he gently ran a calloused hand over her head:
— Clara, why aren’t you heading home?
Emily shook her head:
— Where would I go without you? You need care, so I’m staying…
Days later, while Ben was at a dressing change, Emily’s past flashed before her like a slow-motion film…
Alexander had held her at the party, calling her Emily…
— My name is Emily! — she suddenly remembered that fateful night…
Ben had found her in the woods and carried her to safety, saving her from certain death. Now it was her turn to repay his kindness…
Emily spent her days by Ben’s side, reading books to him and discussing them.
— You’re a good one, Clara… — Ben said warmly, but Emily smiled sadly:
— I remembered my name… I’m Emily… and when you’re out, I want to make the monster who did this to me pay…
— Revenge never leads to anything good, remember that, — Ben raised a finger sternly. — Let fate handle it. Life will punish him, whoever he is…
Ben was recovering, and Emily began planning how to arrange his life after discharge when tragedy struck. The orderlies, distracted while taking Ben for a procedure, didn’t notice he’d grown unusually weak. Assuming he was tired, they laid him in bed and left. Emily had stepped out to buy him fresh biscuits. When she returned, she was met with devastating news:
— The patient passed away; a blood clot broke loose…
Emily felt the ground give way beneath her. Just that morning, they’d been joking and laughing, and now, hours later, he was gone?
She returned to the city and started looking for work, abandoning any thought of modeling or her old life. She’d seen too much suffering, endured too much herself, to return to that world…
Spotting a scrawny boy in a tattered, dirty outfit peering at her from behind a fence, Emily knew she wanted to help children like him. She’d had a childhood with loving parents; these kids had been deprived of that almost from birth…
Emily began working at an orphanage and grew to love her charges. But after a couple of months, the administration told her:
— Emily, you need proper documents so we can officially hire you. Otherwise, Oliver Peterson won’t be thrilled we’re putting everything under his name, and they’ll start digging…
Oliver Peterson taught math at the orphanage, leading classes for school-aged kids. He was reserved, and the staff whispered to Emily:
— You know, he had a family once, but something went wrong, and now he’s alone. He likes you, though—he even blushes when he sees you…
Oliver turned red as a schoolboy whenever Emily spoke to him. She noticed he’d linger near her section after classes, as if by chance…
He offered her rides whenever she needed to go somewhere. While getting new documents, Emily unexpectedly ran into… Alexander, loitering outside the city administration building. He froze at the sight of her. When she pretended not to know him, he chased after her:
— Where’d you come from? If you’re thinking of filing a report, you’ve got no proof!
— Why would I file anything? — she replied calmly. — I’m here for something else. You’ll get what’s coming to you…
Alexander watched her go, then called Nathan:
— You won’t believe who I just saw! Remember that girl we dumped in the woods?
The two decided to follow Emily and find out her plans. Nathan was less worried than his friend:
— Relax, she’s got no evidence…
— My dad’s just waiting for an excuse to cut me out, — Alexander snapped. — If this blows up, I can kiss the manager’s seat goodbye…
Seeing the car Emily was in turn onto a rural road, Nathan suddenly shouted:
— Run her off!
They planned to push her off the road, where a deep, rocky ravine lay beyond the barrier…
But as Alexander sped toward the turn, a massive SUV appeared on the opposite lane, smashing into their car and sending it careening into the ravine before speeding off…
When the men were found, both had lost significant blood and sustained severe injuries. The doctors’ verdict was merciless:
— Due to extensive spinal damage, the patient will remain paralyzed for life…
Emily married Oliver Peterson, and they adopted two teenage boys, building a true family at last…
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