My Bully Wants To Be My Second Husband

The Scars She Hid From The World

REGINA MCBRIDE

The heavy iron gates of the Wilderness Correction Camp groaned as they released me after three years of state-sponsored hell. I stood on the dirt road, clutching a plastic bag that held my entire life, waiting for the family that claimed they sent me there for "rehab." My brother, Brady, picked me up in a luxury SUV only to throw me out onto a deserted highway in the middle of a brewing storm. He told me I was a "public relations nightmare" and that the rain might finally wash the "stink" of the camp off me. He drove away, leaving me to limp miles through the mud on a snapped ankle. When I finally dragged myself to our family estate, my mother didn't offer a hug; she gasped in horror because my muddy clothes were ruining her Italian marble. They didn't give me my old room back. Instead, they banished me to a moldy gardener’s shack and hired a "babysitter" to make sure I didn't embarrass them further. My sister, Kaleigh, stood there in white cashmere, pretending to cry while clinging to her fiancé, Ambrose—the man who had once been mine. They all treated me like a volatile junkie, refusing to acknowledge that Kaleigh was the one who planted the drugs in my bag three years ago. They wanted to believe I was broken so they wouldn't have to feel guilty about the "wellness retreat" that was actually a torture chamber. I sat in the dark of that shed, feeling the cooling gel on the cigarette burns that covered my arms, and realized they had made a fatal mistake. They thought they had erased me, but I had returned with a roadmap of scars and a hidden satellite phone. At dinner, I didn't beg for their love. I simply rolled up my sleeves and showed them the price of their silence. As the wine spilled and the lies crumbled, I sent a single text to the only person I trusted: "I'm in. Let them simmer." The hunt was finally on.

Modern Revenge Scheming

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FELICIA's P O V

It felt like a marching band was playing inside of my head when I woke up, and I had a terrible headache. I cocked my head to the side, my hand was searching in the hopes of spotting my teddy bear lying in the bed next to mine, but it was nowhere to be found.

‘‘Oh, my teddy… where are you?’’

After a few blinks, during which I allowed my eyes to adjust to the darkness, my gaze was drawn to a set of blackout curtains that were hung over the windows in the room, and I abruptly sat up.

This was not my room!

I felt a surge of panic rise up inside of me as I realized that I had no idea whose room I was in or what happened last night. But the very last thing I remembered was…

‘‘Ugh!’’ I fell back onto the bed.

The last thing I remembered was that I accidentally fell down the stairs in the building of my school because of that damn bully king in my class on the first day of the new term.

Everything that occurred after that was a haze, which indicates that I most likely passed out at some point.

But where am I now?

A pang of pain shot through my temple, and I had to sit up again and grab my head. Damn!

Looking around… it seemed like I was in a very luxurious room, and I was alone.

I was about to throw the covers off of me when I felt something small and warm underneath the sheets on the other side of the bed.

But... I thought I was alone!

I let out a scream when I discovered what it was. Oh, God… What exactly is this?

Because of whatever was moving under the quilt, my body went rigid and I couldn't bring myself to make any attempts to move at all.

I could feel my heart beating so quickly. Please, please, please... Just what is going on here?

I mustered up all of my bravery to find out what was hiding underneath that thing, so I slowly lifted the fabric, and my mouth dropped open in shock at what I saw.

‘‘Oh my God!’’ I let out a loud scream and covered my mouth with my hand as I retreated when I noticed a young boy who appeared to be between the ages of three and four sleeping peacefully beside me.

What was he doing here with me? What... did they take us hostage or something?

The throbbing pain in my head became even worse, and I looked around, only to frown when I found a phone that had an unusual design that I had never seen before. I investigated it further and turned it over, only to discover an apple that had been partially eaten to its side.

What kind of model is this?

It was easily opened when my finger touched the round thing on top. I was looking for a keypad but I couldn't find any, so I started touching the screen and it worked! I looked at the time and I smiled. I have never woken up this late before... but when I saw the date today, my eyes grew wide.

February of 2022?

What the hell?

The first day of the new academic year in my school was on the 11th of September 2012, and it’s just yesterday which means that it’s only the 12th of September today.

Shit! Is this a dream, or did I just wake up in a different world where books are real? This is not possible at all!

I spent a few moments just lying there… trying to figure out whether or not I wanted to get up and wander around or whether or not I wanted to stay in bed until someone was kind enough to tell me what was actually going on.

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