"You don't matter to me, and you never will." He pushed me to the ground as I sobbed. "But here my dear, you're meant to please me. If your father had not come begging on his knees, I wouldn't be marrying you. So you better make this worth it or I'll have to kill you with my bare hands." He said, causing me to tremble out of fright as he moved towards me... No... not now please, I wasn't ready to lose my virginity. I fled out of the room but he was quick to catch me. He slammed me to the wall and my head hit hard against it. I wasn't strong enough to take the pain that came with it...my head felt light, and the next thing I knew was that I was consumed by darkness. ****** Kassidy's life became a relentless series of injustices after her mother's death. She was coerced into a marriage she had to endure, bearing witness to her husband's cruelty. She never considered their union genuine, having been raised in an abusive home. She could only hope that one day she would find peace with the world and life. Meanwhile, Melody, her covetous stepsister, desired everything that had ever been offered to Kassidy, including her inheritance, claiming it as her birthright. Melody's father, Steve Jean, who is also Kassidy's stepfather, withheld privileges from Kassidy while he imposed an unfair condition. Kassidy must marry! Perplexed, Kassidy felt chills of terror running down her spine upon hearing the name proposed for her. The rumors circulating about him filled her with dread, but she was left with no choice. She reluctantly surrendered herself and her birthright to her step-sister. How much longer could she endure this injustice? As for Bruno, fate appeared to have different plans in store for them. How could she possibly cope?

Chapter 1 THE PLOT

Kassidy's POV:

"Get away from me you good-for-nothing bitch!" he shouted, and as I turned to run, he grabbed me by the arm and pulled me close. I struggled to get away, but his grip was too strong. He drew back his leg and kicked me, and I fell to the floor with a thud. I curled up, trying to protect myself from his blows, but they kept coming. I could hear him yelling obscenities at me, but I couldn't make out the words over the ringing in my ears. I was helpless, and I knew there was no escape.

I lay there on the floor, dazed and in pain, I thought about how I had ended up here. It all began a few years ago when my mother decided to get married to him because she didn't want me to grow up without a father figure. I never thought I needed a father, because the love my mum gave me was greater than anything that I could imagine. Everything turned upside down the moment she got married to this man, who made things difficult for both of us. Of course, men like him were always the pleasant ones, wanting to be everything in the beginning for the woman so she could let her guard down. My mother innocently thought he was going to be the best father for me. But that was the mistake she made.

"Get the fuck up!" He kicked me again on my aching rib causing me to groan in pain.

"Please... please stop," I begged, signaling to him. But he wasn't about to relent. He moved towards me and pulled me by the hair. "Ahhh," I screamed, tears stinging my eyes.

"Who the hell do you think you are, telling me to stop?" His grip tightened on my hair. I gritted my teeth in pain because it felt as though he was pulling my hair out of my head. Just when I thought that was it, his other hand gripped my neck. "Cat got your tongue? Or you just don't want to answer?" I managed to hold his hand, trying to ease the grip he had on my neck, but it was hopeless. His eyes gleamed with malice, making me wonder why he hated me so much.

"Dad!" He paused at the mention of his name, then turned. There was his daughter, Melody, pouting.

"What's the matter?" he questioned before letting me go. I landed with a thud on the floor while he walked over to his daughter.

"I'd been calling you for hours, but you refused to pick up," she said.

"I'm so sorry, darling. You see, I was in the middle of something." He gave me a side-eye. Frightened, I moved back.

Melody glanced at me, and then her brows cocked. "Oh? I see," she smirked as she gently walked over to my side. "It's such a pity you had to endure a life like this. But then again, the one offered to you was simply too much for you to handle." She bent to my level. "You're weak. The politics that come with working in a company as successful as your father's should be handled only by the experienced." She rose and turned to her father. "Dad! You promised you'd give me the will!"

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart. I didn't forget about it. It's just your older sister isn't willing to give it up," he growled with a scowl on his face. Melody turned toward me.

"What the hell Kassidy? Do you need me to spell it out to you?" She stepped closer to me while I shook out of fear. "You are simply not worth it, you stinky bitch. Take a good look at yourself. Your father would be ashamed to have you as his daughter. He chose the wrong person to take over his company. I'm trying to handle it for you and now you won't give it?" She tilted her head with folded arms. "Do you want this done the hard way? I pretty much prefer violence when it comes to handling some things. Or better, watching you cry in pain as you're being... touched." My eyes widened in disbelief as she giggled. "Rico!" She called and a 6'7 gigantic man walked into the room. My eyes widened because I knew what he was here for. She had a smirk on her face. "You know what to do."

The man obediently stalked closer to me, terrifying me to the core. I moved backward, attempting to distance myself from him. My legs betrayed me because I couldn't get up when I tried to; I tried using my hands for support but it didn't just work. He held me by the collar and pulled me up. I was more than certain that my features were filled with nothing but terror. He seemed so proud of himself because of the fear written all over my demeanor.

"I'm going to have so much fun with you, aren't I?"

"No...no please stop. Please Melody don't do this!" I cried out while Rico went ahead to rip my shirt off. "No! Let me go!" I kicked him in the groin causing him to groan, but he recovered almost instantly...his face contorting into anger. The scowl that appeared on his face made him ten times scarier than he was earlier.

"Why the hell are you acting innocent? We all know you're not a virgin bitch." She said while I struggled with this man.

"Stay still you fucking bitch or I'll have you against the wall!" The man said while I cried out in plea.

"We've given you the condition, haven't we? You can either give that to us or suffer this disgrace. And oh, I almost forgot." She said, bringing her phone out to take pictures. "Nothing bad in sharing this for the world to see, right? The popular late Raymond Jean's daughter had her sex tape leaked to the internet. It was discovered that she had been having an affair with an unknown man while betrothed to Bruno Ashantee. It would be trending news on the internet, wouldn't it?" She questioned with a malicious smirk. Her father was in total support of his daughter and it scared me to death. I tried to scream as this man had his disgusting hands under my thighs. He instantly covered my mouth so I wouldn't scream. Melody laughed as she recorded.

Tears dropped from my eyes as I stared at the man in front of me who was enjoying everything. He was enjoying inflicting so much pain on me. I was completely weak and could no longer fight back. “Whatever needed to happen could happen”, I said to myself.

A gunshot resounded in the room... unanticipatedly. I screamed into the hand of this man who stared at me with still eyes...body unmoving, before... slowly, his grip loosened on me while he dropped to the floor alongside me. I gasped as the air was nearly knocked out of me upon hitting the ground, burdened by his weight.

"I would have loved to watch the show, but unfortunately, I don't share."