Hazel, steady and defiant, met his gaze. "I wish I would die by the hit," she said, her voice low but firm.
Francisco cupped her face, forcing her to look at him. His breath was hot against her skin. Calm, yet laced with threat, he spoke.
"Do you think it's so easy?"
Hazel exhaled sharply, his words pressing down on her like a weight.
"I told you not to betray me, Hazel," he said, his fingers brushing lightly across her lips.
"But you did. I told you not to go to him."
"But you did."
"You are my bird, my favorite bird."
He leaned in closer, his voice colder now.
"Do you think it will be so easy for you to die?"
He didn't stop.
"If you choose to die, I will bring you back from death."
"If you choose to go to hell, I will follow you."
"If you choose to go to heaven, I will follow you there. I will go everywhere you go."
His voice echoed in the room, heavy and final. His eyes locked onto hers, intense and unrelenting. Hazel's eyes filled with tears, her body frozen beneath his touch.
"I'm not going to leave you, Hazel," he whispered, his fingers lingering at her lips while his other hand traced a slow, chilling line down her bare back.
Hazel's lips trembled. But she didn't look away.
"Do you think it's over? Do you think I will do whatever you ask? Do you think I will spare you so easily?" she shot back, voice shaking with fury.
Francisco didn't flinch.
"I want you not to spare me, Hazel."
Her anger exploded. "Murderer! Rapist! Leave me!"
Trying to regain control, Francisco spoke calmly... but darker now.
"Don't you want your parents to be safe?"
He paused, watching her reaction.
"If something happens to them, can you forgive yourself?"
Hazel stiffened. Her eyes narrowed, fear cutting through the rage. Her voice trembled.
"What do you mean?"
She felt the room closing in, like a trap snapping shut. Fear gripped her chest.
"You are smart," Francisco said, his tone smooth, too calm.
"Do I need to say everything?"
Hazel's breath caught.
Her voice barely rose above a whisper.
"Did you do something to them?"
Francisco smirked and gently touched Hazel's cheek.
"How can I do?"
"They are also important to me."
"I am just saying they are staying there alone. What if something happens to them? So I sent my men to look after them."
Hazel froze.
Terror gripped her.
Her lips pressed into a thin line, eyes brimming with tears. She shook her head, voice thick with desperation.
"Why?"
"Why me?"
"Why are you doing this to me?"
"What do you want from me?"
Francisco leaned in, his lips brushing her cheek as he whispered into her ear, soft and twisted.
"You are my favorite bird."
"If I say I want you, will you believe me? If I say you, once you give me the second chance to live, will you believe?"
He pulled back slowly, eyes locked on hers, watching every flicker of emotion.
"If you don't want to mess anything, wear my shirt and come out. Lily will escort you as I am going out for some business."
He stood, straightening his clothes, voice turning cold again.
"And I think you know the circumstances if you try to betray me again."
With that, he walked out, leaving Hazel behind... shaken, vulnerable, and alone.
She sat still, the silence closing in around her.
She wasn't just trapped... she was owned, watched, and stripped of choice. This was Francisco's world now. And she was caged in it.
Downstairs, Francisco descended the staircase. On the couch, Diana flipped through a magazine, legs crossed.
Without looking up, she asked, "Is she okay?"
"I guess yes," Francisco replied with a shrug.
Diana turned her head slowly to face him. "Did you tell her the truth?"
"She will know it soon," he said, his tone cryptic.
Diana's brows drew together. She sensed the tension tightening like a wire.
"They will come to you to take her. What will you do that time?"
"She will say everything. What happened that day. What you did to her."
Francisco met her gaze with cold certainty.
"Diana, she can't do anything."
"I cut her wings."
He turned and walked out of the mansion.
Diana sat still, eyes on his back as he disappeared through the door.
"Have you lost your mind?" Diana muttered.
Before she could collect her thoughts, a voice cut through the silence.
"I am hungry."
Diana turned. Hazel stood there in Francisco's shirt, her eyes dull, her bare legs marked with the faint bruises and bites he'd left behind.
Diana took a deep breath, steadying herself. Her chest tightened as she looked at Hazel... fragile, yet somehow still standing.
"Come with me," she said gently, and walked ahead, not looking back.