"You still have the nerve to talk back? You're the only person in this house who hates June and the baby."
That set him off. He dragged me into the living room, took a whip from one of his bodyguards, and stood over me.
"I'm asking you one last time. Where is the child? Don't make me do something you won't like."
I lifted my chin. "Touch me, and you'll regret it."
The next second, the whip came down. It bit into my flesh, and a scream tore from my throat before I could stop it.
Once. Twice. Three times.
"Are you going to tell me? Where is the child?"
I clenched my teeth and refused to break.
"I don't know."
I lost count of the lashes. Blood soaked through my clothes, and the edges of my vision blurred.
Just as I was about to lose consciousness, the nanny's frantic voice rang out from the hallway.
"Sir, they found the baby! It was Mrs. Fox's maid. She took the child to the Fox residence!"
The whip slipped from Patrick's hand and hit the floor. He looked at me, at the blood and torn skin, and something behind his eyes cracked.
His hands trembled as he reached down to pick me up.
"Serena..."
He hadn't even crouched all the way down before June's sobbing pulled him back.