She clapped her hands, and security immediately swarmed in, circling me. One of them handed her a knife. Noreen took it, waiting for my answer.
I laughed.
"Noreen, do you really think the world revolves around you?"
I pointed to the knife in her hand.
"If you've got the guts, you'd better finish me off today. Because if you don't—"
I stepped closer, my voice dropping into a deadly whisper. "—when it's my turn to finish you... don't you dare beg on your knees."
Laughter burst from my throat, echoing through the now-silent banquet hall. Noreen's face darkened, her body trembling with rage.
And at that moment, I remembered—five years ago, she had made me tremble the same way.
Back then, she had used Darcy—my only companion, my dog—to break me.
She locked him in an iron cage, gagged him so his cries were muffled, and forced me to kneel. Each time I refused to beg, the blade cut deeper into his body.
I had been proud, unyielding—until then. Watching Darcy writhe in agony shattered me completely.
"Noreen!"
I had sobbed, my voice hoarse. "Please—don't hurt Darcy!"
"I was wrong! I admit it!"
I had slammed my head into the ground over and over, my forehead splitting, blood mixing with tears.