~3 years later~

Ava Webster (27 years old)

Ava was watching Aria with horrified expression. Her 3 years old daughter was sitting down on the floor with at least 4 shades of lipsticks and her full body was covered with lipstick lines. Ava couldn't make out whether she should scold the adorable baby in front of her or laugh at her cuteness. Her dilemma was cut short when she heard her husband was calling for her. Then she looked at Aria and said, "baby, don't leave this room okay?"

Aria showed her toothy grin and said, "Yee, mommy"

Hurriedly shutting the door behind her, she went to look for her husband.

Marcus was fuming hard, how dare his wife refused him. The nerve of that woman. He should kill her by then. But not yet. Then he saw his wife was running down the stairs.

"Where the fuck have you been, Ava?"

Rolling her eyes at him, Ava replied, "In your cage, where else?!"

Marcus took her arms in his tight grip, making Ava flinch at the sudden contact. She was struggling under his grip, but Marcus didnt let her go, "Dont act smart with me, go and get ready by 10 minutes, I'm already late for the event"

"I'm not going" Ava firmly stated her decision.

That mere talk back caused Ava to earn a nasty slap from her husband. Ava was actually hoping for that kind of behavior. It was no shock to her that Marcus raised his hand on her. He had done the worst than this.Maybe there wasn't left any part of her body where she didn't hit by her husband.

Ava hadn't prevent that hit because that would earn another one from  Marcus. Over the years she tried different methods to escape from this hell house. But for Aria, she always had failed. Her only reason to stay in this house. Her liability. So here she was taking the beating from her husband, and said,

"Marcus, I'm not feeling well"

Just 4 days ago, Marcus had beaten her to pulp when she refused to have sex with him. He was a monster who liked to hunt his prey every night. From that night Ava was still sore all of her body. Her ache even got worse when Marcus raped her last night over and over again, until he was satisfied. At some point in the late night she lost her consciousness. but that didn't stop Marcus from doing his dirty deeds.

"Then take some fucking painkillers and get the fuck ready in 10 minutes. Dont make me repeat my words again, Ava"

With that he left the house. Ava's body was aching from the attack but she refused to cry. NO! she wouldn't shed a single tear for that bastard. She did cried a lot in her first two years of marriage, when she thought she could escape from this monster's house. But there was no way out except death.

Ava once did try to suicide, but unfortunately she was saved. Not that she was proud of her action, in fact she felt disgusted and ashamed of herself that she was being so selfish and didn't think about Aria at all. She didn't thought what might happen to the child if she wasn't around. The child's fate would have been much worse than hers. Even though Aria was his own child, he never acknowledged her. Marcus hated Aria with all the cell that was in his body. He always said that it would have been the best if Aria died that day along with her mother, Alice.

Ava felt defeated. Seeing that there was no other option, she went upstairs to her bedroom and started to get ready. But before she took care of Aria and handed her over to Karen, her nanny. Whenever Ava had to leave Aria behind, Karen would look after her. She was an olderly woman who was in her fifties, and she had been in this house when Marcus was a toddler. Karen knew Marcus's violence against Ava, but she didn't have any power to help the poor young wife.

Ava then got ready and took some painkillers. She was having problem with steady walking. Everytime she took a step, her limbs and ribs would jolt with pure ache and she flinched.

Fuck! dammit!  how would she survive through the whole event!

Nonetheless, she had to do what was told to her. Then she got on the car and left with her husband.

To outside world, they were a happily married couple with a 3 years old daughter. But no one had clue what had been happening behind the closed doors. Of course, the both family were aware of the violent act but no one dared to come forward to their personal matter. Even when Ava asked her family to step up and save her from this living hell, they just told her to get adjust to her new life. Their only excuse was the child. That ill fated child was nothing but a tool to others, who used her as a shield to keep Ava in the Webster house. 

Ava was looking outside of the window blankly, then she heard Marcus's voice,

"The event is about a charity gala to fund raise for the cancer research. So you know the drill, play the loving wife who is greatly pampered by her husband. Got it?"

Letting out a sigh, she replied, "yes"

Marcus then leaned to her face and tried to kiss her lips, but she turned head but miserably  failed. As he grabbed her by the chin and forcefully crashed his lips on hers.  Licking and biting her flush lips, he said, "You are like a drug to my madness, Ava"

Ava felt disgusted at his touch, so she pushed his away and growled at him, "The show hasn't started yet, so back off"

Smiling wickedly at his wife, he twisted her hand and Ava yelped in pain.

"Watch your tone with me, Ava. Consider yourself lucky as we are on the way otherwise you wil taste the severe punishment for disrespecting me"

Ava bite her tongue to restrain herself from retorting, and just nodded her head.

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(Not edited)