\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 8\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat sin did that girl commit to have a mother like that? If it weren\u2019t for Suzan, she\u2019d have died long ago.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
This villager\u2019s face was full of pity.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bryant seemed to lose all his strength, swaying on his feet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When he steadied himself on the cage, a rusted barb scratched his finger.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His voice choked up as he asked, \u201cYou said that the girl had been locked in this cage since she was a child?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah. Later, some city folks came and said they\u2019d fix our houses. That\u2019s when we learned the girl actually came from a rich family. Said they were grateful we saved her back then.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The villager scratched his head, continuing, \u201cWe didn\u2019t really do anything. Just pitched in a bit for the 15 dollars Suzan used to buy her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bryant\u2019s eyes filled with disbelief.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Later, he stumbled back to his car. \u201cMarjorie, what have you been through?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A tear slid down his cheek.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Looking at him, I said in my heart, \u201cBryant, isn\u2019t it a bit late to start caring now?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
0.00%\u00a0<\/p>\n
10:18\u00a0<\/p>\n
He dug out our marriage registration photo-the only picture of us together in all these years.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wiping away tears, he sobbed like a wounded animal, \u201cMarjorie, I\u2019m sorry. Let me make it up to you. Let me make it up to you, please?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His tone was soft, pleading. He\u2019d never spoken to me like this before. The regret on his face was plain to see.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I never thought I\u2019d see him-the dignified, aloof, rich young man-this broken, and it was for me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I said inwardly, \u201cIt\u2019s useless, Bryant. You\u2019ll never get the chance to make it up to me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t name the feeling in my heart at this moment. Bitter, probably\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
What I couldn\u2019t get when I was alive, I only got after death. But what was the use?\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was like a fan in winter, a padded coat in summer-always out of place.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Suddenly, a jarring ringtone broke the silence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was from the police station.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHello, are you Ms. Marjorie Jarvis\u2019s husband?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMarjorie has been confirmed deceased. Her condition is gruesome. Suspected homicide. We need a family member to come identify the body.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
28.79%\u00a0<\/p>\n
10:18\u00a0<\/p>\n
Long after the call ended, Bryant remained in a daze. He still held the phone, but his back was hunched.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He kept repeating, \u201cNo\u2026 That\u2019s impossible\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I felt a strange sense of satisfaction. It was as if all the love I once had for him had turned to hatred in this moment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I watched his grief-stricken expression shift from disbelief to utter devastation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He tried to start the car but failed repeatedly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His hands on the steering wheel trembled violently. Then his whole body began to shake. It was as if all the energy had left him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He let out a helpless, anguished cry. \u201cMarjorie, is this your punishment for me?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I watched him coldly. How could he ask such a thing?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I endured all those years of suffering. Why would I choose to die for something as ridiculous as punishing him?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Almost teasingly, I leaned close to his ear. Then I said, \u201cYes. Punishing you for letting me die.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBryant, have you forgotten? You\u2019re the one who let me die at the kidnappers\u2019 hands.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I followed Bryant\u2019s panicked steps to the morgue. His long, defined fingers gripped the white sheet, trembling slightly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Moments before, a staff member had told him, \u201cHer family? Best to let her rest soon. She suffered inhuman torture. Poor girl, truly a hard life.\u00a0<\/p>\n
61.52%\u00a0<\/p>\n
10.18\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, and she was pregnant. Did you know?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
98.65%\u00a0<\/p>\n
1018\u00a0<\/p>\n
Joseph King is an editor and storyteller who ensures every chapter is clear, polished, and engaging for readers.<\/p>\n
Moon-Cursed Princess by Mark Twain 8 \u00a0 Chapter 8\u00a0 \u201cWhat sin did that girl commit to have a mother like […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22857","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-in-your-life-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22857","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22857"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22857\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22857"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22857"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22857"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}