NovelEnglishChapter 263 Flames danced wildly against the night, devouring blood-soaked clothes and gloves until they were nothing but ash.
The firelight flickered over her face, revealing features carved from marble-icy, aloof, and impossibly serene.
She had a delicate, ethereal beauty: her eyes, dark and fathomless, were as cold as a winter lake, impossible to read, distant and unapproachable. Beneath a sculpted nose, her lips were thin and pale, as though brushed by a winter frost, exuding a chill that held the world at arm's length. She looked like a masterfully carved statue- elegant, untouchable, and wholly apart from her surroundings.
A slim, tall figure, wrapped in black from head to toe, she moved with a grace that concealed strength. Each subtle shift of muscle beneath her clothes suggested not just fragile beauty, but a power that could turn deadly in an instant.
Mandy Shaw gazed at the pile of ash, and only then did the wrath burning inside her finally begin to subside. The reason she'd snapped and beaten Vincent so savagely-that story started about an hour earlier.
It was Friday night, and the weekend stretched ahead.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtMay had been pouring all her energy into looking after Claire lately; thinking back, it had been nearly a month since she'd last seen her own precious daughter.
So, she'd called Mandy, and the two planned to meet for dinner at a cozy bistro downtown.
Over simmering broth and tender slices of beef, Mandy checked in on Claire, her concern plain-her greatest worry was always whether Claire was truly safe and well.
May's face glowed with a gentle smile as she described how Sean, Aberdeen, and Grace had all been taking careful care of Claire.
Hearing this, Mandy finally felt her anxieties ease.
But then May shared what Jeffry had uncovered, and a fire ignited in Mandy's eyes. Her grip on her fork tightened, knuckles turning white-she nearly snapped it in half.
Anyone who hurt Claire would answer to her. Mandy Shaw would never let them off easy.
Her anger had no outlet-until, through the restaurant's bright window, she spotted Vincent rolling past outside in his wheelchair.
For a moment, tstopped. She saw only Vincent-his familiar figure and a single thought took root, growing wild and furious: This man would pay dearly for what he'd done.
Forcing down her rage, Mandy kept her expression neutral and said to May, "Mom, my advisor just messaged me. Something urgent cup at school. You should head hand rest-I'll stay on campus tonight." May fussed over her a little, but finally let her go, watching as Mandy hurried out into the evening. Outside, Mandy trailed Vincent at a distance.
When he turned onto a deserted side street, she struck. She pulled out the heavy duffel bag she'd brought, yanked it over Vincent without hesitation, and unleashed a brutal flurry of blows.
Vincent thrashed inside the bag, howling in pain, but Mandy didn't pause.
When he could barely move, she dragged him into a shadowy alleyway.
She grabbed a chunk of concrete from the ground and brought it down hard on Vincent's leg-again and again, until his lower limb was a ruined mess of blood and bone, and he lay gasping, barely conscious. Only then did she stop.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmBy the tMandy finished, it was nearly ten o'clock.
She stood beneath a streetlamp, her shadow stretching long across the sidewalk.
Pulling out her phone, she was just about to call a cab when a blast of bright headlights washed over her, forcing her to squint and shield her eyes.
A moment later, a sleek Porsche rolled to a stop beside her.
The door swung open, and a man in his twenties stepped out-handsome, but with a rakish, devil-may-care air.
He flashed a charming, hopeful grin. "Mandy, waiting for a ride? Headed hor back to campus? I'll give you a lift."
Mandy's eyes narrowed-she knew this guy all too well. It was Normand Lewis, the sman who'd tried to force himself on her the first tshe ever met Liam.
Back then, Normand had been drunk out of his mind, reeking of whiskey and heartbreak, ranting about getting el dumped He'd insisted she drink with him, and when she refused, he'd tossed a glass of red wine in her face.
His friends egged him on, and when she wouldn't play along, they'd om started to get hands. Mandy had been ready to break a bottle over their heads when Liam suddenly appeared. Spotting Liam's expensive suit and "knight in shining armor" demeanor, Mandy had quickly switched gears- playing the helpless damsel, fragile and in need of rescue.
That night set off a chain of events-Liam drove her back to campus, she cleverly returned his umbrella, and the two began their own intricate gof wits.
She'd thought her path would never cross Normand's again. But fate, it seemed, loved irony-she couldn't even step outside her dorm without running into him.
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