Chapter Twenty-Three
Edith’s heart raced, a steady beat of panic thrumming in her chest. She couldn’t go back—not now, not after everything she had gained. The taste of freedom had strengthened her, something fragile growing inside. If she returned to her father, it would shatter. She wouldn’t survive—not again.
William’s face twisted with rage as he stormed toward her, his grip like iron as he seized her arm, dragging her down the porch stairs. Edith stumbled, her body jerking with each rough pull as panic surged through her veins.
“Pa—no!” Edith gasped, her voice shaking as she struggled to pull away. “I’m not going with you!”
“You don’t have a say,” William growled, dragging her with him, his grip tightening painfully. “You’re my daughter, and you’ll do as I say.”
William’s grip on Edith’s arm tightened, his nails digging into her skin as he yanked her closer. The sharp pain shot through her, making her gasp. She stumbled again, her legs barely able to keep up with his forceful stride as he dragged her down the porch steps.
“Let her go!” Daniel’s voice thundered through the air, sending a spark of hope surging through Edith’s chest. But William’s grip only tightened, his fingers digging painfully into her arm. She could feel the bruises already forming as he dragged her further down the porch steps.
The world spun around her, a blur of pain and panic. I have to get away, she thought, her breath coming in ragged bursts. But she couldn’t. She was too weak, too small compared to the towering figure of her father.
“She’s my daughter,” William snarled over his shoulder, jerking Edith forward again. “I ain’t lettin’ her stay here, not with you.”
“William!” Daniel’s voice sharpened, his anger simmering just below the surface as he caught up to them. “You don’t own her. She’s not a child anymore, and she’s not yours to drag around.”
Edith winced as her father yanked her forward again, the force sending pain shooting up her arm.
She cried out, her eyes darting between him and the approaching road, dread coiling tighter in her chest. Her mind screamed at her to escape, but her body wouldn’t obey.
She felt like a small child again, helpless under her father’s control.
“She’ll always be mine!” William spat, his eyes wild as he jerked Edith forward once more. She cried out, the sharp twist of her arm causing her vision to blur. But he didn’t stop. “She belongs with her family!”
Her gaze found Daniel’s—wide and pleading, silently begging for help. He was her only hope. Her only escape.
Daniel’s face was taut with barely contained fury. “William,” he said, his voice dangerously low as he stepped in front of them, blocking their path. “You’re not taking her.”
William stumbled to a halt, his grip still bruising Edith’s arm, but now his gaze locked onto Daniel, sizing him up. “And who’s gonna stop me? You?”
Edith’s pulse quickened as Daniel stared her father down, his jaw clenched tight. She had never seen him this angry, this protective.
“Yes,” Daniel said, his voice like steel. “I will.”
William’s lips twisted into a sneer, his voice sharp with spite. “You think you can keep her safe, trapper? You think you can hide her from what’s coming?”
“I don’t just think it,” Daniel growled, taking a step closer, his body taut with barely contained rage. “I know it.”
William’s sneer faltered, just for a second, and in that brief moment, Edith saw the fear flash in his eyes. But it was gone as quickly as it came, replaced by the same cruel determination that had haunted her for years.
“She’s comin’ with me,” William growled, his hand yanking Edith roughly again, causing her to stumble forward.
Daniel’s eyes flashed with fury. “What are you going to do with her, William?” he snarled, stepping closer. “You starved her, beat her—left her half-dead under your roof. You think she’s better off with you?”
William’s face flushed, the sneer deepening. “I fed her. She survived, didn’t she?” He cast a sideways glance at Edith, his voice dripping with venom. “She needed to learn. She’s always been stubborn—just like her mother.”
Daniel’s voice grew colder. “And what now? What’s your plan for her? Sell her off again? Have her work the fields for some man worse than you?”
William’s eyes gleamed with malice. He shifted, uncomfortable for a moment, but his voice was thick with cruel intent as he sneered.
“Oh, don’t you worry, trapper. She’ll earn her keep.
Plenty of ways a girl like her can be useful.
” He eyed Edith with a look that made her stomach churn.
“Could have her clean, work the fields… or maybe something else if the price is right.”
The words made Edith’s skin crawl. She felt bile rise in her throat, her heart pounding with terror. She could barely breathe. Her father’s cruel smirk made her feel small, powerless.
Daniel’s jaw clenched, his fists tightening at his sides. “You’re a monster,” he growled, stepping even closer. “You’re not taking her. Not now, not ever.”
William let out a harsh laugh, his voice ringing with arrogance. “You think you can stop me? She’s mine. She’ll always be mine.”
Before Edith could even react, Daniel moved. His hand shot out, gripping William’s wrist with such force that the older man stumbled. Edith gasped as Daniel wrenched her father’s hand from her arm, the sudden release sending a shock through her body.
“Don’t touch her again,” Daniel said, his voice low, filled with a promise that made even William pause.
Edith stood frozen for a moment, her breath catching in her throat as she watched the two men.
Her arm throbbed from where William had grabbed her, but it was the fierce look in Daniel’s eyes that held her attention.
There was something protective, something fierce in him—something she hadn’t known she needed until this moment.
William staggered back, rubbing his wrist, his face flushing with a mix of rage and humiliation. “This ain’t over,” he spat, pointing a shaky finger at Daniel. “You’ll regret this.”
“I doubt it,” Daniel said, his voice cold and steady as William backed away, his eyes burning with hate.
William sneered, his bravado returning as he turned to face Daniel again.
“What’s the matter, trapper? You ain’t got it in you to hit me, do ya?
” His voice dripped with malice, his eyes glinting with a challenge.
“Go ahead. Lay a hand on me. You’ll be the one regretting it.
The law’s still on my side. I come sportin’ bruises, sayin’ you kidnapped my daughter, and the sheriff’ll be at your door in an instant. ”
Edith stood frozen, her breath shallow and uneven as she watched the confrontation between Daniel and her father unfold.
The ache in her arm where her father had grabbed her was a dull throb, but it was the raw tension between the two men that kept her rooted to the spot.
Her father’s sneer, his cruel eyes locked onto Daniel’s, sent a familiar wave of dread through her.
Daniel’s determination stirred something deep inside her, something fragile yet powerful.
It was a kind of safety she had never known she needed until now.
“All right,” Daniel said, his voice steady, but Edith could hear the underlying tension, the seriousness of the decision pressing down on him.
His hand moved slowly to his pocket, pulling out the small pouch of coins he’d been saving.
The pouch was worn, the strings frayed, a hint to how long they’d scraped by, carefully calculating every expense.
The money inside wasn’t much—just enough to cover the supplies they needed to get through the next few months.
But now, it wasn’t going to buy food or tools.
It was going to buy Edith’s temporary freedom.
“How much this time?” Daniel asked, his voice cold, and Edith could see the tightness in his jaw, the way his fingers flexed as he gripped the pouch.
William’s eyes flickered with interest, the glint of greed unmistakable as his gaze dropped to the pouch.
His lips curled into a slow, predatory grin, one that made Edith feel like she might be sick.
She knew that look. She had seen it so many times before, whenever he realized there was something to gain.
She had been his currency for years, and now he had set his sights on Daniel’s hard-earned money.
“A higher price this time, huh?” William said, taking a deliberate step forward, his voice laced with cruel amusement.
He eyed the pouch like a starving man eyeing a meal, his fingers twitching as if he could already feel the weight of the coins in his hand.
“Well, now you’re learnin’, trapper. Maybe you ain’t as dumb as you look. ”
Edith’s breath caught in her throat, the venom in her father’s voice cutting through her like a knife. She could see Daniel’s posture stiffen, the anger rolling off him in waves. But he didn’t rise to the bait. Instead, with a flick of his wrist, Daniel tossed the pouch toward William.
William’s greedy chuckle filled the air as his hand shot out to catch it.
He weighed the pouch in his palm for a moment, his fingers eager as he opened it, the sound of the coins clinking together grating in Edith’s ears.
He ran his fingers through the coins, counting them with deliberate slowness as if savoring every moment.
His smirk widened, each coin slipping through his fingers adding fuel to the triumph written all over his face.
“That ought to cover it,” William said with a satisfied grin, tucking the pouch into his coat with a smug flourish. His eyes flicked back to Edith, his smirk deepening. “For now.”
Edith’s heart sank, the words echoing in her mind like a cruel taunt.
For now. It wasn’t a solution. It was a temporary fix, a bandage on a wound that would only keep bleeding.
She could feel it—the inevitable hanging over them.
William would be back—again and again—each time with his hand outstretched, demanding more.
And each time, they would have to give in, or he would take something worse.
She glanced at Daniel, standing just a few steps ahead of her, his shoulders tense, his fists still clenched.
She could feel his frustration, his helplessness.
This couldn’t go on. She couldn’t keep being a bargaining chip, a tool for her father to squeeze money from the only person who had ever cared for her.
No matter how much Daniel tried to protect her, William would never stop.
He would always find a way to tighten the noose, to remind her that freedom wasn’t really hers to have.
As William turned to leave, his pockets heavier with Daniel’s money, Edith felt the dread settle deep in her chest. She knew it wouldn’t be enough. It would never be enough to keep him away for good. He’d be back. He always came back.
William cast one last sneer over his shoulder, his eyes glinting with malice as he walked down the path, his gait unsteady but triumphant. “You’ll regret it,” he muttered, his voice low, but the threat unmistakable. “Both of you.”
Daniel’s hands were still clenched into fists, his knuckles white, and Edith could see the storm brewing beneath the surface.
The frustration boiling inside him was palpable, and it mirrored the dread that gnawed at her insides.
This wasn’t over. William had taken the money, but the price would only get higher.
Edith’s legs gave out beneath her, the adrenaline that had kept her standing draining away as her knees hit the porch steps.
She sank onto the wooden boards, her body weak and trembling, the realization of what had just happened crashing down on her.
She pressed her hands to her face, trying to steady her breathing, but her heart wouldn’t slow. The fear wouldn’t let her go.
Daniel sat beside her, his fists slowly unclenching, though the tension in his shoulders hadn’t eased. He stared out at the path where William had disappeared, his chest heaving with restrained fury. The silence between them was heavy, suffocating, filled with the things they couldn’t say.
Finally, Daniel spoke, his voice low, almost defeated. “I’m sorry.” He didn’t look at her, his eyes still fixed on the horizon. “It was the only way to make him leave.”
Edith swallowed hard, her voice barely a whisper. “It won’t be enough, Daniel.” Her throat tightened with the words. “He’ll come back… and he’ll keep coming back.”
Daniel’s jaw tightened, his expression darkening, and though he didn’t speak, Edith could see the same realization settling in.
They couldn’t keep living like this. They couldn’t keep buying her freedom from her father.
William wouldn’t stop—not until he had taken everything from them.
And no amount of money would ever satisfy him.
“I know,” Daniel said finally, his voice filled with quiet determination. He reached for her hand, squeezing it gently, his touch grounding her in the midst of the storm raging inside her. “We’ll find a way. I won’t let him control you anymore.”
But the words, as comforting as they were, didn’t answer the question gnawing at her. How?
Edith glanced toward the woods, her heartbeat thudding in her ears, her mind racing. The horrible thought she had been trying to push away clawed its way to the surface. William wouldn’t stop. The next time he came, he wouldn’t just want money. He would come for more. He would come for her.
And what if, next time, he refused to leave without her?