Can’t Win Me Back by Ginger Sue

Lauren's gaze locked onto Betty's hideous face, her eyes now ablaze with defiance. The lifelessness that had marred her eyes after the torture was replaced with a fierce emotion that only fueled Betty's anger further.

"Don't you dare look at me like that, you stupid bitch!" Betty spat, her eyes flashing with fury, eager to deliver another kick to Lauren before Zoe intervened.

"That's enough. Save your anger for later," Zoe admonished Betty, halting her aggression.

Mason let out a lazy yawn, breaking the tension. "Zoe, what's the point of dragging us all the way to this godforsaken place from different corners of the world? Couldn't you have chosen a more decent venue for our reunion?"

Freddy shot him a cold glance. "Could you have witnessed this anywhere else? After all these years, you still sound like a spoiled brat."

"Damn it, you little piece of—"

Mason wanted to cuss Freddy out, but the woman in the red dress stopped him with a shake of her head.

Solana City, these wealthy individuals lacked any semblance of moral integrity; all they knew

Why did you bring us here?"

as she approached a dusty piano in the corner. Lifting the lid, she revealed keys that looked as pristine as the day they were made. She then ran her fingers across the keys, eliciting an

tremors, curled into a fetal position. Tears streamed down her face, a mask of terror and despair contorting her features. She bit down on her

the past, and Zoe would play the piano to accompany the cruel act with music. The physical and mental abuse had deeply traumatized Lauren, exacerbating her psychological condition and even causing her to feel an inexplicable fear whenever she heard a

it's been too long since we've seen each other. I've missed you guys," Zoe declared, flicking her tidy brown curls and offering a fake smile as she charmingly addressed the group. "But I also have another reason for bringing you here—to find out which one

sent a ripple of confusion through the

dress laughed incredulously. "Zoe,

a scoff, Zoe retrieved her phone and played a video from ten years ago, showing her cornering Lauren and slapping her continuously while laughing; this was the video Preston used to

of you being there, so I suggest you'd better come clean now." However, silence filled

her gaze across the group. "Well, if you don't want to confess, that's fine. But I expect the woman to slap the dumbo

on my phone. This way, we both have something on each other. We'll call it even, and