Chapter 3

In that instant, the technician operating the machine looked deeply troubled. "It's already at the maximum load, so an increase in effort now will almost certainly result in irreversible damage—" Timothy's face hardened into a pale mask of fury before the technician could even finish his words of caution. He ignored the technician completely and manually cranked the machine's power to the highest possible level. "Miranda got what was coming for her!" That massive surge of current slammed directly into my brain, causing my body to violently seize and curl inward as a warm liquid leaked out from between my legs. It was then that another memory unfolded on the large screen. In my memory, I was bound by a rusty, bloodied chain fastened to my neck and treated as less than human. Two relentless guards from Thesbia rained down blows to force me to socialize with the Iridonian patrons. They began hitting me with calculated cruelty, placing heavy books on my torso and then punching me through the stacked pages to cause serious internal damage when I refused to obey their orders. Someone in the crowd exclaimed in surprise, "I've heard of that technique! It leaves no visible bruises, but the trauma delivered is far more excruciating!" It was then that the person beside him said with a sigh, "It seems like Miranda is a victim herself. It doesn't seem like she's an accomplice in this whole situation." It wasn't long before someone retorted, "It's clear that Miranda's just trying to play the victim to gain sympathy. It's entirely possible this memory was faked for our benefit." Timothy's eyes were bloodshot, his hand shaking violently as he tightened his grip around my neck. "Even now, you still refuse to tell the truth, huh? Do you actually believe that showing that memory will make me go easy on you? You can just dream on, Miranda! You're a cruel, despicable woman, completely undeserving of pity!" In that instant, the horrific scene was abruptly replaced by another memory. I was wearing skimpy clothes that barely covered me, diligently applying heavy makeup in front of a mirror. Those present in the stadium immediately erupted into an uproar. "It turns out she really was just putting on a pity act!" "She got beaten a couple of times and immediately rushed to prostitute herself!" I desperately shook my head, trying to shake off this memory, and the image on the large screen changed along with it. It showed Tanya being held down by several burly men while she was weeping hysterically, her body mottled with severe bruising. It was then that the boss clamped a hand over her mouth and flashed a smirk at me, saying, "I don't do charity here. Your friend is too damaged for business, so you either make up the profit, or she gets fed to the dogs." I immediately threw myself over Tanya, covering her body while my voice cracked with desperate, heartbroken pleas. "You must get her medical attention! I'll work tirelessly to earn back every penny of the medical costs!" In an instant, countless memories flashed quickly across the screen, showing me swallowing my disgust to meet the twisted requests of every customer who paid the fee. I dragged my bruised and battered body after my shift to beg the boss to provide Tanya with better medication. The audience erupted into a stunned, deafening uproar. "It turned out that she sacrificed her own body and dignity to keep Tanya alive!" "How could anyone capable of that kind of self-sacrifice be the culprit?" "With the way the Suttons are treating Miranda, aren't they repaying kindness with cruelty?" Jasmine let out a piercing shriek of pure denial, violently shaking my body. "It's all a lie! She's merely putting on an act! If she genuinely cared about Tanya's life, she wouldn't have protected the human trafficker's identity! "It's all a calculated ruse! It's clear that anyone who went through that much would be destroyed—but look at her, she's perfectly fine!" That immediately reignited the audience's fury. They collectively denounced me as a complete ingrate and declared that I deserved to burn in hell. Timothy's face was ashen as he fixed his gaze on the screen. Then, in an almost psychotic outburst, he bellowed at me, "Who is it, Miranda? Who is the person worth sacrificing your entire life and betraying both Tanya and me for? "Have I not loved you wholeheartedly? Why weren't you the one who ended up in a vegetative state, Miranda?" He quickly wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes and, seething with rage, commanded the technician, "I need you to crank it up and don't hold back! I won't stop until the truth is uncovered today!" The technician looked deeply troubled and hesitated to comply. "Ms. Lund's body has reached its absolute breaking point, Mr. Sutton. If we continue to expand the extraction range, she will likely suffer brain death." Timothy's eyes flashed with savage determination as he seized a second extractor and ruthlessly slammed the needle into my already mutilated skull. "Miranda was in cahoots with the trafficker! Her death would be the just consequence of her actions!" As the extractor buzzed sharply, I trembled violently, as if I had been electrocuted. In an instant, the memories on the screen wavered again.