CEO's Caged Ex-wife

Chapter 8 Being Humiliated

After leaving Nicholas's apartment, Nathan tried several times to explain to Florence but didn't know how to begin.

They got into the car, and Nathan glanced at the silent woman beside him. Just as he was about to speak, he noticed Florence leaning back in her seat with her eyes closed. Remembering that she had just fainted, he decided not to say anything. The car didn't head to the hospital but drove straight back to Brooks' mansion.

When the car stopped outside the mansion, Florence got out. Nathan hesitated momentarily before speaking in a low voice, "Nicholas said you had heatstroke. Call Kevin to come and check on you. Ellie is emotionally unstable and can't be left alone."

Florence paused slightly but calmly closed the car door and walked away. The car behind her didn't start, and she didn't expect Nathan to get out and accompany her to the west courtyard. The summer breeze was cool, but she felt a chilling cold throughout her body.

The two copies of the divorce agreement were still on the bed. Florence glanced at them before going to the walk-in closet. She pulled out her suitcase and headed downstairs.

As she left the mansion, several servants were cleaning the yard, but they acted as if they didn't see her. Florence didn't care and dragged her luggage step by step out of the Brooks' mansion...

She had completed all her university courses two years ago and earned dual doctoral degrees. At just twenty years old, several professors, seeing her young age, had kept her at the university as a teaching assistant. She occasionally substituted for professors but resigned from her assistant position due to her pregnancy.

She had initially planned to find a job after giving birth...

The sun overhead was blinding, and Florence's vision blurred. She knew she had a fever, not from heatstroke but from an infected wound. Back at the factory, under such conditions, she could only treat the wound simply and take some medicine.

Florence found a three-star hotel. As soon as she entered the room, she collapsed onto the bed, unconscious...

The glaring sunlight streamed through the window. Florence opened her eyes, momentarily disoriented. She lay in bed for a long time before gradually coming to her senses. She had moved out of Brooks' mansion.

Although she knew no one would call her, seeing the empty screen of her phone still brought an indescribable pain to her heart. Many people in this world have parents, siblings, friends, and husbands.

But she was alone from beginning to end.

She had no parents, siblings, husband or children, memories of her childhood, and no idea who she was!

A day had passed since she checked into the hotel.

For the next two days, Florence kept looking for a job. Since she had just graduated, she had no work experience and was repeatedly turned away. Although she had saved some money during her two years as a teaching assistant, it wasn't much. Eventually, she chose a tiny attic apartment.

After paying a deposit of two thousand dollars and agreeing on a contract signing date with the landlord, Florence returned to the hotel.

"Eleanor Howard, the daughter of the Howard family, has been discharged from the hospital and returned home. Nathan Brooks, the second son of the Brooks family, accompanied her throughout. Reliable sources reveal that Ms. Howard will remarry into the Brooks family, and both families are already preparing for the wedding."

The gossip news blared on the car radio.

Florence's hand, holding her resume, paused slightly. She wanted to smile, but her lips only twitched stiffly.

The media mentioned Eleanor's discharge, Nathan's accompaniment, Eleanor's remarriage, and the wedding preparations, but no word was said about Nathan's current marital status. It seemed everyone had forgotten it.

"What the hell... her has just died, and she is already rushing to marry his brother."

The driver chuckled and turned off the radio.

"Exactly!"

Florence responded casually.

The driver, seeming to have found a kindred spirit, glanced at Florence through the rearview mirror. Suddenly, he remembered something and said, "I seem to recall that this second son of the Brooks family is already married. Why isn't the media mentioning that when he's about to marry his sister-in-law?"

Florence thought momentarily and replied, "Maybe his previous wife was too plain to be noticed, too insignificant to matter."

The driver nodded in agreement.

"Nowadays, it's all about matching social status, right? For these wealthy families, they should marry someone of equal standing. I wonder why this man married an ordinary woman."

Because he wanted to use this ordinary woman to reassure his elder brother!

Because he wanted to use this ordinary woman to hide his feelings for his sister-in-law!

Florence silently thought.

The hotel was somewhat remote. It was already dark when Florence got out of the taxi. A black business car was parked by the roadside. Florence glanced at it but didn't think much of it. However, the tightly shut door suddenly swung open as she walked past the car.

Realizing something was wrong, Florence immediately ran toward the hotel. But before she could take more than a few steps, a sharp pain struck the back of her neck, and everything went black as she collapsed to the ground...

---

Ice-cold water drenched her, sending a sharp chill through her body. Florence slowly came to.

The moldy room reeked of decay, and the dank floor was thick with a musty, earthy scent. A dim yellow light flickered weakly from the ceiling. Florence looked up to see a group of men circling her, one of them filming with a camera.

"Who are you?"

As Florence struggled to get up from the ground, a rod struck her calf with brutal force. A searing pain shot through her leg, and she fell heavily to the ground.

"Ah!"

A man watched Florence collapse in a heap and chuckled, his voice cold and menacing.

"I was asked to give you a message: our world is not a place for you to meddle in!"

Our world?

Many faces flashed through her mind, but only three lingered: Michael, Nathan, and Eleanor. She gritted her teeth against the pain in her leg and looked up at the men.

"Did Eleanor ask you to do this?"

The man smirked, then stepped back with the camera, glancing at the others.

"Nathan's woman... don't you all want to taste her?"

The group erupted into lewd laughter and began closing in on Florence.

"Stay away!"

Florence shook her head in panic, dragging her injured leg as she tried to crawl backwards. But before she could get far, two men grabbed her ankles while two others pinned her wrists to the ground. She was stretched out like a starfish, completely immobilized.

"Nathan's woman is indeed something special."

One of the men ran a hand over Florence's face.

The other three licked their lips, eagerly stripping off their clothes as they lunged toward her.

Florence shook her head, tears streaming down her face. She thought not all kidnappers were as kind as Julian and Thomas.

Who would come to rescue her?

As her clothes were torn away and humiliation washed over her, Florence's fingers clawed desperately to the ground. She closed her eyes in despair...