Chapter 49

OLIVIA’S POV When I woke, the first thing I felt was the pounding ache in my head. My body was stiff, weak—every breath was a struggle. I blinked through the dim, musty light, and my eyes adjusted to the space. Cold concrete walls. A flickering light above. Chains. And her. That only familiar face that I didn’t want to see right now with something sadistic glinting in her eyes. Evelyn. She stood before me like a ghost from my worst nightmares—elegant, poised, and grinning like a serpent who had finally swallowed its prey. She lit a cigarette and instead of taking a puff, she embedded the burning end of it into my skin. "Finally awake, Sleeping Beauty," she drawled, arms crossed as she eyed me with mock sympathy. "You’ve been quite the handful, you know. I expected you to break sooner." My mouth was dry. I tried to speak, but only a rasp escaped. She crouched in front of me, brushing my hair back with mock tenderness. "You should see yourself," she whispered. "You look pathetic and I am