NovelUSAChapter 623 A moment ago, the little girl's face was clouded with sorrow, but in the blink of an eye, something shifted-now her eyes glimmered with a trace of resentment.
How could a child so young swing between emotions so quickly, and harbor such complicated thoughts? The more Hilda watched her, the more uneasy she felt.
She kept a close eye on the girl's expressions, searching for sclue, but before she could make sense of the sudden change, the child's innocent, sing- song voice broke the silence.
"Mommy, since you've beca beautiful star, why can't you takewith you?" "I want to be a star too. Then I wouldn't be cold anymore, or hurt so much." Her voice was soft and fragile, filled with desperate hope. For all its childishness, the words hit Hilda like a punch to the gut.
Suddenly, a man's rough, drunken yelling shattered the quiet of the living room.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"What's with all the noise? Shut your trap, or I swear I'll toss you in the fryer!" His voice was harsh, thick with anger.
The little one curled up on the balcony flinched instinctively at the sound.
Her body was already half-numb from the cold, her stomach aching with hunger. Gritting her teeth, she summoned her courage and called out, "Please... I'm cold. I'm hungry." The man, half-gone with whiskey, grew even more irritated at Citrine's plea.
"Well, well. You're still not dead, you little brat." He hurled his bottle to the floor, the glass shattering with a violent crash. Citrine recoiled, trembling uncontrollably on the balcony.
Her eyes slowly lost their light. She knew what cnext-another beating.
Burying her face in her knees, she wished twould slow down, or that just this once the man might have a change of heart and leave her be.
Instead, his curses grew louder as he stomped across the living room. He flung open the balcony door, stormed over, and kicked her hard.
"You worthless runt! Go a couple days without food and you're already whining? Not dead yet, are you?" "I gave you a spot to sleep, out here on the balcony-that's more than you deserve! Try asking for more and I'll beat you to death myself." His fists and boots rained down with merciless force. He didn't stop until Citrine's sobs faded and she lay limp and silent on the floor. Finding ho satisfaction in her stillness, he finally turned away and left.
Hilda was stunned. She hadn't expected the man to be so cruel-even to a child.
After he left, she glanced at the girl's motionless body, thinking she probably wouldn't survive the night.
But then, slowly, the little one's eyes fluttered open. She looked toward the living room, waited until she was sure the man was gone, and then-wincing-pushed herself upright.
She crawled to the far corner of the balcony, where the wind and snow couldn't reach, and lifted her tattered sweater.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmWhat Hilda saw made her blood run cold.
The child's small body was covered in swollen bruises, angry welts, and old scars injuries so severe they were painful even to look at.
Citrine's face scrunched in pain as she gingerly touched her wounds, then let her worn sweater drop back into place.
At that moment, the silence was broken by the unmistakable rumble of her stomach. It growled again and En again, echoing in the empty night. She rubbed her belly and glanced around, her gaze landing on a strip of dried bacon hanging nearby.
She swallowed hard, dragged an old broken stool over, and climbed up to reach the meat.
Starvation trumped everything else The moment she got her hands on it, she wasted no time, sinking ber teet into the salty bacon without a second thought.
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