Chapter 3 The Return
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The video was almost pitch black, nothing but voices echoing through the darkness.
“Seth, it’s late, and Elaine’s out there all alone. What if something happens to her? This is all my fault-I never
should’ve come back.
“If I hadn’t come back, I wouldn’t have been kidnapped, wouldn’t have been filmed, and Elaine wouldn’t have had to suffer for me. You should go find her.”
Seth’s voice came next, full of concern.
“Don’t say that. You’re the real victim here! No one matters more to me than you.
“I’ve always loved you the most. All these years, I’ve been waiting for you. I only dated other people to make you jealous, to get you to come back to me.”
Fiora’s voice trembled with emotion, and then the two of them seemed to kiss, their voices turning intimate and sug- gestive.
I pressed my lips together tightly, but outside, the two men had already smashed the glass into pieces.
Panicked, I called the police.
When the officers arrived, the men immediately twisted the story. “Officer, we saw someone soliciting here, so we came to report it. If you don’t believe us, look at this!”
One of them pulled out the deepfake video, along with the stack of sleazy cards I hadn’t finished tearing down.
The cops’ faces changed the moment they looked at me. They took me down to the station.
I was just a regular girl, yet I was interrogated over and over, accused of prostitution, of distributing obscene material.
That night, it felt like I cried away every last shred of dignity I had.
The officers told me to find evidence to clear my name. My hands shaking, I called Seth. It took three tries before he finally picked up.
I explained everything, pleading, “Seth, please, I’m begging you-come to the station and testify for me. That video isn’t me. If you don’t, I’ll be detained.”
Seth sounded annoyed. “Elaine, I thought you were all tough and independent now.
“So this is just another one of your stunts, huh?
“Anyway, even if you do get detained, it won’t be for long. I’m not going to testify and upset Fiora.
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Chapter 3 The Return
“Stop bothering me. Come back when you’re done making a scene. If you can’t handle it, let’s just break up.”
He hung up, and my heart plummeted.
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I sobbed uncontrollably, locked up in the police station. I was held for two days, until the tech team finally confirmed the video was a deepfake before they let me go.
It was only two days, but the humiliation and torment aged me years.
When I returned to the house, Seth greeted me with a mocking smile.
“What, tired of your little act already? I thought you finally had some backbone.”
I said nothing, barely able to stand.
Seth clicked his tongue at the sight of me. “Fine. I know you can’t live without me.
“As long as you behave, don’t make trouble, and stay out of Fiora’s way, I’ll let you stick around.
“Fiora’s been in a bad mood lately, so I’m taking her on a vacation to cheer her up. Stay home and behave, and I’ll bring you back a present, alright?”
Exhausted, I replied, “Okay.”
Then I went straight to my room.
Seth was caught off guard. He’d thought that by saying he would take Fiora on a vacation, I’d be so overwhelmed I couldn’t speak-or that I’d throw a fit, terrified of being left alone, begging to go along.
But now, I just agreed, calm as could be.
Seth scoffed to himself, thinking this was just another one of my manipulations. But he wasn’t falling for it. Not breaking up with me was already him being merciful.
The next day, true to his words, he took Fiora on vacation.
Meanwhile, a new message popped up on my phone-a photo of an itinerary.
“I’m already on the plane.”
