When Ezra entered, Melanie seemed to have found her anchor. She ran over, clinging to his shirt, her voice trembling with a mix
of tears and indignation. “I came to visit Mr. and Mrs. Stout today, and for some reason, they grabbed my hair and told me to go
to hell… Ezra, they tried to kill me!”
“Yes, I wish I could kill you.” Isaiah’s voice trembled with rage as he slammed his hand on the table, his eyes filled with a mixture
of fury and sorrow. “But you’re not the only one I want dead. Ezra, I’ll kill you too, you jerk!”
Isaiah’s voice quivered with anger. “My sweet daughter had never been wronged in her life… You promised you would treat her
well! But what happened? We knew about your filthy deeds, but I never thought you’d let this mistress come here and taunt us
like this. Vanessa had a heart attack because of the stress. This mistress is only after one thing–for you two to get divorced. Fine.
I agree. You two get divorced, and then you can both get out of here!”
Through her sobs, Melanie shot a look of satisfaction at Isaiah’s words, utterly unaware of the storm brewing in Ezra’s eyes. His expression darkened to a near impossible level of coldness.
His face hardening, Ezra grabbed Melanie’s wrist tightly and bowed slightly toward Isaiah. “Dad, I will handle this. And no, I’m not divorcing Shermaine.”
The words struck Melanie like a blow. She froze, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Before she could even react, Ezra was dragging her out the door.
No matter how loudly Melanie screamed, Ezra remained unbothered, his grip firm and unyielding
He pulled her up to the top floor, holding her by the neck and pressing her against the railing–less edge. The sensation of her body dangling halfway in the air and the cold wind biting at her thin clothes made her feel faint with fear.
She stared into the terrifying face of the man before her, his eyes burning with rage.
“Melanie, do you want to die?” Ezra’s voice was low and dangerous, each word sharp as a whisper from hell.
Frozen in fear, Melanie forgot her sobs, Tears streamed down her face, and her voice was shaky as she tried to reason with him. “Ezra, Shermaine is gone. She never loved you. If she loved you, she wouldn’t have walked away the moment she found out about us. I’m the one who loves you most. You told me every night that you loved me too, didn’t you? She’s gone. So why can’t we be together?”
What Melanie thought were heartfelt words only cut deeper, like a blade twisting inside Ezra. He snapped, his voice a guttural roar, “You’re lying! Shermaine would never leave me.”
+15 BONUS
His grip tightened, and for a moment, it felt like he might actually throw her off the edge.
Terrified, Melanie broke down and sobbed uncontrollably, desperate for her life.
“M–Mr. Yarbrough, I was wrong. Please, spare me! I’ll never do it again. I’m pregnant with your baby. Do you want to see your baby die too?”
At the mention of her pregnancy, Ezra froze.
He couldn’t bring himself to throw her over the edge, instead yanking her back and throwing her roughly to the ground. The force of the fall left her gasping for air, but she managed to breathe again just as Ezra’s cold voice sliced through the silence.
“Lock her up.”
