Rowena's expression darkened. She finally knew who had destroyed her family.

"What the hell do you want, James?"

"Haha" James started laughing, but it was a terrifying, humorless sound.

"You're asking me what I want, Rowena? You're the reason my grandfather was falsely accused and became the laughingstock of the entire town. You're the one who caused my father's heart attack, then pushed him off the third floor and lied about it being suicide. You, and the rest of the Great Four, tied up my entire family and set fire to our home. You killed more than thirty people, and you're asking me what I want?!"

James was like a tiger escaped from its cage. Bloodlust radiated from him. He roared, making Rowena's ears ring and stunning her. She was terrified—more so than she'd ever been. Even though she was a smart woman, James had killed her father and brother, and the news had been suppressed. She knew the man before her was no longer the helpless boy he had been ten years ago.

"I—I'm still your stepmother, James. You…" Smack! James stood and backhanded her. He didn't hold back. Rowena recoiled from the force, falling spread-eagle onto the bed. Her cheek swelled instantly, reddening, and blood leaked from her mouth. He grabbed a fistful of her hair, pressing her head into the bed and extinguishing his cigarette on her face. He showed no mercy, regardless of her being a woman. He recalled his grandfather's suffering before his death, and the sight of his father falling from the third floor. He could never forget watching his loved ones burn alive.

"Ahh!" Rowena screamed in pain.

Charles, frightened, had fallen off the bed. He cowered against the wall, barely daring to breathe.

"Rowena Xavier. Did you ever think your reckoning would come for destroying my family? You need to die, Rowena Xavier, so all thirty-eight members of my family can finally be put to rest!"

"I'm sorry, James! I really am! You've ruined my family! Please let me go!" Rowena, no longer the noble, elegant woman she once was, begged shamelessly, her dignity abandoned. James pulled out a switchblade.

Shik!

He brutally sliced across Rowena's face. A shockingly red line appeared instantly, blood streaming down her neck and staining her white shirt. Her expression contorted in agony; the pain silenced her scream.

"Ten years ago, Thea Callahan risked her life to save me from that inferno. She's my savior, yet you Xaviers tormented her. I'll return everything your family did to Thea a hundredfold."

"Don't worry. I won't kill you. I'll show you what true despair looks like. Your life will be a fate worse than death, but you won't be able to die." James lifted his arm again and sliced Rowena's face.

"I'm sorry, James! Please let me go!" Rowena begged, sobbing uncontrollably.

James tossed the switchblade aside and sat back down. He looked at Rowena, a horrifying sight now, covered in blood.

"Where is Moonlit Flowers on Cliffside's Edge?"

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