Chapter 294: Barking Like a Dog

The scene unfolded with merciless intensity. Vivienne maintained her iron grip on Natalie’s shoulder, leaving no room for resistance. Natalie felt as helpless as prey in a predator's sights, waves of humiliation washing over her with crushing force. She bowed her head, teeth sinking into her lower lip as she tried to block out the countless mocking stares surrounding her. Her trembling fists betrayed the tempest of hatred and fury building within.

The bitter irony of her position struck deep—she was the Chambers family heiress, Warren’s chosen bride, destined to lead the Mitchell household. Yet here she knelt, subjugated by Vivienne, whom she viewed as nothing more than a rural upstart from humble origins. The indignity burned like acid in her veins.

Diana, seeing Vivienne’s attention diverted to Natalie, sensed an opportunity for revenge. With desperate speed, she snatched an ashtray from the nearby coffee table and lunged toward Vivienne, murder blazing in her eyes.

“Die, you wretch!”

“Look out!” Sienna’s panicked warning pierced the air.

Derek, watching the livestream in his car, frowned deeply, anger flashing across his features. Yet he needn’t have worried. Vivienne moved with practiced precision, simultaneously catching Diana’s wrist while gripping her throat. The resounding crash of Diana’s body hitting the floor echoed through the room, a testament to Vivienne’s ruthless efficiency. A ghost of an admiring smile played across Derek’s lips as he observed.

Diana lay crumpled on the floor, gasping for air between pained coughs. “Vivienne… you’ll… pay dearly for this…”

Natalie carefully masked the ice in her gaze as she attempted a final plea, her face a masterpiece of fragile vulnerability. “Miss Hayes, surely our submission is enough? Can’t you release us now?”

“Such eloquence, Miss Chambers.” Vivienne’s voice dripped with mockery as she towered over her kneeling form. “Tell me, would you show mercy if our positions were reversed? A loss demands its price—surely you understand this basic principle?”

Natalie’s jaw clenched. “What more could you want?”

“Something simple.” Vivienne’s words fell like ice shards. “Crawl on your hands and knees. Bark like a dog.”

The command plunged Natalie into new depths of horror. Kneeling had been humiliating enough, but to crawl and bark like an animal? The very thought sent tremors of rage through her body. Her position as the Chambers family’s cherished daughter made such degradation unthinkable.

Diana’s hatred for Vivienne reached a fever pitch. “You vicious witch! Release me!” Her hysterical screams filled the air with increasingly vulgar curses, each more venomous than the last.

“Miss Mitchell, perhaps save your voice for barking instead?” Vivienne’s response cut like a blade.

As Natalie knelt with downcast eyes, her mind raced through countless scenarios of revenge. The proud Chambers heiress, reduced to such public shame, now commanded to mimic a common dog. The universe seemed to mock her further as a nearby toy poodle let out a cheerful bark.

A playful smile graced Vivienne’s lips, though her eyes remained glacial. “Well? We’re waiting. Bark!”