The Bound Princess (Dark Romance)

Chapter 50

Emma 

A grave silence ruled over the room, and I could hear my heartbeat in my ears. Years kept trickling down my face one after the other. Never in my life had I imagined Dawood might have been something so horrible in his past and that at the hands of none other than his mother—the woman who was supposed to love and protect him. 

How can a mother do something like that? 

I couldn't believe she was ready to kill her son to hide her infidelity from her husband. She was a disgrace to the whole female population. No wonder Dawood hated women and regarded them as a means to an end. 

My heart bled for the nine-year-old boy who caught his mother in a bed with his father's assistant. If that was not traumatizing enough, the bitch wanted to kill him. I couldn't even imagine how Dawood would have felt at that time. Without his strong will and determination, he would have been completely lost. 

After going through something unbearable, he suffered another betrayal from Iram. If it were up to me, I would find the bitch and kill her with my bare hands for hurting Dawood and breaking his trust in women forever. I felt no hatred for what Dawood did to Iram. She deserved what he did to her. Iram only solidified Dawood's hate against all women. If not his mother, Iram was the one who pushed him off the edge. 

My stomach turned, and bile rose in my throat.  I felt like puking, but I had not eaten in more than sixteen hours, and I was sure nothing would come out, even if I vomited.  

No wonder he despised me when we first met, especially after my hot and cold behavior with him, which only made the situation worse. I couldn't help my actions at that time; I was baffled at the reaction of my body to Dawood. I was in an illusion at that time that I was in love with Hamza when it was nothing but a silly teenage crush. 

Hamza had manipulated my crush on him and convinced me that I was in love with him. Mohammed and Ahmed weren't fans of Hamza and only tolerated him because of him—especially Ahmed, who never hesitated to express his disapproval of Hamza. 

Abi never even considered Hamza a suitable match for me. And even though Hamza claimed to love me, he never told his parents about us even after I insisted on him several times. I had feared Abi might choose someone for me if Hamza's parents didn't ask for my hand, which was precisely what happened. Abi met Dawood, and in a single meeting, he was so impressed that he was ready to give my hand in marriage to Dawood. 

I couldn't believe I was determined to turn down Dawood's proposal for someone mediocre like Hamza. What I learned about Dawood after spending months with him Abi had deduced it in a single meeting. It had taken Abi only a couple of hours in Dawood's company to conclude that he was perfect for me. And Dawood was perfect, no doubt, but I ruined everything with my actions. 

I broke the trust Dawood put in me by meeting Hamza behind his back. After learning about Dawood's past, I understood his reaction better. I could not comprehend why he reacted so strongly to me meeting Hamza. As if seeing me with Hamza was not enough to shatter his trust, Hamza's suggestion of me getting an annulment proved catastrophic. 

Dawood was overly possessive about me, and seeing me with Hamza and listening to what he had to say snapped Dawood. He got enraged to the extent that he consummated our marriage to nullify any chance of an annulment of our marriage. 

I felt dizzy because of my exhausting thoughts. I raked my fingers in my hair and then looked up at Dawood, who was still perched on the armchair. Exhaustion covered his features, and emotions raged in his eyes. I wanted to reach out and hold his hand and console him with my words, but I was stunned to the extent that I couldn't think of anything to say to make him feel better.