The Contracted Stripper

Mrs. Jessica sat at the edge of the old, creaking hospital bed, her frail hands trembling as she reminisced.

Her eyes, tired from years of pain, glistened with unshed tears. It had been so many years since Mr. Kendrick took her other twin, Ivy, and not a single day passed without her feeling the crushing weight of that loss.

“Ever since Mr. Kendrick took Ivy,” Mrs. Jessica began, her voice hoarse from the memories she had buried for so long, “I haven’t been the same. Every day, I wake up thinking about her. What does she look like now? What has she become? Does she know I exist? Does she remember me?”

Ryan watched her closely, a knot forming in his throat. The weight of the revelations from the previous night still hung heavy in the room.

His mother had torn apart this woman’s life, and now, here she was broken, yet still standing, fighting for her daughter. He couldn’t help but feel responsible for the pain his family had caused her.

“Mrs. Jessica, I’m so sorry for everything,” Ryan murmured, his voice low. “I had no idea. I didn’t even know you existed until now. And Ivy… my sister…”Mrs. Jessica looked up, her eyes filled with sorrow. “It wasn’t your fault, Ryan. You were just a child. You couldn’t have known what was happening behind closed doors.”

She swallowed hard, her hands clenching tightly together. “But I’ve missed Ivy every day since I gave her to your father.

She is my baby, my flesh and blood. And yet, I have her away because I couldn’t protect and care for her, just like everything else.”

Ryan remained silent, feeling the weight of her words. He could sense the decades of anguish behind each sentence, the wounds that had never healed.

Mrs. Jessica’s heart had been torn in two the day Ivy was taken, and though she had Iris, the absence of one daughter haunted her relentlessly.”And Iris?”

Ryan asked softly. “What about her? Has she been with you all this time?”Mrs. Jessica nodded slowly, her expression softening when she mentioned Iris. “Yes, Iris stayed with me. She’s been my rock all these years. We’ve had nothing but each other to rely on. Ever since she was a child, Iris has always taken care of me.”

She hesitated for a moment, then continued, her voice growing quieter. “After the twins were born, things got worse for me. I developed kidney failure, and I needed a lot of money for the surgery.

But we didn’t have any money… we barely had enough to survive. Iris was the one who worked so hard to make sure I got the best treatment we could afford. But it was never enough.”

Ryan’s chest tightened with guilt as he listened. He had lived his life in luxury, never worrying about money or health, while this woman and his half-sister had suffered in silence.”Iris must have done everything she could,” Ryan said gently. “She’s always been so strong.”

Mrs. Jessica nodded, her eyes filled with pride. “Yes, she did. She took on every job she could find, working day and night just to keep us afloat. But no matter how hard she worked, the money was never enough. My condition kept getting worse, and I knew… I knew she was getting desperate.”

She paused, her voice trembling. “And then one day, Iris told me she had found a new job. She wouldn’t tell me much about it, only that it paid well. I was so happy for her, relieved that she might finally be able to earn enough to pay for my treatment.Belongs © to NôvelDrama.Org.

She sent money often, but she barely had time to visit. I didn’t want to question her; I thought maybe she had found something good, something that could help us.”

Ryan’s heart sank. He had a feeling he knew where this was going, and it twisted his gut. “What kind of job was it?” he asked carefully.

Mrs. Jessica’s face crumpled with pain. “I didn’t know at first. I didn’t ask her, because I trusted her. I thought she would never do anything dangerous or harmful. But as time went on, I noticed the changes in her. She stopped coming around as much, and when she did, she seemed distant, like something was weighing heavily on her mind. I didn’t understand it then, but now… now I know.”

Ryan clenched his fists, his anger simmering beneath the surface. “She got involved in something dangerous, didn’t she?”Mrs. Jessica nodded, tears spilling down her cheeks.

“Yes. She did it for me. She put herself in harm’s way to save me. But I had no idea. I should’ve asked, I should’ve seen the signs. But I was too focused on my illness, too desperate to get better.” She wiped her tears with the back of her hand, her voice breaking. ”

Skylar was the one who took care of me while Iris worked. He was kind and patient, always by my side when Iris couldn’t be. But I knew… I knew something was wrong.”Ryan’s brow furrowed.

“Iris never wanted to tell me. She didn’t want me to know how far she had fallen. But I could see it in her eyes, in the way she carried herself. She was in too deep, and there was no way out.”Ryan’s stomach churned. He couldn’t believe how much Iris had sacrificed for her mother, how much she had endured without ever telling anyone.

“And now she’s missing,” Mrs. Jessica said, her voice barely a whisper. “I don’t know where she is, or if she’s safe. I’ve lost one daughter already, and now I’m losing another.”Ryan reached out, placing a comforting hand on Mrs. Jessica’s shoulder. “We’ll find her,” he promised. “I swear, I’ll do everything in my power to bring her back.

“Mrs. Jessica looked up at him, her eyes filled with hope and fear. “Please, Ryan. I can’t lose her too.”

Hours later, Ryan sat in the dimly lit room with Luca, deep in thought. The weight of everything he had learned was crushing him, and he felt more helpless than ever. His family had destroyed so many lives, and now he was left to pick up the pieces.