The Kindest Cruelty

I experienced what happened when the mighty fell, and everyone started kicking while I was down.

Susie had tossed me aside like a worn-out sneaker, and even her nanny felt bold enough to give me a kick.

I knew they were all scared of Susie, but they were terrified of the head of the Rogers family.

"Mrs. Rogers thinks the world of me. If anything happens to me, you won't get off easy for just standing there!"

The nanny went pale as a ghost when I said that. She knew the Rogers family head put me on a pedestal, and if things went south, they could not handle the fallout.

However, she did not dare let me out on her own. She bolted upstairs to report the situation. "Ms. Rogers, Mr. Lynch says his body is heating up in the sauna, which is currently at 180 degrees. Should I rush him to the hospital for surgery right away?"

Susie was hanging out with Chester in her room, and the mention of my name made her twitch with annoyance. "That sauna doesn't even go past 104 degrees."

Maybe worried about covering her bases, she thought for a second and then said, "Check the sauna temp..."

Before Susie could finish, Chester cut in with his own two cents.

"Susie, I have extremely sensitive skin. I can’t handle anything over 104 degrees Fahrenheit. You set the sauna for me, right? So why is it at a scorching 180 degrees now?"

Susie's words got caught in her throat as she glared and snapped, saying, "That loser is just trying to get sympathy. Without a tough lesson, he'll never learn. Just ignore him!"

With that, she kicked the nanny out.

The nanny, who got the door slammed in her face, trudged downstairs. She stopped by the sauna, muttered a few curses at me through the door crack, and stormed off.

My white clothes were soaked with blood. Finally, my pleas for help were met with silence.

The heat in the sauna was nearly cooking me alive.

The blood from my body was seeping out, trickling through the door's cracks.

Staring at the blood pooling beneath me, I realized I was running out of it fast.

Eventually, my body started to wobble, and I plunged into an endless darkness.

Hours later, a servant stumbled upon the bloody scene and gasped.

He was about to rush upstairs to report when Susie's irritated voice cut through, saying, "Go and tell Edward that I'm giving him one chance to 'fess up. If he apologizes to Chester and takes care of him until he's better, I'll consider sending him to the hospital."

The servant, pointing to the blood leaking from the door, stammered, "Ms. Rogers, Mr. Lynch... He...he hasn't made a sound for half an hour. We've been knocking and shouting, but nothing."

Susie paused, surprised, but quickly masked it with a sneer. "Why the panic? I know him better than anyone. He's just faking it. He's figured out that his little act isn't going to work on me anymore.

"If we let him play dead now, without making him feel the sting of this lesson, he'll just keep disrespecting Chester."

The servant's knees buckled, her face drained of color. "However, I heard him say that he was having a stroke..."

Chester, cradled in Susie's arms, put on a show of weakness. "Honestly! He knows I'm not strong. I've been pulled back from the brink so many times. He's the picture of health. Why would he jinx himself? Is he making fun of me?!"

Seeing Chester sob in her embrace, Susie's resentment toward me deepened.

"Clearly, we haven't punished him enough. He's still bold enough to taunt Chester with his life!

"He's trying to trick me with his schemes!" Susie's voice was icy with rage.

"Tell him that if he plays the life-threatening card again, I'll make sure he suffocates in there!"

The servants were visibly shaken; none dared to utter a word.

"What are you? Statues? Go and tell him!" Susie snapped at them, her temper flaring.

"You should check the sauna room!" The servants barely breathed, their voices quivering.

Susie tensed up, then let out a mocking laugh. "Putting on an act again? Like that shameless man wouldn't do anything for a bit of pity!"

Susie was so certain because I always owned up to any mistake whenever she was upset in the past.

With no dignity left, I would silently pick up the pieces after she and her brother-in-law had their fun.

"The sauna's thermostat must be busted; it has hit 180 degrees!

"It’s so hot that Mr. Lynch’s body couldn’t take it. He’s melted into blood and water… there’s nothing left of him…" The servant paused before finally revealing the grim truth of my death.

"What?" Susie shot up from her seat, her voice sharp with shock.

“He’s always looked healthy! How on earth could he be dead?”

Her face darkened with fury, like a storm cloud ready to burst.

"How could the temperature controls I set mess up like this? What did he ever do for you that you'd go this far to tick me off?"

With a swift kick, Susie sent the chair flying and hissed, saying, "Move it! I'm going to see for myself what sneaky game he's playing now!"

However, as she booted the sauna door open, a blast of scorching air gushed out, sending everyone stumbling back in alarm!