Caseyâs pupils dilated unfocused, showing no reaction to his query.
Daveyâs hands clamped tighter around her arms as he clenched his teeth and pressed, âSpeak! Are you?â
Still unresponsive, Casey only mustered incoherent sounds to the pain.
Since Casey laid eyes on Jimenaâs lifeless body, she had been plunged into this state.
Davey had overestimated Caseyâs resilience, initially revealing that her adopted son had been shot, and then came the horrifying scene of Jimenaâs lifeless body.
Years of confinement in a basement had frayed Caseyâs spirit to tatters, these revelations shattering her completely.
She held herself accountable.
If Erick hadnât intervened to save her, he would not have been targeted.
Jimenaâs death also fell on Caseyâs conscience, as Davey had mercilessly executed Jimena for her tasks.
Ever a kind soul with a golden heart, Casey blamed herself for othersâ suffering, self-loathing overwhelming her.
Her mind had shut down, resembling a burnt-out fuse, unresponsive.
Her once-celebrated beauty now seemed obscured by her vacant mumbling and sporadic drooling.
Yet, even in disarray, her beauty persisted.
Caseyâs gaze was fixed perpetually on the surveillance screen.
Abruptly, a soft âMomâ echoed from the monitorâs speaker.
At that sound, Caseyâs eyes began to focus, but then she tumbled from the wheelchair.
Davey extended a hand to assist, but she repelled him forcefully.
Casey made her way frantically toward the monitor.
Inside, Raegan shifted from a fetal position to lying on her back, her body shaking yet her gaze locked on the camera.
Summoning all her strength, she cried out, âMomâ¦â
At this, Casey, incoherent and overwhelmed, battered the screen with her hands.
Davey watched her erratic actions and laughed, relieved to see her responsive again.
He observed Raegan on the monitor crying âMomâ and then detachedly diverted his attention.
Moments later, he pressed a green button adjacent to the monitor and issued an order.
âBring her out.
â
Davey watched intensely as security escorted Raegan out, administered emergency care, and helped her into a deep, stable slumber.
Only then did Davey breathe a sigh of relief.
This was odd.
He shouldnât have felt this way.
He rationalized that without Raeganâs unique ability to impact Caseyâs condition, he would never have reconsidered her situation.
Once satisfied that Raegan was stable, Davey exited the room where Raegan was taken into for a rest.
The door shut with a click behind him.
Alone in the dim, serene, and warm chamber, Raeganâs eyes snapped open.
As she surveyed the comforting darkness, she realized her risky play had succeeded.
Managing to pull through before she was frozen to death, those faint cries for âMomâ from her had indeed captured Daveyâs attention.
Yet, Davey probably hadnât grasped the psychological tactics influencing his decision.