The Golden Cage - S01 E09

Story 2 weeks ago

The Golden Cage - S01 E09

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 9

Episode 9: The Golden Cage

The room was very quiet for a few seconds. The only sound was the heavy breathing coming from Frank. He stood over Linda with his big briefcase held high. Linda was on the floor, curled up like a small ball. She was waiting for the hit to come. She was waiting for the pain. But the hit did not come yet. Frank was just standing there, looking down at her with eyes that were full of fire. His face was still a very dark red color. He looked like a monster from a scary book. Linda slowly looked up. Her eyes were wet with tears. She was shaking so much that her teeth were making a clicking sound. She knew she had to show him the keys. She knew she had to prove she was telling the truth before he hurt her again.

Linda reached out her hand toward the blue glass bowl on the center table. Her fingers were trembling. She felt like her arm was made of lead. She finally touched the cold metal of the keys. She picked them up and held them out toward Frank. Here they are, Frank! She cried out. Her voice was thin and broken. Please, look! They were right here in the bowl. I was only trying to keep them safe for you. Please, do not be angry anymore. I did not mean to make you late. I just wanted to help. Please, Frank! She was begging him now. She wanted him to see that she was not a curse. She wanted him to see that she was a good wife.

Frank did not say anything kind. He did not say he was sorry for swinging the briefcase. He did not help her up from the floor. Instead, he reached out and snatched the keys from her hand. He did it so fast and so hard that the sharp metal of the keys scratched the soft skin of Linda’s palm. Linda gasped as a small line of red appeared on her hand. Frank did not care. He was blinded by his anger. The anger was like a big black cloud inside his head. He could not see clearly. He could not think clearly. All he could feel was the hot rage in his chest. He looked at his watch again. He was very late for his meeting. He felt like Linda had planned this just to ruin his big day.

Get out of my sight! Frank yelled. His voice was like a clap of thunder in the small room. He did not want to see her face. He did not want to see her tears. He felt that her crying was just a way to make him feel bad. He wanted her to go away and leave him alone. But Linda was still on the floor, trying to stand up. She was moving slowly because her legs were weak. Frank did not want to wait for her to move. He was in such a hurry. He was so full of hate in that moment. He did not think about how strong he was. He did not think about how small Linda was.

With all his strength, Frank reached out and pushed Linda away. He did not just give her a small shove. He used his whole body to push her. Linda was not expecting it. She was still trying to find her balance. She was in her pretty dress and her feet were small. When Frank pushed her, she flew backward. Her feet caught on the edge of the thick rug that was on the floor. She could not stop herself. She felt like she was falling in slow motion. She put out her hands to catch herself, but she was moving too fast.

Linda fell with a very heavy thud. It was a sound that made the whole room feel cold. As she fell, her head hit the very sharp corner of the marble center table. The table was made of white stone, and the corners were very hard and very pointy. There was a loud, sickening sound when her head touched the stone. It sounded like a piece of wood breaking. Linda did not even have time to scream. She did not have time to cry out for help.

Suddenly, the room was silent again. Linda was lying on the white floor. She was not moving. Her body went limp, like a doll that had been dropped. Her arms were spread out to the sides. Her legs were bent in a strange way. Her eyes were open, but she was not looking at anything. She was staring at the ceiling, but she was not seeing it. She looked like she was sleeping, but her eyes were not closed. She was very, very still.

Frank stood there for a moment. He was still holding his keys in one hand and his briefcase in the other. He was still angry. He was thinking about how he was going to tell his father why he was late. He was thinking about the big deal he might lose. He looked down at Linda and thought she was just pretending. He thought she was acting so that he would feel sorry for her. Get up, Linda! He shouted. Stop playing games! I told you to get out of my sight! He waited for her to move. He waited for her to start crying again.

But Linda did not move. She did not blink. She did not say a word. The house was so quiet that Frank could hear the ticking of the clock on the wall. Tick, tick, tick. Then, Frank saw something that made his heart freeze. Underneath Linda’s head, a small red pool was starting to form. The red color looked very bright and very scary against the white marble floor. The pool was getting bigger and bigger every second. It was flowing slowly across the floor like a tiny red river.

Frank started shaking. The keys fell out of his hand and hit the floor with a loud clang. The briefcase fell too. All of his anger was gone now. It was replaced by a giant wave of terror. He felt like he could not breathe. He realized what he had done. He had pushed his wife, and now she was bleeding on the floor. Linda! He screamed. He fell to his knees beside her. He touched her face. Her skin felt warm, but she did not move. Linda, wake up! Please, wake up! I am sorry! I did not mean to push you so hard!

He tried to shake her gently, but her head just moved from side to side. She did not respond to his voice. She did not respond to his touch. Frank was crying now. His tears were falling into the red pool on the floor. He was terrified. He knew he had to get her help. He knew he had to save her. He forgot about his meeting. He forgot about his father. He forgot about the big deal. The only thing that mattered was the girl lying on the white floor.

Frank picked her up in his arms. She felt very light, like a feather. He ran out of the house and down to his car. He did not even lock the front door. He put her in the back seat and covered her with his expensive suit jacket. He jumped into the driver’s seat and started the engine. He drove like a madman. He did not stop for the red lights. He did not care about the other cars on the road. He honked his horn and shouted for people to move out of his way. He was driving so fast that the tires were screaming on the road.

Inside the car, Frank kept looking back at Linda. Please stay with me, he whispered. Please do not leave me. He was thinking about the golden cage he had built. He realized that the money and the house and the cars did not matter if Linda was gone. He felt a deep, dark fear in his soul. He had spent so much time making her feel small and weak. Now, she was the most important thing in the world to him, but she was slipping away.

When he finally arrived at the hospital, he did not even park the car properly. He jumped out and screamed for help. The doctors and the nurses heard him. They came running with a tall bed on wheels. They saw the red on Frank’s shirt. They saw the girl in the back seat. They picked Linda up very quickly. They did not waste any time. They began to check her heart and her breathing. They put a mask over her face to help her breathe.

Frank tried to follow them inside, but a nurse stopped him. She told him he had to stay in the waiting room. He watched as they took Linda through a set of big double doors. The doors closed, and Linda was gone. Frank was left standing in a long, white hallway. The hallway smelled like medicine and soap. It was very bright and very cold.

Frank sat down on a hard plastic chair. He put his head in his hands. He was covered in blood. He looked at his hands and saw the red marks. He felt like he was in a nightmare. He waited. Every minute felt like a whole day. He looked at the clock on the wall. An hour passed. It was a very long hour of total silence. Nobody came out to talk to him. He could hear other people talking in the hospital, but he did not listen to them. He was thinking about Linda. He was thinking about the way she looked in her yellow dress when she brought him lunch. He was thinking about the way she smiled when they were at the university.

He felt a giant weight of guilt on his shoulders. He had been so mean to her. He had called her a curse. He had called her a village girl. He had hit her and made her cry. Now, she might never wake up again. He realized that he had destroyed the only good thing in his life. He began to pray. He promised that if Linda woke up, he would be a better man. He promised to give her anything she wanted. He promised to let her go if that is what she wanted. He just wanted her to be alive.

After what felt like forever, the big double doors opened. Frank stood up so fast that his chair fell over. The head doctor walked out. He was an older man with white hair. He looked very tired. He stopped in front of Frank. He did not smile. He did not say hello. He slowly took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. He looked at Frank with a face that was like stone. It was a face that did not show any hope. It was a face that carried a very heavy message. Frank’s heart stopped beating for a second. He was terrified of the words the doctor was about to say.

Do you think Linda will survive the fall, or is it too late for her?

Why do you think Frank only cared about Linda once she was badly hurt?

What do you think the doctor is about to tell Frank?

If Linda wakes up, will she ever be able to forgive Frank for what he did?

Do you think Frank deserves a second chance, or should he go to jail for what happened?

The moment of truth has arrived! The doctor is about to speak, and Linda’s life hangs in the balance. Will this be the end of the story, or just the beginning of a new nightmare? You must follow up to hear the doctor's words!