Chapter 3

I pressed Julian until he finally admitted the truth. He had been driving long-haul trucks all night, working endless hours of manual labor just to clear my family's name.

He had gently wiped away my tears back then. "Why are you crying? I'm not tired."

Looking at the dark circles under his eyes, I knew he was lying. But his hard work paid off, and he eventually started his own successful company.

After we got married, he hired four maids. He wouldn't let me lift a single finger.

Until I got pregnant.

One morning, morning sickness hit me hard. I rushed to the bathroom, but some spilled water on the floor made me slip.

I broke my wrist, and I lost the baby.

I fell into a deep, dark depression. Julian had been devastated. He told me that if I ever ended my life, he would die right along with me.

The sharp pain in my wrist pulled me back to the brutal present.

"Are you already plotting how to hurt Chloe again?" Julian's cold voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

"You're going to stay here and take care of her until she's discharged."

A hollow laugh escaped my lips. Tears slipped down my cheeks.

Seeing my expression, a sudden, inexplicable panic seemed to flash in Julian's eyes.

Sensing his hesitation, Chloe immediately cried out, "Ah! It hurts, Julian! It hurts so much!"

Julian's worry for her instantly overrode his momentary guilt.

But before he could yell at me again, a nurse burst into the room.

"What is wrong with you? I told you your pregnancy is highly unstable. Why are you out of bed wandering around?" the nurse scolded, looking directly at me.

Julian gasped, completely stunned.

"Elena... you're pregnant?"

But I saw the flash of utter disbelief in his eyes. It was as if he believed it was physically impossible for me to be pregnant.

He quickly called for a private nurse to watch Chloe, then practically dragged me back to my own ward.

He helped me onto the bed and tried to grasp my hands.

"Alright, Elena. Now that you're pregnant, stop making a scene."

"What happened with Chloe was just a drunken mistake. I only love you. She's your best friend, and she values your friendship so much."

"Once she gives birth, I'll send her and both of the kids abroad. I promise."

I stared at him, my eyes filled with mockery.

What was this? Shoving me to the ground, and then offering me a sweet treat to make me forget the pain?

"I'll have your mother come over to take care of you. Just be good, okay?"

His phone buzzed with a Snapchat notification from Chloe.

My stomach began to ache faintly, and fear crept into my chest. "Julian, I..."

Before I could finish, Julian was already walking out the door.

During my three days in the hospital, Julian never showed up again.

I decided it was time to go back to the Vance estate and pack my things.

I didn't even have money for an Uber, so I walked all the way back in my thin hospital gown with only a coat thrown over it.

But the moment I pushed the front door open, the scene before me shattered what little sanity I had left.