Chapter 3 No.3

JILLIAN BELL POV:

Kallie, sensing Cristian's hesitation, stepped forward. Her voice, usually so sweet and innocent, now held a sharp, dangerous edge. "Cristian, she's trying to ruin you. Think about your reputation, your company. This... this drama will be everywhere by morning." She played the card she knew would hurt him most: his public image.

Cristian's eyes, already blazing with fury, hardened further. The thought of scandal, of his carefully curated life unraveling, ignited a cold rage within him. His public performance was everything. And I was threatening to tear it all down.

"Get her out of here," he snarled, his voice low and menacing. His gaze fixed on one of his security guards, a silent command.

Before I could react, two burly men were at my side, their hands gripping my arms. Panic flared, but my resolve remained. "Let go of me!" I struggled, but their hold was like iron.

"You're hurting me! I'm still recovering!" I cried, my voice strained. My body screamed in protest.

Cristian scoffed, a cruel, dismissive sound. "Recovering? You mean from your little act to get attention? You were never pregnant, Jillian. You just want to play the victim." His words were a physical blow, heavier than any punch. He denied my pain, my sacrifice, my very reality.

"It was always about the money, wasn't it?" he continued, his voice dripping with venom. "Another child for another payout from my mother. You disgust me."

My mind reeled. The pain in my abdomen intensified, a searing fire. His words cut deeper than any blade. He twisted everything I had ever done for our family, for him, into something sordid and transactional.

My thoughts drifted, a desperate escape from the present horror. My father, his kind eyes clouded with sickness, his hand frail in mine. My mother, her face etched with worry, telling me about the bills, the endless bills.

Cristian's mother, Carole, had offered then. A generous sum, enough to cover my father's experimental treatment, if I would marry Cristian. She wanted a strong bloodline, an heir. I was young, foolish, and desperate. I accepted. Then my father died anyway. But I was already pregnant with Kasen, a tiny flicker of hope in my desolate world. Carole had promised a bonus for progeny, a continuation of the family line. It felt like a lifetime ago. A raw wound, festering beneath the surface.

Now, I was being publicly shamed, a spectacle for the assembled crowd. My body was an instrument of his contempt. The guards' grip bit into my skin. The ache in my abdomen throbbed relentlessly.

The guests gawked, their murmurs growing louder, their stares a thousand tiny knives. "She deserves it," I heard one woman whisper. "Trying to extort him. Such a gold-digger." Another chimed in, "She was always a bit cold, wasn't she? Not like sweet Kallie." Their judgment was a heavy shroud, wrapping around me, suffocating me.

Through the haze of pain and humiliation, I saw Cristian, his arm still around Kallie, smiling. They looked like a picture-perfect couple, his hand stroking her hair, hers resting on his chest. It was a caricature of the love we once shared, a brutal parody of our wedding day. I remembered dancing with him, his eyes filled with a promise that now felt like a cruel deception. His touch, once so tender, now a distant, painful memory.

The air grew thin. My head throbbed. The world spun around me, a kaleidoscope of mocking faces and dazzling lights. I felt detached, floating above the scene, watching my own degradation. A hollow numbness began to set in, a protective shell forming around my shattered heart.

Suddenly, a small, familiar figure pushed through the crowd. Kasen. He was holding a small, frosted cake, his face alight with childish excitement. He stopped short, his eyes fixing on me, held firmly by the guards.

"Mom?" His voice was small, confused.

My heart, which I thought had already turned to ash, twisted with a fresh wave of agony. He looked at me, then at Cristian and Kallie, his brow furrowed.

"Mom, what are you doing?" he asked, a hint of irritation in his tone. "Kallie's birthday! You're ruining it!" His words, laced with the venom of his father's mistress, struck with devastating force. He accused me, again, of being the problem.

He didn't wait for an answer. He stormed past me, ignoring my captured form, and presented the cake to Kallie. "Happy birthday, Kallie!" he exclaimed, his smile wide and genuine. "Dad and I helped pick it out."

My eyes closed, a single tear escaping. The world went silent, the pain in my body fading into a dull throb. It was over. All of it. The hope, the love, the fight. There was nothing left. My son, my own flesh and blood, had chosen them.

I opened my eyes to see Kallie, a triumphant smirk now gracing her lips, raise a champagne glass in my direction. Cristian stood beside her, his hand resting on Kasen's shoulder. They were a unified front, a perfect, vile trinity.

And I, Jillian Bell, the discarded wife, the shamed mother, stood there, a testament to their victory. My defeat was complete.