Chapter 2

The echoes of the city' s life faded as I finally reached our empty villa. My legs felt like lead, my mind a blank canvas, scarred by the images I had just witnessed. I was exhausted, physically and emotionally.

I drifted into the bathroom, the sterile white tiles a stark contrast to the chaos in my head. My eyes fell on the small, unassuming box on the counter. A pregnancy test. I picked it up without thinking, my fingers fumbling with the wrapper. It was an old habit, a ritual born of years of longing and disappointment.

I performed the test, my movements mechanical. I tossed it aside, not expecting anything, not wanting anything. There was no joy left in me.

But when I glanced down moments later, two distinct lines stared back at me.

Two lines.

My heart, which I thought had been pulverized, gave a painful jolt. It was a cruel twist of fate, a brutal mockery. After years of trying, of endless cycles of IVF, of painful failures and shattered hopes... now? Now, when my life had just imploded, when the man I loved had built a new family?

I remembered the twelve rounds of IVF I had endured, alone. Drake was always "too busy" for the appointments, for the emotional toll, for the countless injections. He had promised me it didn't matter if we never had children. "Our love is enough, Kaitlyn," he'd said, his voice smooth and reassuring. A lie. All of it.

Each failed attempt had chipped away at my spirit, but I had clung to a desperate hope. A child, a symbol of our love, a tiny hand to hold. It was a foolish dream now.

Six months ago, during one of Drake's extended "business trips," I had undergone my final, secret round of IVF. I hadn't told him. I wanted it to be a surprise, a miracle to rekindle the fading embers of our marriage.

The doctor had called three months ago. Positive. And not just one. Twins. A boy and a girl. Healthy, strong. I was already three months pregnant. I had planned to tell Drake tonight, on our anniversary. A happy surprise.

Now the surprise was on me.

He was already a father. To another woman' s child. My twins, our children, had no place in his meticulously constructed lie.

The footsteps outside the bathroom door brought me back to the present. Drake. My breath caught in my throat. I quickly wiped away the tears, my movements hurried and frantic.

I snatched the pregnancy test, shoving it deep into my pocket, the plastic cold against my skin. There was no way he could know. Not now. Not ever.

He walked in, his face etched with a strange anxiety. "Kaitlyn? Why haven't you been answering my calls?" His voice was laced with a concern that felt utterly plastic.

I kept my head down, avoiding his intense gaze. I could almost feel his eyes burning into my face. I remembered how those eyes used to look at me, full of adoration, full of promise. The man who had once pursued me with relentless devotion was now a stranger. That devotion, that love, was now Chelsea' s.

"I... I was out shopping," I stammered, forcing a small, strained smile. "Got caught up."

He closed the distance between us, pulling me into a hug. His arms felt alien, suffocating. His chin rested on my head, his voice a low, comforting rumble. "I missed you, baby. I thought... I thought you were mad at me."

I stood stiff in his embrace, my mind screaming. Mad? You divorced me. You married another woman. You impregnated her. And you want to talk about me being mad? The bitterness was a poisonous taste in my mouth.

His phone vibrated, a jarring sound in the quiet bathroom. He pulled away, checking the caller ID. His expression, moments ago feigning tenderness, hardened. "I need to take this. It's work."

He walked out onto the balcony, leaving me alone in the silent bathroom. I watched his retreating back, a familiar ache blooming in my chest. He was gone, already deep in conversation, his voice low and urgent.

Minutes later, he burst back in, grabbing his jacket. "Urgent work call. I have to go. I'll be back as soon as I can, baby." He didn' t wait for a reply. He didn' t even look at me.

I just nodded, my silence a shield. The door slammed shut, and he was gone.

I pulled the pregnancy test from my pocket, two lines mocking me with their undeniable truth. I tossed it into the trash.

Tears, hot and heavy, finally streamed down my face. "I'm so sorry, my babies," I whispered, pressing a hand to my still-flat belly. "I can't give you a whole family, but I promise, I will give you all my love. I will give you the best life. A life far away from this."

A week. That' s all I needed. A week to liquidate my assets, gather my new passport, and secure our new home. A week, and then I would disappear. For good. He would never see me again. He would never see our children. I would not stand in the way of his new family.