Chapter 4

The car ride was a blur of panic. Liam held my hand, texting with his other. He was smiling at his phone. Texting Chloe, no doubt.

"It' s the best hospital in the city, darling. They' ll take good care of you," he said, his voice a soothing lie.

My heart hammered against my ribs. I wanted to scream, to claw at him, to jump out of the moving car. But I was frozen, trapped in a nightmare that was five years in the making.

At the hospital, he rushed me through the emergency room, his voice loud and commanding, demanding the best room, the best doctor. He was the concerned husband.

He left me in a private exam room. "I have to make a quick call to postpone my meeting. I' ll be right back, I promise."

He walked out, his phone already to his ear. I heard him say Chloe' s name as the door closed.

The room was cold and sterile. I felt a wave of dizziness and sat on the edge of the examination table, my hands shaking. I had to get out. I had to run.

The door opened again. It wasn' t Liam.

It was him. The man from my father' s room. I recognized his eyes, the cruel twist of his mouth, even without the mask.

He smiled. "Mr. Maxwell' s assistant sent me. Said you might be lonely. He asked me to keep you company."

My blood turned to ice. This was Chloe' s doing. Liam' s assistant, appeasing a jealous rival.

He lunged at me.

I fought. I screamed. But no one came. He was strong, brutal, and this time, he was angry. The assault was violent and quick. As he finished, he shoved me hard off the table. I landed on the cold, hard floor.

A sharp, searing pain shot through my abdomen. I felt a warm gush of liquid between my legs. Blood. So much blood.

I was losing my baby. The baby I was going to joyfully announce to the monster I married.

The man looked down at me, a flicker of panic in his eyes. He backed away, turned, and fled the room.

I lay there, in a pool of my own blood, the last piece of my old life draining away.