Chapter 2 Carving Out A Future

Caleb's fingertip skimmed across Lilliana's cheek, the delicate brush jolting her from the haze that had wrapped around her mind.

This wasn't a dream. Everything unfolding before her was terrifyingly real.

She had returned to three years ago, when both her babies were still alive and she and Caleb had yet to get married.

A subtle tremor ran through the hand resting on her belly, her vision blurring with unshed tears.

Terror and despair ebbed away, replaced by fragile, overwhelming relief.

Her children were still here.

Alina Dixon, her cousin, hadn't managed to strip her of everything just yet.

The humiliation Alina orchestrated had not struck, and the divorce from Caleb had yet to happen.

Caleb's eyes lingered on Lilliana's face for a beat before he turned away, his tone unreadable. "Pack up your things. I'll arrange for the driver to bring you to Reynolds Manor. My grandmother has demanded your presence."

...

Half an hour later, the car eased to a stop in front of an expansive manor, its stately columns and sweeping roofline radiating an air of quiet power and old money.

Lilliana stepped out, following the driver into the sprawling living room, her footsteps swallowed by the thick carpet.

Caleb didn't accompany her; instead, he had given the order for her to be dropped off at Reynolds Manor before heading off elsewhere.

Mary's gaze immediately landed on Lilliana's slightly rounded belly, and her face broke into delighted surprise.

"Twins at last! Our family has never had such a blessing. Now, the Reynolds name can finally carry on!"

She clasped Lilliana's hands with unrestrained excitement. "Lilliana, why don't you and Caleb get married in the city hall first in a few days? The wedding celebration can wait until after the babies arrive..."

Before the warmth of her words could settle, Jolie Reynolds, Caleb's mother, cut in sharply, "Mary, Lilliana's nothing but an orphan. Is that really the kind of woman Caleb should marry? She's got no parents and can't hear out of her left ear-who's to say her children won't end up the same? Does she really think giving Caleb heirs is her ticket to climbing the social ladder?"

Lilliana's lashes fluttered at the sound of those all-too-familiar words.

During her previous life, Jolie never stopped dragging her down, painting her as nothing but a scheming, money-grubbing bitch.

Young and without a single person to shield her, she had shrunk into herself, becoming more timid with every passing day.

"Mrs. Jolie Reynolds." Lilliana steadied her breathing and lifted her gaze. "I may have lost the hearing in one ear, but my children won't be born with that burden. If it offends you so much, then your family should draft a disownment letter. I'll raise these babies on my own, and from then on, they'll have nothing to do with your family."

Her steady words made Jolie's face harden, the color draining from her cheeks.

Mary's tone turned sharp as she snapped, "If you can't speak like a decent human being, then shut your damn mouth. Lilliana is a fine young woman, and her children will be no exception."

Jolie's face darkened, but she kept her head down and swallowed her retort.

Mary's features softened as she turned back to Lilliana with a warm smile. "Lilliana, what do you think about getting married soon?"

Lilliana's fingers hesitated over her abdomen, her thoughts clouding.

Her marriage to Caleb had never brought her peace.

He remained distant and unrestrained, his wild streak unbroken despite the marriage.

Outside of the children and their monthly, mechanical intimacy, he kept her at arm's length, his warmth forever out of reach.

Later came the whispers of his supposed admiration for Xenia Miller, which only deepened the frost between them.

But when she thought of her two unborn children, her resolve hardened. The Dixon family had tormented her mother all her life, and now they sought to make her suffer as well.

Her mother's cherished belongings were still in their clutches.

Only the Reynolds family had the power to shield her now.

Moreover, her two children...

Haunted by Xenia and Alina's scheme to end her children's lives, Lilliana dropped her gaze, her chest tight with grief.

They didn't just want to end her marriage to Caleb; they wanted to erase her children's places in the Reynolds family altogether.

She wasn't about to let those bitches get what they wanted.

Whatever Xenia had once meant to Caleb, she only cared about carving out a future where she and her children could survive.

When she raised her head again, her face had lost its color, but her voice was steady as she said, "I'll leave it in your hands."