Chapter 1

I got into a car crash, slamming into the guardrail on my way to deliver medicine to my firefighter husband.

The car doors were jammed, and smoke billowed from outside.

I called Leo for help, but he was out on a mission.

To keep him from worrying, I swallowed my fear and tried to free myself.

The moment fire erupted, I pushed the car door open with all my might, but my leg was trapped, unable to move.

Just as despair set in, Leo’s supervisor, Ben Carter, arrived with his team.

Unintentionally, I overheard Ben Carter questioning Leo.

“Skylar is pregnant! How could you choose Chloe’s kid over saving your own wife?”

“Lily has pneumonia, and Chloe can’t manage her alone. I trust you guys to handle it here… ”

Disappointed, I decided to join a remote teaching program in a mountain village.

But the husband who had defended Chloe, tirelessly searched for me after I left.

“Besides, if Chloe’s husband hadn’t saved Skylar back then, I would have been the one to suffer the pain of separation.”

“Helping Chloe and Lily now is my way of atoning for Skylar.”

Ben Carter ran a hand across his forehead, clearly exasperated, his voice laced with accusation.

“No one truly knows what happened at that fire. Are you really willing to risk your future based on just a single word from Chloe? Is it worth it?”

“Yes, it is. If the baby was gone today, or Skylar was seriously hurt, my guilt would be even less…”

The water glass slipped from my trembling hand and shattered on the floor. Tears instantly welled up, and I clamped a hand over my mouth, desperate to stifle the sobs escaping me.

I couldn't believe this was my husband, the father of my child.

I lunged forward, wanting to snatch his phone and demand an answer from Leo: which was more important, his wife and child, or his childhood friend?

I forced myself up, bracing against the pain, but a sharp agony in my abdomen made me gasp.

In moments, blood had soaked through my white dress.

Ben Carter heard the commotion and rushed over to me.

His face turned grim the moment he saw blood dripping onto the ground.

He scooped me up and hurried towards the arriving ambulance.

After examining me, the doctor shook her head with a helpless expression.

“The patient is injured and highly emotional, with severe bleeding. It’s very difficult to save the baby. Please contact her family as soon as possible.”

My gaze was filled with a deep sorrow, and my hands slowly caressed my swollen belly.

This child was a blessing I had waited three long years for.

Before I left home, I had just ordered his crib and clothes online for when he was born.

Now, barely an hour later, they were telling me my baby was in danger.

“Doctor, I’m not afraid of pain. Please, just help me. My… my baby is already over seven months. Even if you can just save him for one more month…”

I pleaded with the doctor, my voice breaking into a sob.

The doctor only gave me a fleeting glance, continuing her work.

No one spoke in the ambulance. The only sounds were the medical instruments beeping and Ben Carter’s phone ringing.

Watching his tightly furrowed brows, I knew Leo wasn't answering.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and spoke, my voice tinged with disappointment.

“Use my phone. My baby and I need him.”

I wouldn't give up. Even if Chloe’s husband had been the one to save me, at a critical moment like this, Leo should have been by my side.

Besides, it wasn't Chloe’s husband who saved me, it was Ben Carter.

We had explained this to Leo countless times, but he only ever believed Chloe.

The phone rang for a long time before Leo finally picked up.

His voice, though, was laced with impatience.

“Skylar, you’re not seriously hurt. Lily is scared right now and wants me here. I’ll come back to take care of you tonight.”

Ben Carter shot me a glance, his voice involuntarily rising a few decibels.

“Your wife is hemorrhaging right now, and the baby is in danger! You need to get to City Hospital immediately!”

Leo didn’t respond directly, but I heard Chloe’s soft voice in the background.

“Officer Carter just said she had minor injuries. Now, all of a sudden, she’s in danger? Is Skylar just upset that you’re here, and she’s faking it?”

“No, it doesn't matter if it’s true or not, you should still go see her.”

Leo’s anger flared, and he sharply told Ben Carter to hand me the phone.

I didn't care whether Leo was coming or not; I just desperately needed someone to lean on.

My voice choked as I began, “Honey, I’m in so much pain, I just want…”

“Uncle, Lily wants strawberries!”

My words were cut short by the little girl’s whining voice from the other end.

My heart plummeted into a chasm of despair. I knew Leo wasn’t coming.

The next second, he impatiently brushed me off.

“Skylar, I know you’re scared after the accident, but you can’t take it out on the baby. Chloe lost her husband and it’s so hard for her to raise Lily alone. I’ll come back to be with you once Lily feels better.”

I thought if I just humbled myself, Leo would find an excuse to come.

But now I understood. When it came to Chloe, all his reason vanished.

My plea was a fragile whisper, begging him to come be with me.

The only reply was the click of a hung-up phone.

My eyes, brimming with agony, searched for Ben Carter’s gaze, and I asked the question burning in my mind.

“Has Leo been staying with Chloe and Lily for the past five days, not returning to the unit?”

He saw he couldn't hide it from me and simply nodded.

I laughed, tears spilling from my eyes.

Five days ago, Leo had wanted to bring Chloe and Lily home to live with us.

I had refused, and we’d had a huge fight. He hadn't come home since that day.

Today, he called to say he ran out of stomach medicine.

I thought it was an olive branch, a sign he wanted to reconcile, but instead, he had just pushed me further into the abyss.

A scorching anxiety consumed me, and I kept pinching my arm, trying to numb the pain.

The resentment festering inside me finally buckled under the weight of my weakening body, and I slipped into darkness.

Faintly, I heard the doctors working to save me.

I also heard Ben Carter’s furious shouts after calling Leo.

Then, gradually, silence.

But I still felt something leave my body.

When I woke up, looking at my slightly deflated abdomen, I burst into heart-wrenching sobs.