Chapter 2

“That stupid woman is finally going to die. Saves me the trouble of pretending. His phone’s off. Just waiting for the good news that she and the baby would be gone.” My brother’s voice was full of sick pleasure.

My husband, Derek Thorne, stroked Valerie Pierce’s pregnant belly, his eyes full of doting affection. “Aurora Hayes, that idiot, still thinks the baby is mine.”

“She has no idea that the man sleeping next to her every night is just some guy I hired from a club. Just thinking about touching her made me sick.”

I lay on the delivery bed, listening to my husband and brother’s voices in the video. My whole body was ice cold, and waves of gut-wrenching pain tore through my abdomen.

My family, my loved ones, the people I had cherished so deeply, turned out to be nothing but devils in human skin.

Hatred intertwined with the excruciating pain in my belly, threatening to tear me apart.

My phone buzzed. It was a provocative message from Valerie.

[Sister, you can die in peace.]

[Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of your brother and husband for you.]

[Oh, and by the way, your child—if he’s lucky enough to survive, I’ll raise him myself. I’ll make sure he knows from a young age what a low-class woman his birth mother was, hahahaha!]

Valerie’s messages kept coming, her malicious words piercing my heart like daggers.

“Pfft—” I spat out a mouthful of blood, staining the pristine white sheets crimson.

The monitor let out a sharp, piercing shriek.

“The patient is crashing! Hemorrhaging!”

“Prepare for defibrillation!”

Just as my consciousness was about to completely shatter, Caleb Vance tightly gripped my hand.

“Aurora Hayes, look at me!”

His face was etched with anxiety and sweat, but his voice was unusually firm. “Aurora, listen to me, you can’t give up!”

“For the baby, for yourself, live!”

“Don’t you want to know the truth? Don’t you want revenge? Live, and I’ll help you!”

“Deliver this baby. I will be his father. I will help you reclaim everything that belongs to you!”

His voice slammed into my heart.

Yes, I couldn’t die.

I hadn’t even seen those four beasts kneeling before me, begging for mercy and repentance!

How could I let my child be born motherless, falling into the hands of those demons!

I bit my lip hard, using all my strength to follow the doctor’s instructions.

“Ah—!” I couldn’t stop a primal scream from escaping my lips.

“It’s a boy! He’s here!” The nurse’s voice came, full of joyful surprise. My taut nerves suddenly relaxed, and I plunged into complete darkness.

When I woke up again, I was lying in a quiet, comfortable VIP hospital room.

The nurse saw me wake up, came over to adjust my blanket, and said with a happy tone, “Miss Hayes, you’re awake? That’s wonderful. You and the baby are both safe, and he’s a very healthy boy.”

Mother and son safe. My lips trembled slightly, and tears silently streamed down my face.

Thank goodness, my baby and I had pulled through from the brink of death.

“Where’s the baby?” I asked, my voice hoarse.

“The little master is in the incubator. Dr. Vance said he’d bring him over for you to see once you woke up. You’re incredibly lucky. We were all so scared that day.”

I reached out and held the baby, but my mind kept replaying the video and text messages I received during labor.

Every single image was like a knife, slowly twisting in my heart.

My brother, my beloved husband, had been putting on an act from beginning to end.

They had been enjoying my selfless devotion and love while secretly plotting to kill me.

And I? I had been lost in the web of lies they wove, foolishly believing I was the happiest person alive.

How laughable!

I forced myself to calm down, took out my phone, and dialed a detective’s number.

“Help me investigate two people: Derek Thorne, and my brother Julian Hayes. I want to know all the dirty secrets between them and Eleanor and Valerie Pierce.”