Chapter 1

At our engagement party, Edward Foster showed up with a gorgeous young girl on his arm.

In front of every guest, he introduced her like she was the guest of honor. "She saved my life overseas. I told her I'd take care of the rest of her days."

He told me, "From now on, you'll look after her. Her likes and dislikes are on this sheet. Memorize it.

"Oh, and she's pregnant. Turn the spare room into a nursery. You'll take the guest room. It'll make it easier for you to help with Sophie and the baby."

The room exploded in whispers.

I, the bride-to-be, spent the entire night stranded on the sidelines.

Edward didn't care that the whole city was watching. He flaunted his devotion to Sophie Shaw like I was invisible.

I'd finally seen enough. I turned toward the exit.

His voice chased me, laced with contempt. "Claire Linwood, you begged for this engagement. Walk out now, and it's over."

I hesitated, fists clenched, then kept moving.

No one believed I'd actually leave. Laughter and bets floated around me. They whispered countdowns to the moment I'd crawl back and apologize.

After all, for years I'd been Riverside's most notorious ride-or-die doormat.

What they didn't know: I was already done with the ring. I'd come tonight to say goodbye.

But before I could even make it out of the party hall, the butler from the Foster family stepped in front of me, blocking my way.

He looked at me and said, "Ms. Linwood, didn't you go to Selah Chapel to get a special Shalom charm, one meant to protect children?

"Mr. Foster said, since Ms. Shaw is pregnant, please hand over the charm to her so it can protect her and his child."

As the butler spoke, I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I turned around, staring at Edward in shock.

He knew perfectly well that I'd gotten that charm for the child we never got to have. It was my only source of comfort, the one thing I could cling to.

Half a year ago, in a sea of blood after that car crash, I lost our baby. Ever since, I'd been haunted by nightmares every single night.

After that, I climbed all the steps of Selah Chapel just to get that Shalom charm. It was all I had left to hold onto, the only way I could feel like I was still protecting my baby's soul.

But now, he wanted me to hand over the only hope I had left, to give it away to someone else.

When my eyes, red and full of confusion, met his, Edward was obviously defending Sophie. "That charm's no use to you anymore. Just give it to Sophie's baby. At least your trip won't have been for nothing."

My fingers were digging into my palms as I tried my best to swallow the bitterness in my heart.

I knew Edward never tolerated any resistance from me, but this time, I stood my ground and refused to budge.

The pain of losing my child never faded. That charm was all I had left, and I just couldn't let it go.

But my silent defiance only made him angrier.

With just a wave of his hand, the bodyguards pushed me forward.

Every time Edward demanded, their grip got even tighter, like they were about to snap my spine.

I couldn't take it anymore. I pulled the Shalom charm from my bag and reluctantly handed it over to Sophie.

She reached out with a smile, but in the next instant, her smile vanished, and she recoiled in shock, flinging the charm away.

"Claire, why would you hurt me?" Sophie whimpered, her voice trembling.

As she spoke, there was already a noticeable gash on her palm.

Along with the Shalom charm, a small razor blade fell to the floor.

Edward's face twisted in anger as blood dripped from Sophie's hand. My vision went hazy, and without thinking, I scrambled to grab the Shalom charm lying on the floor.

But before I could reach it, he stomped down with his leather shoe and kicked it away.

His shoe smashed into my wrist, and a jolt of pain shot through me. I couldn't help but cry out, but all Edward did was snap at me, cursing harshly.

The guests all crowded around Sophie to check her injury, while the Shalom charm got stomped on by everyone's shoes and ended up kicked into a dark corner.

In that corner, I bit back the sharp pain in my wrist and snatched up the Shalom charm.

I shot one last look at Edward, clutching Sophie like she was his whole world, then turned and walked out without a single moment of hesitation.