Chapter 2
The corridor was blindingly bright.
At the end, outside the ultrasound room, Victor stood tall in a perfectly tailored dark gray suit. He lowered his head slightly, his attention fixed on Emily, who nestled in his arms.
She wore a loose, off-white maternity dress that did little to hide the pronounced curve of her stomach. With her face tilted up to his, one hand resting on her belly and the other clutching his arm, she looked utterly happy and dependent.
The sunlight pouring through the window wrapped them in a warm, golden halo, making the whole scene look like a perfect portrait of marital bliss.
I'd never seen Victor's gaze so soft; it was almost tender enough to melt. He held her waist carefully, his lips moving as he whispered something sweet to her.
A wave of heat rushed to my head, followed immediately by a cold, numb shock.
My stomach twisted in knots. I slapped my hand over my mouth and bolted to the trash can, retching hard. My face was streaked with tears and snot—I was a total wreck.
The noise I was making finally broke the perfect couple's bubble, and they turned to look.
Victor's head snapped up at the sound. The moment he recognized me, every trace of softness vanished from his face.
Shock registered in his eyes, followed by a split-second of pure panic at being caught red-handed. It happened so fast I almost doubted what I'd seen.
"Helen?" He let go of Emily and strode over, his tone carrying that familiar, commanding authority. "What are you doing here? Didn't you have surgery scheduled for this afternoon?"
His eyes swept over my loose hospital gown, and his frown deepened. "You're white as a sheet. Where's your doctor?"
He reached out to touch me.
"Don't touch me!" I slapped his hand away, recoiling as if burned. My voice was a sharp crack in the quiet hallway.
A sudden, twisting cramp in my stomach forced me to hunch over, a cold sweat breaking out on my skin.
Victor's hand was suspended in mid-air, his expression turning grim. "Helen, don't make a scene! We're in a hospital."
"Me? Making a scene?" I forced my head up, straightening my trembling legs.
I pointed a shaky finger at Emily, who had gone pale and was instinctively cradling her stomach. My words came out ragged, each one dripping with a cold, furious venom. "Just tell me, Victor. Whose baby is she carrying?"
"Helen," he barked, his eyes turning to ice. "Watch your language!"
"My language?" A bitter, broken laugh escaped me, tears now streaming freely down my face. "I was lying on a cold operating table, waiting to lose a "wrong" baby. And my husband was here playing happy family with my best friend at her prenatal appointment.
"So tell me, Victor, what would you like me to say? Should I congratulate the two of you? Wish you a happy life together and beautiful, healthy children? Is that what you want?"
The sharp crack of a slap echoed through the corridor.
Victor's hand landed hard, snapping my head to the side. Pain exploded across my face, my cheek instantly swollen and burning, my mouth filling with the coppery taste of blood.
For a split second, the world went dead silent.
He stared at me, fury blazing in his eyes. Maybe there was something else flickering there, but it was quickly smothered by cold, hard disgust. "Helen, are you insane? Just look at yourself. Are you insane?"
Emily rushed over, clutching Victor's arm, her eyes welling up. "Victor, please... Helen might just be too upset. This is all my fault."
She turned to me, her expression fragile and pleading. "Helen, I'm so sorry. I never meant to keep this from you. I was just so terrified of losing the baby... You know how fragile my health has always been."
"Terrified of losing your baby?" I wiped the blood from my lip, my gaze locking onto her before shifting to Victor.
My voice was eerily calm, hollowed out from the shock. "So the two of you really were in on this together? You poisoned me. You made me believe my body was too weak to carry a child.
"Those 'vitamins' you had me take, Victor... I bet they went down a treat, didn't they?"