Chapter 1

For five years, Michael Walker had been the perfect husband, gentle, attentive, and always there for me.

But everything changed the day he brought home a bionic robot that looked exactly like his first love, Emily Sawyer.

She faked a fall down the stairs and then blamed me, saying I pushed her.

I tried desperately to explain, "I didn't push her. She's lying."

But Michael said, "I personally designed her. She would never lie."

As punishment, he locked me in an elevator for twelve hours, even though he knew I was four months pregnant and suffered from severe claustrophobia.

After nearly losing the baby, I came home from the hospital, only to overhear Michael and his sister, Jessica Walker, mocking me.

"This was a little lesson," Michael said. "If Eve could have children, I would've divorced her ages ago."

In that moment, I felt a chill run through my entire body.

I immediately went and scheduled an abortion.

*****

"She only dares to go after Eve because she's pregnant," Jessica Walker said. "If we don't make her suffer a bit, she'll never learn her lesson."

I stood frozen outside the door, shaking all over.

Michael Walker said there was overtime at the office and asked me to bring him dinner.

Without hesitating, I packed up a lunchbox I'd made with love and brought it over to him.

But the moment I stepped into the elevator, the doors slammed shut, and the whole thing got stuck between floors. It wouldn't budge no matter which button I pressed.

I'd suffered from severe claustrophobia ever since I was little.

Inside that suffocating, silent box, there wasn't a single bar of signal on my phone. No matter how many times I tried, I couldn't get through to anyone.

For twelve agonizing hours, I was trapped in that cold, lifeless elevator. The fear swallowed me whole until I finally lost consciousness.

The next morning, a janitor cleaning the hallway finally discovered me, urgently called 911, and had me rushed to the hospital.

I spent the next three days in a hospital bed.

Up until this very moment, I was still desperately holding onto my last bit of wishful thinking.

Maybe all of this was a scheme cooked up by that robot, Eve, and Michael had no idea what was really going on.

"Michael, aren't you afraid she'll find out and want a divorce?" Jessica asked.

She was Michael's sister.

She'd never liked having me as Michael's wife, always barking orders.

For the sake of keeping the peace, I'd always swallowed my pride and put up with her.

I wanted to know the answer to her question, too.

Michael scoffed coldly, "So what if she finds out? She's got my baby in her belly.

"And anyway, she's so obsessed with me. There's no way she'd ever leave.

"If Eve could have children, I would've divorced her ages ago. She wouldn't have been Mrs. Walker."

Michael's words felt like a knife twisting in my chest, leaving me breathless.

Jessica chuckled mockingly beside him,

"How about we wait until she gives birth, then send her back to Riverside Manor and lock her away? Eve can take care of the baby. That's all we need."

Michael didn't hesitate. "Alright."

In that moment, I felt a chill run through my entire body.

I turned and headed straight for the nearest maternity hospital. "Hello, I'd like to schedule an abortion."

I used to be grateful to Michael, and I truly loved him. But I was not here to be his baby machine, and I was definitely not a stand-in for anyone.

If he had decided to spend his life with that robot, I would step aside and let them be together, but I refused to bring his child into this world.

A child without a father would never have a complete family.

As an orphan, I knew better than anyone how it felt.

I couldn't let my child relive the pain I had been through.

The procedure was set for a week from now.

I dragged myself home, feeling like all the life had been sucked out of me.