Chapter 1
I was strapped to the operating table, blinded by the cold lights.
Outside the door stood my husband, Edward Grant, a legendary elite of Aurelburg.
He uttered those icy words that shattered my world. "Just get the cord blood. Don't bother with the baby."
Didn't bother with the baby?
Did the seven-month-old baby in my womb mean nothing to him?
All to save his critically ill nephew, his older brother's only heir.
As the anesthesia dragged me under, one thought consumed me.
Edward, I hated you.
If I survived this, I'd make you and your family bleed for what you'd done.
*****
Agony yanked me out of unconsciousness.
It wasn't the pain from the surgery, but my heart was torn to shreds.
My empty belly felt like a cruel, mocking black hole, a constant reminder of how my innocent baby had been thrown away by his dad, treated as nothing more than medical waste.
I lay on the hospital bed, lifeless, like a corpse that could still breathe.
The bodyguards were stationed at the door, working shifts around the clock to stop me from doing anything stupid or trying to escape.
To them, I was just a disposable container that had done its job and a ticking time bomb they had to keep an eye on.
Edward didn't bother to show up again.
Instead, his mom, Leona Grant, swept in with a thermos of soup, acting like she was royalty.
She set the thermos on the bedside table and looked down at me, her eyes icy and judgmental, as if I was just another nuisance to be handled.
"Karen, stop acting like you're half-dead. We have never treated you unfairly," she said, her voice cold and condescending.
She spoke with deliberate calm, like she was negotiating a contract.
"Lucas's illness is under control now, all thanks to that... thing you were carrying," Leona paused, as if even calling it a "baby" was beneath her.
"Here's a check for 1.5 million dollars. The code is your birthday. Take it and make a clean break from Edward. Publicly, we'll call it an amicable divorce due to irreconcilable differences," said Leona.
I looked at that weightless check, and out of nowhere, I started laughing.
My laughter came out rough and broken, growing louder and louder until tears spilled down my cheeks, unstoppable.
1.5 million dollars.
To her, my baby's life was worth just 1.5 million dollars.
Leona's lips curled into a sneer. "What? Not enough? Don't tell me you're getting greedy?
"Know your place, Karen. Did you honestly believe you were ever Edward's real wife? You were a passing amusement. Now you've finally made a contribution, and this money is more than you deserve. Consider it a lifetime's pension."
I stopped laughing and fixed her with a cold, unwavering stare.
"Contribution?" I spat out, disbelief dripping from every syllable. "So to you, my baby is nothing but a contribution?"
"What else could it be?" Leona retorted, completely unapologetic.
"That underdeveloped embryo fulfilled its only purpose by saving Lucas. He's the one who should be grateful. Don't test my patience, Karen," she added.
"Get out." I forced out, putting every last bit of strength I had into those two words.
Leona's face went dark with rage. Clearly, no one had ever dared talk back to her like this.
She lifted her hand, ready to slap me, but when she saw how hollow and wasted I looked, she recoiled in disgust, as if even touching me would sully her.
"Pathetic," Leona spat, her voice dripping with contempt.
She flung the divorce papers and a pen at me. "Edward's already signed. You're signing, whether you want to or not. Don't make me do something you'll regret."
With that, she strode out in her heels, never once looking back.
The room sank back into dead silence.
I stared at the divorce papers. Edward's signature sprawled across them in bold, sweeping strokes, each line burned into my eyes.
I picked up the pen, my hand trembling, but signing was the last thing on my mind.
Instead of signing, I stabbed the pen through his name, dragging it across until the paper ripped, leaving vicious gashes.
A debt of blood must be paid in blood.
I wouldn't let Edward or his family get away with this.