Chapter 2

"Tristan, don't you think you and your mom are way too close? Other mothers and sons would never act like that," I said.

As soon as I said that, Tristan's expression darkened with fury. He suddenly raised his hand and slapped me hard across the face.

The sharp crack of the slap cut through the silent living room, piercing and harsh.

My head jerked to the side, a thin line of blood seeping from the corner of my mouth. My cheek stung, my ears buzzed, and my mind went totally blank.

"Celia, have you completely lost it?" Tristan's eyes blazed with fury, his voice sharp and cold. He was just like a stranger. "That's my mom, the woman who gave me life and raised me. How could you even think something so filthy about us? You're out of your mind, cruel and twisted!"

I pressed my burning cheek, stunned that he'd actually hit me like that.

Hearing the commotion, Lenore came rushing out, crying hysterically. She dropped to her knees in front of me, frantically wiping her tears, looking like she was the most pitiful person in the world.

"Celia, this is all my fault. Don't be angry, and don't blame Tristan. I was out of line. I'll keep my distance from him from now on. Please don't let me come between you two..."

The more she acted vulnerable, the more she cried, the more she pretended to be considerate, the more Tristan's heart went out to her.

He shielded Lenore in his arms, glaring and yelling at me with utter disgust.

"Celia, get out! My mom is so kind and generous, always looking out for you, and you're just mean and narrow-minded. You don't deserve to stay in this house!"

That night, I was kicked out of the master bedroom and ended up sleeping on the cold living room couch.

The icy wind slipped in through the cracks in the window, leaving me shivering uncontrollably.

My heart felt colder than my body.

But I still refused to let go.

I was desperate for a real home, desperate to be loved, desperate for our marriage to go back to how it used to be.

I was so naive, thinking that if I just had a baby, I could finally make Tristan care about me, and maybe, just maybe, I could fix this broken family and make things normal again.

So I threw myself into getting pregnant, desperate to make it happen.

I was always at the hospital, popping supplements, tracking my ovulation, whatever it took. It was pure hell.

Finally, after three years of marriage, I managed to conceive.

When I got the pregnancy test result, I was so happy that tears of joy streamed down my face as I laughed.

I thought my salvation had finally arrived.

But I never imagined that this flimsy test result would bring me anything but new life. Instead, it pushed me straight into a nightmare I could never wake up from, into an abyss with no way out.

The very next day after I found out I was pregnant, my morning sickness was worse than ever.

That night, I couldn't sleep at all. My stomach was a mess, so I dragged myself to the kitchen for some water.

As I walked past the study, those sickening, suggestive sounds echoed in my ears again, making my heart pound and my stomach churn.

This time, I couldn't fool myself anymore.

I couldn't pretend it was just my imagination anymore.

My whole body was trembling, my fingers numb with cold. I threw open the study door in a rush.

The sight before me destroyed all my moral boundaries and crushed the last bit of hope I had for our marriage.

My mother-in-law and my husband, this blood-related mother and son, were doing something so unspeakably vile, so against all human decency that it broke every rule of nature and morality.

They were actually having a conversation.

"Tristan, once Celia has the baby, we'll get her out of the way. Then no one will ever come between us again," Lenore said.

"What's the rush? She's still useful. She can keep the Voss family under control and help us deal with any problems," Tristan replied.

"But I don't want to wait anymore. I only want you. This home should be just for the two of us," Lenore insisted.

My blood ran cold. Panic seized me, and I let out a scream before bolting out of the room.

I just wanted to escape this nightmare, to get away from these two demons disguised as humans.

But Tristan reacted instantly, closing the distance in three quick strides. He lunged at me, grabbed my hair in a fist, and slammed my head hard against the wall.

Bang!

Pain shot through my forehead, and blood gushed down, blurring everything in front of me.

"You saw what you shouldn't have, and now you'll pay for it," Tristan growled, his voice cold as the grave, not a shred of warmth in it.

Lenore strolled out, towering over me with a cold, poisonous look. There wasn't a hint of shame on her face, just pure, bone-deep cruelty.

"Celia, talk about bad luck. Of all nights, you just had to wake up tonight, just had to catch us in the act. You can't be allowed to stay. Keeping you around is nothing but trouble," she sneered.

I pressed my bleeding forehead, fiercely protecting my stomach as I knelt on the floor, tears streaming down my face while I begged for my life.

"I won't tell anyone, I promise! I'll leave right now, I'll never come back, just please, let me go, let my baby go, he's innocent..." I pleaded, my voice trembling with terror.