Chapter 1
For three years, I stood between Curtis Baker and every danger, both out in the open and lurking in the shadows, making sure his path to success was smooth. But all I got was the label of a jealous, barren woman.
Today, he showed up with his pregnant mistress and forced me to drink a potion that would make me infertile.
"Victoria, drink it for the sake of the child," Curtis said, his voice cold and commanding.
He stood protectively in front of that woman, his eyes colder than I'd ever seen them.
I stared at the bowl of pitch-black potion, feeling the blood in my veins turn to ice, inch by inch.
Alright then.
Let's see how true his so-called love really is.
"Curtis, walk across these burning coals," I said softly.
"If you do, I'll step aside and let you two be together."
*****
I was the "barren wife" of Duke Curtis, respected and feared by everyone in the mansion.
Those words came straight from Curtis's mother, Joan Baker, the current matriarch of the Baker family, who said them right in front of others.
Three years into our marriage, I still hadn't conceived, but I held tight to my position as the lady of the house and flat-out refused to let Curtis take a mistress.
All over Westford, people gossiped that Curtis had the worst luck in the world, marrying a barren shrew who couldn't even give him a child.
But today, everything changed. Curtis came home with another woman.
Her belly was already heavy with his child.
"Victoria, this is Myrtle," Curtis said.
He shielded her belly like it was the most precious thing in the world.
"She's carrying my child. I want to bring her home," he declared.
The room fell into a suffocating silence, the air thick and heavy, making it hard to breathe.
The servants watched me in terror, expecting me to explode in anger as usual and toss this shameless woman out without mercy.
But I just clenched my palm so hard my nails bit into the flesh.
The pain was all I felt, my face remaining expressionless.
I looked at him and said quietly, "Alright.
"Let's see just how much this child is worth to you."
I pointed at the brazier, its coals glowing red-hot. "You've always been terrified of fire.
"When you were little, you burned your finger on a candle and cried for three days straight.
"If you can walk across those burning coals, I'll let her become part of this family."
Curtis's face twitched noticeably, his Adam's apple bobbing as he stared at the brazier. His calves were shaking so badly he could barely keep himself steady.
Myrtle Nicholls, standing beside him, instantly went pale. She clutched her belly and wailed.
"Curtis, please don't! Your life is worth more than anything. How could you endure such humiliation?" she cried.
"I... I'll just leave with the baby. I won't be an eyesore to the lady anymore..."
She sobbed, tears streaming down her face, leaning limply against Curtis as if she might faint at any second.
Curtis listened to her soft, pleading words, then glanced at my cold, unyielding face. All that protectiveness and years of bottled-up resentment suddenly boiled over inside him.
"Victoria Grant, don't go too far!" he snapped.
He let out a low, animalistic growl from his throat, and to everyone's shock, he went ahead and started taking off his shoes and socks.
"Curtis!" Myrtle's cries grew even louder, echoing through the hall.
Joan stormed in, her whole body trembling with fury. She jabbed her finger at me and yelled, "You jealous shrew! Three years married, and you haven't produced a single thing—not even a child!
"Now, Curtis finally has a child. What do you want?
"It's perfectly normal for a nobleman like Curtis to have some mistresses. I tolerated you forbidding him from taking a mistress, and I let you boss him around.
"But now the Baker family finally has a child. And you still dare to be so brazen? Are you trying to wipe out the Baker family line for good?"
Curtis's closest friends crowded around, all of them piling on with their accusations.
"Victoria, hasn't Curtis done enough for you? If you wanted the moon, he'd bend over backwards to get it for you!" one of them said.
"Yeah, but look at yourself. You don't act like a real woman at all! Curtis has been miserable, so what's wrong with him finding someone gentle and sweet?" another chimed in.
"You know he's terrified of fire. Are you out to ruin him? That's just downright cruel," a third snapped.
I tuned them all out, as if their voices didn't even exist.
My gaze was locked on Curtis alone.
Their words lit a fire in him. Whether to prove himself or to challenge me, he was clearly out for a fight.
"Victoria, look at me!" he shouted, veins standing out on his neck.
With a roar, he strode barefoot straight onto the burning coals.
The sound of flesh sizzling on the coals filled the air.
The sickening smell of charred flesh instantly filled the room.
Curtis's face twisted in agony as he let out a scream that barely sounded human. Still, he gritted his teeth and forced himself forward, one agonizing step at a time, dragging himself across the burning coals.
Once he made it across, he collapsed straight to the floor.
Lying there, he pointed at me, his face twisted in rage as he roared.