Chapter 2

Her beloved father, Ethan, was attending a business conference when he found out about her surgery. He took off in a flash to be by her side.

A cloud of worry spread all over his face as he lunged into the hospital. His mind raced with dreadful scenarios concerning Christine and his unborn grandchild, only to find his wife scrolling through social media, her face devoid of any concern or empathy.

"What are you doing?" he yelled, snatching the phone from her hands, irritated by his wife's lack of care.

"Nothing. Wasting time," she replied, sounding bored.

"Do you even know if she is alright? If the baby is fine?" His eyes pierced into her, and that was the moment she realized she had let her guard down and made a big mistake.

"No. I was so worried that I tried to distract myself by watching videos on social media. This waiting is slowly killing me inside," she feigned concern, trying to evoke sympathy with her puppy eyes. Surprisingly, it worked.

"I'm sorry. For a moment, I thought that you didn't care about them."

Although a smart and sophisticated man, he could be naive when it came to her, almost as if she had him wrapped around her little finger.

"She never accepted me, so I stopped trying," she lied, her eyes filled with fake tears. "But it doesn't mean I don't love her. I'm just sad that she doesn't love me back and constantly disrespects me."

He was oblivious to the fact that the situation was indeed the opposite. His daughter was the one mistreated, Elenora and Martha made her life miserable whenever circumstances allowed it.

Ethan encased his wife in a warm hug. "She will come around. Sooner or later, she will find out what a gem you really are," he said, brushing his lips on her forehead, not seeing her signature devilish smirk.

As a nurse hurried out of the operating room, he stopped her, desperately needing news about his daughter before losing his sanity. "Please, can you tell me if Christine is alright?"

"Are you the patient's father?" the nurse asked.

"Yes."

"The baby is fine," the nurse reassured.

"And Christine? Is my daughter safe?" he pleaded, his despair evident, his heart clenching in his chest.

"Sir, I'll be honest with you. She needs an urgent blood transfusion. There were complications during labor, and she has lost a significant amount of blood. Unfortunately, we're facing a blood shortage. Please step aside; I need to find a donor," the nurse explained urgently.

"I can be her donor," he responded without hesitation. She quickly took a drop of his blood to conduct fast compatibility tests.

Not for a moment did he suspect that the inconceivable truth would be revealed when the blood type results came out, shattering his world into pieces.

"I'm sorry to inform you that you're not a match. Your daughter is O negative (O-), while you are AB positive (AB+)," the nurse informed him. "Do you know of any other potential donors within your family?"

"I'm sorry, what? That can't be true. My late wife was A negative (A-). Our daughter can't be O negative (O-)," Ethan struggled to believe his own ears.

The words echoed in his mind, crashing down on him like thunder and lightning.

In an instant, his entire life unraveled before him. The wife he cherished had betrayed him. The daughter he adored was not his biological child. Christine was his pride and joy, but they were not blood related.

"It's urgent. Your daughter's life is in danger," the nurse pleaded, hoping to snap him out of his trance.

"No, run the tests again!" he demanded, trapped in denial.

"Sir, the results are accurate. They don't lie."

Unable to respond, he sank into a chair, his knees weakening under the weight of his shocked body. The nurse departed in search of another solution.

"See? I told you Diane was fucking around. She was my best friend, and I knew her inside out!" Elenora gloated, savoring her triumph. It surpassed even her wildest expectations, leaving her smug with satisfaction.

No amount of meticulous planning could have yielded such a favorable outcome, Elenora mused to herself. She had long been aware that Christine wasn't Ethan's biological child, and Christine herself was privy to this secret. It was this very secret that Elenora had exploited to blackmail her stepdaughter into taking Martha's place on the wedding night.

Devastated, Ethan struggled to gather his thoughts. "I need to step out. Please take care of Christine and the baby," he implored his wife.

Little did he know the extent of his misplaced trust. Gasping for a breath of fresh air, he resembled a drowning man. The events of the day had taken an immense toll on him, yet he remained oblivious to the potential consequences of his mistake.

After a grueling battle, the medical team managed to halt Christine's severe bleeding. When she finally regained consciousness, her first request was to see her precious treasure, her beloved baby boy.

With gentle hands, the doctor placed him on her bed, nestled close to her chest.

"You did amazingly," the nurse whispered, her fingers caressing Christine's hair. In that tender moment, Christine couldn't help but think that her mother would have done the same, had she been alive.

"He is perfect," Christine murmured, her eyes filled with love as she gazed at her newborn son. She marveled at his exquisite beauty, her little treasure, so incredibly beautiful.

But the fleeting joy was quickly shattered as Elenora entered her hospital room, bearing grim news.

“Your father found out what a trash your mother was.” She declared nonchalantly.

"What?" Christine's body trembled uncontrollably, imagining the pain her beloved father must have felt. He had loved her mother deeply, and he had loved Christine wholeheartedly.

"He left, but not before asking me to relay a message to you. He wants nothing to do with you anymore. He believes you're as trashy as your mother and demands that you refrain from seeking him out or asking for his help. As for me, if I ever lay eyes on you again, I'll take your baby and give him to my daughter and his rightful father to raise. You know very well that I am more than capable of doing so," she coldly proclaimed, before exiting the room, leaving Christine feeling hollow inside.

"At least I have you," she whispered, gazing into her baby's eyes.

A knock on the door snapped her back to reality.

"Miss Carter, I need your insurance number. Both of your parents left without paying the hospital bill."

A wave of shock and fear coursed through her veins. They had abandoned her—her father had truly abandoned her. It was hard for her to believe Elenora's words, but they were undeniably real. Everything she said was true.

Little did she know that it was all part of her stepmother's scheming. Her father had no involvement. In fact, he had set up an account for her before leaving. However, Elenora had taken care of it, closing the account as soon as Ethan was out of sight.

"Miss Carter?" the nurse prompted.

"I... I don't have insurance," Christine stammered.

"I'm sorry, but according to the hospital's policy, I must ask you to leave," the nurse announced, signaling for the staff to assist the patient outside.

Christine sobbed and sobbed, sitting on the stairs in front of the hospital, her frail body exhausted from childbirth. She clung tightly to her baby, seeking to warm his small body on that stormy night.

She had no idea what to do or where to go. In this world, she had no one except her innocent child, whom she had to protect.

Completely alone in the dark and cold night, the throbbing pain in her chest felt like a million daggers stabbing at her heart.

She had done nothing to deserve this. Nothing.

The day that was meant to be the happiest of her life had transformed into her darkest nightmare.