Chapter 1 - Where it all ended

-LIANA-

Two pink lines.

My hands trembled as I gripped the pregnancy test, knees pressed against the cold marble floor.

I should have known when my period was late, when the exhaustion clung to me.

My breath came too fast, chest heaving as if my body hadn’t caught up with what my eyes were seeing.

Positive.

A breakthrough. A miracle. A second chance.

A weak laugh slipped out , half joy, half sob. “He’ll finally love me again…”

I lifted my gaze to the mirror. My reflection looked like a stranger , eyes wide, shimmering with fragile hope, cheeks flushed pink.

For months, Cassian’s gaze had been cold, his words clipped, his touch absent.

It was my fault, wasn’t it? I wasn’t enough. Not beautiful enough. Not worthy enough.

But tonight, everything would change. Tonight, I would give him a reason to remember the man he used to be , the man who once loved me.

I pressed my palm against my still-flat stomach. My secret. My miracle. Our child.

And for the first time in months, I smiled.

⸻

“Careful, madam, the ground is uneven,” one of the guards warned.

I offered him a smile, clutching the folds of my midnight-blue gown as I stepped carefully.

The fabric slid over me like liquid silk, hugging the curves Cassian used to adore.

He once told me this was his favorite gown. Before Scarlett. Before the silence. Before dinners eaten alone at a long, empty table.

I clasped the diamond necklace at my throat with trembling fingers, imagining his arms around me again. Imagining his lips softening when I whispered the words: We’re having a baby.

I couldn’t wait.

I wanted to see him smile again. The kind of smile I used to create.

For a fleeting second, warmth bloomed in my chest. Tonight wasn’t just his birthday gala. Tonight was our second chance.

But then my gaze met my reflection once more. And the warmth cracked, giving way to the cold grip of doubt.

Our marriage had been unraveling for over a year. Nights spent alone in bed, mornings filled with silence. Tabloids whispering his name beside hers. Scarlett Reed. Perfect. Untouchable. Always too close to my husband.

Still… I loved him. Enough to fight. Enough to believe.

⸻

The ballroom glittered beneath chandeliers, cameras flashing as if the room itself was a jewel box. Sequined gowns brushed past me. Diamonds sparkled. Champagne flutes clinked.

And whispers followed me like shadows.

“Cassian’s wife.”

“She looks radiant.”

“Poor thing. Doesn’t she know?”

I lifted my chin higher, forcing strength into my steps. Tonight, I was not the discarded wife. Tonight, I carried hope beneath my heart.

I would save my marriage.

⸻

Then the air shifted.

Gasps rippled through the crowd as the double doors opened. My heart stuttered.

Cassian Hale.

My husband. My stranger. The city’s youngest billionaire CEO. The man I was about to save with three simple words.

But my blood froze when I saw her.

Scarlett. Her hand wrapped around his. Her crimson smile curved like a blade.

The dream shattered instantly.

Why would he bring her here? On his birthday? On our night?

⸻

Cassian’s voice cut through the ballroom like breaking glass.

“Do you all know what it feels like to live with a liar?”

The crowd silenced, eyes glued to us. Scarlett’s smile widened, venom wrapped in lipstick.

Cassian strode forward, each step heavy with contempt. From his jacket, he pulled a sleek black folder. With one brutal motion, he hurled it across the table. Papers scattered at my feet like shards of glass.

“Divorce papers,” he announced coldly. “Congratulations, Liana. You’ve officially lost the only thing that ever gave you a name.”

The words hollowed me out.

Divorce? Betrayal? My name?

“I don’t understand you, Cassian,” I whispered, voice trembling but steady enough.

His eyes , once warm, once mine , were now nothing but ice. His jaw clenched, the faintest twitch betraying something he didn’t want to show.

“I tried to understand you, Liana. Tried to understand why you would cheat on me. On the company.”

Cheat?

My lips parted, but no words came. Until I saw them.

Photos spilling across the marble floor , a man and a woman, tangled in shadows. A back tattoo marked the woman’s skin. The same place as mine.

“That’s… that’s not me,” I stammered, horror clawing through me.

Scarlett leaned in, loud enough for half the ballroom.

“Poor thing. He finally saw through you.”

My pulse thundered. My lungs refused to pull in air.

Not like this. Not with lies. Not with him looking at me like I was filth.

My hands trembled, but I forced the words out, desperate, breaking:

“I’m pregnant, Cassian.”

The world froze.

Silence stretched, crushing, suffocating.

And then his lips curled into something colder than hate.

He wasn’t surprised. His fist tightened once at his side before he forced it still.

Scarlett pulled out a case, snapping it open to reveal a vial of tablets.

“I’ll give you one chance, Li,” he spat. “Prove it’s mine. Prove you didn’t cheat , by ending it. Right here. Right now.”

My stomach dropped. Gasps swallowed the room.

“Bastard,” I whispered, the word breaking inside me.

And then , the final blow.

Uniformed officers stepped forward, badges glinting under the chandeliers.

“Mrs. Hale,” one said. “You’re under arrest for corporate espionage.”

Cold metal locked around my wrists. My body went numb. The world blurred into flashing lights and flashing cameras.

“Cassian!” I cried, voice cracking, pleading. “Please , you know I would never,”

But he stood there. Unmoving. Unflinching. Scarlett smirking at his side like she’d already won.

As the officers dragged me forward, Scarlett leaned close, her perfume choking me.

“Don’t worry, darling,” she whispered, her smile slicing. “I’ll take good care of him.”

Dragged through the crowd, blinded by bulbs and whispers, I clutched my stomach as though my arms alone could shield the fragile life inside me.

“Let go of me! Don’t touch me!”

And that was the moment I understood.

My world had ended in a single night.