03

Victoria Harper 

Pregnancy tests could be wrong at times. Right?

That’s what I kept telling myself as I drove to the hospital, my fingers white around the steering wheel.

The hospital lobby smelled faintly of antiseptic and expensive perfume.The staff knew me by name; I'd been here often enough for my routine check-up 

"Good morning, Ms. Harper," the receptionist said with a warm smile. "You're early by two weeks for your appointment”

"I wasn't feeling well," I admitted. "Thought I'd come in and get everything checked out."

She tapped at her computer. "We'll add a full panel to your usual tests. Dr. Allen will see you shortly."

The nurse appeared a few minutes later, leading me into an exam room.

"Ms. Harper” Doctor Allen acknowledged. “I noticed you asked for a full body health test instead of your usual, right?” He asked, pulling on a pair of gloves.

“Yes. I've been feeling off lately."

He nodded and the nurse took my blood pressure, drew vials of blood, and had me step on the scale. 

I didn’t bother mentioning the pregnancy test. If I so much as sneezed in this hospital, the results would end up in Daniel’s inbox. 

He had insisted on “handling” all my medical records since he started running for governor. 

So I told him I had been feeling dizzy and nauseous instead. 

"How long has this been going on?" He asked.

"A few days. Maybe more.” I answered simply 

He made the note on his clip board. “We’ll have the results out in an hour” 

In the waiting room, my leg bounced repeatedly as I sat restlessly. I used the time to look at my Camorri case files but I couldn’t even focus. How could I? 

The nurse finally called my name. I hurriedly closed my laptop and tucked it in my bag, following her into Doctor Allen’s office. 

Doctor Allen wore a broad smile on his face as he asked me to sit. 

“Congratulations, Ms Harper” Doctor Allen said with a warm smile on his face 

Congratulations???

“Dr Allen, what do you mean by congratulations?” I asked, my heart beat rising with each passing second 

“You’re pregnant!!” He delivered the news

For a heartbeat, I thought I’d misheard him. Pregnant?

My phone suddenly felt heavy in my hand, I had to drop it on the table so it wouldn’t fall. 

“What?” I whispered

“I understand this might be unexpected,” he said, his tone gentle now, like he sensed my horror. “But the test is conclusive. Based on your hormone levels, I’d say about two weeks along.”

Two weeks?!

My mind instantly rewound two weeks, three weeks, a month. Daniel and I hadn’t been together in… what? Six weeks? Eight? 

The last time had been quick, he  used a condom and I hadn’t been with anyone else

“Doctor,” I said slowly, gripping the edge of his desk, “I haven’t—” I stopped myself. No, I wasn’t going to explain my sex life to a stranger. “There’s no way I could be pregnant. There must be a mistake.”

“I assure you, the tests were repeated,” Dr. Allen said. “But if you’d like, we can go over everything. We can also discuss your options moving forward.”

Before I could even respond, his office door swung open as someone barged in. 

I turned around to see Daniel. 

Fuck. Of course my results were sent to him 

He stood beside me, all polished smiles and tailored perfection. His handshake was firm as he greeted Dr. Allen like they were old friends.

“Doctor, always a pleasure,” he said smoothly, clapping him on the shoulder. “Thank you for taking such good care of my fiancée. I don’t know what I’d do without your team.”

He even winked at the nurse, charming as ever, the perfect candidate everyone adored. For a second, even I almost believed the performance 

Then his eyes cut to me. The smile dropped, but only for me. No one else in the room seemed to notice the way his jaw tightened. 

“Victoria, love,” he said, voice velvet and warm for the staff. “Shall we?” He extended his hand, a perfect gentleman.

The moment the door shut behind us, his fingers clamped around my arm like a vice. His grip was iron, twisting until pain shot up my shoulder.

I could see the fury in his eyes. How was I even going to explain what I didn’t even understand?

He grabbed my arm tight and dragged me till we got to the car. 

I winced, waiting for the calm before the storm. Before I could even talk, Daniel released the storm 

“You’re pregnant?” He asked simply with no emotion in his eyes 

I opened my mouth to say something-

“YOU REALLY THOUGHT I WOULDN’T FIND OUT? IS THAT WHY YOU DIDN’T BOTHER TO TELL ME?” He roared, a vein appearing on his forehead 

I didn’t know when tears dropped from my eyes but they did. 

“Daniel, please calm down. I..I don’t know. I—“ I sobbed

“Victoria?” He grabbed my arm and squeezed it again at the same spot. Pain shot up to my shoulder, and I bit back a cry. It wasn’t the first time—but God, it never got easier.

“I’m not going to ask you again. Who’s goddamn baby is that? Who is the man you’ve been screwing behind my fucking back?” He spoke through his teeth, squeezing my arm tighter 

“No one!” I cried. “You’re the only one—”

“So you expect me to believe that you’re goddamn Mary now? A baby just magically ended up in your womb? Do you hear yourself” he interrupted 

I didn’t know what to say because I too was confused. How the hell was I pregnant? 

“Do you have any idea what this means for me? For my campaign? My enemies will eat me alive with this if anyone finds out.” He broke off, grinding his teeth. “You’re going to fix it.”

My throat dried. “Fix it?? How am I..”

“An abortion,” he cut in, his eyes blazing. “You’ll get rid of it immediately. I won’t let this bastard child destroy me.”

The word bastard sliced through me. I shook my head, my eyes wide with shock. “No… Daniel, you can’t ask me to—”

“Oh can’t I? You think you have choices, Victoria? Remember who pays for every beep of your father’s machine. You disobey me, I stop. And you can explain to him on your next visit why his heart stopped beating.” My stomach dropped. The words sliced deeper than any slap could.

My mouth opened but no words came out. The shock had stolen my vocal cords. 

You’re a monster,” I whispered, though my voice shook. 

“Call me whatever you want but get rid of that thing before you come home.” He adjusted his shirt then he looked around giving a nice smile to observers before giving me a fake peck on my cheek. 

“And after you get rid of it. Get ready to stand beside me for my campaign tomorrow.” he said before getting in his car and driving off

I tried to hold myself from breaking down. I knew Daniel was a douche bag who could go to any lengths to get what he wanted but this low?

Even if I didn’t know the father, how could I abort my child? 

How could I choose between my father and my unborn child’s life?