Chapter 4: Alone

~Isla~

The ink on the divorce papers had barely dried when Aunt Linda and Cara burst back into the room like vultures circling a fresh kill. My hands were still shaking as I set the pen down, my heart completely shattered into pieces that could never be put back together.

“It’s all crocodile tears!” Cara shouted, sneering at both me and my family with pure disdain. “Look at her acting all innocent after destroying everything.”

“Leave! All of you leave our property right now!” Aunt Linda commanded, gesturing dramatically toward the grand entrance. Her voice echoed through the mansion like a final judgment.

“We don’t want anything to do with people like you!” she continued. “I’m sure you all knew your daughter had been shamelessly sleeping with a common gardener behind Marcus’s back!”

“We didn’t know!” my father snapped, his face red with anger and embarrassment. He refused to even look at me.

“We never knew she could stoop so low!” Mother added, glaring at me with utter disgust. “She is no longer a part of our family! We want nothing to do with her or that bastard she’s carrying!”

The words felt like knives being twisted into my already bleeding heart. These were the same people I had sacrificed my dreams, my happiness, and my future for. And now they were throwing me away like I was worthless.

Aunt Linda’s lips curled into a satisfied smirk. “Very well then.” She strode toward me and grabbed my arm roughly, her nails digging into my skin. “You’re not spending another second on this property, you gold-digging whore!”

I didn’t even bother to protest as they dragged me through the grand halls I had once called home. Marcus stood at the top of the staircase, watching everything with cold, unreadable eyes. My family watched too, not with sadness or concern, but with anger and disappointment. No one tried to stop them. No one defended me.

The heavy front doors opened, and they threw me out like a piece of garbage onto the driveway. The evening air felt freezing against my skin.

“Don’t worry about your clothes or credit cards,” Aunt Linda said coldly. “It’s all Marcus’s money, and we won’t let you take anything he paid for. Be thankful we’re even letting you leave with the clothes on your back!”

She spat directly in my face. The warm saliva slid down my cheek as I stood there frozen in humiliation. Cara laughed loudly behind her.

“Now, off you go with that bastard growing inside you!”

Tears blurred my vision as I turned and ran. I ran as far and as fast as my legs could carry me, like I was escaping from the worst nightmare of my life. My chest burned, my head throbbed from where it had hit the wall earlier, and my heart felt completely empty.

I finally stopped when my legs gave out in the middle of the city streets. I collapsed onto a broken bench, shaking with uncontrollable anger, pain, and despair.

“I’m so sorry, my baby,” I whispered, gently caressing my still-flat stomach. Fresh tears rolled down my cheeks. “This world is such a cruel place. But I promise to protect you from it. From now on, I will be your mother and your father. I will never let those who discarded us come close to you again.”

But how was I going to survive this? I had no money, no job, no home, and no one to turn to. I was pregnant, alone, and completely broken. The man I loved had thrown me away. My own family had disowned me. How was I supposed to raise this child?

“Ashley!” I gasped suddenly, a spark of hope lighting up in my chest.

Ashley James, my childhood best friend, the one person who had always loved me selflessly. Even though I had hurt her deeply by choosing Marcus and abandoning our shared dreams, maybe she would still help me. She had to.

I didn’t know exactly where she lived now, but her company was close by. I had seen it in the news. With whatever strength I had left, I walked toward her building, my legs aching and my stomach growling with hunger.

When I finally reached her company, my eyes widened. Ashley looked effortlessly gorgeous, dressed in designer clothes with sparkling accessories. She had achieved the dream we once planned together; owning a successful jewelry brand. Seeing her success while I had nothing left made the pain even sharper.

“What are you doing here?” she demanded, her face hard and cold the moment she saw me in her office.

“A-Ashley… I know I shouldn’t be here,” I said, clutching my arms around myself as fresh tears stung my eyes. “But… I need your help. Please.”

She stared at me without any warmth. The old Ashley would have hugged me immediately. This version was a stranger.

Through broken sobs, I told her everything: the false accusations, the video, my family’s betrayal, Marcus throwing me out while pregnant, and how I had nowhere to go. She listened without a single change in her expression.

“So what exactly do you want me to do?” Her voice was sharp and angry.

“I… I know I don’t deserve it after what I did, but could you let me stay at your place? Just until I find my feet again? I’m pregnant and I have nothing.”

She looked me dead in the eye. “No, Isla. I cannot let you stay with me.” Her jaw clenched. “How could you even come here after everything you did to me? After you ruined our friendship for that cruel man?”

The guilt hit me like a wave. Ashley and I had been inseparable since childhood. We both loved jewelry design. We studied Fine Arts and Gemology together, dreaming of building the biggest brand in the country. We were more than best friends, we were sisters.

But when my family forced the marriage, I had pushed her away. She had warned me about Marcus. She begged me not to sacrifice our dreams. I chose my family instead. I chose him.

“I warned you, Isla!” she snapped, her voice rising. “I told you not to marry that man! You gave up everything, our dreams, our plans, all for a cold billionaire who never even loved you! And now look at you.”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, tears flowing freely. “I was wrong. Please… help me.”

She scoffed. “You’re sorry now? After years of silence? You made your choice, Isla. You broke our friendship because I tried to open your eyes. Now that they’ve all abandoned you, you come crawling back? I will not help you. You’re on your own.”

Ashley gave me one last cold look. “Don’t ever come near me again. I don’t want your face reminding me of everything I lost because of you.”

She turned and walked away, leaving me standing there completely devastated.

I did this to myself. I had sacrificed everything for a man and a family who never valued me. If only I had listened to Ashley, I would have had my own identity, my own success, and a real friend by my side.

I spent the next several hours walking aimlessly through the city. I sat in dirty alleys and on broken benches, trying to find somewhere, anywhere, to rest. The sun had set long ago, and the night air grew colder. My stomach growled painfully. I hadn’t eaten since morning, and the pregnancy was making everything worse. Dizziness clouded my vision.

I pressed my hand gently against my belly. “Hold on, my love,” I whispered through my tears. “Mommy will find a way. I promise.”

But hope was fading fast. I was exhausted, hungry, pregnant, and completely alone in a world that had turned its back on me.

I stopped in front of a small restaurant, the warm smell of food making my knees weak. Desperation pushed me inside.

“Please… I’m hungry and pregnant. I don’t have money right now, but anything, even leftovers, would help.”

The response was cruel laughter and being thrown out onto the cold pavement once again.

I curled up on the dirty street, my body finally giving out. The world around me started spinning as darkness crept in at the edges of my vision.

How did my life come to this?

My eyes grew heavy. Just before unconsciousness took me completely, I heard the sound of expensive car tires stopping nearby.