LOGINCEDRIC I stared silently at my phone screen. My last call to Elena had just been rejected. She hadn’t simply failed to answer. It hadn’t rung for a long time, either. My call had been declined immediately.I let out a short breath and opened our chat. The messages I’d sent earlier were still there. Every single one had only one checkmark. None had turned into two. They hadn’t even been read.The same thing had been happening for the past few days. I scrolled back through our conversation to make sure. Sure enough, not a single message had been delivered. My heart began to pound faster. I tried calling her again. The result was the same—the call ended immediately.I set my phone down on my desk and leaned back in my chair. My eyes fell shut for a moment.Did she block me?The thought surfaced out of nowhere, and it was difficult to ignore. Elena had started keeping her distance after Edward’s threats, but she had never completely cut me off like this. Usually, even if her replies were
ELENAAfter the funeral, the world felt much quieter.I stood on the porch of my parents’ now-empty house. The afternoon breeze drifted softly through the air, carrying the scent of wet earth after the rain. In my hand, the house sale documents I had just signed still felt cold. Tomorrow, the keys would be handed over. Tomorrow, this house would officially no longer belong to me.I had deliberately kept Mother’s death private, telling no one outside the small circle of people who already knew. There had been no obituary. No invitations. No formal announcement. Even Maria had only informed a few distant relatives who truly needed to know, with strict instructions not to spread the news.I didn’t want the Ashford family to come, because I didn’t want to see Edward’s face or hear Cedric’s fake voice of sympathy. I didn’t want them touching Mother’s grave or trying to “help” in their usual calculating way. Lilian had suffered enough because of them. I wouldn’t let the Ashford shadow stain
-ELENA- I stood in the courtyard of the Ashford mansion, my fingers wrapped tightly around the handle of my large suitcase. Tears streamed endlessly down my face. No matter how heavy my heart felt, I had no choice but to walk away from Edward Ashford’s residence without looking back. The overcast sky had once again swallowed the heavens, mirroring the emptiness inside me. Dragging my suitcase behind me, I stopped at the mansion gates and wiped away the tears pouring down my cheeks. Less than a minute later, a taxi passed by. I quickly raised my hand. I climbed into the taxi still crying, my shoulders trembling violently. The driver immediately got out and placed my suitcase in the trunk. “Where to, miss?” he asked in a flat voice after getting back behind the wheel. I wiped at my still-flowing tears, but my voice caught in my throat. “Th-The… house where my mother lives. The address is in Riley Hills Residence.” The driver nodded once. “All right.” I gave a weak nod and turne
ELENA“Elena? Can you hear me?”Edward’s voice jolted me out of my thoughts and back into reality. But instead of answering, my trembling fingers pressed the button to end the call. The phone screen went dark again, yet Edward’s question continued to echo in my ears.Boy… or girl?I stood frozen at the end of the hospital corridor, my breaths coming short and shallow. The tears I had struggled to hold back began spilling down my cheeks again. People passed by, some of them glancing in my direction, but I barely noticed. All I wanted was to get out of this place as quickly as possible.With unsteady steps, I left the building and climbed into the first taxi I saw.Throughout the ride, I stared out the window without really seeing anything. One word kept circling endlessly in my mind.If the baby is a girl, it means I’ll be thrown out of the Ashford family.As soon as I arrived at the mansion, I went straight to my room. I locked the door from the inside and sank onto the edge of the be
ELENAThree weeks had passed since that night.Lilian had finally been discharged from the hospital. Her condition had improved for a while, but the doctors still reminded us that she needed a heart donor. I couldn’t calmly stay by her side through the search for a donor. It wasn’t because I didn’t want to, but because everything felt impossible. Besides not wanting to trouble Cedric any further, I was also painfully aware that my relationship with Edward had grown colder—right up to this very moment.Meanwhile, my connection with Cedric had started to strain. Not because I no longer wanted it, but because Edward’s threat still echoed clearly in my mind. I was afraid. Afraid that one wrong step would drag Cedric into even greater ruin.This morning, I sat in the waiting room of the obstetrics clinic with my hands tightly clasped in my lap. The ultrasound appointment had been scheduled since last week. Dr. Lucy had said that today the baby’s gender would most likely be visible.A few m
ELENAMy cheek was burning. I hadn’t even processed what was happening when a sharp stinging pain spread across the side of my face. My body staggered, my knees gave out, and before I realized it, I was already on the floor. My ears rang. My breath came in short gasps.I slowly lifted my face, still half in disbelief. Edward stood in the doorway, his jaw tight and his eyes ice-cold. There was no other emotion except restrained fury.“You shameless bitch,” he said in a low voice, yet every word cut deep. “So you dare ignore my message, huh?”I pressed a hand to my still-throbbing cheek. Tears welled up immediately—not only from the pain, but from the way he looked at me, as if I weren’t his wife but something disgusting.“Edward…” My voice cracked. “I—”“Shut your mouth.”He stepped inside and closed the door behind him with deliberate slowness. The soft click of the lock was quiet, yet it was enough to make my entire body tense. Now it was just the two of us in the room. And from the
ELENA“There are only two choices, Elena. We either get divorced… or you sleep with another man and give me an heir.”Edward didn’t even look at me when he said it. His eyes remained fixed on the documents in his hands, as though he were discussing an ordinary business meeting instead of destroying
ELENAThe next morning, the Ashford mansion felt far livelier than usual.Several maids moved back and forth through the dining room, placing dishes one after another onto the long table. The rich aroma of food filled the air, yet somehow it only made my stomach turn again.I took a slow breath bef
ELENAI wasn’t sure if I had truly woken up or if part of me was still trapped in the night I desperately wanted to forget.All I knew was that my body felt unfamiliar the moment I opened my eyes. When I turned my head, Cedric was sleeping soundly beside me. For a few seconds, I could only stare at
ELENAI didn’t sleep at all that night.After leaving Edward’s study, I sat motionless at the edge of the bed. It was already two in the morning, yet his words still echoed relentlessly inside my head.Divorce me… or sleep with another man to give me an heir.I squeezed my eyes shut.The cruel part







