Chapter 3

With this baby, it seemed I had finally regained the upper hand.

Vincent even agreed when I asked him to send Hannah away and never let her appear before me again.

Yet, my heart still felt unbearably empty.

Traces of Vincent and Hannah being together were everywhere. I could not shake the feeling as I stood in our marital bedroom.

With nowhere else to go, I spent night after night by Mom's hospital bed while she remained unconscious.

Vincent came to me with a wedding dress, but his eyes held no warmth when he looked at me.

He sneered. "Isn't this exactly what you wanted, Selena?"

On our wedding day, every guest arrived except Dad.

Dad had once teared up at the thought of me getting married and said he could not bear to see me leave. However, he ended up hating me for driving his illegitimate daughter away.

After the wedding, my pregnancy symptoms became increasingly severe. It got to the point that I was forced to take an extended leave from work and rest at home.

My life became a monotonous routine between the hospital and home.

One day, when I went to work to pick up some documents, I heard Dad's doting voice coming from the office.

"Don't worry, Hannah. Take your time settling here. I bribed the cook to slip something into Selena's food. She's been vomiting so badly every day that she doesn't have the energy to come here."

I froze, and Vincent's voice followed before I could even react.

"It's good that you want to improve yourself, but you're still early in your pregnancy. Don't push yourself too hard."

As he spoke, he wiped the smeared lipstick from Hannah's lips.

I stared blankly at the wedding ring on his hand. It felt as though my heart had been ripped out.

'Vincent never sent Hannah away. He and Dad even caused my severe morning sickness by deliberately slipping something into my food. This is all to get back at me for Hannah's sake,' I thought.

I stormed inside and caused a scene.

This time, Vincent did not try to placate me. He pulled Hannah into his arms and looked at me with clear annoyance.

"It's just a job. Be reasonable. You owe her this," he said.

'What did I owe Hannah? She's the one who destroyed my family, took over my job, and even stole the man I love from me. Shouldn't I be the one hurting?' I thought.

Resentment took root in my chest and spread like weeds.

I gathered all the evidence of Vincent's affair and Hannah taking over my position. But just two hours after I mailed the file, Vincent threw it back in front of me, with a hospital bill sitting on top.

He gripped my chin with a cold and detached expression.

"Lena, you need to know when to back down. Even if you don't care about yourself, you should think about your mother. Who else besides me is going to pay to keep her alive?"

When I thought of Mom still lying unconscious in her hospital bed, I gave in.

From that day on, Vincent made no effort to hide his relationship with Hannah. He took her to see the northern lights and soak in hot springs. He did everything with her that he had once done with me.

However, on their wedding day, Mom woke up.

She stumbled to the church, only to find me kneeling on the floor. I was picking up the bouquet Hannah had dropped.

My cheap bridesmaid dress was smeared with colorful frosting.

Mom learned everything from the guests' comments. Some were sympathetic, while others were mocking. She paled and, without saying a word, returned to the hospital.

Late that night, she climbed to the rooftop and sent me one final message. [Selena, I can't keep holding you back anymore. You need to be free.]