LOGINSerena’s POVThe old digital phone on the bedside table vibrated against the metal surface again. The screen lit up, casting a pale light over the dark linoleum floor. It was the third time the Cole family legal team had tried to reach the line within the last hour. The mechanical buzz echoed through the small recovery ward, sounding loud and rhythmic in the quiet room.Every single time since I got the call from Lilliana, I have been ignoring their texts and calls, for my peace of mind.I did not reach out my hand to answer it. I simply watched the screen blink until the battery warning flashed and the device finally went completely dark. I was done taking any more calls from the Cole family. I was done listening to the voice of my husband's assistants, his mother, or his lawyers. Every word they spoke belonged to a world that had already destroyed everything I owned.Even Lilliana had a say in what happens with my life, I was truly not a lucky person. She had complete control over m
Liliana’s POVI stood in the private waiting suite of St. Jude’s Hospital, listening to the quiet beep of the heart monitor. Damien was asleep on the leather sofa in the corner, his face pale and his expensive suit jacket draped over a chair. I had spent the last twenty-four hours making sure he did not leave this room. I stayed by his side, wiping my dry eyes with tissues and whispering about our lost future whenever he woke up.A sharp vibration rattled the mahogany side table. Damien’s personal phone was lighting up with an incoming call from the billing department of the city clinic.I glanced at Damien. His breathing was heavy and even. I picked up the phone quickly, stepped out into the quiet, carpeted corridor, and slid the green bar across the screen."Damien Cole’s line," I whispered."Hello, this is the desk administrator from the municipal women's emergency clinic," a woman’s voice said over the line. "We have a patient here, Serena Cole. Her emergency surgery is complete,
Serena’s povThe transition from a tense room to absolute chaos happened in a single heartbeat.I was standing near the edge of the bed when the first sharp, tearing pain ripped through my lower abdomen. It was not a dull ache. It was a violent, white-hot sensation that made my knees instantly buckle. I gasped, my hand flying to my stomach as I collapsed onto the carpet."Serena?" Damien’s voice cut through the air, his tone losing its usual cold edge.Before I could answer, a warm, thick rush of fluid soaked through the fabric of my clothes, spilling onto the light-colored rug. I looked down, my vision blurring as the unmistakable, deep crimson stain expanded rapidly. I was hemorrhaging. The sheer volume of blood was terrifying, pooling around me on the floor within seconds.The private doctors Damiano kept stationed in the adjoining wing of the estate burst through the doors, their heavy medical bags clattering against the floor. The lead physician, a gray-haired man who had worked
Serena’s POVA rough hand gripped my shoulder and shook me violently. My eyes snapped open, and my heart began to hammer against my ribs. The freezing air of the servant's quarters hit my bare skin immediately. A stern housemaid stood over my narrow iron bed, her face set in a deep scowl as she stared down at me."Get up," she said, pulling the thin wool blanket off my body and tossing it onto the floor. "Mr. Cole is waiting for you. You need to move right now."I sat up slowly, my head spinning from the sudden movement. My stomach felt completely empty, and a dull ache throbbed in my lower back. I reached toward the wooden dresser to grab my canvas bag so I could take my vitamins, but the maid grabbed my wrist and pulled me toward the door."There is no time for that," she muttered, her grip tight and cold. She pushed me out into the dark stone corridor.Damien stood in the main hallway just outside the door to the servant's wing. He did not say a word about my tangled hair or my bar
Serena’s POVWhen I was myself again, I ordered a cab with my last cash.The cab driver did not speak to me as the vehicle idled outside the massive iron gates of the Cole estate. I reached into the hidden lining of my heavy coat, pulled out one of the crisp hundred-dollar bills from the stranger's package, and handed it through the plastic partition. The driver took the money with a short nod, and the mechanical locks clicked open. I stepped outside with my spirit completely dead.I dragged my feet across the gravel driveway and walked into the servant’s wing, my wet canvas shoes leaving dark tracks on the concrete floor. The small room was just as cold as I had left it. I changed into a dry cotton nightgown, swallowed two of the prenatal vitamins from the package, and lay down on the thin mattress. I stared at the ceiling in the dark, waiting for the final blow to fall.I was a fool to come back here but I had nowhere else to go, I had nothing and no cent to my name so I could do no
Serena’s POVThe silver pen felt incredibly heavy in my hand. I looked down at the document on the metal table, the legal terms blurring together before my eyes. My body was completely broken from the lack of food and the freezing chill of the concrete holding cell. Another sharp, hot cramp rolled through my lower abdomen, and I had to squeeze my thighs together to stop myself from whimpering out loud.I looked across the table at Damien who sat there with a frown on his face and his arms folded tightly across his chest. He did not look like the man I had married. He looked like a cold banker waiting to foreclose on a piece of bad property. His high-powered lawyers stood behind him, their polished leather briefcases glinting under the harsh fluorescent lights of the interrogation room.I knew I could not survive another night in that damp cell. My baby could not survive it. If I stayed here, the stress and the starvation would kill my child before the legal team even finalized the tri
Serena’s povThings felt different after the dinner with Liliana.I noticed how Damian became quieter around me afterward.He still kissed my forehead before leaving for work every morning.He still asked if I had eaten.He still made sure the drivers moved carefully whenever I sat inside the car.
Serena’s povI cried myself to sleep that night.I sat alone in the huge bedroom while my messages kept failing one after another.Every failed message felt like another slap to my face.My husband blocked me like I was some stranger bothering him.At some point, I stopped texting.I just sat there
Serena’s povI barely slept that night.I stayed awake in the large bed alone while the clock beside me kept moving slowly but Damien never came back.Every sound outside made my heart jump for nothing.I stared at the empty side of the bed and kept thinking about Liliana and the way he left me beh
Serena’s povThe soft hum of the Bentley filled the silence as we drove away from the hospital.I rested my hand on my stomach and smiled to myself again.The baby had been active throughout the appointment. Even the doctor laughed when the little kicks refused to stop during the scan.“Your baby i







