Chapter 2

Rebecca did that on purpose. After all, my birthday had been forcibly moved up by a month years ago when she said she preferred celebrating hers alone. I had not had a birthday party in nearly 15 years.

Sure enough, my mom's tone turned cold after hearing her suggestion. "Maisie's birthday had already passed. Come here and see the custom tiara I ordered for you," she said.

My dad shot me a sideways glance. "You should learn from Rebecca. Even after what you put her through, she still thinks about celebrating your birthday!"

Ezekiel looked at me, too, his brows faintly furrowed.

I suddenly remembered our wedding night, when he pressed my hand against his burning chest and whispered, "Maisie, I'll only ever be yours. No one can take me away from you."

Now, that same man calmly said, "You should go to your room. Rebecca gets emotionally unstable when she sees you."

My eyes stung. I nodded hard, afraid that if I spoke, he would hear how my voice trembled. Once I was back in my room, I slid down against the door and let the tears fall freely.

Later, I pulled out my phone and booked the earliest appointment for an abortion. Then, I sent a message to an international number.

[I accept the position with the team. Pick me up at the airport the day after tomorrow.]

After sending the message, I felt utterly drained.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. When I opened it, Ezekiel was standing there.

He led me into the living room, where my parents and Rebecca sat waiting like a jury. Just as I expected, they confessed that Rebecca was pregnant. She leaned into Ezekiel's arms, looking fragile and pitiful.

"Maisie, I wasn't thinking clearly because of my illness... I didn't mean to get pregnant. Please forgive me, okay?" she pleaded.

Ezekiel held Rebecca close, his tone firm. "This isn't Rebecca's fault. She's a victim too. If she hadn't tried to save you back then, she and I would never have gotten involved with each other.

"Maisie, if you have any conscience at all, you'll accept this baby. Otherwise..." He trailed off meaningfully, while my parents shot me threatening looks.

Back then, when Rebecca and I were kidnapped, I was beaten until I was barely conscious.

Rebecca had stepped in front of me, crying as she shouted, "She's my sister! You're not allowed to touch her!"

It moved me deeply because she had hated me her entire life. I foolishly believed that if I had not been born, she would have been our parents' one and only darling.

At that moment, I forgave her for everything and even begged the kidnappers to spare her.

My parents arrived just in time to save us: me, bloodied and half-dead, and Rebecca, perfectly unharmed.

When I woke up, my dad slapped me across the face while my mom stood to the side, crying.

That was when I learned that Rebecca had been so traumatized that her mental state had completely deteriorated. I had spent this entire year drowning in guilt, spending every single day reflecting on what happened.

Whenever I saw Rebecca and Ezekiel being intimate or when everyone blamed me, I could only swallow all my grievances and tell myself that Rebecca's condition was partly my fault.

Yet, after everything, they still wanted to keep lying to me and use the kidnapping to emotionally blackmail me.

I did love Ezekiel, but not enough to raise his illegitimate child!

At that thought, I could not help but let out a bitter laugh.

Suddenly, a glass shattered at my feet.

"What are you laughing at? If Rebecca hadn't saved you, you wouldn't even be standing here right now! You should be repaying her for the rest of your life. Don't you understand that?" my dad shouted.

I was wearing a short skirt, and the glass shards cut into my calf, the pain searing through my skin and nerves.

Rebecca immediately turned to soothe him. "Dad, don't be mad. It's my fault for betraying Maisie. It's only natural that she's upset."

My mom quickly jumped in and said, "The one who should be sorry is Maisie! If she hadn't been selfish, you wouldn't have had to risk your life for her, and you wouldn't have gotten sick!"

Ezekiel stepped forward, his presence suffocating as he finished what he had not said earlier.

"Maisie, my child can't be born a bastard. And besides, Rebecca's health has always been fragile. The doctors said she can only carry one child in her lifetime. You're her sister... Don't you have a heart?"

Ezekiel's face gradually blurred before my eyes.

I bit down hard on the inside of my lip, using the pain to force myself to stay calm. Then, I asked, "Ezekiel, if I were pregnant with another man's child, would you raise it for me?"