Chapter 1

Natasha's POV

The doctor congratulated me when I went for my prenatal check-up the next day, saying, "The fetus is doing well."

I mulled it over before asking, "Can I abort the child?"

The doctor was stunned. A long moment passed before he said, "You can. But you should think things through before you decide. It's highly possible that you won't be able to get pregnant again because of your body's condition."

A bitter smile stretched across my lips. I knew better than anyone else how difficult it had been for me to conceive the child I was carrying. I had to visit the hospital frequently, and my arms were covered in bruised needle marks from the injections.

After giving it some thought, I decided to call my husband, Louis Hoffman. I had to dial his number several times before the call finally connected.

I could barely hear Louis' voice over the raucous background noise. "Are you calling about the prenatal check-up? There aren't any problems, right? I'm busy right now. I'll call you back later."

I also heard my sister, Madison Golding's voice on the other end of the line. "I like this necklace, Louis. Can you buy it for me?"

Louis immediately hung up.

I dabbed at the tears at the corners of my eyes. Louis had bought the necklace that was hanging around my neck when we got married. The gold had already lost its luster. I told him several times that I wanted a new necklace, but he always gave me the same excuse.

"You can still wear it, right? I can earn enough money to buy a new one for you, but you should learn how to be more frugal too."

The lingering feelings that I still harbored for Louis faded away completely. "I've made up my mind. I want to abort the child."

As I lay on the operating table, I suddenly thought about how I was especially afraid of hospitals and other medical centers because I had gotten into a car accident when I was a child.

Louis had hugged me and said, "I'll always be by your side, Natty. I'm just a phone call away."

I thought that his words were only meant to coax me, but he proved his sincerity when I suddenly developed a high fever in the middle of the night. My body temperature had risen to as high as 103 Fahrenheit.

I tried to hide my illness from Louis, but he somehow managed to find out what was going on. He had been on a business trip at the time and drove overnight to return to my side.

My heart broke when I peeled open my eyes and saw how swollen his eyes were. "It's just a fever. Why did you come back?"

Louis hugged me and whined cutely, "I was worried about you. Even a fever deserves all my attention."

I had never doubted that his feelings for me were genuine, but it seemed that his affection was directed at someone else now. At the end of the day, I was always expected to yield to Madison.

After the abortion procedure was over, I propped up my weak body, slowly put on my clothes, and walked out of the operating room. Although the surgery had lasted two hours, Louis hadn't called me even once.

I hailed a cab and headed home. I was immediately greeted by a delicious scent when I pushed the door open. A pot of chicken stew sat in the middle of the dining table.

Louis, Mom, and Madison were seated around the table.

I froze on the threshold. I clearly remembered that I had told Mom that I wanted to eat the chicken stew that Uncle William had prepared for me to give me strength yesterday. However, she told me that she had thrown the stew out because it had gone bad.

I thought that it was a waste, but I didn't say anything else.

It turned out that she hadn't thrown out the stew at all. She just didn't want to let me eat it.

Louis immediately looked up when he heard the door creaking open. He swiftly placed his spoon down when he noticed that it was me and hurried to my side.

"How did the check-up go today, Natty?" he asked. "Is everything alright with the baby?"

I quietly leaned against his chest. A long time passed before I took a deep breath and said, "It didn't go well. I aborted the child, Louis."