Chapter 1

Mercede’s POV

One hundred and fifty nine days is how long I’ve been in this godforsaken place. 

Being in jail was hard, but being pregnant in jail? That’s on a whole different level of hard.

Six months in, and I still haven’t gotten used to the weight of the tiny life inside of me.

There are days when I wake up, feeling like everything has just been one bad dream, but the aching in my body, and the little kicks from my baby was all the reality check I needed.

“Mercedes!” Warden Haynes' voice pulled me out of my thoughts. “You have a visitor,” She informed me, as she opened my cell gate.

A smile spread across my lips as I already knew who it was.

I stood up slowly, using one hand to support my arching lower back, and the other to push myself up.

“Hey baby, Daddy’s here,” I rubbed on my baby bump gently.

The warden didn’t bother to cuff me. Perks of being six months pregnant, and waddling like a duck–nobody thought I could run anywhere.

As we made our way out to the visiting area, I couldn’t stop the smile on my face, and the moment the heavy door leading to the visiting area was opened my smile got wider. As there he was.

Dylan.

“Dylan!” I beamed, walking as fast as my baby bump allowed.

God, I wanted to hug him so bad, as he stood there in his well tailored suit, looking like an absolute snack. 

But there was a strict no-contact rule and I wasn’t about to risk getting this visit cut short.

Dylan parted his lips as if to say something, but a familiar voice cut in.

“I swear the restrooms in this place are a crime against humanity,” Bethany, Dylan’s personal assistant hissed in irritation as she walked over.

“Oh. Hi, Mercedes,” She beamed with a fake ass smile as her eyes landed on me, and then on my babay bump. “How’s the little jailbird doing?”

Before I could respond, she slid her hand around Dylan’s and leaned into him.

My eyes narrowed as I looked at Dylan, expecting him to do something, anything, or at least say something, but he acted like this was just another normal gesture, and ran his thumb gently over her knuckles.

“What’s going on here?” I demanded from Dylan. 

I didn’t have any business with Bethany. She wasn’t the one trying to disrespect me here, it was him.

My man, Dylan.

“Sit,” Dylan said tersely.

I did as he said, more out of the fact that my legs were aching just from a few minutes of standing.

“I came to tell you in person,” Dylan began. “Bethany and I are engaged. Wedding’s in a month.”

I chuckled.  

“This is a joke, right?”  

Because there’s no way in hell, Dylan came all the way here to tell me such bullshit.

“It's not,” Bethany spoke, and held up her left hand, flashing a diamond ring. 

“Dylan this isn’t funny,” I called out in a trembling voice that’s above a whisper. “If this is some kind of twisted joke, it’s sick.”

“My company’s going public in a few days, and I can’t afford to be associated with the likes of you–?”

“The likes of me?” I rasped, not believing my ears. “Dylan, what are you talking about? We had plans, and–”

“It's over Mercedes, move on,” Dylan cut in and stood to his feet. “Let’s go babe.”

Babe? 

I felt like I'd been punched in the guts.

“Wait!” I cried out, scrambling up so fast that I bumped my belly against the edge of the table. 

Pain shot through me, but it was nothing like the pain I felt in my heart.

“Dylan, please don’t do this!” I reached out to him, grabbing the edge of his suit sleeve. “Dylan,” I whispered in tears. “Please don’t do this to me…to us. We’re expecting a baby–”

“That bastards not mine,” Dylan cut in coldly, his face scrunched up in disgust.

“What are you saying?”I choked out, releasing my grip on his sleeve. 

“That bastard in your belly is not mine.”

“No. That’s not true,” I shook my head in denial, tears rolling down my cheeks uncontrollably. “Re–rememeber that night at the masquerade party? During my twenty-first birthday,” I supplied in a breath, maybe he had forgotten.

But I haven’t. How could I?

That was the best night of my entire life.

The memories of that passionate night was what kept me sane in this godforsaken place.

“You really believed that was me?” Dylan chuckled. “God, I always knew you were dumb. But not this dumb.”

My heart broke at his words.

“I lost a bet that night, Mercedes. And you were the prize.”

My entire world came crashing down. 

A bet?

Did I mean so little to Dylan that he didn’t even bat an eye in giving me up in a bet?

And if what he said was indeed true, who did I sleep with?

Sure, I was drunk that night, and could barely make out anything, but that mask.. Dylan was the only one with that mask at the party. I specifically picked it out for him, because it made him stand out.

No. Dylan is lying.

He said it himself, his company was going public in a few days. It would be bad enough associating with an inmate, but having an inmate as your child’s mother? That’ll do a lot of damage to the reputation he has worked so hard to build.

But it isn’t my place to worry about his reputation. But I’m sure as hell not going to let him wriggle his way out of taking responsibilities for ouR child.

“Dylan!” I called out to him as soon as they got to the gate that led out of the visiting area.

He muttered something under his breath in irritation, while Bethany tightened her grip around his arm.

Well. She won. She can have him.

My visiting time was almost up, so I rushed after him.

My foot caught at the edge of a chair, and before I could catch myself…I fell.

My knees hit the ground first, then my belly.

For a brief second the world around me became silent, and the only thing my brain could register was the hot blinding pain that shot through me.

“Oh my God! She’s in labor!” A prison warden screamed, and that’s when the warm liquid spilling out of me registered.

“No, no, no, no, no. It’s too soon,” I cried in panic. “You’re not ready yet my love. We still got three months.”

Everything descended into chaos as I was rushed to the infirmary.

“Please save my babies,” I pleaded with whoever could hear.

I was carrying twins. I didn’t want to tell Dylan because I wanted it to be a surprise, but now…?

Twelve long hours later of screaming through contractions like I was fighting death itself, my babies were born.

The sound of their cries was the sweetest sounds ever, as it made all the pains and sufferings worth it.

“Congratulations Mercedes,” the nurse said. “It's a boy and a girl.”

I smiled through the pain. “Can I please hold my babies?”

The nurse's face fell suddenly.

She looked up at me from the babies in her hands, and her eyes held emotions I wouldn’t dare imagine.

“What’s happening?” I managed to ask, my voice trembling from fearing the worse. “Why aren’t my babies crying anymore?”

The nurse shook her head slowly, and a tear slid down her cheeks.

“No!” I screamed breathlessly, and pain like iv’e never known short through my heart.

“I’m sorry Mercedes. The babies didn’t make it,” the nurse said sadly. “They came too early.”