Chapter 4: Broken Trust

I stared at Curtis like I was looking at a stranger.

The man standing before me was not the same man who once held my hands and promised to protect me from the world.

His face was calm, almost indifferent, as he bent slightly toward me.

“Tessa, you crashed into the coffee table yourself and had a miscarriage,” he said, his voice steady, like he was explaining something simple to a child. “What right do you have to blame Lauren?”

For a moment, I forgot how to breathe.

I searched his eyes, hoping to find even a small trace of doubt. A flicker of uncertainty. Anything that showed he was confused and not fully convinced.

There was nothing.

Only coldness.

“She pushed me towards the coffee table,” I said again, trying to keep my voice steady even though my chest was shaking. My throat still felt dry from crying. “Curtis, she pushed me.”

I looked up at him desperately. “Why won’t you believe me? Why did you believe her?”

My gaze shifted to Lauren.

She stood slightly behind him, looking composed, hands folded gently before her. But when our eyes met, she released a tiny smirk.

Wicked. Brief. But I saw it clearly.

I turned back to Curtis.

“I understand now,” I said slowly. The pain inside me was turning into something else. Something darker. “You guys are trying to put the blame on me so that you can marry her, right?”

Curtis chuckled.

The sound hurt more than a slap.

“Tessa,” he said, shaking his head lightly. “You’ve learned how to play the victim, huh? It was you who cheated on me. You don’t have the right to misunderstand us.”

His words felt like hot oil poured over my wounds.

“Why won’t you believe me?” I snapped. My voice rose despite the weakness in my body.

“If you had trusted me,” I continued, my hands trembling against the hospital sheets, “our child wouldn’t have died.”

Silence filled the room for a second.

I turned my head slowly and met Lauren’s eyes again.

She wasn’t even pretending anymore.

Her lips curved slightly, satisfaction dancing in her eyes.

“Enough!” Curtis thundered.

The force of his voice echoed against the hospital walls.

But this time, I didn’t flinch.

“No!” I snapped back.

My eyes widened at him, burning with anger and grief. “No! I won’t keep quiet!”

Something inside me had broken completely.

The pain of losing my child. The betrayal. The humiliation. It all exploded at once.

“I’ll let you pieces of shit pay with your lives!” I shouted.

My hand moved instinctively to the small flower vase placed on the bedside table. I grabbed it and lifted it up, intending to smash it toward them.

But Curtis was faster.

He caught my wrist mid-air.

His grip was tight.

The vase slipped from my fingers and fell to the floor with a loud crash, shattering into pieces.

Before I could pull away, his other hand grabbed my neck.

He pushed me back onto the bed roughly.

My body slammed against the mattress.

“You’re the one who should pay with your life!” he said fiercely, his face inches from mine.

His fingers pressed against my throat, not enough to choke me completely, but enough to make his threat clear.

“Curtis…” I called, my eyes filled with fury and hatred I didn’t recognize in myself. “I would never forgive you in my life!”

He chuckled again.

As if my words meant nothing.

He slowly released me and straightened up, adjusting the sleeves of his suit like he had just finished a minor inconvenience.

“Stay here and repent for your deeds,” he said coldly.

Repent?

For what exactly?

For trusting him?

For loving him?

He turned slightly. “Lauren, let’s go.”

Lauren stepped closer to him, her heels making soft sounds against the floor.

Together, they began walking toward the door.

Just before stepping out, Lauren paused.

She turned back.

Our eyes met.

She raised her hand slowly and waved at me. Her smile was wicked. Victorious.

The door closed behind them.

Silence filled the room.

I lay back slowly on the bed.

My body felt drained. Empty. Weak.

Hot tears rolled down the sides of my face into my hair.

I closed my eyes tightly, but that didn’t stop the tears.

My hands clenched the bedsheet until my knuckles turned white.

The image of my child flashed in my mind.

The tiny kicks.

The promises I made.

All gone.

And the man who should have been my shield stood against me.

THIRD PERSON POV:

Just outside the room, their voices carried faintly through the closed door.

“Curtis, don’t divorce Tessa,” Lauren said softly.

Her tone had changed once again. It was gentle. Caring. Innocent—like she was the one trying to protect the marriage.

“Humph. Divorce?” Curtis replied with a short, dry chuckle. “Don’t even think about it until Tessa gets what she deserves.”

He turned and walked away, his polished shoes echoing against the hospital floor as his footsteps gradually faded down the hallway.

Lauren remained standing there.

She held her small handbag in front of her with both hands, her posture calm and composed. For a few seconds, she did not move.

Then slowly, a smile crept onto her face. Not the soft, harmless smile she wore in front of Curtis.

This one was different.

Cold. Satisfied. Real.

“If Mom and Dad –“ she started to say but trailed off, her teeth gritted. “Well, whatever they are now. If they think they can replace me with some kinda girl they believe is their true daughter, they must be joking. I don’t give a damn whoever she is.”

She opened her handbag and brought out her phone. Without hesitation, she dialed a number.

The call connected almost immediately.

“Prepare a paternity test,” she said calmly. She ended the call without waiting for a response.

After slipping the phone back into her bag, she lifted her head and turned slowly toward the hospital room door.

Her eyes fixed on it. “Tessa, you must divorce Curtis!”