Chapter 7

Cora

The big entrance room felt like it was spinning.

I stood completely frozen on the polished marble floor, staring at my parents, completely shocked.

My ears were ringing, and for a second, I genuinely thought I had misheard him.

Terminate the pregnancy. The words felt like a physical punch to my chest.

Before I could even find my voice, my mother stepped forward, her heels clicking sharply against the stone.

She didn't look angry; she just looked like she didn't care, which was so much worse.

She smoothed down the front of her perfect designer dress, her voice dropping into that smooth, super calm tone she used for business problems.

"Your father is right, Cora," she said, her eyes boring into mine without a shred of maternal warmth. "You need to think about this clearly. The family can't have this kind of public drama. You ran off to New York, got involved with a man who dumped you, and now you expect us to clean up a mess that involves a child born outside marriage because of a public divorce? It is out of the question. Think of the press. Think of our stock prices. We're offering you a fresh start, but you need to get rid of this problem first."

A clean slate. She was talking about my baby like it was just a stain on a window to clean up.

"Are you guys actually insane?" Annie's voice exploded through the quiet room.

She rushed past Chloe, stepping right in front of me as if she could shield me from them. She was bright red with pure rage.

"She is your daughter! She just got out of the hospital, her life is in pieces, and you're standing there talking about stock prices and public relations? Have you completely lost your minds? You're heartless!"

"Annie, stop," Chloe muttered quickly, reaching out and grabbing Annie's arm to pull her back.

Chloe’s face was pale, her jaw clenched tight as she looked at our father, trying to use the same business-like tone he always respected.

"Dad, please. Let's just sit down and talk about this calmly. Cora has been humiliated enough. She's tired. We don't need to make huge decisions right here in the hallway."

"There is nothing to discuss, Chloe," my father snapped, his voice sharp and loud, like a blade.

He didn't even glance at Annie, acting like her anger didn't matter.

"Your sister made her choices when she walked out of this house two years ago. If she wants the protection of the Woods name, she plays by my rules. I will not harbor a bastard child under my roof, and I won't let the papers ruin our family name. Either she handles this problem, or she can leave."

Handles this problem.

As they kept arguing, their voices started to fade into a dull buzz.

I didn't look at Chloe, or Annie, or the cold, upper-class strangers I was supposed to call parents.

Slowly, my hands drifted down to my stomach, my fingers pressing against the fabric of my shirt.

There was nothing visible yet. It was just a tiny, microscopic cluster of cells inside me.

But in that exact moment, I suddenly felt a crazy, fierce need to protect my baby. It was so intense it actually made my knees shake.

Leon had lied to me. Candice had betrayed me.

My parents wanted to erase my existence for the sake of their reputation. My whole world felt fake, mean, and ruined.

But this baby? This tiny, unborn life inside me was the only pure, real thing I had left.

It hadn't lied to me. It hadn't abandoned me.

And there was absolutely no way in hell I was going to let them touch it.

I took a deep breath, and the trembling in my hands completely stopped.

The heartbreak that had been weighing me down for days suddenly vanished, replaced by a cold, hard decision.

I didn't care about their money.

I didn't care about their massive inheritance, or the overly fancy, controlling feel of this house, or the security their billions could buy.

None of it mattered if the price tag was my child's life.

I stepped out from behind Annie and looked my father straight in the eye.

I didn't yell. I didn't cry. My voice was completely steady.

"Keep your money," I said.

My mother’s eyebrows shot up, and my father’s eyes narrowed.

"You will never see me again," I told them, my gaze shifting between the two of them. "None of you."

Without waiting for a response, I turned my back on them, turned my back on the Woods fortune, and walked straight toward the heavy oak front doors.

"Cora! Wait!" Chloe called out, her voice panicked, but I didn't stop.

I pushed the massive doors open, the cool outside air hitting my face like a twisted form of freedom.

"Coco, wait up!" Annie shouted, her sneakers squeaking loudly on the marble as she ran out right behind me.

We didn't look back. We walked all the way down the long, winding driveway, past the security gates, and never looked back.

Three weeks later, the reality of what I’d done hit me hard.

I stood over the tiny porcelain sink in the bathroom, clutching the edges so hard my knuckles turned white.

Another horrible wave of morning sickness tore through me, leaving me dry-heaving and gasping for air.

The bathroom smelled faintly of cheap bleach and old pipes. It was nothing like the marble entrance room of my parents' estate.

We were living in a small, cramped apartment on the edge of the city.

The rent was super cheap, the walls were paper-thin, and the radiator hissed like an angry snake every time it kicked on.

Annie had insisted I stay with her, using the last of her savings to pay for the lease, but we were both barely scraping by.

I spent my days trying to find remote freelance work under a fake name, but I was barely functioning.

This was between the awful way the pregnancy was messing with my body and the constant fear of being found.

I wiped my mouth with a damp towel, leaning heavily against the sink as I stared at my pale, exhausted reflection in the cracked mirror.

Dark circles sat heavily under my eyes. I looked hollow.

The front door clicked open, and the sound of Annie’s keys rattling made me sigh with relief.

I walked out of the bathroom, wiping my hands on my sweatpants.

"Hey," I called out weakly. "Did you find any of that ginger tea?"

Annie was standing by the small kitchen counter, her back to me.

She froze when she heard my voice, hurrying to shove a stack of local papers and gossip magazines under a pile of grocery bags. She was being really awkward about it.

"Oh! Hey, Coco," Annie said, her voice a little too high, a little too cheerful.

"Yeah, I got the tea. And some crackers. Why don't you go sit down and I'll bring it to you?"

My eyes drifted straight to the corner of a newspaper sticking out from under the plastic bag. I saw the edge of a glossy photo.

A familiar shock of dark hair.

"Annie," I said, my voice dropping. "What is that?"

"Nothing! Just, you know, coupon circulars and stuff," she lied, stepping in front of the counter to block my view. "Seriously, go lie down."

I didn't listen. I walked over, gently but firmly pushing her aside, and snatched the paper from the counter.

The headline stared right back at me, a cruel, mocking slap in the face.

POWER COUPLE EXPANDS EMPIRE: LEON AND CANDICE ANNOUNCE NEW LUXURY LINE.

There was a massive, full-page feature article.

The photo showed the two of them standing at a high-end gala, champagne glasses in hand.

Leon had his arm tight around Candice, pulling her in, smiling big and full of himself.

Candice looked absolutely stunning, beaming up at him as if he were the center of her universe.

They looked happier than ever. They looked completely unbothered by the wreckage they had left behind.

While I was throwing up in a tiny, falling-apart apartment, wondering how we were going to afford groceries next week, they were expanding their luxury brand and celebrating their perfect life.

A hot, bitter tear fell down my face, smudging the cheap ink on the paper.

The pain was still there, a sharp ache in the center of my chest, but right behind it was a massive wave of disgust.

"They don't care," I whispered, dropping the paper onto the counter. "They ruined everything, and they don't even care."

Annie wrapped her arms around my shoulders, hugging me tightly from the side.

"I'm so sorry, Coco. I tried to hide it. You shouldn't have to see that."

"It's fine," I said, wiping the tear away quickly, my voice hardening.

I turned to look at her, the realization finally settling in.

"I can't stay here, Annie. Even on the outskirts of the city, it's too close. New York is their playground.

Eventually, someone will spot me. Someone will figure it out.

I need to leave the country entirely. I need to go somewhere they can never find me, build a completely new identity, and start over from scratch. Somewhere no one can ever hurt me or my baby again."

"If that's what you want, we'll figure it out," Annie said softly, nodding. "We'll save up, and—"

Before she could finish her sentence, a sudden, violent knock rattled the apartment door.

BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.

The sound was so loud, so aggressive, that the cheap wooden door actually shook in its frame.

Both of our breaths hitched at the exact same time.

We froze, completely paralyzed in the middle of the tiny kitchen, staring at the door in absolute terror.

No one knew we were here. Nobody had this address.

BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.

The handle jiggled violently from the outside.