Chapter Ten

The sterile smell of the clinic clung to my skin like guilt. It was cold and sharp.

I sat on the narrow hospital bed, my fingers curled into fists, stomach in knots, eyes dry from too much crying and not enough sleeping. The dim lighting above buzzed faintly, making me even more tense.

I had signed the papers. I had gone through all the counselling. I had thought about it over and over again until it burned a hole in my soul.

And now it was time.

“Are you sure about this?” the nurse asked gently, her voice trying to soften the weight of the moment.

I gave the smallest nod. “Yes.”

The child growing inside me was innocent but I wasn’t. I had been naive. I had believed in love... in Damian. In the dream of a perfect family. But reality had ruined it all.

I couldn't tie myself to a man who shattered me just because I was quiet and acted a fool.

I wasn’t going to be a puppet in someone else’s fairytale, not anymore.

“Alright,” the nurse whispered, touching my hand briefly before walking out to prepare the procedure room. My fingers found the bracelet around my wrist. Grandpa Richard’s gift. The diamonds glinted under the dull light, mocking me with their brilliance. I stared at it, heart thudding.

He had given it to me with so much love.

“This is yours now, Emmah,” he’d said with a weak smile. “I’ve been saving it for this day because I believe in you. In the life you’ll build with my grandson.”

But there was no life to build. Not anymore.

By the time I laid on the procedure table, I’d made peace with my decision. Or at least, that’s what I told myself. There were no tears this time. No shaking. Just silence. The kind that screams louder than a million voices.

It was over in a few hours. And when I woke up, something inside me was gone. A part I could never get back.

I didn’t go back to the Richard mansion right away.

I sat in the back of the black SUV Father sent, staring out the window as the city blurred past. My stomach was hollow. Not just physically, but emotionally. I didn’t feel relieved. I didn’t feel regret. I just felt… empty.

The gates of the Richard estate opened slowly. The house stood grand as ever, surrounded by lush trees and a calm breeze. But everything about it felt like a lie now. A beautiful lie built on betrayal.

Damian wasn’t home when I arrived. It was Grandpa Richard who came rushing down the steps, despite the warnings from his doctors. His face lit up at the sight of me, but the moment his eyes landed on my flat stomach, his steps slowed.

And then he saw it.

“Emmah…” he whispered, voice trembling as he reached for me.

I froze. How did he know?

He looked past the diamond bracelet, past the fake smile I tried to wear, and into my soul. “You… you did it, didn’t you?”

“Grandpa,” I said softly, “I...”

“You took it away,” he said, barely breathing. “The baby… you… you ended it?”

“I had to,” I whispered. “I couldn’t do it anymore. I couldn’t bring a child into a family this broken...”

He staggered back, clutching his chest. “No, no… you promised…”

“Grandpa, please don’t...”

“You said you'd give this marriage a chance! That you’d try. You wore the bracelet, Emmah! I thought…” His voice cracked. “I thought we still had a chance to fix everything…”

By the time I reached him, he collapsed in my arms.

Everything spiraled after that.

The house became chaos. The guards shouted, maids ran, phones rang until the ambulance came. I rode beside him, holding his hand, praying silently despite not knowing what to pray for.

The doctors confirmed it hours later.

Terminal

His heart had suffered another attack, this one far worse. His body couldn’t handle the emotional shock.

This time, they didn’t sugarcoat the words. Grandpa Richard wouldn’t make it past a few more weeks maybe less.

Damian arrived in the middle of the night.

His eyes were bloodshot, jaw tight. “What the hell happened?”

I didn’t answer.

The doctors explained everything to him. I saw the moment it clicked. The moment he realized it was my choice that shattered the old man’s will to live.

“You…” Damian stepped toward me, fists clenched. “You went through with it?”

“Yes,” I replied, calm but cold. “I had to.”

He ran his fingers through his hair, pacing like a madman. “You promised! You told him you’d give us a chance!”

“I changed my mind.”

“You killed our child, Emmah!”

I winced. The words sliced through me, but I didn’t let it show. “I didn’t kill anyone. I chose myself. For once.”

Damian’s shoulders sank. “You don’t get it… you don’t know what he meant to me. He was the only reason I still had hope for us.”

“And I’m sorry,” I said, voice trembling now. “But I can’t live my life for your family’s hope anymore. I’m not your trophy wife. I’m not the girl you cheat on and expect to stay silent.”

His expression shattered, but I didn’t stop.

“I watched him fall because of my decision,” I whispered. “And I’ll carry that guilt. But I won’t let it trap me.”

Later that night, as Grandpa slept on the hospital bed hooked to machines, I sat beside him and held his frail hand. I watched his chest rise and fall, slower than usual. My heart ached.

“I'm sorry,” I whispered. “You deserved better than all this. I wish I could’ve given you peace before you left.”

A tear rolled down my cheek. I didn’t wipe it.

“I wanted to be the wife you hoped I’d be. But love doesn’t exist in lies, Grandpa. And I’m tired of pretending.”

Behind me, the hospital door creaked open. I didn’t turn.

I already knew it was Damian. I felt the weight of his silence as he stood in the doorway.

But he said nothing. Just like me.

We were two broken people… too hurt to fix each other. Too stubborn to admit defeat.