Lahat ng Kabanata ng When Love Betrays : Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

Prisca told herself she was fine.She said it every morning while tying her hair neatly. She said it while choosing dresses that looked gentle and respectable. She said it while smiling at people who praised her family, her children, her life.She said it so often that the word lost meaning.Because she was not fine.She was unraveling—slowly, quietly, in ways no one applauded and no one noticed at first.Except her children.Sandra felt it before anyone else did.That morning, Sandra spilled juice on the table by accident. Just a small splash, nothing serious. Prisca’s reaction came fast and sharp.“Can you ever be careful?” Prisca snapped.Sandra froze, her eyes wide. “I’m sorry, Mommy.”Prisca sighed loudly, wiping the table with more force than needed. “Sorry doesn’t clean things up.”The words hung heavy.Sandra nodded and stayed quiet, her small hands folded in her lap.Prisca saw the fear then. It flickered across her daughter’s face and vanished just as quickly. For a second,

Victoria had learned something important: hiding meant surviving, but it didn’t mean winning.For weeks after leaving the hospital, she had stayed in quiet rooms, letting her body recover, letting her mind rest, letting the chaos of her past settle like dust. Aunt Mary helped every step of the way—meals prepared just right, medications timed perfectly, gentle nudges to get her moving again. But now, recovery alone wasn’t enough. She needed more. She needed to reclaim her space in the world.It started small.A conference for women in business, held in a sleek hall downtown. Victoria wasn’t on the list of speakers—she didn’t want to attract attention. She chose a seat in the back and observed. She watched the confident women on stage, the sharp questions from the audience, the way people leaned in for insight rather than applause.And she took notes.She noted their tone, their posture, their calm authority. She realized she didn’t need to shout. She didn’t need to charm. She just need

The first time a woman showed Victoria the bruise on her arm, the room went quiet.It wasn’t loud violence. It wasn’t blood. Just a dark mark on brown skin, shaped like fingers.“He said I talk too much,” the woman whispered.Victoria did not gasp.She did not rush.She had learned something over the months — pain does not need drama. It needs space.“Does he say sorry after?” Victoria asked gently.The woman nodded. “He cries. Says he doesn’t mean it. Says I push him.”A few women in the room shifted uncomfortably.Victoria looked around slowly.“How many of you have heard that before?”More than half the hands went up.Something inside her chest tightened — not with anger, but with clarity.This was bigger than her story.Much bigger.The group had grown fast.From fourty women in a small hall to thousands online.Now, every week, Victoria spoke through a live broadcast. The camera never showed her full face. She wore dark glasses. A simple black mask. Her hair tied back.People ask

The room was quiet again after the machine settled.Prisca’s breathing was loud in the silence. Gabriel stood close to the bed, one hand resting near Daniel’s small arm, as if he could protect him just by standing there.The doctor looked at both of them before speaking.He cleared his throat.“Mr. and Mrs. Gabriel,” he began, his voice lower now, more careful. “Your son is stable for the moment.”Prisca let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding.“He developed a high fever during playtime,” the doctor continued. “That explains why he collapsed. His body reacted strongly.”Gabriel nodded slowly. Fever. That sounded normal. Children got fevers.But the doctor did not look finished.“We took blood samples and ran several tests,” he said. “The fever is under control now. However…”That word again.However.Prisca’s fingers tightened around her handbag.“However what?” she asked quickly.The doctor looked down at the file briefly, then back at them.“Your son is experiencing a signi

The third day came slowly.Too slowly.For three nights, Prisca barely slept. She stayed at the hospital beside Daniel’s bed, listening to the soft beeping of the machines and the low hum of nurses moving in the hallway. Every time Daniel shifted in his sleep, her heart jumped.Three days.That was how long the doctor had said it would take.Three days for a result that could either pass quietly… or destroy everything.That morning, Prisca sat in the chair beside Daniel’s bed, staring at the white wall in front of her. Daniel was awake, playing with the small toy car one of the nurses had given him. His fever had gone down. His cheeks had a little color again. If not for the IV line attached to his hand, he would look like any normal child.He laughed softly at something on the cartoon playing from the small television mounted in the corner.Prisca swallowed.How could something so small carry something so big?Her phone buzzed. A message from Gabriel.On my way soon.She stared at th