All Chapters of The Heiresses’s Reckoning : Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

[ NANCY’S POV ]The rain was a wall of water. I drove slowly, my wipers fighting to clear the windshield, but the thunder was so loud it shook the car. Then, without warning, the engine sputtered and died. I tried the key again and again, but there was nothing. No lights, no sound. Just the roar of the storm.I looked around. The road was empty. No cabs, no cars, just the dark and the rain. I couldn't call him, I knew he wouldn’t pick up, or he’d yell at me for being useless.So, I ran.I stepped out into the freezing downpour and started to trek. By the time I reached the club, I was shivering so hard my teeth were clicking together. My clothes were soaked through, sticking to my skin, and my hair was plastered to my face. I looked like a ghost.I pushed through the club doors, the warm air hitting my cold skin like a slap. I found the VIP section. All of Dave's friends were there, holding drinks and laughing. When they saw me, the music seemed to fade. They looked at me with a bad e

[ NANCY’S POV ]The throbbing in my head was like a hammer hitting the inside of my skull. My skin felt hot, then cold, then hot again. Every joint in my body ached, a deep, bone-weary pain that told me the storm from the other night hadn't just soaked my clothes it had settled into my marrow.I checked the digital clock on the bedside table. 10:15 AM.Panic flared for a second, the old habit of worrying about being late or failing to have his breakfast ready. Then, the realization hit: it didn’t matter. He wasn't here. He hadn't been here all night. I threw the duvet off, my limbs feeling heavy, like they were filled with lead.I needed to go to the hospital. Maria had been calling me, texting me, practically begging me to go in for a check-up for the last two weeks. "You look hollowed out," she’d said. I had laughed it off then, blaming work, blaming the stress of the house. Now, standing in the middle of the room, I knew she was right. My body was finally giving up the fight.I mov

[LYDIA’S POV]From the moment Dave introduced her to me as his wife, I hated her. Even though he told me it was just a contract marriage, the words felt like a slap in the face. I had to stand there and smile while my heart was screaming.I stayed by his side, I supported his business and I was always there when he needed someone. I had worked so hard, played so many games, and spent so much time getting close to Dave. I was sure that any day now, Dave would ask me out and make us official. I was the one who belonged in that house and I was the one who deserved his name.Then, out of nowhere, Nancy appeared.She just walked in and claimed the seat I had been monitoring for years. To Dave, she might just be a "contractual necessity" for his property, but to me, she is a thief. She didn't have to work for it. She didn't have to wait in the shadows like I did. She just signed a piece of paper and suddenly she’s living in his home, sleeping in the room that should be mine, and greeting

I ended up staying in the hospital for about two more days. The doctor insisted that I had to stay in that small, quiet room so they could monitor the baby around the clock. They wanted to run tests, check my ultrasound every few hours, and make absolutely sure that the terrifying bleeding wouldn't start again.The hospital room felt like a cold prison, but it was also a safe place for us. Every few hours, the nurses would quietly come into the room to check my pulse and listen to the baby's heartbeat. Hearing that tiny, soft thump-thump sound through the monitor was the only thing that kept me from crying out loud. It was the sweetest sound in the world. It was proof that my baby was a fighter, holding on tightly just like me. I lay on the hard bed, staring at the plain white ceiling, praying with everything inside me that the danger had passed for good.During those forty-eight hours, the silence in my room was completely deafening. My phone sat on the bedside table, cold, dark, an

[ NANCY’S POV ]The plane finally landed, and the heavy tires hit the runway with a loud bump. I took a deep breath, feeling the air fill my lungs in a way it hadn't in years. I was finally in a different country, far away from the mansion, far away from Dave, and completely safe.As soon as I walked out of the airport terminal, I pulled out my phone and checked the address of the house I had secretly bought a few months ago. It was a small, cozy place in a quiet neighborhood. It wasn't a massive, cold palace like the one I left behind, but it was mine. Just thinking about the small rooms and the comfortable couch made me smile. I felt an incredible wave of happiness wash over me. I was finally free to live my own life and protect the baby growing inside me.While I waited in the long line for a taxi, I looked down at my phone screen again. My fingers hovered over my email app. I opened the drafts folder and stared at the message I had prepared weeks ago. The divorce email was sittin