Chapter 1
I was with Silas Scott for nine years and had ten abortions because of him.
Every time, he’d get on his knees and apologize, but then turn around and sleep with someone else.
I forgave him countless times until I caught him kissing his new assistant.
Seeing me come over, he was drunk and sneered at me. “Perfect timing. Come take care of Sienna Sullivan. She’s pregnant with my child.”
The assistant laughed. “Silas, she just had a miscarriage. Don’t joke like that.”
But Silas just brushed it off with a laugh. “So what? She’s been pregnant with my kids ten times already. Didn’t she get rid of them all like a good girl?
“A woman like her? If I hadn’t settled for her, who else would even want her?”
Numb from the pain, I said nothing and turned to leave.
But Silas grabbed my arm and, blaming me for upsetting his assistant and asked me to drop to my knees to apologize to her.
I turned back and slapped him without hesitation, then smiled. “Silas, I want a divorce.”
***
As I walked away, one of his friends spoke up.
“Silas, your wife’s upset. Go calm her down. She always listens to you.”
Sienna, still in his arms, said weakly, “She must be mad because I’m having your baby. Maybe I should apologize?”
“Sienna, you’re just too kind. Her parents are gone, besides being with me, where else can she go?”
Behind me, Silas raised his voice in warning. “Thalia Lewis, if you take one step out that door, don’t even think about coming back.”
I took a deep breath. Even though I thought I was numb, his cruelty, now that he’d dropped the act, still cut me deeply.
I turned around and walked back towards him.
He scoffed. “See? She wouldn’t dare.
“Sienna’s pregnant and still has to worry about your tantrum. You’re unbelievable. Get over here and apologize to her on your knees,” he snapped.
I stared at him coldly. “I want a divorce.”
He raised an eyebrow and smirked. “In such a rush to leave me? What? Your lover can’t wait any longer?”
I just felt it was ridiculous. He had his lover in his arms, yet he blamed my coldness on my being restless.
“Fine, but before the divorce, let’s settle what you owe me.” He stormed over and yanked my hand.
“I put the ring on you myself.” He pulled the ring off my finger.
The sharp diamond sliced deep, leaving a gash so deep that the bone showed.
“I designed these earrings for you.” He grabbed and tore them from my ear in one swift motion.
Blood dripped from my torn ear onto my shirt.
“And this shirt,” he said, ripping it off despite my struggle.
“Even your underwear used to be my favorite,” he sneered, gripping my wrist. “What a slut. Talking about divorce while showing up in this just to tempt me?”
Around us, people whispered and snickered, their laughter vile.
I shoved him away, clutching my chest, tears falling. “That’s enough, Silas!”
He sneered. “Enough? I’m just getting started.
“I owe you, and I should pay you back,” he said as he twisted open a bottle of liquor and poured it over my head.
The freezing liquid soaked through me, making me shiver.
“I’ve played with your body so much that it’s ruined. Consider it sterilized now,” he sneered, eyes full of contempt.
His buddies burst into laughter.
I reached for my coat to cover myself, but Silas snatched it first, then gently draped it over Sienna.
“It’s cold outside. Can’t let my big baby and little baby get cold.”
He gently stroked Sienna’s belly, making her giggle sweetly.
Then he scooped her into his arms and walked away. As he passed me, he tossed out a casual threat like it meant nothing.
“Don’t forget the contract we signed when we got married in the Netherlands.
“Unless we both agree, you’ll never leave me.”
The cold wind bit into my bare skin, but it was nothing compared to the chill in my heart.
“I’ll give you a chance. Be home by midnight, and I’ll agree to the divorce.”
The car door slammed shut with a thud, leaving a cloud of dust in its wake.
His friends kept shouting.
“Come spend the night with me, and I’ll take you home right after.”
“Silas even posted about it on social media. Anyone who dares take her home will be blacklisted from the city. Don’t be a fool, boy. Don’t let your lust cost you everything.”
I closed my eyes, smiled bitterly.
I just came off the operating table an hour ago.
On the instrument tray, the fetus was already formed. Looking at it, I couldn’t help but cry uncontrollably.
Silas’s friend sent me a message, “Silas has been drinking all day. No one can stop him.”
I worried that he was drowning his sorrows over losing the baby, so I ignored the nurse’s advice and was discharged from the hospital to go find him.
But when I got there, I realized he wasn’t mourning the loss of our child. He was celebrating because his lover was pregnant.
“I’m sorry, we really couldn’t stop him,” one of his friends said, looking guilty. He took off his coat and draped it over my shoulders.
“At first, Silas was willing to risk everything to win you over, even his life. Now look at him,” his friend said, his eyes full of disappointment and sympathy.
I felt a wave of dizziness. Back then, among all the men who pursued me, Silas was the one I least wanted to get involved with.
He was young, reckless, bold, and persistent.
I knew that kind of love was a double-edged sword—he could love me with everything, but one day, he would use that same intensity to hurt me.
That day, I got into a car accident.
Amidst the thick smoke and flames, he rushed in without a second thought.
He smashed the car window, covered in blood, desperate to pull me out.
My leg was pinned under the twisted seat, and the car was on the verge of exploding. I pushed him away.
“Go away! If you stay, we both die.”
He cried out my name.
“I don’t care. If I die, I’ll have my buddies bury us together and spread the word that I died for you.”
I looked at his usually defiant face, now streaked with tears in the black smoke, and suddenly, I wasn’t afraid anymore.
I said, “Let’s get married.”
