A Bloody Gingerbread for Christmas

I recognized it instantly. The voice was close to Sophie's, but it wasn't her.

Something was terribly wrong with those voice messages.

I focused on Liam, speaking slowly. "Liam, that voice… it sounds off. Listen to it again. Doesn't that sound different from Sophie's?"

But Liam refused to listen.

He frowned impatiently. "Olivia, what are you trying to pull now? Are you still going to lie?"

I took a deep breath, struggling to control my roiling emotions. "I'm not lying! Please, just believe me! Sophie is really…"

Before I could finish, Chloe interjected sharply, "Olivia, have you no shame? Your lies have been exposed, and you're still here making a scene. What more do you want? Do you take Liam for an idiot?"

Liam and Chloe stormed out of the room.

The slam of the door echoed like a final, mocking laugh.

I collapsed onto the cold floor, staring blankly at the ceiling as despair settled over me like a shroud.

Liam had changed so much I barely recognized the man I married.

He would rather believe an outsider, a homewrecker, than his own wife.

Had he ever truly cared about me? About Sophie?

I slowly pushed myself to my feet and walked to Sophie's closet.

With trembling hands, I opened the doors, revealing her neatly folded clothes.

I gently ran my fingers over each item, as if I could still feel Sophie's warmth, and fresh tears blurred my vision.

Then, I packed all of Sophie's things—her clothes, her toys, her picture books, everything she had ever loved—into her little suitcase.

I was determined to take her things—all that was left of her—and get away from this cold, heartless house.

As I dragged the heavy suitcase out of the room, I found Chloe alone in the living room.

She was lounging on the sofa, casually flipping through a magazine.

She set the magazine down when she saw me, a mocking smile playing on her lips.

I tried to push past her, wanting only to escape that suffocating house.

To my surprise, Chloe stood up, blocking my path.

She crossed her arms, looking down at me with a condescending gaze.

"Leaving so soon? I thought you'd be shameless enough to stick around," Chloe taunted.

I stared at her, saying nothing.

"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" Chloe gloated at my silence. "I told you a long time ago, you don't deserve Liam. Look at you, so pitiful and pathetic."

I took a deep breath, banking the fires of my anger, refusing to engage.

But Chloe was relentless.

She continued, "By the way, Liam loves me now. There's only room in his heart for me and Mason. You'd be wise to disappear from our lives for good."

"Liam has been so good to me lately, you know?"

Chloe went on, her tone turning sharp and cruel. "He just had this diamond necklace custom-made for me at a high-end jeweler in SoHo. Look!"

She raised a hand to show off the sparkling diamonds at her throat.

Then, she smirked and pointed to the simple bracelet on my wrist.

"Did you really think Liam designed that specially for you? It was just an off-the-shelf piece he grabbed when he went to pick up my necklace. You only deserve what's off-the-shelf!"