A Toast to My Demise

"Let's have the baby delivered early tomorrow so that they can save their aunt."

"No!" My eyes reddened. I wanted to try one last time to fight for myself and my child.

But Luke's next words made my blood run cold. "Even if you don't agree, you have to." His grip on my hand tightened, his voice turning cold. "I don't want to get rough with a woman."

The pain in my wrist made my eyes sting. Hot tears streamed down my cheeks as I let out a bitter laugh. Once again, my heart was shattered beyond repair.

"Fine." I gave in. "Then just give me one more day. Let me take the baby to the beach for a walk. I'll come back tomorrow and do whatever you say."

I collapsed to the floor, clutching Luke's thigh in desperation.

"Luke… at least let me say goodbye to my baby," I whispered.

He sighed in relief, then nodded after a moment of thought. "You've finally come to your senses."

A flicker of guilt crossed his face. "Once the baby's born, I'll love them with all my heart."

He would love the child? In my previous life, he drained two tubes of blood from my newborn, leaving him so weak that he died.

I couldn't even imagine the pain my child had to endure. And now, he had the audacity to speak of my child like that?

Satisfied with my response, they finally left. I staggered to my feet in silence, closed the door, and stroked my belly.

I grinned. Since they thought I had stolen everything meant for Yvonne, I should return it all to them.

The next day, they came as promised. But just as they stepped into my small rental, Luke's phone rang. It was a video call.

The moment the line connected, he saw me—my clothes disheveled and my face covered in horrifying bruises. I was tied up with a rag stuffed in my mouth, staring into the camera as I struggled violently.

"Luke, see this? Your ex-wife is in my hands. If you want her alive, prepare 50 million dollars."

The stranger beside me pressed a knife to my neck.

His words dropped like a bomb in the otherwise silent living room. "And you'd better hurry. Don't even think about calling the cops. If you do, you can only expect to collect her corpse."

Luke's expression darkened.

Beside him, Yvonne covered her mouth in shock. Tears pooled in her eyes as she whimpered, "Luke, let's go save my sister. I know she won't refuse to save me on purpose. She must have her reasons!"

His expression grew worse. "Whitney, enough! Do you want Yvie to die that badly? To think you'd even stoop to this kind of trick to avoid saving her."

Mom and Dad had hesitated. But as soon as they heard Luke and Yvonne, their expressions hardened.

"I knew it," Dad said through gritted teeth. "That brat… Why would she ask for a walk out of nowhere? Of course, she was up to something."

"That wretched thing!" Mom cried out. "She's so cruel. What's going to happen to our dear Yvie?"

Even though I had long since stopped expecting anything from her, her words still pierced through my heart like a blade.

Just then, the kidnapper suddenly yanked the rag from my mouth. I coughed hard for a long moment before I could lift my head to the camera.

"I should never have expected anything from you guys," I wheezed, forcing a smile. "You want to use me and my baby to save Yvonne? This time, I want to see how you'll do it. Listen up—I don't ever want to see you again. From this moment on, I'll cut all ties with you all!"

With that, I lunged toward the dagger in the kidnapper's hand. The blade slashed across my throat, blood splattering onto the camera.

The video cut off.