When Love Descends Into Darkness

That thought crept into my mind again. I blinked against the burning sting in my eyes, despair written all over my face.

"Then let's just get rid of our baby," I said.

"No way!" Caleb rejected the idea immediately. His tone even carried a hint of reprimand. "Stop being so stubborn. Yvie and her baby are innocent. Why are you being so demanding?"

"But my baby and I are innocent too! Have you even thought about what kind of life they'll face once they're born?"

"I'll take care of it. How many times do I have to say it? Natalie, you never fail to disappoint me." With that, Caleb turned and walked out after slamming the door shut.

The following day, I woke up to find a dozen bodyguards stationed around the room.

My phone and laptop were gone, completely cutting me off from the world. I wasn't even allowed to leave the house.

Caleb was afraid I would abort the baby. But the irony was, he already had a child—at least in name.

I was trapped and locked away until my belly swelled and the so-called "safe period" of three months passed.

That day, chaos erupted from downstairs. Yvette's family had arrived with a moving crew.

Patricia shot me a disdainful glare the moment she saw me. "You're carrying a bastard and still have the audacity to stay here. How shameless."

"Yvette is just too kind for her own good. Because of her, Caleb has suffered enough," Albert added. He turned his gaze toward me. It was filled with nothing but contempt.

"Enough. There's no need to waste our words on a shameless woman like her. Just help Yvette settle in."

I found it laughable. The Grant family was so righteous and strict about morals. And yet, Yvette was carrying someone's husband's baby, and suddenly, shame didn't seem to matter anymore.

Meanwhile, the movers hauled bag after bag upstairs.

Yvette lingered near me with a smug smirk. "So what if you're Caleb's wife? It's just a title. You and that baby are nothing compared to me. And soon, it'll be me, Caleb, and our baby. We'll be a real family."

Her words cut deep. My hand flew across her face with a sharp crack.

But even that wasn't enough. I grabbed her hair and yanked her violently as my palm struck her again and again.

Yvette shrieked in pain until Caleb rushed home and pulled me off her.

I wanted nothing but to kill her. After all, a person who had already lost all hope was capable of doing anything.

Yvette sobbed uncontrollably, drawing Patricia and Albert into the room.

Patricia raised her hand and slapped me hard across the face. Caleb moved as if to stop her, but he pulled Yvette into his arms after seeing her tears.

"Caleb, this woman is getting out of control! She's carrying another man's baby, yet you still refuse to divorce her. And now, she's even hitting Yvie! If you don't throw her out, I'll take Yvie home with me. And then the Lawson family will have no rightful heir!"

Yvette lifted her head and shot me a triumphant smile.

However, Caleb didn't do as Patricia demanded. Instead, he released Yvette and walked over to stand beside me.

"Natalie is my wife. I won't let her leave. Yvie can stay here, too, but I don't want to hear such words again. They are both my children. They are equally important to me," he said.

Caleb didn't abandon me, but he didn't tell the truth either. Instead, he let me bear the shame and allowed them to humiliate me.

For Yvette's "peace of mind", Caleb wanted me to compromise.

And so, my bright, sunlit bedroom was taken from me. I was moved to a storage room in the basement.

"It's just a different place to sleep. Nothing else will change. You'll still get your meals on time," Caleb said.

But none of that mattered to me anymore.

To Caleb, neither I nor this baby truly mattered. I had already made my decision—I wasn't going to keep this baby. I wouldn't bring them into this world just to suffer.