Chapter 4

In the daze, Mochi had already been carried off.

Panicking, I called Corey.

On the security feed, he pulled out his phone, glanced at it, and hung up.

I called again. He hung up again.

I pounded on the door until my voice went hoarse, and no one came.

I watched Mochi go from a bounding, living thing to a dish set on the dinner table, and the tears fell in heavy drops.

Rita tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, smiling, and bent to pick up a piece of meat.

I caught a glimpse of the earring she wore, and it looked familiar.

I searched the whole internet, then sent Corey a message straight away.

【Corey, you've been deceived! Rita never had leukemia, and she never got married. She was just being kept as some man's mistress.】

【The reason she's back this time is that a wealthy man burned through his fortune on her and gave her a pair of earrings. The amount was so huge his wife found out, and she was nearly beaten to death. That's why she fled back to the country!】

Corey looked down at his phone, and his hand froze.

After a long silence, he replied:

【As long as she's healthy, I'd rather be deceived.】

【And you don't need to be hostile toward her. I won't divorce you. Mercedes, I'll take responsibility for you and the child.】

Tears struck the screen, and I suddenly laughed.

A man who could do that to Mochi. How was I supposed to believe he'd take responsibility?

Watching Rita swallow the dog meat bite by bite, the hatred in me burned like fire.

I wrote out a long post, exposing the truth: that she'd faked her death, gone abroad to be a mistress for money, and after being found out, come back to the country to milk Corey's sympathy.

The signal spun a few times before it finally sent, and the very next second my phone died and shut off.

My attention went back to the room, and the dark pressed in on me.

I curled up in the corner, biting down hard on the back of my hand.

The taste of rust spread through my mouth. I could barely breathe, and the sense of dying grew clearer and clearer.

I don't know how long it was before the door suddenly opened, light pouring in so sharp I couldn't open my eyes.

My voice came out weak.

"Corey, my stomach hurts so much, take me to the hospital..."

His face was livid.

"Your stomach hurts? What are you putting on? Weren't you just fine enough to post that long rant?"

I bit down on the soft flesh of my tongue, forcing the words out. "If I didn't, how would you ever come find me..."

He looked down at me, his face full of rage. "Do you know the whole internet is cursing her right now? Some people even called just to curse her!"

His eyes were full of disappointment. "Mercedes, when did you turn into such a jealous woman? She didn't do anything. Was this really necessary?"

I couldn't take any of it in, clutching my stomach, rolling on the floor from the pain.

"Please, I need to go to the hospital..."

He narrowed his eyes. "Want to go to the hospital? Fine. Kneel and apologize to Rita, and I'll consider it."

Behind him, Rita's voice rose.

"Corey, is this the disobedient servant in the house?"

He slid an arm around her waist.

"Yes. She's the one spreading nonsense online and causing you trouble."

She dabbed at the corner of her eye and said softly, "It's all right. An apology is enough."

Her voice was gentle, but I caught a flicker of venom in her eyes.

Corey kicked me, his voice cold. "Stop playing dead. Apologize."

My knees hit the floor. I clenched my fists hard and forced myself upright. "Is that enough?"

He didn't nod. "Slap yourself. Keep going until Rita says stop."

The first slap left my palm numb.

The second set my eardrum ringing.

The third, my nail split the corner of my mouth, and warm liquid ran down my jaw.

The fourth, the fifth, the sixth...

Rita said softly: "That's enough. She's pretty pitiful too."

"If she'd just been this obedient from the start, none of this would've happened."

Corey crouched down and murmured low in my ear: "All right, stop pretending. Since your attitude about admitting fault isn't bad, I'll allow you to go to the hospital and finish the prenatal checkup you didn't get done."

He stood and turned away with his arm around Rita.

My lower belly seized in wave after wave. In despair I reached my hand toward him, my breath barely there.

"Come back, Corey, save the baby..."

His back never paused, fading slowly away.

My hand slowly dropped.

The movement inside me grew fainter.

Until it turned into a warm pool of blood.

Consciousness disappeared completely.

...

In the end, Corey settled Rita into the villa in the eastern suburbs.

It was a thought that came to him out of nowhere.

For some reason there was an uneasiness in him he couldn't explain.

She was a little reluctant, saying she was scared to live alone.

Corey patted her head. "Don't be scared. Call me if anything comes up."

He found an excuse. "My wife cut her trip short and came back early. It wouldn't be right for her to see you."

He rushed home, and the bloodstains in the basement stung his eyes.

Marlene was wiping away tears.

"The mistress had a miscarriage. She's been taken to the hospital."