Chapter 2

She had morning sickness.

She demanded that I stand beside her holding a basin while she dry-heaved.

Vomit splashed onto my hands, reeking of sour, acidic bile.

She leaned back against the cushions, looking frail, though a smug glint danced in her eyes.

"I got Emma's hands dirty. I'm so sorry."

I cleaned up the mess with a blank face, entirely unbothered.

When she walked around, she complained of swollen feet.

I sat down and massaged them without a word.

An hour at a time, until both my hands went completely numb.

I endured it all.

Yet, she soon grew bored of small tricks.

Not only did she torment me when Liam was gone, but she also started framing me whenever he was around.

As I handed her prenatal vitamins to her, she suddenly took a dramatic fall.

A complete fake.

The scalding liquid splashed all over my hands, instantly blistering my skin.

The sharp, burning agony made my hands shake, and the bowl shattered across the floor.

"Olivia!"

Liam rushed over like a madman, scooping up Olivia—who had barely twisted her ankle—and roared at me:

"Can you really not stand her existence?! She was just walking, and you still tried to hurt her?!"

I looked down at my scalded hands, red and covered in agonizing blisters.

Liam didn't spare me a single glance.

"Liam..." Olivia whimpered against his chest. "Don't blame Emma. It was my own fault for being clumsy."

"Stop defending her!" Liam snapped, his jaw clenched tight. "She did it on purpose!"

The pain cut deep into my nerves, but I merely watched them in silence. My heart had gone completely numb.

I had known long ago this was who he was.

"Could it be that her necklace brings bad luck? I heard that pregnant wolves shouldn't be around bad omens," Olivia whispered, pointing at the ruby pendant around my neck.

"Take that thing off," Liam ordered, his tone devoid of any warmth.

That necklace was a gift from Liam for my sixteenth birthday.

It used to be my most prized possession.

Before I could answer, he reached out and snatched it.

The delicate silver chain dug into my skin, searing with pain.

*Snap.* The chain broke.

Without a second glance, he tossed it straight into the roaring fireplace.

The flames swallowed the ruby whole in an instant.

So everything I had ever cherished meant nothing more than trash to him.

How truly pathetic.

"We're going to try on mate ceremony outfits later. You're coming with us," Liam commanded from the stairs, his arm draped around Olivia.

On the drive to the bridal boutique, Olivia suddenly clutched her belly and claimed she was starving.

"I'm craving that wild mushroom cream soup from that old diner downtown. I heard it's divine," she purred, leaning against Liam's arm. "Too bad we have to try on clothes."

Liam caught her hint immediately and turned to me. "Go buy it."

Olivia smiled innocently. "Emma, make sure it's piping hot, straight out of the pot. Thank you so much."

I glanced outside at the torrential downpour and frowned.

Liam stared at me coldly. "What? You can't even do a simple favor?"

I shook my head silently, but Liam shoved me out of the car anyway.

In a storm like this, cabs were nearly impossible to catch. I stood in the pouring rain for half an hour before finally hailing one.

By the time I reached the diner, I was soaked to the bone.

"I'm so sorry, we just ran out of cream soup. A fresh batch will take about an hour," the clerk apologized.

I waited.

I didn't want another pointless fight over something so trivial.

An hour later, I held the piping hot container and ran back through the storm.

When I stumbled back into the boutique, dripping wet and exhausted, Liam and Olivia were waiting comfortably in the lounge.

Seeing my wretched state, Liam only frowned.

"What took you so long?"

"It was storming. Traffic was backed up," I said flatly, holding out the container with trembling hands.

The second Olivia took it, she deliberately flipped her wrist, dumping the boiling soup directly over herself—

"Ahhh!"