My husband Alexander Lockridge—the city’s top financier—was drugged and slept with a college student. When he sobered, he called me, panicked: "Ali, I was set up. I paid her off—she’ll never contact us again." I believed him. Six months later, an earthquake hit during his business trip. At the hospital, I found him outside a patient’s room. The doctor said Sophia Bennett was three months pregnant. She’d dug through rubble with bloodied hands to save Alex. Alex gripped my hand, pleading: "Her family died three months ago. She came to me for help. I was drunk—I never thought…" He added quickly: "She’ll never enter our home. Your place is secure." Suddenly, Sophia rushed out, collapsing at my feet: "Please, let my baby live!" Alex looked at me desperately: "Ali, you’re always reasonable. The child is innocent—" I laughed coldly: "Alexander, choose: divorce or she leaves." "I won’t divorce you!" His grip tightened. "But I must take responsibility." Later, Sophia bore twins. The Lockridges celebrated. I slid off my wedding ring and dialed a number: "I accept your offer." A voice chuckled: "Mrs. Lockridge, a pleasure doing business." I stood at the door of the hospital room, my fingers clenching involuntarily. Through the half-open crack, I saw Mr. and Mrs. Lockridge each holding a baby, their faces beaming with undisguised joy. Even Alexander, usually so reserved and composed in public, was now gazing at the infant in his arms with a tenderness I’d never witnessed before, a doting smile playing on his lips. How ironic. They looked, in that moment, like a perfectly harmonious family. Alex looked up and saw me, his expression freezing. “Ali, you came back…” I didn’t respond. Mrs. Lockridge cast a cold, sidelong glance in my direction, her voice like shards of ice. “So you did decide to return? Have you had enough of your ‘peaceful’ retreat in the mountains these past six months?” “It’s good that you’re back,” Mr. Lockridge interjected, attempting to smooth things over, though his eyes never left the babies in his arms. “Perfect timing for the babies’ naming ceremony. As Mrs. Lockridge, you should certainly contribute.” Mrs. Lockridge’s expression softened slightly. “The children haven’t been given their official names yet. You and Alex should think of some. Don’t worry, as long as you behave, the position of Mrs. Lockridge will always be yours.” I looked at them, numb, and nodded. “Okay.” As the elder Lockridges left, Alex’s phone rang. He glanced at me, then stepped out to take the call. Only Sophia and I remained in the room. Her complexion was radiant, and even her hair seemed to gleam with meticulous care. Clearly, the Lockridge family had spared no expense on her these past six months. “Sister,” she whispered, her voice timid. “If I’ve done anything wrong, you can hit me, scold me, whatever you want. Just… please don’t argue with Mr. Lockridge anymore. You know he only has eyes for you. You’ve been gone so long, and he’s had your room cleaned every single day.” “Sophia,” I said, my voice cold and flat. “You don’t have to keep up this act. The money he gave you back then was enough to live lavishly for lifetimes. You could have disappeared, gone far away. But you came back, claiming you needed help, and that’s how these children came to be.” I leaned closer, my gaze unwavering. “Sophia, you know exactly what game you’re playing.” Caught off guard, her face flushed, then paled. Suddenly, she snatched one of the babies and thrust it into my arms. The warm, milky scent made my entire body stiffen. But the very next second, the baby slipped from my grasp, falling heavily to the floor with a heart-wrenching scream. Amidst the piercing wails, Alex burst in, shoving me aside with a violent push. I staggered backward, watching him tenderly scoop up the crying infant. He looked at me, his eyes filled with an unsettling blend of emotions. Though he said nothing, his gaze spoke volumes. Sophia, now dissolved in tears, whimpered, “Mr. Lockridge, I only wanted Madam to hold the baby, but she…” 2 Alex’s voice was chilling. “Ali, Sophia is being discharged tomorrow. Since you can’t tolerate the children, you should move to the Westwood Estate for now…” I bit down hard on my lower lip, tasting the metallic tang of blood before I finally released it. I hadn’t brought much luggage with me to the retreat anyway; now, it was even simpler. A single suitcase held everything. I sat in the empty, echoing house, from dusk until dawn. Perhaps it was for the best. At least I wouldn’t have to witness their picture-perfect family of four, basking in their fabricated happiness. Memories surged like a tide. Alex and I, childhood sweethearts, married for eight years. We were the city’s most admired power couple. That time, he’d been drugged by a business rival, and it led to a one-night stand with a university student. The moment he came to, he called me, his voice trembling. “Ali, I was set up! I’ve already paid her to keep quiet, she’ll never appear again!” I believed him. But it wasn’t long before this woman, Sophia, reappeared. Her parents had died unexpectedly, and she’d sought out Alex, who was drunk after a business dinner. This was the second time. The first was an accident, but what about the second? Then, Alex went on a business trip to a remote country overseas and was caught in an earthquake. It was Sophia, pregnant, who supposedly dug him out of the rubble with her bare hands. A life debt, compounded by the child in her belly—Alex could no longer shake her off. He knelt before me, weeping uncontrollably. That’s when I laid down my terms. “Alexander, either we divorce.” “Or she leaves.” “I won’t divorce you!” Alex cried, his eyes red-rimmed as he seized my hands. “But I have to take responsibility for her…” He refused to divorce me, yet he also refused to let Sophia go. So, I left, retreating to St. Jude’s for a quiet period of reflection. I stayed there until Sophia gave birth, and Mr. and Mrs. Lockridge insisted I return. I pulled out my phone in the darkness, and sent the message I should have sent long ago. “Let’s divorce.” Less than ten minutes later, I heard urgent footsteps and the sound of the front door being thrown open. Alex rushed in, sweat beading on his forehead. “Ali! I won’t agree to a divorce!” I sat calmly on the sofa, letting out a soft sigh. “Just… let it go, Alex. I’m tired.” “I told you she would never come between us!” His voice trembled with desperation. Just then, his phone rang. Sophia’s tearful voice carried faintly from the receiver. “Mr. Lockridge! The baby fell and was scared, and now has a fever! The doctor says they might have to go to the ICU!” Alex’s expression shifted instantly. He looked at me, then at his phone, before finally uttering with great difficulty, “Ali, I… I have to go see them…” I watched his hurried retreat, his back disappearing in a frantic blur, and then I laughed, a bitter, hollow sound. This was my marriage, wasn’t it? Even divorce had to take a backseat to another woman and her children. 3 I curled my lips into a self-deprecating smile. “Go on, then. Your child needs you.” He left in a rush, the faint breeze stirred by his departure brushing past my cheek, as if he had never been there at all. I sat alone in the darkness, tears silently tracing paths down my face. I knew. He might never marry Sophia, but he would be called away, again and again. How much longer could I endure this life if I didn’t divorce him? An entire lifetime? A familiar, gnawing pain twisted in my stomach. I opened my phone. Sophia’s social media feed showed Alex standing vigil by the incubator, day and night. His face in the photos was gaunt, etched with a tension I had never seen directed at me. I contacted a lawyer to draft the divorce papers, then went to my company to process my resignation. The HR manager looked surprised. “Madam, does Mr. Lockridge know you’re leaving?” I offered a faint smile. “He’s a little preoccupied right now.” As I saw the flicker of pity in the HR manager’s eyes, I knew exactly what she was thinking. I returned to the Westwood Estate, a villa we had only occasionally used after our marriage. As I packed my belongings, I stumbled upon a yellowed note. “Ali, I don’t know when you’ll read this. By then, I imagine we’ll have several children. I love you so much. No matter what happens, promise you’ll never leave me.” Tears splattered onto the paper, and a sudden, excruciating pain shot through my stomach. My vision blurred, and I collapsed heavily onto the floor. When I woke again, my phone was ringing, its sound an irritating buzz. “Alice Reed! What exactly do you want?!” Alex’s furious roar erupted from the receiver. He rarely used my full name like that. “Sophia is already trying her best to be careful! How many times have I told you, she won’t affect your position! Why are you sending those malicious texts? Why are you cursing my children?!” I gave a bitter laugh. He didn’t even ask if I did it. He just condemned me. “Are you finished?” I asked calmly. He paused for a few seconds. “The baby’s naming ceremony is next Sunday. You must be there. Please, stop throwing tantrums, okay?” “Okay.” I hung up, gazing out at the night sky. On the day of the naming ceremony, I arrived bare-faced. People cast sympathetic glances my way, while in the center of the ballroom, Sophia, in a crimson gown, leaned against Alex, looking every inch the true hostess. Mrs. Lockridge urged me, “Go hold the baby.” Alex handed me one of the infants, whispering, “Ali, I won’t hold the texts against you. After today, I’ll send Sophia abroad, and both children will be registered under your name. Since you can’t have children, isn’t this a win-win?” His voice was full of pleading, and my heart clenched painfully. Years ago, during an avalanche, I was injured saving him, my uterus severely damaged. He had once defied his parents for me, vowing never to have children of his own. Now, everything had changed. Suddenly, the child in my arms began to cough violently, frothing at the mouth. “What’s wrong with the baby?!” Someone shrieked. 4 Sophia suddenly threw herself forward, her voice piercingly sharp. “Madam! If you want to kill someone, kill me, but don’t harm the baby!” Slap! Mr. Lockridge’s hand came down hard across my face. My vision swam, and I stumbled backward, crashing to the floor. My cheek stung with a fiery pain, and I tasted blood in my mouth. Alex instinctively reached out to steady me. But then the baby in his arms suddenly let out a strangled cry and vomited a large mouthful of blood. The scene instantly descended into chaos. “Mr. Lockridge!” Sophia shrieked, a desperate, guttural sound, as she lunged forward, physically forcing herself between us. “My baby is dying! Please, save our child!” Alex’s hand trembled violently. I watched the tenderness in his eyes drain away, little by little, until he slowly released my hand and turned, scooping up the bleeding child. The hospital corridor was chillingly cold. I stood there like a ghost, the divorce papers I’d prepared slipping from my pocket and fluttering to the floor. Mrs. Lockridge, sharp-eyed, bent down, picked them up, and roughly tossed them back at me. Her perfectly preserved face was twisted with disgust. “How has the Lockridge family ever wronged you all these years, hm? Alex defied us for you, and we tolerated it! Now you’re even harming the children?” Her voice rose, shrill and accusing. “Since you want a divorce so badly, then just get it! Stop dragging your feet and clinging on!” I silently picked up the scattered papers from the floor. Alex emerged from the ICU, his eyes bloodshot. “The baby is stable.” He looked at me, his gaze terrifyingly unfamiliar. “Ali, this time, you’ve truly gone too far.” My hand trembling, I held out the divorce papers. “We… we’re done.” His pupils constricted sharply. “Are you sure?” “I’m tired,” I choked back the tears. “I don’t know what else I might do…” “Fine! Very well!” He snatched the agreement, signed it furiously, and slammed the pen onto the floor. “As you wish!” Back in what used to be our marital home, Martha, our housekeeper, rushed to meet me, her face distraught. “Madam! How…?” She saw my swollen face and soaked clothes, and her voice caught in her throat. I looked around. My piano was gone, our wedding photos had disappeared, and even the cherished decorative pieces I’d collected were nowhere to be seen. Martha wrung her hands, stammering, “Miss Sophia… she often bumped into things while she was pregnant, so Mr. Lockridge had…” The door suddenly opened. Alex walked in, Sophia by his side. Sophia feigned surprise. “Madam, what are you doing here?” Her tone suggested she was the lady of the house. “Where are my things?” My voice trembled as I looked at Alex. Alex scoffed, pulling Sophia closer to his side. “You’re getting a divorce. Why do you care about these things anymore?” Sophia reached out, pretending to take my hand. “Madam, Mr. Lockridge was just worried I might get hurt while I was pregnant…” “Don’t touch me!” I snapped, violently shaking her hand away. She gasped, stumbling backward. Alex quickly caught her, his voice tight with concern. “Are you alright?” I watched their intimate exchange, then turned abruptly and walked away. Even though I heard Alex calling my name behind me, I didn’t look back. I didn’t want them to see me, tear-streaked and humiliated. Outside, the rain poured down in sheets. I walked for what felt like an eternity, until I was cornered by a few thugs in a dark alley. “Mrs. Lockridge, is it? Someone paid us to teach you a lesson.” A scarred man leered, advancing on me. “The finance titan’s wife, you’re certainly attractive. A bit small-chested, but that face is young enough!” I instinctively dialed Alex’s number. From the other end, I heard his gentle cooing voice. “Sophia, if your head hurts, just go to sleep.” “Alex! Help…” “I don’t want to talk to you right now.” The call was mercilessly cut off. When I tried again, his phone was off. Icy rainwater mixed with tears, flowing into the corners of my mouth, salty and bitter. “No one’s coming here. Be a good girl and have some fun with us!” The thug’s grubby hand reached for my collar, his rough fingers scraping across my collarbone. I squeezed my eyes shut, my nails digging deep into my palms.
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