The day before my wedding, my twin sister and I were kidnapped. Damian and my parents paid the ransom—but only for her. While Anna stepped into my wedding dress, my womb was carved out on a backstreet. I became Byrd Heights' laughingstock: the barren woman. Damian Byrd married me when everyone abandoned me. For three years, he cherished me—until I found the video. There he was, scalpel in hand, murmuring to Anna: "Annelise is your perfect match." The footage showed him cutting into me—without anesthesia—as I screamed. 1 Watching the screen, the phantom agony of being torn apart ripped through me anew. I clamped a hand over my mouth, tears streaming down my face as the truth crashed over me, threatening to pull me into darkness. The kidnapping… it was all orchestrated by him. By Damian. For Anna. But if he’d already taken what he wanted, why the charade? Why the loving husband act, the years of tender care that made me believe this monster was my only salvation? My heart fractured. Just then, a new message popped up on Damian’s still-open chat window. It was a voice note from a colleague at the hospital. “Damian, listen to me. The amount of blood you’ve drawn from Annelise this month is dangerously high. You can’t keep doing this.” A second message followed immediately. “First, you took her womb. Now you’re draining her dry, month after month. She’s getting weaker, man. I don’t get it. I thought you married her to atone, to make things right. Why are you hurting her even more?” Damian’s typed reply appeared on the right. “I only married Annelise to keep her close—a convenient blood bag to help Anna’s body accept the transplant.” He sent another message, a bitter, self-mocking confession. “And if I couldn’t marry the woman I truly wanted, at least I could have someone with her face. In a way, I got my wish. I wake up next to Anna every single day.” A final, chilling text. “Stop worrying. Anna is due any day now, and she’ll need the blood. I’m dropping off another few bags from Annelise tomorrow.” His colleague frantically replied. “Are you insane?! You just drew blood two days ago! Do you even care if your wife lives or dies!?” But Damian didn’t answer. My tears had run dry, leaving a hollow ache in their wake. So that was the real reason. Not just to rob me of my future as a mother, but to drain the very life from my veins, all for Anna. My god, Damian. You truly love my sister to death. The sound of the front door opening echoed through the house. I scrambled into the bathroom, splashing cold water on my face until the redness faded, trying to compose myself. I walked out, feigning calm. But Damian missed nothing. His eyes instantly found the lingering flush around mine. “Annie,” he said, his voice thick with concern. He swept me off my feet and carried me to the sofa, his large hand resting on my lower abdomen, massaging the scarred skin with practiced gentleness. “Baby, were you crying? Is the pain back?” He leaned in, his voice a low whisper. “You have to tell me when it hurts. Don’t suffer alone. It kills me to see you in pain.” Kills you? I wanted to laugh. You’re the one holding the knife. I couldn’t stand to look at his hypocritical face. With a gesture, he summoned a team of private chefs who filed in carrying baskets brimming with iron-rich foods. This was his monthly ritual. After every “check-up” where he drew my blood, he would arrange this lavish, restorative feast. I used to think it was a sign of his devotion. Now I knew the truth. He was just fattening the lamb for slaughter. Keeping me healthy enough to produce more blood for Anna’s every need. A bitter smile touched my lips. “I don’t want to eat this anymore.” I looked at him, my voice trembling slightly. “And all these check-ups… the tests always come back normal. Damian, can we please stop with the blood draws?” A frown creased his brow. He cupped my face, his thumb stroking my cheek in a gesture I once found intoxicating. “Baby, your body is fragile after what you went through. We can’t take any risks. We have a whole lifetime ahead of us. You have no idea how much you mean to me. I won't let anything happen to you.” His words, once a balm to my soul, now felt like poison, each syllable a reminder of the lie I was living. As he was about to feed me the first spoonful, his phone rang. He answered, his entire demeanor shifting. His eyes lit up. “Baby, something’s come up at the hospital. I have to go,” he said, his voice buzzing with excitement. “Be a good girl and eat everything. I’ll be checking when I get back.” I nodded numbly. The moment he was gone, I scraped the entire feast into the trash. I went to his study to copy the video file, but my phone buzzed with a notification. A new post from Anna. The caption read: What’s it like having a childhood sweetheart who would do anything for you? Thank you, Damian, for booking the entire hospital wing for me and hiring the most exclusive postnatal care agency in the country. It’s so wonderful having you by my side for every important moment.~ The photo showed Damian, tears in his eyes, cradling Anna’s newborn child. Around the baby’s neck was the Byrd family heirloom, a priceless diamond locket. My hand trembled, and I accidentally clicked open another hidden folder on the desktop. A legal document filled the screen. A lifelong trust agreement. I, Damian Byrd, do willingly bequeath ninety percent of my personal assets, managed in a rolling annual trust, to Anna Thorne and her descendants. I wiped away a fresh tear, a hollow laugh escaping my lips. So this is what it looked like when Damian truly loved someone. Even when she bore another man’s child, he would lay his entire fortune at her feet. Fine. If that’s what he wants, I’ll give it to him. I will disappear from his life so completely it will be as if I never existed. 2 After printing a copy of the divorce papers and arranging for a "special service" for the following day, I went straight to the hospital where Anna had given birth. Her room was crowded with friends and relatives, all cooing over the baby. Anna, radiant and smug, was being spoon-fed broth by Damian himself. The moment he saw me, a flicker of panic crossed his face. He rushed over, pulling me aside. “Annie, don’t misunderstand,” he whispered urgently. “Anna’s husband is stuck overseas, and she’s practically my sister. We grew up together.” He lowered his voice even more. “I know you haven’t forgiven your parents and don’t want anything to do with them, but Anna and the baby… they’re innocent in all this.” Innocent. He knew better than anyone that was a lie. I was about to tell him about the divorce, but Anna suddenly shrieked from the bed. Clutching her baby, she scrambled to her knees on the floor, bowing her head toward me in a grotesque display of fear. “Annelise! I know what my parents and I did was wrong! I’m so sorry! But please, I’m begging you, don’t hurt my child!” she wailed. “Curse me, do whatever you want to me, but he’s just a baby! He can’t take it!” Confused, I looked at her as she shakily held up her phone. On the screen was a chat history between us. My profile picture was next to a stream of gruesome, bloody images of infants and drawings of voodoo dolls, sent to her consistently throughout her pregnancy. But I hadn’t spoken a single word to her since the day my family abandoned me. “You monster!” my father roared, lunging forward and slapping me hard across the face. My mother’s eyes burned with pure hatred. The room erupted. “I knew it! A broken woman like her is bound to be psychologically twisted! How could she be so evil to her own pregnant sister?” “Exactly! A creature like that deserved to have her womb cut out! Damian Byrd must have the worst luck in the world, getting stuck with a venomous, barren shrew!” My head snapped toward Damian, my last hope. For three years, he had been my shield, the only one who stood between me and the world’s cruelty. But this time, he didn’t defend me. His hand clamped around my wrist, his voice laced with cold fury. “Annelise! How could you do something so vile?” he seethed. “Do you want to drag everyone down into your misery? Is that it?” He tightened his grip. “Apologize to Anna. Now. Stop making innocent people suffer because of you.” Of course. I had forgotten. When forced to choose between me and Anna, he would always choose her. I lifted my chin, fighting back the tears that threatened to fall. “I will not apologize for something I didn't do.” I stared directly into his eyes. “You call her innocent? Damian, I’m asking you. Is she innocent? Are any of you innocent?” 3 Damian’s expression faltered, a flicker of something unreadable in his eyes before it was gone. He shook his head, as if dismissing a troubling thought. “Annelise, stop being delusional,” he said, his voice hardening. “You’re making me wonder if marrying you out of pity was the biggest mistake of my life.” I laughed, a dry, broken sound, and blinked back the tears. Don’t worry, Damian. You won’t have to wonder for much longer. Soon, we won’t be husband and wife at all. Without his protection, the crowd of relatives descended on me, their curses and shoves pushing me out of the room. I stumbled to the restroom to clean myself up, my reflection a pathetic, disheveled mess. A moment later, the door swung open. It was Anna, arms crossed, a triumphant smirk on her face. The terrified victim was gone, replaced by a gloating predator. “My dear sister,” she cooed, “how does it feel? To be despised by everyone all over again? It must be a familiar sensation for you.” She tilted her head. “Oh, that look in your eyes. Let me guess. You finally know, don’t you? You know it was our darling Damian who cut you open and gave your womb to me.” She stepped closer, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. “And you didn’t really think you could show up here and make Mom and Dad feel guilty, did you? Silly girl. The kidnapping was their idea, planned with Damian from the start. They were so heartbroken that I couldn’t have children. Someone had to make a sacrifice. And who better than you, dear sister?” She patted her flat stomach. “And I really must thank you. Without your perfectly functional womb, my darling little boy wouldn’t be so healthy and strong.” Tears of disbelief streamed down my face. The deepest trauma of my life wasn’t a random act of violence. It was a conspiracy. A betrayal by everyone I had ever loved. “How could you?” I choked out. “Aren’t you afraid of retribution? That you’ll pay for this?” Anna scoffed, pulling a small bottle filled with red liquid from behind her back. She uncorked it and poured the contents all over her legs. “Pay for it?” she laughed. “Annelise, the only reason Damian keeps you around is for your blood. You think you have any other value? You are destined to live your entire life in my shadow, having everything you ever wanted snatched away by me. You should really stick around and watch. See just how far he’s willing to go for me.” Before I could process her words, she collapsed to the floor in the puddle of red liquid and screamed. “Damian! Help me! Please, help me!”
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