After marrying Alpha Damien of the Myrren pack, I had always been happy. Until the fourth month of my pregnancy, when Damien suddenly asked me for a divorce. I hurried to find him, only to overhear him telling his friend that he had been reborn—that he came back in this life to reunite with his first love, Tara. His friend asked in shock, "Are you insane? Victoria is four months pregnant. How can you justify this to her?" Damien laughed carelessly. "She loves me so much. She'll forgive me, understand me, no matter what I do." "Besides, I'm just divorcing her, not breaking the mate bond. It won't really hurt her. After the divorce, she can go back to her parents' house. But Tara has no parents. After divorcing that scumbag, she's raising her child all alone. How hard must that be?" I stood silently outside the door, almost numb as I dialed my father's number. Later, Damien deliberately scheduled our divorce and his wedding to Tara for the same day. But on that day, the cold, composed man stared desperately at my flat stomach, nearly breaking down as he demanded: "Where is my child? You promised! You said you wanted to have a child with me!"
"Victoria, are you sure you want the divorce? After everything you went through for this child..." Hearing my mother's choked voice, guilt overwhelmed me. Ever since she learned I was pregnant, my mother had been the happiest person in the world. She knew what I had sacrificed for this child. I drank countless bitter witch potions for a full year. I endured nine injections. It wasn't until the tenth attempt that I finally conceived. The moment the test results came back positive, my mother nearly wept with joy. She thought that with a child, Damien would finally love me. But today I realized how terribly wrong both my mother and I had been. The phone rang urgently. I answered numbly, and Damien's cold, harsh voice immediately came through. "Victoria, how much longer are you going to drag this out?" "Even if you're pregnant and I can't break the mate bond with you, once the child is born, I can break it immediately." "Victoria, raising a child costs money. Since we got married, you've been living in my house, eating my food, drinking what I provide. All you do every day is some housework and nothing else." "No one wants a woman who just gave birth and is stuck with a burden. You have no income. When that time comes, you won't be able to keep either the child or me." His tone dripped with mockery. Hearing him belittle everything I'd contributed to our home over the past two years, calling my child a "burden"—it felt like a blade slicing through my heart all over again. "Damien." I spoke his name softly. He immediately fell silent. "I agree to the divorce." He paused, then said joyfully, "Really? Good! Then we'll go through with it in five days." After a moment, his voice softened, as if trying to comfort me. "Victoria, don't worry. I just want to take care of Tara and her child. I won't cross any lines." "You focus on your pregnancy and give birth to our child. After that, I'll come see you and the baby once a month." "I've already bought so many clothes for the baby. I've even picked out a name..." His voice was cheerful, but my thoughts drifted. In that moment, I knew I had truly let him go.
That night, I fell into a fitful sleep. I found myself standing in a frozen wasteland. The blizzard was terrifying. The cold cut to the bone. My body stiffened with frost. Just as I felt I might collapse, a warm current flowed from my chest. A tender voice called out, "Mommy..." My body trembled. Instinctively, I pulled the warmth closer. The glowing presence was so small—I could cradle it entirely in my hands. Yet it was so warm. Warm enough to bring me to tears. "I'm sorry... I can't give you a complete family anymore..." I whispered an apology. Then a warm little finger gently wiped away the tears on my face. The child's voice was soft, filled with infinite affection and reluctance. I tried to hold onto that tiny finger, but the child's form grew fainter and fainter. No!! In that moment, my heart felt as though it was being torn apart. I desperately tried to hold on. "Baby!!" I jolted awake from the nightmare, feeling a dull ache in my lower abdomen. Before I could fully process it, a gentle male voice spoke. "Having a nightmare?" Damien sat on the edge of my bed, his face full of concern. "What are you doing here?" Damien smiled helplessly. "This is our home. Why wouldn't I be here? Victoria, you..." Before he could finish, a shrill child's voice interrupted. The next second, the door burst open. A seven-year-old boy charged in like a cannonball. "Daddy!!" It was Leo, Tara's seven-year-old son. Leo once said he was bullied for not having a father, so Damien let him call him "Dad" without hesitation, raising him like his own son. He wrapped his arms around Damien from behind. Damien asked, "Didn't you promise to wait for me outside?" Leo glared at me viciously. "I was afraid that bad woman would bully you!" I didn't want to watch them perform in front of me. I got up to leave. But the moment I took a step, Leo stuck out his foot and tripped me. I had barely slept the night before and was dizzy. I had no time to dodge. I fell hard to the ground. A sharp pain shot through my abdomen. My back arched instinctively, cold sweat breaking out all over. "Victoria!" Damien shoved Leo aside and rushed to help me, his face full of alarm. "What's wrong?" The pain was so intense I couldn't speak. My vision darkened. The cramping in my abdomen was unbearable. I tried to call for help, but a shrill female voice drowned me out. "Leo! Damien..." Tara rushed over. Seeing Leo sitting on the bed looking dazed, she immediately scooped him up. "Leo, what happened? Did you cause trouble again?" Leo burst into tears. "I didn't! I didn't even touch her, and she screamed so loud!" Damien's hand froze where he was supporting me. Tara's eyes immediately reddened. "Damien, maybe we should forget about what we discussed before." "Leo and I are just a widow and her child. We can't compete with..." Her voice choked with emotion, her expression full of grievance. Though she didn't finish, Damien understood her meaning perfectly. He immediately said, "What are you talking about? I promised I'd take care of you both. I won't go back on my word." His icy gaze fell on me. "Victoria, would you go so far as to frame a child just to keep me?" He gripped my hand tightly, so hard I heard my bones creak. But what hurt more was my abdomen. That little life connected to me by blood was slowly slipping away. I thought of yesterday's dream. Instinctively, I grabbed Damien's collar, opening my mouth weakly. "Help... help me. My stomach hurts so much..." But Damien said coldly, "Stop pretending. In my past life, you gave birth to our son just fine. Nothing will go wrong this time either." At that moment, I was in too much pain to speak. Perhaps my expression was too agonized. Damien hesitated, half-convinced, and started to help me up. But Tara grabbed his arm. "Damien, let me check on her. I've been through this once. I have experience." Tara handed Leo to Damien. He seemed about to say something, but the child's sobbing cut him off. He carefully held the boy, gently patting his back as he walked to the window to soothe him. Tara approached me and slowly pulled back the blanket, then showed a surprised expression. Crimson blood slowly flowed from between my legs, soaking through my nightgown. She smiled. "Oh my, you're perfectly fine. Victoria, aren't you being a bit too dramatic?"
Damien's face turned cold at her words. "Victoria, you really are faking it!" Tara gave a charming smile. "Victoria's just delicate, Damien. You should comfort her more." "Victoria is so afraid of pain. Giving birth will be even harder for her." Damien scoffed. "My son will be well-behaved. If she's afraid of pain, that's her problem. It has nothing to do with my son." As he said this, his tone was full of pride. By now, my consciousness was half-faded. In the moment before I lost awareness, I only saw Tara pulling him toward the door. Endless despair surged through me. When I woke again, the smell of disinfectant filled my nostrils. Pain throbbed below. I moaned involuntarily, and then my hand was gripped tightly. "Victoria!!" It was my mother and father. My mother's usually immaculate hair was disheveled, her eyes swollen from crying. Seeing me awake, her voice choked. "Victoria, it's okay. Everything will be okay..." It slowly dawned on me—I was lying on a hospital bed being rushed toward the operating room. "Doctor, the patient is hemorrhaging!!" The baby might not survive. The situation was critical. My father called Damien multiple times before he finally picked up. The male voice on the other end sounded surprised. "Is Victoria making a fuss about going to the hospital again? Ever since she got pregnant, she's been paranoid that something's wrong with the baby." "It's just a pregnancy. Back in the day, my friend cooked and cleaned for herself even when she was months along." "Victoria is just too delicate." After those accusatory remarks, my father finally lost his temper. I heard him speak through gritted teeth. "Damien, do you even know what's happened to Victoria?!" My father was the Alpha of Ashclaw pack. He knew Damien was a notorious playboy and had opposed our relationship. But unfortunately, Damien was my mate. At the time, I was completely drunk on love, lost in Damien's deep green eyes. When he proposed to me, Damien swore to my father that he would treat me well and make me happy forever. But now, it was clear those were all empty promises. My father's voice shook with rage. Damien hesitated, worried that something might actually be wrong with me. But just then, Tara's startled cry came through the phone. "Ah! Damien, Leo has a fever..." Damien stopped explaining to my father and hung up anxiously. "Beep beep beep—" The busy tone echoed through the corridor. After a long silence, my father said through clenched teeth, "Divorce! Once you're out of surgery and safe, you're breaking the mate bond with that scumbag!" Cold anesthetic slowly entered my veins. My eyelids grew heavier, yet my body felt lighter. When I woke again, my mother told me the baby was gone. For a moment, I felt lost. My hand lightly touched my lower abdomen. An hour ago, a little life connected to me by blood had been there. Now there was nothing. "Victoria." My mother looked at me with concern. I gave her a weak smile. "Mom, I'm fine." Later, I learned I had been unconscious for two days and one night. I checked my phone. My call log was empty. Only my chat with Damien had a few cold messages. All sent this morning. [Remember to divorce in three days.] [Not replying again? Do you think avoiding this will help? Victoria, I'm telling you—I WILL divorce you!] [Sometimes I really wish Tara and Leo were my family. Leo is so well-raised. I can't imagine what kind of person our son would turn into if he grew up with you!] I stared at those final messages and slowly typed: [Okay.] After sending the message, I deleted all his contact information without hesitation. The hospital's fluorescent lights were harsh. Holding the miscarriage report, I walked alone down the corridor to retrieve my child and arrange for burial. The maternity ward was filled with couples. The expectant mothers' faces glowed with joy. I clutched the small box, feeling as though my heart had been sealed inside with my dead child. "Damien, thank you so much for this." A sweet, gentle female voice sounded. I looked up and met their eyes. Damien held Leo's hand. Tara clung to his arm. Standing together, they looked like a real family of three. Damien glanced at me, then his expression changed. His gaze locked onto my flat stomach.
He strode toward me, his face full of displeasure. "What are you doing here?" Tara smiled. "Did you come looking for Damien? Geez, Victoria, you're keeping too close an eye on him. I just wasn't feeling well, so I asked him to come with me to the hospital." Damien said impatiently, "Is it really necessary to monitor me this closely? You're pregnant, yet you're running around the hospital for no reason. Don't you know that's bad for the baby?" "This child is so unlucky to be in your belly!" "Haven't I told you? Our child is perfectly healthy and capable. He's going to be the next Alpha of Myrren pack!" Yes. In his version of the past life, we had a smart, healthy child. But why did things turn out this way? I instinctively clutched the small box tighter. I had already contacted a priest and asked him to pray for forty-nine days. I hoped my child could find peace in heaven. "Daddy." A childish voice interrupted my thoughts. Leo stared at the box in my arms and suddenly reached out to grab it. "I want that box!" "Don't touch it!" I slapped his hand away hard, holding the box protectively. The sharp sound echoed through the corridor. Leo froze for a moment, then burst into loud wails. Damien's face showed a flash of shock, but he immediately scowled. "What are you doing?!" "He's just a child! Why are you fighting with him? You hit him!" I held the box tightly and glared at Damien. "Damien, I hate you. I hate you so much!" I spoke each word deliberately. My mouth tasted of blood. He seemed stunned that I—who had always been obedient—would say such a thing. He frowned. "Victoria, you're being completely unreasonable." With that, he pulled something from his pocket. "I'll trade you this for that broken box. There, happy?" It was a jade watch. I had once mentioned wanting to buy one for our child. He had only told me to focus on my pregnancy and not think about trivial things. "You always wanted to give this to the baby, right? Here, take it..." Before he could finish, Leo cried out, "Daddy, that's mine! You ordered it for me!" Damien's face flashed with embarrassment. He said calmly, "I'll get you something better later." "No!! You can't give away my things!" Leo suddenly rushed forward and shoved me hard. I had barely slept the night before and was dizzy. I had no time to react. I fell heavily to the ground. The box flew from my hands. "Give it back!" My pupils shrank in despair as Leo grabbed the box, ran to the end of the corridor, and hurled it down the garbage disposal chute. In that moment, I felt like I'd gone mad. I lunged toward it, but Damien held me back tightly. "Enough! It's just a box! Are you going to hurt Leo again? That broken box belongs in the trash! Now apologize to Leo and Tara!" The chaos quickly attracted medical staff. My attending physician rushed over. Seeing this, Damien immediately acted as though he'd found new ammunition. "Your doctor is here. Are you going to keep embarrassing yourself?" "Victoria, I'm telling you—I will NEVER accompany you to prenatal checkups again!" "Not only that, but when you give birth, the child will be mine. You'll never see him again!" The doctor froze, then said instinctively, "Prenatal checkups? But Victoria already had a miscarriage..."
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