Chapter 3

Lucas came to my room every day, but while his body was present, his heart was next door.

His phone screen was always lit up with messages from Emily.

[Lucas, I miss the baby so much. Please ask her to give him back to me, okay?]

[I don't want anything else anymore. I just want my child.]

[Lucas, I'm bleeding so much. The doctor said I have postpartum hemorrhaging. Am I going to die?]

Emily knew exactly how to manipulate Lucas.

She never attacked me directly. She just repeatedly emphasized her pain and longing for the child.

This way, she could paint me as "cruel" and "heartless."

Every time Lucas read her messages, his frown deepened. Then he'd find an excuse to leave in a hurry.

Early one morning, Lucas wasn't there. The baby had been taken by the nurse and nanny for checkups.

Emily appeared beside my bed like a ghost, her eyes full of hatred.

"Nina, don't think you've won."

"Your unlucky child—Lucas killed him because I told him to."

"That night, Lucas got drunk and kept calling me."

"I just acted cute on the phone and said your baby would be an obstacle to me..."

"I told him to spend more time with me instead of always hovering around you."

"I didn't expect him to actually hang up and go back to you. What happened after..."

"You couldn't keep your own child. That's your own failure. Don't blame others."

"You're just raising my child for me. Don't get too happy!"

She turned and walked away.

Every word was like a red-hot iron, burning into my heart.

So that's how it was...

I closed my eyes. My hands under the blanket were shaking violently. Blood quickly flowed back into the IV tube, staining a section of the transparent tubing red.

I bit my lip hard until my mouth filled with the thick taste of blood.

I didn't cry or make a scene. I just silently pulled the needle from my hand.

Blood dripped down the back of my hand onto the pure white sheets, like a tragic plum blossom.

Just then, the door opened.

Lucas walked in.

He saw the blood on my hand, froze for a moment, then quickly stepped forward and grabbed my wrist.

"Why did you pull out the needle? Are you crazy?!"

He grabbed a cotton swab from the bedside and pressed hard on my wound, his brow furrowed with what seemed like genuine concern.

My whole body was shaking. I wanted to scream, to demand answers, to tear him apart.

But I had no strength.

"Just go. Go be with Emily. The nanny will be back soon. You're not needed here."

Crying came from next door. Emily was throwing another fit.

Lucas didn't hesitate. He ran over to her.

I called my assistant and told her to arrange for my early discharge immediately.

When I appeared at the Knight family estate holding the baby, the entire family was in an uproar.

Everyone gathered around.

"Oh my, what a good baby!"

Grandma carefully took the baby from my arms, beaming with joy.

Grandpa was so excited his hands were trembling. He looked at me with approval in his eyes.

"Nina, well done! You've finally given us an heir!"

No one knew that my heart had already died in that cold hospital, along with my unborn child.

Lucas's father, Jack, saw the nanny's car drive straight to the garage and asked in confusion:

"Where's Lucas?"

"Busy, I guess. I didn't see him at the hospital either."