Chapter 4

Vivienne’s POV

I stood at the top of the staircase, unable to move, my eyes fixed on Bianca's motionless body sprawled across the marble floor below.

For a long moment, the entire mansion seemed to fall silent.

Then Elias screamed.

"Mommy!"

The little boy ran down the stairs and threw himself beside her. He grabbed her hand with both of his tiny ones, his cries echoing through the entrance hall.

Alex slowly lifted his head.

He looked at me.

Once upon a time, those dark eyes had held warmth whenever they met mine.

Now they held nothing but hatred.

"If anything happens to Bianca or my child," he said, his voice so cold it sent a chill through my bones, "I'll make you wish you had died with your son."

He did not ask what had happened.

He did not ask whether I had touched her.

He did not ask why.

Without waiting for an explanation, he bent down and carefully lifted Bianca into his arms. He held her with astonishing tenderness, as though she were the most precious thing in the world.

Elias stumbled after him, sobbing as he tried to keep pace.

My mother-in-law looked at me with undisguised loathing.

"You evil girl," she hissed. "I knew bringing you into this family would destroy my son's life."

Then she turned and followed them.

The front doors slammed shut.

Silence descended upon the mansion.

I slowly lowered myself onto the top step.

I was too tired to remain standing.

Not one of them had asked what really happened.

Not one of them had wondered whether Bianca had fallen on purpose.

They had already judged me.

Exactly as she intended.

I sat there for what felt like an eternity.

Then several men entered the house.

They were Valcrest soldiers.

All of them armed.

Without a word, two of them seized my arms and hauled me to my feet.

"What are you doing?" I cried, struggling against them. "Let me go."

No one answered.

They dragged me from the mansion and across the estate grounds.

The private hospital sat on the eastern side of the property, surrounded by high walls and guarded like a military compound.

I knew immediately where they were taking me.

Fear settled heavily in my chest.

The moment we entered one of the private treatment rooms, I saw Alex.

Relief surged through me despite everything.

"Alex..."

I stumbled toward him.

"Please listen to me. I swear I didn't—"

His hand struck my face.

The blow sent me crashing into a chair.

For several seconds, I heard nothing but a loud ringing in my ears.

The taste of blood flooded my mouth.

I slowly looked up.

Alex stood before me, his expression devoid of warmth.

"I've grown tired of your lies," he said. "You tried to murder Bianca and my unborn child, and you still want me to believe you're innocent?"

I stared at him.

He continued looking at me as though I were something disgusting.

Then he said, "You're going to give blood."

I blinked.

"What?"

"Bianca needs a transfusion."

I looked at him in disbelief.

"No."

The answer came quietly.

"I didn't push her. And even if I had, she will never receive a single drop of my blood."

The room became utterly still.

Then Alex moved.

He crossed the distance between us and wrapped one hand around my throat.

I gasped.

His fingers tightened.

Air disappeared from my lungs.

I clawed desperately at his wrist.

My vision blurred.

Darkness crept in from the edges.

"Boss!"

Someone shouted.

"She can't breathe!"

Only then did he release me.

I collapsed onto the floor, coughing violently.

Every breath burned.

I looked up at him through watery eyes.

He stared down at me without the slightest hint of pity.

"This isn't over."

Then he turned toward the doctor.

"Take as much blood as you need."

The elderly physician went pale.

"Mr. Valcrest... she lost too much blood yesterday. Her condition is still unstable. We have blood in storage. Mrs. Romano can use that instead."

Alex's expression hardened.

He grabbed the doctor by the throat.

"I didn't ask for your opinion."

The old man gasped.

His feet left the floor.

"You work for me," Alex said quietly. "Don't forget that."

He threw him aside.

The doctor crashed into a cabinet.

"Do it."

The guards immediately pinned my arms.

I was too weak to fight them.

The doctor slowly approached.

His eyes were full of apology.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Valcrest."

I barely heard him.

He inserted the needle.

Warm blood began flowing through the transparent tube.

One bag.

Then another.

The room slowly started spinning.

I had barely survived losing my son.

Now they were taking even more from me.

Everything felt cold.

Distant.

The last thing I remembered was the doctor whispering another apology before darkness swallowed me whole.

**

I woke with a gasp.

Ice-cold water drenched my body.

I shivered violently.

My clothes clung to my skin.

Blinking through blurred vision, I realized I was tied to a wooden chair.

I lifted my head.

Alex stood in front of me.

His face was colder than I had ever seen it.

I tried to stand.

The room immediately tilted.

My legs gave out.

"So," he said quietly, "are you done pretending?"

I looked at him weakly.

"What more do you want from me?"

My teeth chattered.

"I'm cold."

Without warning, he grabbed my hair and yanked my head upward.

Pain exploded across my scalp.

A cry escaped my lips.

"Please," I whispered. "Have mercy."

I had no strength left.

I only wanted to sleep.

His grip tightened.

"You kidnapped my son."

I stared at him.

"...What?"

"Elias."

His voice dripped with fury.

"While you sat here pretending to be weak, you hired men to abduct him."

I laughed.

The sound startled even me.

It was hollow.

Broken.

"So..." I whispered. "You can finally admit he's your son."

Alex's jaw tightened.

"Bianca isn't just another woman."

His expression softened for the briefest second.

"She's the love of my life. She's the mother of my son and the child she's carrying."

Then he looked at me again.

The disgust returned.

"You already knew that. If you hate us so much, why take your revenge on an innocent child?"

I stared at him.

"Innocent?"

My voice was barely audible.

"Did the word innocent ever cross your mind while our son was dying in front of me?"

His expression did not change.

"Enough."

He gestured toward the door.

"I have proof."

The door opened.

Two men dragged someone inside.

A man.

His face was bruised and swollen.

The moment he saw Alex, he dropped to his knees.

He pointed at me.

"Boss, she's the one!" he cried desperately. "She paid me to take the boy. I swear I didn't know he was your son. Please spare me."

I frowned.

"I've never seen this man before."

Alex's temper snapped.

"Must you lie about everything?"

"I'm telling the truth!"

My voice cracked.

"I didn't do this. You know me."

For one impossible moment...

I thought I saw hesitation in his eyes.

Then it vanished.

He grabbed my arm so hard that pain shot through me.

"You'll confess."

He dragged me toward the door.

"You'll kneel before Bianca and apologize."

"I won't confess to something I didn't do."

His expression hardened further.

The guards followed us.

Alex dragged me across the estate grounds and through the private gardens.

We stopped at the edge of the cliff overlooking the sea.

I knew this place.

The Valcrest estate had been built on the highest point of the coastline.

Hundreds of feet below, jagged rocks waited in the darkness.

The ocean crashed violently against them.

The wind howled around us.

Alex stopped at the very edge.

His hand remained clamped around my arm.

Every trace of color left my face.

He knew.

He knew I was terrified of heights.

Years ago, during a charity gala held here, I had nearly slipped over the railing. He had been the one who caught me.

After that, he had never allowed me near the cliff alone.

Now he was using that fear against me.

"Confess," he ordered.

His voice was calm.

Terrifyingly calm.

"Or I'll throw you over."

I began shaking.

"I swear..." I sobbed. "I didn't do this. Please..."

Alex closed his eyes.

For one second, I thought he might let me go.

Then he opened them again.

"I warned you."

And he pushed me.

The ground disappeared beneath my feet.

My scream was swallowed by the roar of the ocean as I fell into the darkness below.