Chapter 2

Liam goes silent on the other end for a couple of seconds.

Then he sighs. Long. Disappointed.

"Stella. The lies you'll tell to keep my attention—it's unbelievable."

"I looked at your prenatal report before I left. The doctor said you're perfectly fine. You've got two more weeks till your due date."

"You're rolling around on the floor playing dead because you want to trick me into coming home, away from Ruby. That's it, isn't it?"

I'm gasping for breath.

"I'm not lying to you."

"My water broke. The baby's going to suffocate."

"Liam—this is your daughter."

A soft whimper crackles through the speaker. Ruby.

"Sweetheart, another contraction? Hang in there, the doctor's coming."

He soothes her in that warm, melting voice—the one he used to save for me—and then he turns back to the mic. His voice goes cold enough to cut.

"Stella. Ruby is an orphan. I'm all she's got in this world."

"You have a family. Money. A whole life. Why are you so determined to take from a girl who has nothing?"

"All she did was borrow your hospital bag. One bag. And you pull this disgusting stunt to drag me back."

"You are an ugly person. I never knew how ugly until tonight."

My cheek is pressed flat against the cold floor. Tears mix with sweat and roll onto the back of my hand.

I pull my eyes away from the camera. I start crawling toward the front door.

Glass shards bite into my palms. I don't feel them. There's only one thought left in my head.

Get out.

I make it to the foyer. I lift the biggest shard of glass and smash it into the lock with everything I have left.

The glass shatters. My hand splits open—deep, to the bone. Blood sprays the door.

The lock doesn't move.

Liam's voice explodes through the house, choked with rage.

"Stella Hayes! What the hell are you doing?!"

"You damage that door and I swear to God you will regret it the second I walk back through it!"

I'm already clawing my way to the entryway closet. There's a spare key in there. I know there is. I put it there myself.

I rip everything out onto the floor with bloody hands. Shoes. A scarf. A toolbox.

I find it at the bottom of an old shoebox—a small, cold brass key.

My way out.

I haul myself up against the wall. My whole body is shaking. I jam the key into the lock.

It won't go in.

I bend closer and squint.

The keyhole is packed solid with something dried and clear. Sealed shut.

I stare at it. Dumbly.

"Don't waste your strength."

There's a smile in his voice now. Pride.

"I know how stubborn you get, baby. I was worried you'd try to sneak out and go after Ruby. So I sealed the lock before I left. Little tube of superglue."

"Stella. All you have to do is apologize. Promise me you'll leave Ruby alone."

"As soon as she delivers, I'll come right home and take care of you."

My back slides down the door. Inch by inch.

He planned my last way out. He didn't seal the lock because he was worried about Ruby.

He sealed it to take my right to live away.

I tip my head back and look straight at the camera.

"Liam. I want a divorce."

Dead silence on the other end.

Then he erupts.

"Stella Hayes, are you threatening me again?!"

"You think waving 'divorce' in my face is gonna make me come crawling back? Is there a single thing in your bag of tricks besides crying, screaming, and threatening to leave?!"

I close my eyes. I don't answer him.

The contractions have stopped being waves. It's one long endless tearing now. Something is pushing down. Something is coming whether I'm ready or not.

"Liam. I don't want you anymore."

I lift the brass key with the last of my strength.

And I hurl it at the camera.

The lens shatters. The red light dies.

The living room goes black and silent.

I lie in the spreading pool of my own blood, and I breathe.