Chapter 9
I pressed my fingers to the comer of my eye, trying to hold myself together as regret surged in my chest.
“Zareena must’ve staged everything with the housekeeper to scare me…” I murmured. “Because of what happened to her dad.”
The words hung heavy in the air, guilt clinging to every syllable.
“I was wrong… I went too far. But how could she–how could she use her own dead baby to frighten me?“}
My breath caught. I exhaled slowly, shakily, trying to stay grounded.N
“Thank god Shannah had the doctor film the baby… that video should prove–“>
But I didn’t finish.&
Mid–sentence, something shifted in me. A chill crawled down my spine, and I froze. My whole body locked up like I’d just stepped into a frozen lake.
A horrifying thought slammed into me.
‘In my last life… Zareena had twins. But in the video Shannah showed me…
I paused, tilting my head slightly, trying to see if maybe my memory was playing tricks on me. But the image in my mind was still clear.}
‘There’s only… one baby.”
Just then, the doctor’s voice crackled through the phone, frantic and breathless.}
“S–Sir, your wife never gave birth.”
“What?” My voice cracked, disbelief clawing at my throat.”
“There were fifteen rounds of labor suppressants,” the doctor continued without pause. “She kept delaying, all the way until the day after her due date. But that day… before she even had the chance to deliver, your bodyguards showed up and dragged her away.“”
I blinked hard, my heart pounding.
“What?!“&
A crushing pressure hit my chest like a brick. I stumbled backward, gripping the edge of the table with both hands just to keep from collapsing.
Through gritted teeth, I forced out the only words I could focus on.
“Find the doctor. The one who was supposed to deliver her baby. I want to question him. Now.“>
It didn’t take long.
When the doctor walked in and saw me, his face was drained of color. His hands trembled, voice cracking as he spoke.
“I.. I didn’t know. Ma’am Zareena insisted on taking the suppressants. She kept saying she had to delay labor… I tried to stop her, I really
did. But she refused to listen. She said if she didn’t hold on until after her due date… her babies wouldn’t survive.“}
The moment the words left his mouth, my stomach turned. My jaw locked. My hands curled into fists at my sides, knuckles straining until they popped.
“No. No way…” I shook my head slowly. “Did she bribe you? Did Zareena tell you to say this to screw with me? Shannah told me you were the one who delivered her baby. She said the baby was already sent to the nursery-“}
“Shannah?” the doctor blinked in confusion. “I don’t know any Shannah. I was hired by Ma’am Zareena.“>>
The air left my lungs. That one sentence hit like a lightning strike.”
I stumbled back, disoriented, a sick feeling rising in my chest.
“No… that can’t be…” My voice dropped to a whisper. “Shannah told me herself. She said she arranged everything. That she brought in the doctor…“[
And then something inside me snapped.”
“Find out what’s going on!” I barked, my voice rising. “Right now! I want the truth–I want to know who’s lying and what the hell really happened!”
I ordered every man involved in taking Zareena to be brought in. One by one, they stood before me.
The moment they saw me, several of them dropped to their knees with a thud, bowing their heads to the floor, begging for mercy.
“Sir, please… we were following Ma’am Shannah’s orders! If she hadn’t told us to act, we would’ve never laid a hand on Ma’am Zareena–or anyone else!“%
“What did you just say?” I shot to my feet, my voice sharp as a blade. “What do you mean Lin gave the order? Didn’t you tell me Zareena made you give those women abortion drugs?!”
“It was Ma’am Shannah, sir!” one of them burst out, voice trembling. “She said since she already gave birth to your first son, the other women–and their babies–didn’t matter anymore.“>>
Another jumped in quickly. “She told us you were sick of Ma’am Zareena, sir. That you hated her. Ma’am Shannah said since she was still pregnant with your child, you wanted us to take care of it for you.”
A wave of nausea climbed up my spine. My throat dried. My skin prickled with heat and horror.M
“You’re saying the day she was taken away… Zareena was still pregnant?!“#
“Y–Yes, sir.” They spoke over each other in a panic.!
“Ma’am Shannah alen told us sir that you were furious at Ma’am Zareena’s father for stealing credit from the real person who saved your
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8:50 PM J
“Ma’am Shannah also told us, sir, that you were furious at Ma’am Zareena’s father for stealing credit from the real person who saved your life. She said pushing him down the stairs would help you vent that anger. T–That’s why we ignored the message you sent us, sir. We just did what she said, sir!“}
