Zachary's words stabbed deep into my heart like a sharp dagger.

The baby that I had been hoping for for three years turned out to be nothing more than Zachary's way of ensuring that Vivian would be cared for in the future and a form of compensation to me.

He claimed that he loved me, but just what position did I actually hold in his heart? Was I nothing more than a tool for him to give his ex-wife a child?

Nausea roiled in me, causing me to rush to the washroom, where I threw up until my vision turned spotty. Then, ignoring the tears on my face, I made an appointment for an abortion.

…

The moment I opened the door to our house, a delicious aroma wafted to me.

Zachary, clad in an apron, was setting down a dish on the table, which was laden with all my favorites.

He always did this.

Every time he hurt me because of Vivian, he would use this method to get back in my good graces, creating the perfect illusion that he had reflected on his actions and had changed. In return, my heart would soften, and I would forgive him for his mistakes.

This time, however, I refused to fall for his trick again.

After sitting down at the table, I didn't touch the cutlery. Instead, I took out the divorce agreement that I had already signed and pushed it toward him.

He was briefly surprised, but then he frowned.

"Sammy, didn't I already tell you that I won't divorce you? Vivi is my sister, so I can't just abandon her. Why can't you accept her?"

My lips twitched as he attempted to pin the blame on me once again. Without any hesitation, I exposed the lie he had been keeping for three whole years.

"She's your sister? Isn't she your ex-wife?"

Zachary's expression immediately changed, and he blurted it out before he realized, "You know about that?"

A beat later, he seemed to relax.

"So that's why you're throwing a tantrum? Well, I can explain the situation."

Before I could answer, he was already rambling on, "Back then, Vivi and I divorced due to our incompatible personalities, and it was only after that that I met you.

"Unexpectedly, she discovered that she was pregnant after we separated, but she became so emotionally overwhelmed that she lost the baby. From then on, she lost the ability to conceive."

I leveled a cold stare on him, quietly waiting for his next words.

"That's why I owe it to her to take care of her for the rest of her life."

At this point, memories of our past together surged through my mind, unbidden.

Back when we first got together, he had been infinitely gentle and sweet to me. When I fell sick, he would take care of me, even forgoing sleep. When it rained, he would come pick me up with an umbrella that would always be tipped over to my side to protect me more.

Since I was an orphan, he said that he would be my family from then on. He promised to give me a stable home and spend the rest of his life protecting me and caring for me, never allowing me to suffer the slightest bit ever again.

All his promises, made with the utmost sincerity, had once made me feel as though I had finally found a light of my own.

Yet, however genuine and touching those words had felt back then was how ironic they felt now.

He saved all his patience and favor for Vivian, while the only things I got were lies, manipulation, and hurt.

Bitter disappointment chilled me to my bones as I said, "That's your business and has nothing to do with me. Taking care of her was a choice you willingly made, so don't drag me into it.

"Now, sign that divorce agreement, and we can split the house and savings between us evenly. What you do with her after that is none of my business."

At the mention of the house, something flashed in Zachary's eyes, and he appeared hesitant to speak.

After a moment, though, he still said quitely, "After we got married, Vivi told me that she didn't feel secure, so I… I transferred the house to her name."

My hand jerked, and with a loud crash, some of the glassware fell to the floor and shattered.

Back when we first married, Zachary had guiltily told me that he had come out of his divorce with nothing to his name, so he couldn't afford a house just yet.

Out of consideration for him, I comforted him and told him that it was fine. I had saved up enough over the years to afford the deposit, and since we were family, it didn't matter who paid for the house.

After moving into this house, the monthly housing loan came from our shared living expenses, so I had always thought that we were both working hard for our future together. Bit by bit, we would slowly build a home for just the two of us.

Now, however, he was telling me that all my sacrifices ultimately ended up benefitting Vivian instead.

From the moment we got married, they not only took advantage of my love for Zachary, but they also didn't even have the decency to spare what little assets I had.

When Zachary realized that I was too shocked to even say a word, he sighed softly.

"Sammy, I know that this isn't fair to you, but you know that Vivi can't handle any emotional stress in her current condition. I don't dare to risk it either. Don't you worry, though. I won't divorce you, and even though this house is currently under Vivi's name, we can still live together in it."

The way he spoke was as though he was doing me a great favor by allowing me to stay in the house that I had bought with my own money.

Trying to ignore the dull ache in my chest, I opened my mouth to retort, only to be interrupted by his phone ringing.

I instantly knew that it was Vivian calling because he had barely answered the phone when his expression turned anxious.

He hurriedly said, "Vivi is feeling unwell."

The next second, he turned and left the house. Before stepping out the door, he didn't forget to remind me to eat a proper meal before getting some rest.

After he was gone, I had to force back the nausea and began searching the entire house. Every drawer, cabinet, and even the bedside table—I looked everywhere.

In the end, I found the house deed in Vivian's room.

The moment I checked the name of the property owner, my heart dropped to my stomach.

It was Vivian Sinclair.

However, as I set the folder back down, a receipt slipped out and fell to the floor.

It was a receipt for a whole set of gold jewelry, amounting to over seven thousand dollars, dated a year ago.

The same year that I happened to undergo breast cancer surgery—a surgery that I had to sell my own set of wedding jewelry to pay for.

Zachary had the money to spend seven thousand dollars on gold jewelry for Vivian, yet he didn't have the money to pay for my two-thousand-dollar surgery.

I hadn't yet recovered from the bone-chilling disappointment when there was a noise at the front door.

Zachary had brought Vivian back here.

The moment they saw the mess I had made after turning the house upside down during my search, their faces darkened simultaneously.

Zachary spoke up first, his tone bristling with reprimand.

"Samantha Linden, what the hell are you up to this time? Do you think it's funny to mess up the house like this?"

Vivian also dropped her usual meek act, saying, "Just take your anger out on me. There's no need to rampage through the house."

I clenched the receipt tightly, my knuckles going white from the force. Just as I was about to respond, Vivian abruptly stepped forward and reached out to snatch at whatever I was holding.

"What are you holding there? Did you dig through my stuff again?"

Annoyed at her pestering, I raised a hand to gently block her attempt.

However, this seemed to strike a nerve with her, and she immediately yanked on my arm roughly.

I stumbled slightly but managed to steady myself with some difficulty.

When Vivian saw that I hadn't fallen, she outright lunged forward, seized my arm with both hands, and began tugging madly.

"Samantha Linden, don't make me do things the hard way!"

Her rough and forceful actions had pain shooting up my arm, and I couldn't help but struggle to get free of her grip.

However, she took advantage of the momentum to shove my shoulder hard.

I was already a little weak from my pregnancy, so this sudden shove threw me off balance and sent me staggering back.

Zachary's face fell as he instinctively took a step forward, his hand reaching out for me.

"Sammy! Watch out!"

Vivian swiftly grabbed him, stopping him from getting to me.

That momentary delay was all it took for me to crash into the table behind me, my abdomen smashing into the sharp corner of the table.

Immediately, a sharp pain exploded in my abdomen.

Zachary snapped his head back around to look at me, and in the next second, he clearly saw the bright red blood that trickled out from between my legs.