I found myself locked in the darkroom once again. The oppressive blackness surrounded me; the only sound was my labored groans of pain.

Clutching my aching abdomen, I weakly pounded on the door, desperation bleeding into my voice. “Aunt Nori, open the door. I’m bleeding heavily. I need to go to the hospital.”

But from outside came Riley Griffin's same mocking tone. “There are sanitary pads in the room. Handle it yourself, and stop whining. You’re disturbing my drama.”

“Riley, I want to see Vernon.”

“Vernon’s busy in my room, in the middle of a video conference. He doesn’t have time to listen to your sobbing.”

“Please, let me go to the hospital.”

I bit back the pain, lowering myself to beg.

Riley’s voice dripped with disdain. “It’s just cramps. Are you going to die from it?”

“I’m not letting you take painkillers. Too many could mess with your fertility.”

Her words were sharp, like a slap across the face.

——

I touched the blood pooling beneath me, and a deep, gnawing dread surged through my chest.

I hadn’t had my period in nearly three months. Could I be pregnant?

I was struck by panic. My uterus had always been a source of torment, each cycle more agonizing than the last. Vernon Hamilton, my husband, had sought countless doctors to help regulate my condition, hoping it might one day allow me to conceive.

Before Riley came into the Hamilton family, I had at least been able to take painkillers under medical advice to ease the pain. But ever since her arrival, she had forbidden me from even that small mercy.

Every time the pain hit, she would lock me away in this dark room. She knew my fear of snakes, so she would throw in toy snakes and play with the hissing sound on a loop, tormenting me in every possible way, physically and mentally.

The more I thought about it, the more terror gripped me. My body was drained from the excessive blood loss, and I no longer had the strength to keep begging.

Summoning the last of my strength, I crawled into the corner, feeling my eyelids grow heavy. And then, I drifted into a deep, exhausted sleep, my only hope that Vernon would come.

I dreamed.

It was a memory from five years ago. Vernon had already been a rising star in Asheville’s financial world. Young, handsome, and wealthy, he could have any woman he wanted.

But he chose me. A woman with no impressive background.

He pursued me openly and passionately, like a man determined to win. The story of a gentle CEO falling for an ordinary girl was a cliché, but what fresh college graduate could resist? I certainly couldn’t.

Six months later, we were married.

Using work as his excuse, Vernon kept postponing our wedding ceremony, time and time again. After we were married, he took me to countless cosmetic procedures. At first, I thought it was just to help me look better.

After all, in our world, a stunning wife was a statement of status.

But it wasn’t until Riley arrived last year that I learned the truth.

"You think Vernon married you out of love?"

In my dream, Riley looked at me with pure contempt, her eyes cold and mocking.

"He married you because you have the exact same eyebrows and eyes as his first love."

"All those cosmetic procedures were just to make you look even more like that dead woman."

"But me? I was born with this face. You lost, Eloise Howard."

"You don’t even deserve to be a stand-in!"

Riley’s twisted, grotesque face grew closer and closer, her words sinking in like poison.

I screamed, the horror gripping me, and then... I woke up!

"You’re awake?"

Vernon sat by the hospital bed, his eyes bloodshot, his voice soft with something that could have been a worry.

"Why didn’t you tell me you were pregnant?"

His tone was thick with grievance, blame, regret, and maybe a flicker of concern. But I couldn’t trust it. How could he care?

If he truly cared, he wouldn’t have ignored everything Riley had done to me.

"I didn’t even know myself. How was I supposed to tell you?" I replied, my voice hollow, the fading hope in my eyes betraying me.

"Your period hasn’t come for months, and you didn’t think to take a test?"

“Hmph, you should ask Riley about that. How long has it been since she last let me leave the house?”

I turned my gaze away from Vernon.

“Since neither of you can stand me, let’s just get a divorce, Vernon.”

“I’ve had enough of Riley’s humiliations and your cold indifference these past months.”

“You can leave, but I’m not agreeing to a divorce.”

“Rest up. I’ll come check on you later.”

With that, Vernon stood and walked out.

At the door, he stopped and threw me one last line.

“Eloise, don’t be sad. We’ll have another child someday.”

I said nothing.

There would be no future for us.

That night, Vernon returned, a bowl of nourishing soup in his hands.

Trailing behind him was Riley, dressed in a striking red gown, its brilliance too much for the cold, sterile hospital room.

That dress had been my birthday gift this year.

The dress I’d never worn, not once.

She had a habit of taking whatever she wanted from me, never once bothering to ask for permission.

"Are you feeling better?" Vernon asked.

"Hmm."

"You lost the baby, but you can always try again. Though you're already twenty-nine, it might be a bit harder."

Riley clung to Vernon’s arm, pressing herself against him.

I turned away, pretending she wasn’t there.

"Eloise, that’s enough. Stop sulking like the world owes you something," Vernon snapped, his voice sharp.

"Exactly! Vernon and I came all this way to see you, yet you can’t even look at us. Are you blaming us?"

"You didn’t take care of yourself, and you lost the baby. That’s on you!" Riley sneered, her voice dripping with disdain.

"If you hadn’t locked me in that dark room last night, would I have lost my child?" I shot back, my voice weak with exhaustion.

"I begged you both. I bled so much. If someone had just opened the door, even for a second, I wouldn’t have..."

I choked on my words, unable to finish. My voice trembled, swallowed by the weariness of it all.

“That’s because you’ve been taking too many painkillers! Riley was only trying to look out for you. Last night was just an accident.”

Vernon quickly leaped to her defense, his voice defensive.

“Is she more qualified than a doctor? Did the doctor ever tell me not to take painkillers? Should I have just suffered and died from the pain instead?”

I could no longer hold back the bitterness that had been building in my chest. My voice cracked, and I let out a hoarse, desperate scream.

“Alright, alright,” Vernon said, his tone softer now like he was trying to placate me. “I know you’re upset after the miscarriage, so I won’t argue with you. Get some rest. I’ll come back another day.”

With that, Vernon turned to leave, dragging Riley along with him. He always did this; whenever he stirred up my emotions, he would quickly change the subject and walk away, leaving me alone with this suffocating frustration as if I were punching into cotton.

It felt like a dull blade cutting into my skin, constant, relentless pain that never quite killed me, but it kept me bleeding, little by little.

Not long after, I received a video from Riley.

It was a live recording of her and Vernon tangled together in bed. The sting of betrayal cut deep.

The dimly lit room pulsed with an almost suffocating intimacy. As their bodies moved urgently, Riley occasionally glanced at the camera, her eyes a spark of challenge, daring me to look.

I couldn’t tear my gaze away, staring blankly at the screen, each second sinking deeper into a silent rage. This time, I didn’t delete the video. No. Instead, I saved it, adding it to my growing collection.

When I was finally discharged, I returned to the Hamilton residence—only to find Vernon had moved back in.

"Eloise, I’ll stay with you from now on. Focus on getting better, and we’ll try for another baby," he said, offering that familiar, gentle smile. He pressed a soft kiss to my forehead as if everything was normal again.

In the dead of night, I was jolted awake by an unfamiliar noise. Following the sound, I made my way to the living room, where I found Riley and Vernon shamelessly entwined on the couch, indulging in each other’s desires.

The sickening noise of their bodies colliding echoed through the room, pounding like a drum in my head, each throb sending waves of disgust through my veins.

I had grown numb to these scenes, but the sight of them defiling my own couch, my carpet, and those things that once held my comfort stoked an unbearable fire of fury within me.

I slammed the bedroom door, the sharp bang startling them both, freezing the pair outside for just a moment. The silence that followed was short-lived.

With no other choice, I shoved in my earplugs, willing my mind to shut down as I fought for sleep.

The next morning, Aunt Nori stood frozen in the doorway, her gaze fixed on the near-destroyed sofa and carpet. The destruction was undeniable, but I’d already made up my mind.

"Throw them out," I instructed, my voice cold and decisive. "We don’t need a sofa or carpet in the living room anymore."

That night, I was woken once again by the sound of their shameless actions. I reached out beside me, but the space was empty; Vernon was gone.

It felt so familiar, like a nightmare on endless repeat.

I stepped out, already dreading what I might find. And there it was. The dining table is now their new stage. I couldn't believe my eyes.

This crossed a line.

Without a second thought, I hit pause on whatever twisted show they were putting on.

"Hey, big brother, big sister," I called out, my voice dripping with cold sarcasm. "Why not take it to the bedroom? If the guest rooms are too cramped, you can always use my master bedroom. I’ll sleep in the guest room from now on."

I didn’t wait for an answer. "This is where I eat. Could you at least show some basic decency?"

Maybe it was my sudden intrusion, but the moment I spoke, both of them lost their enthusiasm.

"Eloise, you just had a miscarriage, and now you won’t even let me help Vernon?" Riley snapped, frustration dripping from her every word. "Do you want him to hold it in until he breaks down?"

I bit back my anger and tried to explain, my voice quiet and steady. "I never said you couldn’t help him, but could you at least do it somewhere other than my house?"

Riley's eyes narrowed, and she put on her usual act, a sickly-sweet mask of concern. "Vernon only came back to care for you after your miscarriage, and this is how you repay him? No gratitude?"

"I appreciate his concern," I replied, "but I don’t need it. Now, please, leave. Immediately."

The slap came fast and hard; his hand cracked across my face, a sting that left me breathless.

"This is my house," Vernon said coldly, his voice unyielding. "I’ll stay as long as I want. You don’t get to decide."

I froze, the words sinking in. He was right. This was his house. What power did I have to oppose him?

Without another word, I turned on my heel and walked out, each step echoing with the weight of defeat.

At two in the morning, the late-autumn streets stood eerily still, the air thick with an unsettling silence. A bitter wind sliced through my lace nightgown, causing me to shiver uncontrollably.

I sank down onto the bench at the bus stop, my eyes following the dead leaves as they danced across the empty road. Tears started to fall without my permission, hot and endless.

No phone. No money. No place to go.

My body, still recovering from the miscarriage, was weak, and before long, dizziness swept over me. Darkness swallowed me whole.

When I woke, I was back at the Hamilton residence, the room warm and familiar yet distant. That same figure, so familiar and distant, was standing beside me.

"Sorry. I shouldn’t have hit you last night," Vernon said, his voice low, breaking the silence.

"I’ve already ordered new furniture for the living room."

"The Mason Group heiress is getting married the day after tomorrow. Come with me to the banquet."

"What about Riley?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

"There will be plenty of business tycoons there. Riley’s my executive secretary, so she has to attend," Vernon replied matter-of-factly, his tone unemotional.

"Then I—" I hesitated, ready to refuse, but he interrupted me before I could finish.

"You are my wife. Your status is different. You must attend."

I had no choice but to agree.

At the wedding banquet, the three of us arrived together.

Riley, ever the attention-seeker, wore a gown far more extravagant than mine, practically glued to Vernon’s side.

I used to be the one standing next to him at events like this, but now, Riley had taken that place, and to everyone around us, she was the one who seemed to hold the title of Mrs. Hamilton.

"President Hamilton, long time no see. When will we have a chance to collaborate?" President Landers greeted Vernon with a smile.

"President Landers, good to see you. Let’s arrange a drink sometime," Vernon responded with the same polite smile.

"And this must be the famously beautiful Mrs. Hamilton?" The question hung in the air, a subtle sting in its words.