LOGINServants were whispering in corners. Phones were lighting up with messages. The air felt heavy, like a storm was about to break.Harrison had just returned from work.He walked into the living room with his usual calm steps, but something felt wrong immediately. Two maids stopped talking when they saw him. One of them quickly hid her phone behind her back.Harrison noticed.“What is going on?” he asked in a low voice.“No… nothing, sir,” one maid said quickly.He looked at them carefully. He had lived long enough to know when something was being hidden.“Give me the phone,” he said.The maid hesitated.“Now.”She slowly handed it to him.Harrison looked at the screen.His face changed.There it was.Emily’s name.Cruel headlines.Ugly words.Pregnant.Shameless.Sleeping around.Trapped a wealthy family.His jaw tightened.His eyes grew darker with every sentence he read.“Who did this?” he asked quietly.The maids lowered their heads.No one answered.He handed the phone back slowly
Tessa did not sleep that night.She lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling. Gabriel’s words kept playing in her head. Emily’s face kept appearing in her mind. The way she stood there. The way she tried to act strong.It annoyed her.Why was Emily not completely broken?Why did she still look calm even after being insulted?Tessa turned to her side angrily.“She thinks she can stay in this house like nothing happened,” she muttered. “She thinks she can carry that baby and everyone will just accept it.”Her jaw tightened.No.That would not happen.If Emily wanted to pretend to be innocent, Tessa would make sure the whole world saw the truth — or at least, the version of truth she wanted them to see.The next morning, Tessa woke up early.She dressed carefully. She chose a neat outfit and put on light makeup. She wanted to look serious. She wanted to look believable.Downstairs, Diana was having coffee.“You’re up early,” Diana said, raising an eyebrow.“I have something to do,” Tessa r
The mansion was quiet that afternoon. The silence felt heavy, like something bad was about to happen. Emily stood in the living room arranging flowers with slow hands. She was trying to keep her mind busy. If she stopped moving, she would start thinking. And when she started thinking, the pain would come.A sudden knock on the door made her freeze.Her heart skipped.She already knew who it was.“Emily! Open the door!” Gabriel’s voice called out. It was sharp and full of mockery.She closed her eyes for a second before walking to the door. She opened it slowly.Gabriel stood there, smiling in a way that made her stomach twist.“What do you want?” she asked quietly.He stepped inside without waiting for permission.“What do I want?” he repeated. “I just came to see how the pregnant girl is doing.”Emily’s fingers tightened at her sides. So he came again. Not to care. Not to ask. But to hurt her.He looked around the room like he owned the place.“Tell me, Emily,” he continued, folding
Emily lay on her bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. The mansion was quiet, except for the soft tick of the clock. Her hands trembled slightly as she held the blanket closer around her. Three weeks had passed since Harrison returned, and life at the mansion had been… overwhelming. Diana’s harsh words, Tessa’s small but pointed comments, and the endless pressure of pretending to be “okay” had weighed heavily on her. Her head felt heavy, and her stomach churned, but she refused to call for anyone. She didn’t want attention. She wanted to feel invisible, to let the chaos of the house pass her by. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. A soft knock at her door made her jump. She froze, gripping the blanket tighter. “Emily,” a calm, familiar voice said. “May I come in?” She recognized the voice immediately. It was Harrison. Her chest tightened, a strange mix of relief and fear rushing through her. She didn’t answer. She stayed still, hoping maybe he wo
Emily sat on the cold floor, her back pressed against the wall. Her hands rested on her belly, trembling slightly. The house was quiet now, but the silence was heavy, filled with echoes of Gabriel’s cruel laughter and Tessa’s mocking words. She could still feel the sting of every insult, every judgment. Her chest hurt, and her head throbbed.She had never felt so weak, so alone. For three weeks since Harrison’s return, the mansion had been like a battlefield for her. Everyone seemed ready to attack, to judge, to punish her. Yet Harrison—he had been different. Calm, protective, but silent. He hadn’t asked about the father. He hadn’t shouted at her yet. But the tension in his eyes told her he already knew something was wrong.Emily tried to stand, but the room spun around her. She stumbled back to the wall, pressing her hand tighter against her stomach. “I have to survive… I have to protect this little life,” she whispered to herself.She remembered the moments of quiet with Harrison. H
The house was unusually quiet that afternoon.Emily sat by the window in her room. She had tried to rest after the events of the past few days. Her head still felt heavy, and her stomach ached slightly. She pressed a hand against her belly instinctively. The room felt small, suffocating.She thought about Harrison. His disappointment. His words. She had not eaten properly since the hospital visit. Her heart ached, not just from hunger, but from the cold walls of the mansion and the anger of everyone around her.Downstairs, Tessa was scrolling through her phone, smirking. Diana had left for some errand, and for the first time, the house felt… empty. But Emily was not alone for long.A loud, sharp knock echoed through the house.“Who could that be?” Tessa muttered, annoyed but curious. She went to the door.Before she could open it fully, a familiar smirk appeared outside.Gabriel.He pushed the door open as if he owned the place. “Tessa! Perfect timing!” His eyes glinted with mischief.







