Chapter 5

At my words, Dwayne gave me a cold look. "Janine, have you had enough of this? Laurel's pregnant. She needs to be taken care of properly. Could you please stop causing scenes?"

My eyes drifted, without meaning to, toward the spot where I'd fallen. It had been cleaned spotless by now, and the glass marbles that had nearly killed me were long gone, thrown out by the butler.

But I remembered exactly what he'd shown me on the security footage.

I'd watched Carl scatter a handful of glass marbles across the top of the stairs, then lean over the railing with a malicious little smirk and shriek, "Mom, my head hurts so bad!"

I'd watched him stand there after I tumbled down the stairs, watched him look at me lying unconscious on the floor without so much as calling for help — not until the housekeeper and the maid he'd sent away came back and found me, and only then did he throw himself at me, looking suitably terrified.

Those images were burned into my mind. Just thinking about them made me shake all over.

I couldn't wrap my head around it — the child I'd nearly died bringing into this world actually had a heart that cruel. Before, when he'd sided with Laurel, I'd been able to tell myself he was just young, that he didn't understand what he was doing.

But there was no comforting myself out of this one.

Hadn't I been good enough to Dwayne and Carl? Hadn't I debased myself enough for them? Why were they doing this to me?

I let out a cold laugh and turned to the butler. "Since when does this house let strangers walk in and throw their weight around in front of me? Get them out... oh, and that woman's pregnant, so don't let anyone rough her up on the way out. I don't want it pinned on me later."

The butler acknowledged me and called for the bodyguards.

Dwayne's expression darkened. "What are you trying to say? You don't want a peaceful life anymore?"

I pressed a hand to my mouth in mock surprise and asked, all innocence, "Who are you people, exactly? What does your wife being pregnant have anything to do with you three living in my house? Is this some kind of shelter for refugees?"

Dwayne exploded. "Enough! Have you lost your mind? How dare you insult us like that!"

I let the smile drop from my face and stared him down.

Seven years ago, one glimpse of him at the old family estate had been enough to root him deep in my heart. Now, looking at him, all I could see was a stranger. A stranger frightening enough to make my skin crawl.

Dwayne kept going. "If you hadn't forced me to break up with Laurel back then, I'd have already married her and had kids with her!"

I laughed at that.

The bodyguards arrived quickly and escorted Laurel out with perfect courtesy. Dwayne and Carl didn't get the same treatment — they were physically thrown out of the villa.

I stood in the doorway and watched father and son sprawled in a heap outside, and some of the resentment inside me finally eased.

Dwayne snapped at me, furious. "Janine, you'll regret treating us this way!"

He helped Carl up, then turned, worried, to ask Laurel if she was all right. Laurel's eyes flicked toward me, and she clutched her stomach and cried out in pain. Seeing that, Carl came charging at me, furious.

He was fast, and I'd only just been discharged from the hospital, still weak. He knocked me straight to the ground.

Pain tore through my body. Still not satisfied, Carl raised his fist. "If anything happens to my baby brother or sister, I'll never let this go..."

His fist came down fast, but the bodyguards reacted in time and caught his arm before it landed.

I stared at him coldly while he strained to lunge at me, teeth bared like he wanted to tear into me.

I laughed, hollow and hopeless.

"I really did raise an ungrateful little monster.

"Let's get a divorce."