The fluorescent lights of the emergency ward buzzed overhead. I found Bruce pacing outside Room 302.
He spun around when he saw me. He didn't look guilty. He didn't drop to his knees and beg for forgiveness like he had in our kitchen.
Instead, he closed the distance and seized my wrist. His grip bruised my skin.
"Iris, listen to me," he demanded, his voice low and urgent. "Judy is incredibly unstable right now. Do not upset her."
I stared at his fingers wrapped around my arm.
"Do not upset her?" I asked.
"Just keep your mouth shut," he said. "She is terrified."
A dry, scraping sound left my throat. It was supposed to be a laugh.
"My husband’s mistress is terrified of me," I said flatly. "That is fascinating."
"This is not a joke," Bruce hissed, shaking my arm slightly. "She is fragile. If you go in there and start screaming, I will not forgive you."
"You will not forgive me?" I asked, yanking my arm free. "You lied to my face for days. You pretended to fix our marriage while waiting for her to give birth."
"I was protecting you!"
"You were protecting your wallet."
The emergency room doors swung open before he could answer. A doctor stepped out, pulling down his surgical mask.
"Family of Judy Evans?" the doctor asked.
Bruce shoved past me and rushed forward. "I am. How is she?"
"She is stable," the doctor replied, checking his clipboard. "But the emotional distress nearly caused a miscarriage. At two months pregnant, she needs absolute calm."
Bruce let out a massive exhale. His shoulders dropped completely.
"Thank god," Bruce muttered. He pulled out his platinum credit card and shoved it toward the doctor. "Move her to the VIP maternity suite. I want the best specialists on call immediately."
"Right away, sir."
I stood three feet away. I was completely invisible to him. He didn't even glance back to see my reaction.
The elevator dinged at the end of the hall. Mia stepped out, carrying her designer handbag. She rushed over, ignoring me entirely to touch Bruce’s arm.
"Is the baby safe?" she asked her son.
"Yes, mother. They are moving her upstairs now."
Mia finally turned to me. Her expression held no sympathy.
"Come here, Iris," Mia ordered.
She pulled me a few steps away from the nurses' station.
"You need to be generous about this," she whispered, adjusting the collar of her silk blouse. "Do not make a scene."
"Generous," I repeated. The word tasted like metal.
"Bruce is a Monroe," Mia said, her tone hardening. "Men of his status have multiple children. My husband had two outside our marriage. It is entirely normal in our circle."
"I don't care about your circle."
"You will care if you lose everything," Mia snapped. She grabbed my shoulder, her manicured nails digging into my jacket. "As long as you hold the title of Mrs. Monroe, your position is secure. Let the girl have her baby in peace. You will raise it as your own if you have to."
"You want me to accept a bastard child."
"I want you to be smart. Do not throw away your luxury over pride. Go in there and show Bruce you support him."
I shoved her hand off my shoulder.
A nurse led us to the VIP suite ten minutes later.
Judy sat propped up against the pillows. An IV line ran into her pale hand. The moment we walked in, tears spilled down her cheeks.
"Bruce," she sobbed, reaching out.
He crossed the room in two strides and pulled her into his chest. He buried his face in her hair.
"I'm here," he whispered. "You're safe."
Judy peered over his shoulder. She looked directly at me.
"I am so sorry, Iris," Judy cried, her voice trembling violently. "I never wanted to ruin your marriage."
I crossed my arms. "Then why did you sleep with my husband?"
"Iris!" Bruce snapped, glaring at me.
Judy buried her face in Bruce's shirt, wailing louder. "I tried to leave him. But spending these past years in the dark, being his secret... it hurts so much. I just wanted our baby to have a father."
"He already is one," I replied. "He is a father to a lie."
Bruce whipped his head around. His face twisted with absolute fury. He dropped Judy's hand and marched toward me.
"Enough!" Bruce roared.
The shout echoed off the sterile walls.
"Judy is suffering enough," he snarled, pointing a finger inches from my nose. "Why do you have to push her? Can't you see she is in pain?"
I tilted my head.
"She is putting on a show, Bruce."
"Your presence is suffocating her!" he yelled. "Get out of here. Let her rest."
I looked at the man standing by the hospital bed.
Three years ago, my father had warned me.
*He only wants the Kensington name, Iris. If you marry him, you leave this family forever.*
I had surrendered my inheritance. I had walked away from the Kensington empire. I traded a crown to become a devoted housewife to a man who now screamed at me to protect his mistress.
I didn't argue. I didn't cry.
I smiled.
It was a small, quiet curve of my lips.
Bruce blinked, visibly unnerved by my reaction. His anger faltered for a fraction of a second.
"What is wrong with you?" he muttered.
"Nothing," I said. "I will leave."
I turned my back on them and walked out the door.
The midnight air in the hospital corridor was freezing.
My shoes made no sound on the linoleum as I walked to the very end of the hall. I stopped by a large window overlooking the city traffic.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone.
My fingers hovered over the keypad. I typed in a number I hadn't dialed in over a thousand days.
I pressed call.
The line rang once. Twice.
"Hello?" a deep, gruff voice answered.
My throat closed up. The silence stretched between us.
"Speak," the man demanded.
"Dad," I whispered.
The line went completely silent.
"Iris?" my father asked. The rough edge vanished, replaced by a sudden tremor. "Is that you?"
"Yes."
"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"
"He broke his promise, Dad."
"I told you he would. I told you three years ago."
"I know," I said, pressing my forehead against the cold glass of the window. The city lights blurred in my vision. "You were right."
"I don't care about being right, Iris. I care about my daughter."
"I promise you," I said, my voice finally breaking. "I am ready."
"Ready for what, sweetheart?"
"I'm coming home."
A heavy, jagged exhale sounded through the speaker.
"Stay right where you are," my father commanded. The authority of a billionaire patriarch returned instantly. "Daddy is coming to get you right now."
"Okay."
I hung up the phone.
Down the hall, the door to Room 412 remained tightly shut. Bruce was in there, holding the woman he chose over me.
He thought I was just stepping out to cool off. He thought I would be waiting in the mansion when he finally decided to come home.
He had absolutely no idea that the woman who sacrificed everything for him was already gone.
