Before the wedding, the husband injured my father

After we got our marriage certificate, I went to pick up our wedding rings, only to discover that the set I ordered contained two.

One was mine.

The other belonged to my fiancé Caleb’s childhood sweetheart, Heidi.

I brought the rings home, ready to question him, but instead walked in on Caleb bringing a pregnant Heidi into the house.

The moment I stepped through the door, the two of them behaved as if they were the rightful owners of this home. Caleb spoke casually, already giving orders.

“Heidi needs someone to take care of her now. You should cook for her every day, and make sure the meals are nutritious. She’s timid, so let her have the master bedroom. Go pack your things.”

I ignored him. I didn’t even want to ask about the rings anymore. I turned to head to my room.

My phone suddenly rang. My mother’s voice was trembling with tears.

“Your father… he’s been beaten and crippled. Come to the hospital now.”

I rushed out immediately. When I arrived at the hospital, I learned the truth.

It was Caleb who did it.

All because my father happened to look up at Heidi when passing by. Caleb exploded on the spot, beating him brutally while cursing him as a perverted creep.

I called him in fury, but he sounded completely unfazed.

“Your dad scared Heidi. His eyes were wandering like a pervert. What if he frightened the baby? How can you be so heartless? She’s a pregnant woman and you’re still taking your father’s side?”

I clenched my teeth and stayed silent. After ending the call, I dialed another number.

“The wedding is canceled. Take back the company shares. In seven days, I want both of them ruined.”

……

The moment I stepped through the villa’s front door, before I even had the chance to change my shoes, Caleb’s voice pressed down from behind me.

“Julia, leave your bracelet here. Heidi has been having nightmares lately. She needs it more than you do.”

My movements froze instantly.

That bracelet was the only keepsake my younger sister left before she died.

I turned back slowly, my fingertips turning cold. Caleb saw the redness in my eyes, yet showed not a trace of sympathy. He simply said, in a calm voice,

“Name your price.”

Nine years.

Nine years spent treading softly in a loveless relationship, humble to the point of dust.

So in his eyes, all my love amounted to nothing more than “name your price.”

I could not even bring myself to calculate what he thought it was worth.

When I lifted my eyes, I saw the condescending contempt in his gaze. In that moment, images flashed through my mind.

There was a time when I had been a girl held gently in someone’s hands.

A time when the man I loved was still alive.

My stomach had always been weak. Whenever I ate something spicy, the pain was so sharp I could not straighten my back. He would always make me a bowl of warm porridge, blowing it to the perfect temperature before feeding it to me spoon by spoon.

Whenever I acted spoiled, he would hold me in his arms, warm palms pressed to my stomach, whispering softly that the pain would go away.

When I was down, he could sit with me for an entire day, waiting patiently for one smile.

But now, I lowered my head and pushed the bracelet down my wrist bit by bit.

The sharp edge dug into my skin. A sudden sting shot up my arm. When I lifted my hand, there was already a thin line of blood.

Tears fell before I could stop them, hitting the floor one drop at a time.

Was the pain really only on the skin?

I took a deep breath and slid the bracelet onto Heidi’s wrist.

I even kept a gentle, dignified smile on my face.

“May the child you’re carrying stay healthy and safe.”

The moment I said this, Caleb actually gave me a look he believed was “appreciation.”

“Julia, as long as you behave, my child will be your child.”

Utterly absurd.

Before his words had even settled, the bracelet on Heidi’s wrist suddenly slipped off and hit the floor with a sharp crack.

Fragments scattered across the tiles like powdered glass.

A piece of it scraped her leg, drawing a thin line of blood.

Caleb rushed to her instantly, moving as though he were saving her life, scooping her into his arms like she was made of fragile glass.

He shouted at the butler, voice fierce with panic.

“What are you standing there for? Call the family doctor! Now!”

His urgency made everyone in the living room look at me with mocking eyes, as if I were the one who caused all of this.

To be honest, I almost laughed.

Heidi’s voice was soft as a breeze, laced with deliberate trembling.

“It’s all my fault. The bracelet Julia just gave me… I dropped it. I’m so clumsy.”

Caleb held her hand, speaking with a tenderness sweet enough to melt sugar.

“It’s not your fault. That thing was unlucky to begin with. It’s good that it broke.”

I froze.

The only thing my sister left me before she died had been dismissed as something ominous.

My fingers turned icy as I gripped the handle of my suitcase. I didn’t dare look at the two pretenders in front of me for another second. If I stayed any longer, I would be sick to my stomach.

I was just about to leave when my phone suddenly vibrated.

“Julia, come to the hospital now. Your father… he’s been beaten and crippled…”

My mother’s voice trembled with tears, nearly choking.

The living room fell silent.

Heidi and Caleb heard everything, yet neither of them said a word of concern. Not even the slightest hint of guilt crossed their faces.

I didn’t spare them another glance. I ran straight out the door.