My father’s voice suddenly came through the speaker.
“So you’re Heidi? The child you’re carrying may not even be his. Give me five million, or I’ll ruin you.”
My entire body went rigid. The thread holding my sanity snapped in an instant.
Impossible.
The recording was fake.
My father had been unconscious ever since he was beaten. I had watched the dashcam footage dozens of times. That sentence never existed.
Heidi frowned, speaking in a fragile tone as if she had been cornered.
“Your father threatened me. I barely escaped.”
Caleb immediately pulled her into his arms, his voice cold and absolute.
“Julia, I will never forgive you. Your father being crippled is his own retribution.”
Then they presented all kinds of forged evidence, accusing my father of extortion, threats, and violence.
The judge didn’t even bother to look closely. A few perfunctory words, and the verdict came down.
I lost.
In an instant, my father and I became villains. Monsters who failed at extortion and then harmed a pregnant woman out of spite.
The snickers and mockery from the gallery stung my ears. I clenched my fists so tightly my nails dug deep into my palms.
The moment the hearing ended, before we even stepped out of the courthouse, reporters and onlookers had already blocked the entrance.
Heidi walked out surrounded by flashing cameras and sympathetic hands. Tears shimmered in her eyes, her palms pressed together like a persecuted saint.
The crowd’s anger and pity exploded at once, and fingers flew toward me and my mother.
I stood in the middle of it all, the cold wind numbing my already frozen face.
This wasn’t justice.
This was a trial they had orchestrated from the start.
Caleb wrapped Heidi protectively in his arms, his tone dripping with tenderness.
“Heidi, don’t worry. I won’t let anyone threaten you. I’ll protect you.”
The crowd’s emotions surged even higher.
Someone recognized me and immediately hurled a rotten egg my way.
A bucket of foul-smelling blood splashed down from the top of my head, seeping down my neck and soaking into my clothes. The stench was overwhelming, icy, humiliating.
“She’s a woman too, yet she tried to use someone’s reputation as leverage. Does she even have a conscience!”
“If the judge hadn’t been fair, that poor girl would have been ruined forever!”
“Her father deserved to be crippled! A daughter like that will never meet a good end!”
The curses pierced my ears like arrows.
I bit down on my lip until the taste of blood mixed with the stench filling my throat.
Only then did Caleb finally glance my way, frowning as if he were looking at filth.
“Stop resisting. If you behave, I can still consider our past and live with you peacefully.”
My voice was hoarse, barely holding up.
“Impossible. Even if it costs me everything, I’ll fight you to the end.”
Caleb’s expression darkened.
“Still refusing to repent.”
Heidi bent down slightly, giving me a gentle, pitiful look.
“I’m sorry about your father, but even if time went backward, I still wouldn’t agree to his demand for five million.”
Caleb followed her words smoothly, playing the righteous man.
“I’m your husband, but I stand for justice. I cannot allow wickedness to spread.”
The crowd was completely ignited.
“What a good man! Why do good people always end up with this kind of wife!”
“A woman like her would drive anyone to divorce!”
Watching Caleb’s performance made my stomach churn.
My legs suddenly buckled, and I stumbled forward.
Caleb shoved Heidi aside and kicked me hard in the chest.
“You’re trying to fake an injury at the courthouse too? How was I ever blind enough to fall for someone so disgusting!”
Pain exploded in my chest, knocking the breath out of me.
But deeper inside, in that place he once held, it hurt even more.
Three years ago, when his enemies tried to kill him, I had thrown myself in front of the blade to save him.
And now, the only thing he remembered was how to crush me.
Heidi tugged on his sleeve, her soft voice instantly hooking his attention.
“Caleb, my stomach hurts again. Can you make me some porridge? You cook well.”
He agreed at once and hurried off with her on his arm.
I watched their silhouettes fade, feeling something inside my chest shatter piece by piece.
