I gasped, my eyes snapping open just in time to see Cameron’s body jerk forward since the bullet pierced her back.
A strangled gasp escaped her lips. Then, her knees buckled and she collapsed onto the floor.
For a split second, the world seemed to tilt and my breath caught in my throat as I saw blood and heard the staff’s scream.
Mattie dropped to his knees beside her, his face contorted in pure panic.
"Cam? Cameron!" His voice cracked as his hands shook, pressing against the wound at her back, trying to stop the bleeding.
But the blood kept spreading, creeping across the floor until it pooled beneath my heels, staining them crimson.
"Call an ambulance!" someone shouted.
Mattie’s head snapped up, his wild, desperate gaze sweeping over the room. "No—no time! Prepare my car, quick!"
The guards rushed to obey, sprinting toward the parking lot.
In the chaos, I barely registered my own movements.
I followed them down to the lobby, my heels clicking against the marble floor in a daze.
My secretary was there, waiting for me near the entrance. The moment she saw the blood that was drawn on the floor because of my footsteps, she paled.
"Ma’am, what happened?"
I shook my head. I was not even sure how to answer. My own thoughts were a tangled mess. "I don’t know, but cancel the meeting. I have to go to the hospital with Mattie."
She nodded quickly, already pulling out her phone to reschedule.
I turned to follow Mattie as he carried Cameron toward his black Mercedes.
I reached for the passenger door. But before I could even touch the handle, the car sped away leaving me behind.
I stood there motionless.
For the first time, I truly saw the truth. Mattie had not even looked at me. He had completely forgotten my existence the second Cameron had fallen.
The irony of it all settled in like a heavy weight pressing down on my chest. Why?
Why had I wasted so many years fighting for a man who had never once fought for me?
Why had I begged for his attention, when it had never truly belonged to me in the first place?
I had told myself over and over again—as long as I was capable, as long as I proved I was the only woman he needed, Mattie would not cheat on me.
But I was wrong. I had always been wrong.
I decided to go home, pack my things, and end the nightmare by signing the divorce papers that Mattie had prepared years ago.
At the start of our marriage, when we first discovered Mattie had Oligospermia, he had fallen into a deep frustration. He convinced himself that he was less of a man because he might never father a child.
And back then, he had wanted me to leave.
"Divorce me, Becca," he had said, his voice hollow as he gripped my hands. "I have no right to be your husband. I can’t even give you children."
But I had fought for him.
"I don’t care, Mattie," I whispered through my tears, squeezing his hands tighter. "I don’t need children to be happy. I only need you."
And Mattie had pulled me into his arms, his embrace tight, almost desperate. He had cried into my shoulder, swearing that our love would be enough.
But it turned out, he lied. It was not love that Mattie had given me, but a slow, merciless destruction—chipping away at my heart, piece by piece, until nothing was left but pain.
So, I was done drowning on it.
But before I could take Kenneth with me, Mattie was back.
He did not notice my suitcase. Instead, his fingers dug into my wrist, pulling me forward.
His eyes burned with urgency, he demanded impatiently, "Come with me to the hospital."
"No, let go of me!" I struggled in confusion.
But my body was too weak, so against my will, I ended up at the hospital.
The moment we arrived, it hit me—I was nothing more than a tool to keep Cameron alive.
She had lost too much blood, and with hospital supplies running low due to the flood of emergency cases, Mattie had no other choice. He needed a donor. And he remembered—I had universal blood, O-negative.
So, without hesitation, he forced me to give mine.
I laughed, a short, bitter sound.
"Are you insane?" I scoffed. "Why would I save your precious toy?"
Mattie’s jaw clenched. "Don’t be ridiculous, Becca. This is about saving a life."
"A life?" My voice was sharp. "You mean the same life that ruined our marriage?"
The doctor cleared his throat, stepping in cautiously. "Mr. Randolf, a blood transfusion must be voluntary."
"Right, doc. I will never do it," I snapped, cutting him off. "Wouldn’t it be better if she left this world forever?"
In a second, his palm swung through the air.
Gasps filled the room, but no one dared to stop him since he was an influential person in Philadelphia.
In the end, Mattie signed the paperwork himself and forced everyone to obey him.
The next thing I knew, I was falling into a black abyss because of the blood loss, since they took too much blood for the transfusion.
When I woke up, a doctor standing by my bedside said gently, "Mrs. Randolf, I have some difficult news."
Something in his tone made my blood run cold. But I swallowed. "Tell me."
The doctor hesitated, then exhaled. "You were one month pregnant. But due to the forced blood donation… you suffered a miscarriage."
My breath hitched. I looked at him in unbelieve as I responded, "But, Mattie should have stopped it if he knew."
The doctor’s gaze softened. "I’m sorry, ma’am. Your husband knew… but still chose to save the patient instead, since she was getting pregnant with a son now."
Everything inside me shattered as the doctor’s words echoed in my mind.
So, my intuition had been right all along. The ring was an engagement ring, because Cameron was pregnant with his son, which meant Kenneth and I were no longer important to Mattie.
As I clenched the hospital sheets, my phone vibrated.
My secretary’s urgent voice suddenly fulfilled my ears, “Ma’am, you should watch the breaking news now.”
Since Cameron showing off her marquise diamond ring during a livestream, the scandal leaked and the media had been quick to connect the dots, thanks to the paparazzi who had caught Mattie buying it.
The headlines were splashed with speculation and celebration. But that was not the worst part, since Cameron had gone a step further shamelessly.
She had clarified everything by posting a photo with a caption that read, [My baby is here guarding me in the hospital.]
The image did not show Mattie’s face, but his silhouette was unmistakable. Anyone who had ever seen him would know it was him.
The comments were a dagger to my heart.
[Congratulations, Cam. You deserve it.]
[I knew it. A girl as beautiful as Cam is indeed perfect for the CEO.]
[I don’t blame Cam or the CEO. Cam is charming, no CEO’s wife can beat her.]
I sneered, my voice thick with bitterness. “The world has turned upside down. Even a legal wife can’t beat a concubine.”
My gaze shifted to my message app, where Cameron’s provocative texts, photos, and videos sat, taunting me like a collection of venomous trophies.
For months, she had been sending me evidence of their affair, each image and clip a cruel reminder of how insignificant I was in Mattie’s eyes. She wanted to hurt me and break me.
Since she wanted a war, then I would gladly give her one. I realized I was too kind just by keeping it and attaching it in my divorce file.
I typed a simple command to my secretary. [Share it.]
Within minutes, everything Cameron had ever sent me was forwarded to every major media outlet and news company.
