Helene Richard POV:
"You did this, Garrett. This is on you." My words, a final, chilling accusation, hung in the air, heavy with unspoken pain and sacrifice. The world around me spun, a dizzying kaleidoscope of horrified faces and flashing lights. Garrett's face, usually so composed, was frozen in a mask of shock, disbelief warring with dawning comprehension.
A sharp, unbearable pain ripped through my lower abdomen, a silent scream that tore at my insides. My knees buckled. I felt myself falling, the polished marble floor rushing up to meet me. The silver letter opener, now stained, clattered beside me with a sickening ring.
Someone shrieked. "Helene!" Kellen's voice, small and terrified, cut through the growing chaos. It wasn't the cruel, rehearsed taunt I had grown accustomed to. It was raw fear, a genuine cry of a child seeing something he couldn't comprehend. For a fleeting second, his genuine distress pierced through my haze of pain, a bittersweet pang in my chest.
Then, darkness. A vast, echoing void. In that void, a tiny light flickered, then dimmed, then winked out entirely. A single, fleeting image of a nascent life, a fragile hope I had harbored in secret, dissolving into nothingness. I'm so sorry, I whispered into the darkness, a silent apology to the life I had just sacrificed. Forgive me. I had no choice.
The guilt was a crushing weight, even in my fading consciousness. To intentionally hurt a part of myself, a part of him, a part of us. The choice had been brutal, born of pure desperation. Garrett's threats, his family's relentless control, Kellen's heartbreaking alienation – they had tightened around my throat, suffocating me. This was the only way out. The only way to truly break free, to leave him with undeniable, unforgivable guilt. The unexpected pregnancy had been his final, unwitting weapon against me. I had turned it against him, a desperate gambit for my own survival.
Through the fog, I registered frantic shouts, the screech of sirens, the hurried footsteps of paramedics. Garrett's voice, thick with a terror I had never heard before, cut through the din. "Call 911! Get her to the hospital, now!"
I could feel strong hands lifting me, the jostle sending fresh waves of agony through my body. A blurred image of Daphne, still clutching her stomach in feigned distress, trying to intervene, trying to be the center of attention. Celsa's sharp, commanding tone, overriding everyone. "Get her out of here! Now! Don't let a single reporter see this!"
Garrett's face loomed over me, contorted with a mixture of horror and dawning realization. His earlier rage had completely vanished, replaced by a profound, chilling fear. He wasn't looking at Daphne, he wasn't looking at Celsa. He was looking at me. And in his eyes, I saw it: the recognition of what he had truly done. The look of a man facing the consequences of his actions, not just a tabloid headline, but a visceral, bloody reality.
He barked orders at his security detail, ignoring Daphne's whining protests. "Get her in the car! Drive! And no detours! Straight to St. Jude's!" The security guard who had earlier attempted to manhandle me now carried me with surprising gentleness, his face pale. Daphne's cries of "My baby! My head!" were completely ignored. Garrett was focused only on me, his eyes glued to the blossoming stain on my dress, his hands hovering, unsure how to help.
The journey to the hospital was a whirlwind of pain and fading consciousness. I remembered being wheeled swiftly through brightly lit corridors, the faces of nurses and doctors a blur above me. Then, the cold sterility of an operating room, the blinding lights, the hushed voices.
Garrett was there, a desperate figure pacing outside the operating room. I could almost feel his frantic energy, his fear. He leaned against the wall, head in his hands, running his fingers through his hair, pulling at it as if he could tear the image of my desperate act from his mind. His expensive suit was still rumpled, but now it seemed to hang on him, heavy with the weight of his guilt. His aides, usually bustling around him, stood frozen, silently observing the unprecedented scene. I wondered if they had ever seen their formidable boss this broken, this utterly helpless.
Hours later, a doctor emerged, his face grim. "Mr. Wise," he said, his voice quiet, "we did everything we could. We managed to stabilize Ms. Richard's condition. She's lost a lot of blood, but she's out of immediate danger." He paused, his gaze falling, "However, we couldn't save the pregnancy. The fetus was non-viable."
Garrett stood motionless, like a statue carved from ice. Then, his voice, a raw whisper, barely audible. "Helene. Is Helene okay? Will she... will she recover?"
The doctor nodded. "Yes, physically, she will. It will take time, but she will recover. Psychologically, that's another matter. She's been through a tremendous trauma."
A wave of relief, so profound it was almost audible, seemed to wash over Garrett's rigid frame. He slumped against the wall, closing his eyes. "Thank God," he murmured, his voice hoarse. "Thank God." He then turned to one of his aides, his voice still shaky but regaining some of its commanding tone. "Get the best specialists. Whatever she needs. And get her the finest, most potent tonics for recovery. I want her to have everything."
He pulled out his phone, his hands still trembling slightly, and dialed a number. "Mother," he said, his voice low and strained. "It's done. She's stable. But... the baby is gone. You need to come to the hospital. Now. We need to talk." His gaze returned to the closed operating room door, a haunted, broken man.
