After picking their dresses, Nielson and the others still felt unhappy and went to a nearby high-end children’s clothing shop.
As soon as they walked in, Katniss seemed full of motherly love.
“Nielson, look! This outfit is so cute! Our baby will look so handsome in it!”
“This one is nice too. It feels so soft. The three of us standing together will look perfect.”
I, like someone who didn’t belong, like a babysitter, quietly followed behind.
But Katniss still did not leave me alone.
“Heather, you should touch them too. You should learn how to choose nice things for the child,” her eyes seemed to casually pass over my flat belly, her voice full of ill intent, “But you’re still young, you probably don’t know what it’s like to be a real mother yet. You can’t feel that blood bond.”
My lower stomach seemed to ache again. Every word she said felt like a reminder of what I had just lost.
How laughable.
Nielson didn’t even know the truth.
Maybe my silence made Katniss happy, because she laughed softly and didn’t trouble me again.
After leaving the baby shop, Nielson got a call from the housekeeper, saying the old lady wanted to see the child.
So the plan changed; after picking up the child, we drove to the large old house that stood for the Sanchez Family’s power.
This was my first time going to the Sanchez Family’s old home as Mrs. Sanchez, yet I felt like a stranger.
Hyacinth Sanchez completely ignored my presence.
“Katniss is here! Come over fast so I can look at you. You seem thinner again after only a few days. Has Nielson not been taking good care of you?”
Her voice sounded warm, as if Katniss were her real daughter-in-law.
“Oh, Heather is here too?” Hyacinth looked me up and down, her eyes as if she was judging something she didn’t like.
“Don’t stand at the doorway. Come in and sit. Pour Katniss a cup of tea.”
After all, Katniss was not the officially accepted Mrs. Sanchez. Even though Katniss had betrayed Nielson, the Sanchez Family still treated her as the real lady of the house.
I straightened my back and stepped back. “I won’t interrupt your family gathering anymore. I’ll leave now.”
Hyacinth’s slightly angry voice came from behind me.
“Heather, is this how you behave? So rude. You really should learn some manners.”
I slowly turned around, with sarcasm in my eyes. “Mrs. Sanchez, you seem to have forgotten that I never asked for this role in the first place.”
Hyacinth had no reply, her face turning even darker. “Too rude! Such a sharp mouth! Make her kneel at the door. She can only stand up when she admits her mistake. I want to see how strong she really is.”
Nielson, standing nearby, looked like he wanted to speak, but in the end he stayed silent.
Two servants grabbed me hard and with a heavy thump, I was forced down onto the cold, hard ground.
Then they went into the old house together like a family, as if I were someone who didn’t matter.
The night grew darker, the air colder and my body started to shake without control.
I bit my lip.
Then a coat was placed over my shoulders.
