Benjamin paused, a flicker of something complex flashing in his eyes.
“Don’t ever drug me again,” he said quietly.
I suddenly laughed.
So that’s what he believed all along—that I was the one who drugged him that night.
No wonder he hated me for thirty years in our past life.
From beginning to end, he saw me as a ruthless woman who’d stop at nothing to possess him.
“Alright,” I said calmly. “I wish you both happiness.”
A trace of surprise flickered in Benjamin’s eyes. He clearly hadn’t expected me to agree so easily.
But what he didn’t know was—Mom and Dad had left me a way out.
Brother, if you truly go through with marrying someone else... You’ll be left with nothing.
The ones who loved me most were always our parents.
So, I would wait quietly—until their wedding.
To atone, Benjamin ordered me to personally take care of Laica’s daily needs.
He called it “repentance.”
“Darlene, from today on, you’ll cook for Laica, wash her clothes, and care for everything she needs.”
He stood in the living room, looking down at me like a judge delivering a sentence.
“You’ll keep doing it until your venomous heart is scrubbed clean.”
I didn’t resist, and just simply nodded. “Alright.”
My obedience seemed to catch him off guard. But his surprise quickly gave way to cold indifference.
Laica sat on the sofa, gently caressing her still-flat belly. She gave me a soft smile.
“Darlene, I’ll be troubling you from now on.”
So it begins, I thought.
She claimed to be suffering from morning sickness—and insisted that I stand beside her, holding the basin while she dry-heaved.
The stench was overpowering. Acidic vomit splashed on my hands, burning my skin.
She leaned weakly against the couch, a strange light glimmering in her eyes.
“Oh no... sorry for dirtying you, Darlene.”
Unfazed, I wiped my hand without expression.
When she claimed her feet were swollen, I massaged them without complaint.
Each session lasted over an hour, until my fingers went numb.
I endured it all.
But she seemed disappointed by my composure.
She didn’t just make things difficult when Benjamin wasn’t home—she upped the act when he was around.
One day, I handed her a bowl of herbal medicine for the baby.
However, she suddenly fell.
No—she pretended to fall.
The scalding tonic splashed across my hands, instantly raising angry blisters.
The pain was excruciating. My grip loosened, and the porcelain bowl crashed to the floor, shattering.
“Laica!”
Benjamin rushed over like a madman, scooping her into his arms as if she had been shot.
She had only twisted her ankle. But his gaze burned with fury as he turned on me.
“You just can’t stand her, can you?! She walks a little carefully and you still manage to hurt her?!”
I stared at my red, blistered hands—raw and stinging.
He didn’t even spare me a glance.
“Benj...” Laica clung to him weakly. “Don’t blame Darlene. It was my own carelessness.”
“Stop defending her!” Benjamin’s voice was laced with venom. “She did it on purpose!”
My hands throbbed in agony, but I remained calm, feeling numb inside.
I had already known this would be the outcome.
“She must be cursed,” Laica said suddenly, her gaze falling on the ruby pendant around my neck. “I’ve heard it’s bad luck to see red when you’re pregnant.”
Benjamin looked at me coldly and spat, “Take that necklace off.”
That necklace... he gave it to me on my 16th birthday.
It used to be the most precious thing I owned.
I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could, he stepped forward and grabbed it.
The delicate silver chain dug into my neck, searing my skin.
With a snap, the chain broke.
Without even glancing at it, he tossed the ruby pendant into the crackling fireplace beside us.
