I packed my suitcase quietly, folding clothes with shaking hands. My heart was pounding, but my face stayed calm.
When Dominic walked in, he froze. “What the hell are you doing?”
I didn’t look up. “If you don’t want to divorce me, then fine. But I’m not staying here anymore—while you ruin me piece by piece.”
His jaw tightened. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“I already am.”
He stepped forward, grabbed my wrist. “Don’t test me, Hannah.”
I yanked free. “I’ve had enough.”
His hand flew before I could move. The slap echoed through the room, sharp and humiliating. My cheek stung.
Without hesitation, I slapped him back. “How dare you! I’ve had enough of you already! I’m not letting you—”
Before I could finish, a small voice broke through the tension.
“Aunt Hannah?”
Jacob stood at the door, clutching his toy car. His wide eyes were wet. “Are you okay? Why are you fighting? Are you hurting my Aunt Hannah? You’re bad!”
Dominic’s expression shifted—annoyance, then guilt.
“I thought you were good,” Jacob continued, trembling.
“Jacob, go back to your room,” Dominic said sharply.
Katerina appeared behind him, breathless. “Hey—don’t do that. They’re talking.” She gave a nervous laugh. “Sorry, bad timing. I just wanted to see Hannah… Jacob wanted to play with her.”
“Play with me?” I said bitterly. “Right. After all, you’re all playing with me.”
Katerina blinked, feigning confusion. “What? What’s wrong? Did you two fight again? You should fix this before it gets worse—”
“Enough,” I snapped. I walked toward her and slapped her hard. The sound cracked like thunder.
She gasped, holding her cheek. “Hannah, what—what’s happening to you?”
“You dare act innocent?” I hissed. “Then answer me—who is Jacob’s father?”
Katerina’s lips trembled. “Let’s not talk about this here… You know it’s sensitive for Jacob—”
“Don’t you dare!” I threw a handful of photos at her. They scattered across the floor—Dominic and Katerina, their faces close, Jacob between them. “Stop lying to me! I know the truth now!”
Dominic’s silence was worse than shouting. Then, calmly, he said, “Good. We don’t have to pretend anymore.”
He turned to Katerina, voice low. “Stop crying. It’s useless now.”
Katerina sobbed. “Dominic, please—”
“Enough.” His tone was final. “Hannah, you had your chance. I’ll adopt Jacob. He will carry my name. He deserves it.”
Jacob started crying louder.
My patience snapped. “Be quiet!” I barked. I love the child but with everything they have done to me, I just couldn’t look at him anymore.
Jacob’s cry broke into hiccups.
Dominic stepped between us. “Don’t yell at him! He is my son! And you’re just nothing but a pawn in my game! Now that you know everything, then it’s good because Katerina will stay here.”
“Then let her stay,” I said, my voice low. “That’s why I’m leaving. I won’t stay to watch you two play house while you ruin me.”
He laughed, sharp. “No. You’re not going anywhere. I can’t let you leave and tell my father about the affair before I have everything in place. You can’t ruin this. You think you can walk out and expose me? I still have ways to make money. I can sell you to the highest bidder again. Don’t forget how valuable you are.”
Heat roared in my veins. The room spun. “You can’t. You won’t—”
Katerina flinched like an innocent. “Dominic, don’t—this isn’t the time—”
Her voice was thin. It sounded like panic. I’d believed that show a thousand times. Not anymore.
“Stop pretending,” I snapped. “I know exactly who you are.”
She went pale. For a second she looked like the friend I’d shared college secrets with. Then the mask cracked. Her eyes hardened. “You don’t get to play the victim now,” she spat. “You threw your ring away. You ran to another man. You left a mess behind.”
Every word landed like a punch.
“Katerina—” I started.
She shoved me first. Hard. The shove sent me stumbling into the kitchen counter. Pain flared against my hip.
Jacob wailed and crawled between us. “Stop! Stop it!” His small voice sounded like a knife.
“Jacob, stay out of this!” Dominic barked. He stepped forward, pushing between us but Jacob didn’t move away fast enough.
Dominic’s arm jerked, meant for me, but it caught Jacob instead. The boy stumbled, lost his balance, and hit the edge of the table before falling hard onto the floor. His cry tore through the air—high, shocked, and pained.
“Jacob!” Katerina screamed. She lunged forward, scooping him up as tears streamed down his small face. “Shh, baby, it’s okay. Mommy’s here.”
I froze, horror and rage crashing together. “You hit him!” I shouted, my voice shaking.
Dominic turned on me, eyes blazing. “You’re the one who made him get in the way! You can’t even control yourself!”
“Don’t you dare blame me!” I snapped, stepping toward him.
But before I could move again, he grabbed a fistful of my hair. The pain was sudden and sharp. He yanked me sideways like I was nothing. I gasped, tasting copper as my knees buckled.
“How dare you hurt my son,” he snarled into my face, his breath hot and bitter. His fingers dug into my scalp until I thought my skin would tear.
“Dominic—stop—” I choked out, trying to push him off.
He shoved me across the back, hard. I crashed into the table, the edge biting into my ribs. My cheek hit the wood with a thud, and the room spun.
They left then. The door shut.
That night, I checked into a hotel under a different name. The city lights outside the window flickered like ghosts. I sat on the edge of the bed, staring at my packed suitcase.
My phone buzzed. Adrian.
“I’ll pick you up soon,” his message read. “We’ll leave everything behind.”
Finally, I exhaled. I’d made it out.
Or so I thought.
A knock came at the door—sharp, official.
I frowned, expecting Adrian. “Come in.”
The door opened. Two uniformed officers stepped inside.
“Mrs. Hannah Hale?” one of them asked.
“Yes?”
“You are under arrest for the attempted murder of Jacob Hale.”
My blood ran cold. “What?”
The officer took a step forward. “Please cooperate, ma’am.”
The world tilted. The floor seemed to vanish.
My knees gave way. “No,” I whispered. “That’s not true.”
But the cuffs were already cold around my wrists.
