"George..." I choked out, my voice trembling so hard I could barely form the words. "What is this? Tell me this isn't real! You and Carmen... my babies..."
He walked past me, his bare feet silent on the floor, and firmly shut the heavy oak bedroom door.
Click.
He locked the deadbolt from the inside.
"They aren't your babies, Natasha," he stated coldly, tossing the iPad onto the unmade bed. "They're Carmen's. You're just the oven keeping them warm."
"You monster!" I screamed, tears of pure agony streaming down my face. "I loved you! I trusted you! How could you do this to me?! You put her eggs inside me without my consent!"
"Oh, stop being so dramatic," he sneered, rolling his eyes as if my devastation was nothing more than a minor annoyance. "Carmen wanted children, but she didn't want to ruin her figure with stretch marks and weight gain. You were so desperately pathetic for a family, crying over every negative test. It was the perfect solution."
I stared at him in absolute horror.
How could he say something so disgusting with such a straight face?!
"A solution?!" I shrieked, the hatred in my eyes impossible to hide. "I'm calling my lawyer right now! I want a divorce, George! I'm going to expose you and that backstabbing bitch to the world! I'll ruin you! I'll take half of everything you own!"
Hearing my threat, George didn't flinch. Instead, a low, mocking laugh escaped his lips. It was a dark, evil sound that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
"Divorce?" he chuckled, walking over to the hidden wall safe behind the vanity mirror. "You can't divorce me, Natasha."
He punched in the code, pulled out a crisp, folded document, and threw it directly at my feet.
"Read it."
My hands shook violently as I reached down and picked up the paper. It was a marriage certificate from Clark County, Nevada.
Dated five years ago.
Groom: George Russell.
Bride: Carmen Holland.
My brain completely short-circuited.
"No... no, this is impossible," I stammered, my vision blurring with fresh tears. "We got married five years ago... Carmen was my maid of honor..."
"We had a wedding," George corrected, a twisted, triumphant smirk on his face. "We never had a marriage. The priest was a hired actor. The papers you signed went straight into a shredder. Legally, you are absolutely nothing to me."
My legs gave out completely. I collapsed onto the floor, the fake marriage certificate slipping from my fingers.
My best friend... she had stood beside me at the altar, smiling and crying fake tears of joy, watching me vow my life to her legal husband!
Every anniversary, every kiss, every promise of forever... it was all a meticulously crafted illusion! I wasn't his wife. I had no legal rights to his assets, his home, or the children inside me. I was just an undocumented, unpaid surrogate trapped in a nightmare!
"Why?!" I sobbed, my fingernails digging viciously into the carpet. "If you loved her, why fake a life with me?! Why go through all this trouble?!"
"Because of your grandfather's trust fund, you stupid bitch," he spat, looking down at me with utter disdain. "Fifty million dollars, locked away until you produce a biological heir. My tech company has been bleeding money for years. I needed that capital to avoid bankruptcy. But you kept miscarrying."
He crouched down, grabbing my chin roughly, his fingers digging painfully into my jaw to force me to look into his dead eyes.
"Once you deliver, I'll present the triplets as your heirs. I get the fifty million to save my company, and Carmen gets her children."
My eyes widened in absolute terror as the pieces finally clicked together.
"And what about my baby?" I gasped, my voice barely a whisper. "The fourth one. My biological child."
George's grip tightened on my jaw. "A minor miscalculation. But easily fixed. Dr. Evans will simply... dispose of the anomaly during the delivery. No one will ever know it existed."
"No!" I shrieked, thrashing wildly against his grip. "You can't! I won't let you touch my baby!"
"You don't have a choice," he whispered maliciously.
Suddenly, a sharp, unnatural twinge shot through my lower abdomen.
It wasn't a normal kick. It was a deep, seizing cramp that stole the breath straight from my lungs. A wave of intense heat washed over my body, followed immediately by a stabbing pain in my lower back.
I gasped, clutching my stomach as I doubled over on the floor.
George stood up, straightening his posture, his eyes gleaming with dark victory as he watched me writhe.
"The prenatal vitamins..." I choked out, realization hitting me like a bolt of lightning. "The red capsule you just gave me..."
"Labor-inducing drugs," George confirmed smoothly, checking his watch. "A very high dose. You're going to go into premature labor tonight."
I stared at the man I had once loved with all my heart, seeing nothing but a literal demon. He had planned every single detail. He was going to force me into labor, cut my biological baby out to be murdered, and steal my family's fortune!
"You're going to stay in this room," George said, stepping toward the door and pulling a key from his pocket. "My private medical team is arriving at dawn. They'll take you straight to my clinic, where we can take care of this quietly."
"George, please!" I begged, the physical pain in my stomach now matching the absolute agony in my heart. "Don't do this! I'll give you the money! Just let me keep my baby!"
He didn't even look back.
He stepped out into the hallway, pulling the heavy bedroom door shut behind him.
Click.
The lock turned from the outside.
"I'll see you in the morning, Tash," his muffled voice echoed through the wood.
