My heart nearly stopped.
Maxine was lying on the ground beside the SUV while tears streamed down her face.
She clutched one leg dramatically. “It hurts so much. I think my leg is broken! The pain is unbearable.”
The entire household rushed outside.
Maverick was the first one there.
The moment he saw Maxine on the ground, his face changed.
“Maxine!” He dropped to his knees beside her and immediately reached for her. “Where does it hurt? Tell me exactly where. Don't panic, just look at me and breathe.”
His hands carefully checked her leg.
“Don't be scared. I'm here. Nothing is going to happen to you, so stay calm and let me help you.”
Maxine grabbed his sleeve tightly.
“Maverick... what if something happened to the baby? What if I lose my child? What if I did something wrong?” Her voice trembled. “I can't lose this baby. It's all I have left on this world.”
Maverick's eyes instantly filled with panic.
“No. Stop thinking like that. Nothing's going to happen to you, and nothing is going to happen to the baby either.” His voice became unusually gentle. “Do you hear me? You're going to be fine. I won't let anything happen to either of you.”
For a moment, they seemed to forget everyone else existed.
Forget that I was standing there.
Forget that I was his wife.
Then suddenly Mrs. Farrington pointed directly at me.
Her voice became shrill. “Sandra did this! She was driving! She hit Maxine with the car!”
The accusation exploded through the courtyard.
“She never wanted this pregnancy. She has been resentful from the very beginning. Who knows what she was thinking when she got behind that wheel?”
Before I could even react, people surged toward me. The bodyguards. The servants. The family.
The SUV door was yanked open, and rough hands dragged me outside.
“Sandra!” Mr. Farrington's face twisted with rage. “How could you do something so vicious? Have you completely lost your mind?!” His voice shook with anger. “She is your sister. She is carrying Anthony's child. How could you even think of harming her?”
The slap came before I could answer and pain exploded across my face. I staggered backward and blood immediately filled my mouth.
“I didn't...” I whispered.
But nobody cared.
“You didn't what?” Mr. Farrington grabbed my hair. “You didn't try to hurt her? You expect us to believe that after what we just saw?” His hand struck me again. “You think we're blind? You think we're all fools?”
The force made my ears ring.
Nearby, Mrs. Farrington was crying hysterically.
“My son is already dead! Anthony is gone, and now you want to hurt the woman carrying his baby?!”
Her voice cracked with grief. “What kind of monster are you? You hated this pregnancy from the beginning. You wanted this child gone because you couldn't stand seeing Maxine happy.”
Another slap landed, then another and another.
The world became blurry. I didn't fight back. Somewhere deep down, I kept hoping someone would stop them, but nobody did. Not even Maverick.
I looked toward him. The man who once promised to protect me. The man who controlled entire cities through fear and influence. The man who could stop this with a single word.
He just stood there, while his arm wrapped protectively around Maxine. His attention never left her.
Then Mr. Farrington shoved me hard. I lost my balance. My foot slipped against the pavement. The side of my head slammed into the SUV door.
A sharp crack echoed through my skull and warm blood immediately ran down my face.
The crowd gasped.
Only then did Maverick finally speak.
“Enough. Stop this right now. Standing here arguing isn't going to solve anything, and we're wasting precious time.” His voice was cold. “Everyone calm down.”
Relief almost washed over me. For one foolish second, I thought he was defending me. Then Maverick stood and helped Maxine to her feet. His gaze never even landed on me. “The priority right now is Maxine. She needs a doctor immediately, and that's where our attention should be. Nothing else matters until we know she's okay.”
My heart went completely numb.
Maxine continued crying. “My leg hurts so much. Maverick, I can't walk. I don't think I can even stand.”
Without hesitation, he wrapped an arm around her waist.“It's okay. I've got you. Lean on me and don't force yourself.” He carefully guided her forward. “You'll be fine. We'll get you checked immediately.”
I stared at her leg. There wasn't a single drop of blood.
Not one scratch.
Meanwhile blood dripped from my face onto the pavement. Yet nobody seemed to notice. Or maybe they noticed and simply didn't care.
Maverick guided Maxine into the vehicle. He closed the door carefully, and got into the driver's seat.
The engine started. And without looking back once, he drove away.
…
In the end, I went to the hospital alone.
Nobody came with me. Nobody asked if I was hurt. Nobody even checked whether I was okay.
The doctor gave me five stitches in my head. One side of my face was swollen beyond recognition. Dark bruises covered my arms, shoulders, and back.
Every movement hurt.
My in laws— they'd grabbed, shoved, slapped, and hit me so many times that there was barely any uninjured skin left on my body.
As the nurse carefully applied medicine to my wounds, she kept glancing at me.
Finally, she couldn't hold it in anymore.
“Miss Sandra...” the nurse said gently. “Can I ask you something?”
I smiled weakly. “Of course.”
The nurse hesitated, then lowered her voice. “Is your husband hurting you? If he is, we can help. I can contact the police and connect you with people who know how to handle situations like this.”
For a moment, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. I slowly shook my head.
“Thank you,” I said hoarsely. “But it's not my husband.”
The nurse looked confused but I didn't explain further. How could I? The truth was even more ridiculous. I wasn't being hurt by one person. I was being hurt by an entire family.
Just then, voices drifted in from the hallway.
I looked up instinctively.
And there they were.
Maverick and Maxine.
They were walking out of another examination room together while the doctor followed behind them.
“There's no need to worry,” the doctor said with a smile. “your wife's injury is extremely minor. Just a small scrape. A few days of rest and she'll be completely fine.”
Maverick immediately nodded. “Thank you, doctor, I appreciate everything. I'll personally take care of her until she's fully recovered.”
The doctor smiled and walked away.
Not once did Maverick explain that Maxine wasn't his wife. Not once did he correct the misunderstanding.
...
After the doctor left, he carefully supported Maxine as they walked through the hallway.
The sight made my chest ache.
Then Maxine suddenly laughed. “Maverick, look at us,” Maxine said playfully, tilting her head. “Don't we look like a married couple right now?”
Maverick chuckled. “Maybe we do." His eyes softened as he looked at her. “Especially now that you're carrying my baby.”
Maxine's smile widened. “Well, if that's the case, then someone must've been very hardworking,” she teased, resting a hand on her stomach. “After all, I got pregnant pretty quickly.”
Maverick laughed.
The sound echoed through the corridor.
“Is that your way of complimenting me?” he asked.
Maxine pretended to think.
“Maybe,” she replied. “Or maybe I'm just impressed.”
Maverick leaned closer.
“Impressed?”
“Very,” Maxine said, her cheeks turning slightly pink. “You should be proud of yourself.”
The flirtation was shameless… Like neither of them cared who saw. I immediately looked away. I couldn't bear to watch anymore.
A few seconds later, the nurse beside me suddenly gasped.
“Oh no.” She crouched beside me. “Miss Sandra, why are you crying?” the nurse asked. “I didn't even notice until now.”
I blinked. Only then did I realize tears had already slipped down my face.
When did that happen? I didn't even know.
The nurse looked worried.“Are your injuries hurting that badly?” she asked. “Should I ask the doctor for stronger pain medication?”
I touched my cheek, then I laughed softly— a broken laugh.
“Yeah,” I said, nodding. “They hurt a lot.”
