I lunged forward, desperate to grab the pillow, but Julian’s boot came down on my back, pinning me to the ground.
"What, still clinging to that bastard?" He scoffed. "Do you really think you deserve to be a mother?"
A cold dread crawled up my spine. Something was coming. Something worse. But I didn’t dare ask.
"I was wrong... I was really wrong," I choked out, my voice barely above a whisper.
Tears blurred my vision, but I knew crying wouldn’t change anything. Nothing I said would make them believe me. The family that once swore to protect me had become my worst nightmare.
I just wanted to survive. And I prayed they wouldn’t take it out on my son. But my worst fear was already happening.
Carter’s voice was laced with mockery. "Kaitlyn, you’re this stubborn over some man, aren’t you?"
I shook my head frantically. No. Please, not him. Carter didn’t buy it. He rolled down the car window and my heart stopped.
There he was. The child I had thought about every waking moment. His tiny frame looked even smaller, too thin, too pale, his clothes tattered. But it was his face that shattered me.
Fear. Confusion. A quiet kind of suffering no child should ever know. The moment he saw me, his little body trembled and tears welled in his eyes. "Mom—"
"Shut up." Carter's hand struck him across the face, silencing him instantly. I couldn’t breathe. My ribs squeezed like a vice around my heart.
‘What has they done to him? How has they broken him so badly that even his cries died in his throat?’ I thrashed against Yohan’s grip, my instincts screaming louder than my fear.
"Let me go!" I sobbed, fighting harder. "Please!"
In my panic, I did the only thing I could, I sank my teeth into Yohan’s hand. He swore, yanking back and I bolted. I was so close. Just a few steps away.
Then, Carter’s foot slammed into my stomach. The impact knocked me off my feet, pain exploding through my ribs as I hit the ground.
"Still fighting back?" His voice was ice. Then, the real horror began. The live broadcast chat flooded with comments, cruel and relentless.
[She deserves this! Let her suffer!]
[Take everything from her, just like she did to them!]
[That kid isn't innocent either. Get rid of him too!]
A few voices tried to push back.
[This is too much! He’s just a child!]
[How can you punish a kid for his mother’s sins?]
But they were drowned out in seconds, buried under an avalanche of hate and all I could do was watch. I looked at my son’s tear-streaked face and it felt like my heart was being ripped apart.
He was so small, so helpless and yet he had to suffer through this.
I tried to reach for him, but Carter shoved me back. I scrambled forward again, only to be kicked away. No matter how hard I fought, I couldn’t get close.
His sobs grew quieter, his tiny frame curling in on itself. He squeezed his eyes shut like he was trying to disappear, like if he just made himself small enough, the world would forget he was there.
I couldn’t take it. The pain, the helplessness, it crushed me. And then, everything went black.
When I woke up, I was on the freezing basement floor, soaked to the bone. I could barely move. My body burned with fever, but the cold made me shiver uncontrollably.
Another splash of ice water hit me.
"Awake?" Yohan tossed the bucket aside, sounding almost bored. I parted my lips, my throat dry and raw. "My son... where is he?"
The basement door creaked open. Winona walked in, cradling my crying child in her arms. "Kaitlyn," she murmured, "don’t worry. I’ll take good care of him."
I froze, staring at her in disbelief. ‘Why? Winona hates me. She always hated me. What game is she playing now?’
Winona sighed, her fingers gently running through my son’s hair.
"I know you hate me," she said softly. "But he’s just a child. He doesn’t deserve this. Since you can’t be a mother anymore, let me adopt him. At least that way, he won’t have to suffer in an orphanage."
Her voice was warm, almost convincing, like she actually cared. But I knew better. Winona wasn’t the type to show kindness without a reason.
And right on cue, Carter and my brothers exchanged looks, moved by her supposed generosity.
"Winona is so kind," Carter said, shaking his head as if he was actually touched. "Then we’ll grant her wish. But you, Kaitlyn, you still need to pay for what you’ve done."
My stomach twisted. "Pay?" My voice came out shaky. "What do you mean?"
Carter smiled and the hairs on my neck stood on end. "Your uterus," he said simply. "We’ll donate it to Winona so she can have a child of her own."
They dragged me to the Stafford Family’s private hospital, tying me down like an animal. The doctor examined me, his brows furrowing before he let out an awkward cough.
"Her uterus is not in a good condition," he admitted. "It’s too damaged from multiple miscarriages. There’s nothing we can do with it."
For a moment, there was silence. Then Carter’s expression darkened.
"Disgusting," one of my brothers muttered. "Even after being locked in a mental hospital, she was still spreading her legs for someone."
Before I could react, Carter yanked me up and shoved me outside the operating room. My knees hit the cold tile, pain shooting up my legs.
And that was when I saw him. Hayden Ziegler. The worst of them all. He was the one who made my life a living hell in the mental hospital. The one I feared the most.
The moment his gaze landed on me, a slow, cruel smirk spread across his lips. "Well, well," he drawled. "If it isn’t Kaitlyn. Back in the hospital again? What is it this time? Another miscarriage?"
Carter’s grip on me tightened before he shoved me even harder. "Kaitlyn," he sneered. "Is this the guy you’ve been running to?"
Hayden laughed like the thought was ridiculous. "Please. You think I’d actually want her?"
He turned to my brothers, grinning. "Honestly, you guys did us all a favor sending her to the mental hospital. Best damn entertainment we ever had. Watching the oh-so-mighty Miss Stafford on her knees, crying and begging like a dog? That was priceless."
