When Elena opened her eyes again, the acrid scent of disinfectant stung her nostrils.
Murmured voices drifted into her ears.
"Mr. Sullivan, per your instructions, we've removed Madam's uterus. From now on... she will never be able to have children again."
The private doctor withdrew.
Tears welling up in her eyes, Hillary covered her mouth, and collapsed weakly into Jackson's arms, her voice trembling with guilt.
"Jackson, this is all my fault. If only I had watched the children more closely, they wouldn't have argued with Elena. She wouldn't have suffered such irreversible damage from the whipping... I've ruined her."
Jackson's frown eased. Wrapping an arm gently around her waist, he murmured in comfort.
"Hillary, you're still, as kind as ever. You don't have to take everything upon yourself. If anyone is to blame, it's Elena herself. She brought this upon herself."
From the side, Aaron and Maya chimed in in perfect unison, wrapping their arms around Hillary's legs like obedient little angels.
"That's right, Aunt Hillary! Mom already has the two of us. Why would she want to have more children with someone else?"
No one knew how much time passed. The four of them began laughing together, their voices light, and left hand in hand.
Elena stared blankly at the ceiling, her eyes and chest aching with a deep, dull pain. She forced herself to accept the reality—her womb was gone.
Strangely... this time, not a single tear fell. Only a crushing heaviness sat in her gut, as if her organs themselves were aching.
Days slipped by.
While she was recovering, Aaron and Maya made a rare appearance at her bedside.
"Stop pretending. Did you see how happy Dad and Aunt Hillary are together? You've delayed them for seven years—always faking illness, playing the pitiful victim, clinging to our family like some beggar."
Elena's chest tightened. Her voice was hoarse as she replied, "I don't know who's been filling your heads with this poison, making you hate me as if I were your mortal enemy. But the truth is—seven years ago, that drunken night was a trap set by your Sullivan family. I was a victim too. If I hadn't gotten pregnant with the two of you by accident, I would never have married Jackson!"
"Liar!" Aaron's shrill voice cut her off. "Aunt Hillary and Grandma told us the truth. If you hadn't used your cheap tricks to crawl into Dad's bed, Aunt Hillary would've been married here long ago!"
Maya glared, her small face—so much like Elena's—twisted with pure hatred.
"Then I'll show you who Dad really cares about!"
She dragged over a stool. Aaron climbed up, reached the windowsill, and knocked over a lit candle.
The two of them bolted from the room faster than monkeys.
Flames roared to life, devouring the curtains. In an instant, thick smoke and blistering heat engulfed the room. The air reeked of burning fabric and choking soot; the fire leapt wildly, and the wardrobe and ceiling began to tremble as if ready to collapse.
Elena limped out of bed, but the door was locked from the outside. Despair washed over her.
From the hallway, the housekeeper's panicked voice rang out as she fled the spreading smoke.
"Sir! Madam is still inside—"
Jackson hesitated. After all, they had been married for seven years—he couldn't just stand there and watch her burn to death.
But before he could move—
"Let her die there!" Aaron's voice was crisp and innocent. "If she's gone, nothing will stand in the way of Dad and Aunt Hillary!"
"And if Mom is dead," Maya added boldly, "no one will force me to eat or make me take those awful lessons anymore."
Jackson froze, his expression darkening.
"Aaron, Maya—who taught you to say such things?"
Sensing the shift in mood, Hillary quickly added fuel to the fire.
"The candle was so high up. How could the children even reach it? Unless... Elena did it on purpose."
As expected, the man fell silent for several seconds. Doubt and displeasure flickered in his eyes, his handsome features growing cold and hard.
The housekeeper tried again.
"Sir, should I at least unlock Madam's door—"
"No need."
Jackson took one child in each hand and turned away with Hillary.
"If she wants to kill herself, let's grant her wish. Until the firefighters arrive, no one should open that door for her."
