Bronson pressed a soft kiss to Estelle’s lips, the warmth of his touch lingering before he whispered against them, “Give me a child, and I’ll give you your mother’s ashes.”
Estelle’s heart twisted at the words. She knew it was a cruel kind of hostage exchange, a game where she held no cards.
If she could abandon a helpless newborn after giving birth, if she could simply walk away with her mother’s ashes, then Bronson would never have been able to use them as a weapon. From the start, he would have never had the power to threaten her with such a thing. But now, as she stood before him, she realized that it wasn’t just about the ashes. It was about control. And she had none.
She had no say over her own body. The moment Bronson uttered those words, she knew the child would be born, whether she consented or not.
Tears clouded her vision as she met his gaze, her body trembling, her voice barely a whisper. “Okay.”
Bronson’s smile was triumphant as he gently slid the diamond bracelet onto her wrist. It was an exquisite piece, but it felt like a shackle rather than a gift.
"Estelle, you'll stay by my side forever."
Estelle had just gone through an abortion, and the idea of becoming pregnant again was far from appealing. Her injured leg only made matters worse. But Bronson wasn’t rushing her. To make Estelle feel more at ease and to help prepare her for what was to come, he had even cleared all the spies from her company.
At last, Estelle found herself with the time she needed to catch up on the cases piling up in her office.
The day before the trial, Estelle met with the victim’s guardian.
“Lawyer Maddox, I’ve heard your services are expensive. Thank you for agreeing to help Tala without charge,” Aurora Smith, Tala Smith’s mother, said. Though she was just shy of forty, years of hard labor under the sun had aged her prematurely, giving her the appearance of someone much older, almost like Tala’s grandmother.
Aurora’s hesitant eyes glanced around before Estelle gently ushered Tala out of the room.
A relieved sigh escaped Aurora’s lips as she looked at Estelle, her sunken eyes glistening with unshed tears.
“Lawyer Maddox, my daughter’s father, wants to know if we can settle this quietly. What can that bastard offer us to make it go away?”
Estelle hesitated, confusion flashing across her face before Aurora quickly waved her hands in a frantic gesture.
“No, no, Lawyer. We don’t want to cause trouble. It’s just that he has power and influence, and Tala’s so young. I’m afraid it’ll ruin her. People will shame her when she returns to the village. After we’re gone, no one will stand up for her. We just want to make sure she’s taken care of. We want some compensation for her suffering.”
Estelle gently reassured her, "Don’t worry, we won’t take Tala’s case to court publicly. Given the situation, a compensation of ten thousand should be within reach. I’ll do everything I can to secure what she truly deserves."
At the mention of ten thousand, Aurora’s gaze flickered. She seemed on the verge of saying something more, but the moment Tala returned, her words faded away.
Estelle rose to see them out. Aurora led the way, while Tala stayed close to Estelle, keeping a few steps behind her mother.
"Sister Estelle, do you think the bad people will really be brought to justice?" Tala asked, her voice laced with doubt.
"They will," Estelle answered firmly, her conviction unwavering.
Tala breathed a sigh of relief and whispered, "Actually, they don’t want me to sue them. Lately, people have been causing trouble for my parents at the construction site. My dad says it’s all my fault."
Estelle’s chest tightened. She paused, her mind spinning with questions. Even if she helped Tala win the case, would it be enough? Would the other party simply move on once they were out of prison, or would they come after her again?
Estelle had worked hard over the years, building a small nest egg. But none of her money or security could protect her from someone like Bronson. By the time the defendant was free, Tala would still be in college. What then?
"Sister, do you know what my parents said when they came home?" Tala’s voice cut through Estelle’s thoughts with a raw edge to it.
Tala’s eyes met Estelle’s with a heavyweight.
"My dad said that if I had gone out to work sooner, found a man to marry, someone who could protect me, none of this would’ve happened. He told me I was worthless and that I’d dragged them down with me."
