My phone vibrated while I sat on the floor beside the bed, my back slumped against the mattress, my body emptied out by hours of crying. I wiped my face and forced myself to look at the screen.
Joseph.
Relax, the message read. That was only a test. I wanted to see if your husband would do anything. He didn’t. That tells you everything. Divorce him. Understood? Sienna is with me. She’s safe. Not a single scratch on her.
For a heartbeat, I forgot how to breathe.
Then relief hit me all at once—so overwhelming it nearly crushed me again. Sienna. My baby. Alive. Safe. Out of their hands.
My fingers trembled as I typed my reply. Then do this for me, Joseph. Make everyone believe my daughter is dead. Make them think I’m dead too. I don’t want him anywhere near our lives ever again. Not after this. Not after everything he’s done.
The response came almost immediately. Done. I’ll take care of it. I’ll see you soon, love.
Love.
The word made something twist inside me, but I ignored it. Feelings didn’t matter anymore. Only freedom did. Only Sienna’s safety. I would accept whatever price came with that.
I set the phone aside and grabbed a suitcase from the closet. My movements were fast, mechanical—clothes shoved in without care, shoes tossed on top, jewelry swept from drawers. Each zip of the bag felt like sealing shut a chapter of my life I never wanted to reopen.
Then a voice sliced through the room.
“I’m really sorry about your baby,” Bianca said softly from the doorway, her tone dripping with fake sympathy.
I stiffened, my hands pausing mid‑fold.
“But honestly,” she went on, walking in like she belonged there, “you can’t blame him for doubting you. Especially after what your father did. You should’ve been honest about his scam from the start. Secrets always come back to bite.”
I kept my back turned, folding another dress with shaking hands. She was baiting me. I refused to snap.
Still, anger burned hot in my chest. My father’s sins were never mine. I had spent my whole life paying for mistakes I didn’t make. Why was I still being punished for his past? And why did she think she had the right to throw it in my face?
She moved closer, fingers reaching for my clothes. “So you’re leaving?” she said with a light laugh. “That’s for the best. You really don’t belong here anymore. Let me help you pack.”
“I don’t need you,” I said sharply, finally turning to face her. “Leave. I can do this myself. And don’t pretend—I know every word out of your mouth is an act.”
She ignored me and stepped farther into the room, touching things that weren’t hers.
Then her arm brushed the side table.
The vase tipped.
It shattered the moment it hit the floor.
My breath caught painfully in my chest.
Not that vase.
It was Sienna’s—the one she had made at school with her tiny hands, the one she painted herself, the one she won first prize for. My daughter’s proud little creation. Gone in pieces.
Something inside me snapped.
I shoved Bianca away, my voice breaking. “What is wrong with you? I told you not to touch anything!”
She stumbled back and immediately screamed, loud and theatrical. “Aldrin!”
Heavy footsteps rushed toward us. Aldrin appeared in the doorway, his eyes sweeping the scene. “What’s going on?”
“I was only trying to help,” Bianca said quickly, tears welling up on command. “The vase fell by accident. She got angry and pushed me.”
“That’s a lie!” I cried. “She knocked it over—I told her to leave my things alone!”
Aldrin’s stare hardened. “Over a stupid vase? Are you serious?”
“That wasn’t just a vase,” I shouted. “Sienna made that with her own hands—”
“Then why are you packing?” he cut in, suspicion sharpening his voice. “Planning to disappear, Amara? Is this because you found out I agreed to pay half the ransom?”
My heart stuttered. “You… you agreed?”
“Yes,” he said coldly. “And now you’re acting innocent? Don’t play dumb. You’re trying to run.”
“No—I swear I didn’t know—”
“I don’t trust you,” he snapped. “And frankly, Sienna might not even be mine. Who knows what you’ve been doing behind my back?”
The words stole the air from my lungs. “No! I would never—”
“Enough!” His face darkened. “You need to be taught a lesson. Since you like playing games with me, you’ll never see that child again.”
Fear exploded through me. I tried to retreat, but men appeared in the doorway, blocking my escape.
“Take her,” Aldrin ordered flatly. “Pull out her toenails. Slowly. Let her feel the same pain. Let her suffer.”
“No—please!” I screamed as they grabbed me. “Aldrin, stop! Don’t do this!”
He didn’t even flinch.
The first wave of pain was blinding. They pinned me down, my scream tearing out as one nail was ripped away. My voice echoed through the house, raw and broken.
“Help me!” I sobbed. “Please—someone help me!”
No one came.
Bianca watched in silence. Aldrin’s face remained cold, detached, as if my agony meant nothing.
The second nail. Then another. Each one sent fire shooting through my body, my sobs turning into hoarse gasps. My throat burned from screaming until sound barely came out at all.
And then everything went black.
When I finally woke, pain pulsed through every nerve in my body. My feet were wrapped in bandages, my limbs weak and shaking. But through the haze, one thought kept me grounded.
It’s almost over.
Just a little longer. Just endure a few more days.
Soon, I would disappear.
And I would never look back.
