In a daze, Kayla thought she heard Luke's furious voice echoing around her.

"What kind of security do we have at the villa? How did those people get in?

"No matter what it takes, I will make anyone who hurts Kayla pay a hundred times over!

"And take those online posts down immediately! What's that? The situation's too big? What's the Hudson family's PR department for then? Just take it from my accounts, fifty million, five hundred million—I don't care. I never want to hear another word against Kayla!

"What do you mean her condition is serious? Neither Kayla nor the baby can be harmed. If anything happens, I'll make sure you all pay for it with your lives!"

When Kayla finally woke, the first thing she saw was Luke. Tears were streaming down his face, almost as if he might break apart.

The moment he saw her eyes open, he swept her into his arms like he'd just survived a catastrophe.

"Kayla, my love. Do you know how close you just came to scaring me to death? You're my life!"

He spoke with a sincerity so raw it couldn't be faked, but Kayla felt nothing.

The moment Luke had declared in front of the media that Stephanie's child wasn't illegitimate and Kayla's was, she had completely lost any feeling of love for him.

Seeing the light in her eyes fade, Luke felt a terrible instinct gnawing at him. Something precious was slipping away in a way he couldn't stop. His heart felt like it was being crushed, and breathing hurt.

"Kayla, what's wrong? Are you angry with me? But I had no choice! I couldn't just stand by and let Stephanie's reputation be destroyed. She saved your life, remember? Seeing you hurt nearly drove me crazy! Can't you try to understand me, just this once?"

It was then that Stephanie pushed the door open, holding Kayla's abortion appointment slip in her hand.

"Yeah, Kayla. No matter how mad you are, you can't just get rid of the baby in your belly!"

"What?"

Luke stared at the slip in disbelief, his breath catching, completely thrown off balance.

Malice flashed openly in Stephanie's eyes.

"You went out on purpose, didn't you? Deliberately letting those people find you, hiding that you weren't feeling well from Luke, stirring up trouble so everyone would be furious at you. You just wanted the baby to miscarry on its own. And even if it didn't, you already scheduled the abortion. How could you do this to Luke? You've gone too far!"

The appointment slip in her hand was already crumpled in Luke's fist. His throat tightened.

"Is this true, Kayla? Are you really willing to end our child's life?"

Kayla only felt bitter irony.

He was the one who didn't want this child in the first place.

In a sudden motion, Luke overturned the teacup on the table. Glass shards scattered across the floor.

"Why? How much pain did you endure for this child? How many nights did you sweat through the side effects of the injections? I even knelt on the floor begging you to stop taking them. And yet you still wanted our child. How can you now be so cold as to abort this baby? Kayla, do you even have a heart?"

Yes. Kayla had risked almost everything for this child. But how could Luke erase his name from the birth certificate so casually, just to protect the child in Stephanie's womb? How could he willingly let her reputation be ruined, let their child be labeled a fatherless bastard, all for Stephanie?

At that moment, the voice of a servant came from the doorway.

"Mr. Hudson, the lawyer just delivered a divorce agreement. He says Mrs. Hudson asked him to draw it up."

Stephanie gave a knowing look to the servant, and the divorce papers were immediately handed to Luke. His name and Kayla's were printed in bold, glaring letters.

Luke's hands clenched. In a flash of anger, he ripped the papers in two. His voice was sharp, almost strangled.

"You can't divorce me. How could you even think of divorcing me?"

Stephanie put on a concerned expression.

"Luke, you've treated my sister so well, and she still wants a divorce. Could it be that... she's fallen for someone else?"

That was all it took. Luke completely lost control. He grabbed Kayla's wrist, gripping so hard it hurt.

"Luke, let go of me!"

"Never!"

His eyes were bloodshot, his breathing heavy with rage.

"Whoever that man is, I'll kill him myself. And you... Kayla, you will never leave me. You're mine. Forever!"

Of course, Luke never found this so-called other man. But from that day on, he no longer allowed Kayla to leave the house.

He claimed it was for her and the baby's safety, but in truth, it was imprisonment.

Around the villa, a twenty-four-hour automated security system was installed, along with rotating guards. No one was allowed in or out. Inside, all the servants were replaced with unfamiliar faces. After Luke discovered the flight information on Kayla's phone, he confiscated every communication device she owned, cutting her off completely from the outside world.

"I know this isn't fair to you," Luke said, his tone deceptively gentle. "But I will never let you end the child we fought so hard for. And I certainly won't let you hire a lawyer or file for divorce.

"Kayla, be good. I've spoken to the doctor. Your extreme emotions are just hormones from the pregnancy. Once you give birth to our child, you'll come to your senses."

Come to her senses? Did that mean accepting that her own child was being labeled a worthless illegitimate child by everyone? Or accepting that her husband was the father of another woman's child?

Kayla said nothing and only looked at Luke calmly. That quiet gaze alone was enough to strip the once-invincible businessman of all composure, forcing him to retreat from her room in disarray.

She was locked away for half a month.

She missed the abortion appointment she had scheduled.

She also missed the flight that could have carried her to freedom.

Not long after, Luke's mother, Katie Lloyd, arrived.

The moment Katie stepped through the door, she coldly ordered Kayla to kneel.

"You shameless wretch. Has Luke not done enough for you? For you, he went against his entire family. He begged them until they almost disowned him, took every consequence they threw at him, and nearly destroyed himself in the process. He ended up in the hospital for a month and almost didn't make it out alive. He even scheduled a vasectomy for you! And how did you repay him? You cheated on him. You dared to get pregnant with another man's child. How can a woman be this disgusting? I'll kill you!"

Stephanie stood to the side, putting on a show of concern.

"Please calm down, Madam Hudson. My sister just can't stand being lonely. That's why she kept sneaking around with other men. Please forgive her this once."

The more Katie listened, the angrier she became. She raised her hand to slap Kayla.

However, Kayla caught her wrist.

"My child is not illegitimate."

"What did you say?"

"I said, the child I'm carrying is Luke's."

Panic flashed across Stephanie's face. She rushed forward, grabbing Katie's arm.

"Madam Hudson, she's lying just to escape punishment. Please have someone shut her up."

Kayla swung backhandedly and slapped Stephanie hard. Then she looked straight at Katie and said, "The illegitimate child is the one in her belly. If you don't believe me, I can go with you right now and do a paternity test."

Katie was still hesitating when Luke burst into the room.

The moment he heard from his staff that his mother had gone to the villa, he abandoned the meeting he was in and rushed back without a second thought. It was only when he saw Kayla standing there, unharmed, that he finally let out a breath.

The next second, Stephanie threw herself into his arms. She covered her swollen, reddened cheek and cried pitifully, tears streaming down her face.

"Luke, Kayla accused me and said the baby I'm carrying is an illegitimate child. I saved her back then, and now she's trying to destroy me. She's pushing me into a corner with no way out. If that's how it's going to be, I might as well die."

She turned as if to run out, but Luke caught her arm and pulled her back.

Kayla watched the man she had loved for so many years. Even though her heart had already turned to ash, she could not stop a small flicker of hope from rising. She hoped he would finally tell the truth. That he would give her, and the child she carried, a shred of justice.

Katie stared at Luke anxiously.

"Is what Kayla said true?"

Luke's eyes flickered with hesitation, only for a moment. Then he shook his head.

"Stephanie's child is not illegitimate."

He even looked at Kayla with something close to desperation, as if begging her to understand his struggle and pain.

The disappointment tore through her chest, leaving a hollow ache as cold despair poured in without mercy.

Katie flew into a rage and slapped Kayla hard across the face.

Luke stepped forward instinctively to stop her, but Stephanie held him back.

"After what she's done, your mother needs to vent her anger. Otherwise, it'll be bad for her health," she said softly.

Katie patted Stephanie's hand with affection.

"You're such a good girl. You're a hundred times better than that wretch. And now you're carrying the Hudson family's eldest grandson. You should move in right away so Luke can take good care of you."

She then turned, glaring at Kayla through clenched teeth.

"A shameless woman like you has no right to stay here. Divorce Luke immediately and get out of the Hudson family. Now."

Stephanie obediently agreed out loud, but when no one was looking, she shot Kayla a triumphant smile.

Just as she believed she was about to step into her rightful place as the lady of the Hudson family, Luke brushed her hand aside. He pulled Kayla into his arms and spoke with unmistakable resolve.

"Kayla will not divorce me. And she will not leave the Hudson family. Unless I am dead, I will never let her leave my side."

Katie clenched her fists in anger. Stephanie's face twisted with frustration, but she held herself back and offered a compromise.

"The child I'm carrying needs a father's care too. How about this? I move into the master bedroom with Luke, and Kayla can stay in the basement. That way, she gets punished for slapping me."

Luke of course refused.

Katie slammed her hand down on the nearby table.

"If you won't even agree to this, then get that wretch out of the house!"

And so, Luke personally escorted Kayla to a cold, damp basement.

"Don't worry, Kayla. Once Mom calms down, I'll bring you back upstairs," he promised.

During those weeks in the basement, Kayla could hear Stephanie's belongings constantly being moved into the house.

Stephanie wasn't comfortable in the master bed, so Luke dismantled the custom bed Kayla had spent an entire year commissioning from a master craftsman, replacing it with a latex mattress Stephanie liked.

Stephanie was allergic to pollen, so Luke uprooted all the sunflowers Kayla had carefully nurtured and replaced them with an infinity pool she preferred.

Stephanie even converted Kayla's music room into a nursery. She smashed the piano Luke had painstakingly refinished for Kayla, then set it ablaze until it was nothing but ash.

"Soon I'll completely replace you as the lady of the Hudson family," Stephanie sneered. "As for you and your child, I'll make sure the baby is born, despised by everyone, and left to die in misery."

Only then did Kayla finally understand why Stephanie had deliberately handed her abortion appointment slip to Luke.

Stephanie wanted Kayla to watch it with her own eyes, to see her child rejected by the world and pushed toward ruin.

The moment Luke appeared, Stephanie instantly changed her tone.

"I was only trying to persuade my sister to carry the baby to term."

Luke's expression twisted into one of anguish.

"Kayla, I can't believe you're still thinking about giving up our child. I am so disappointed in you!"

Kayla didn't even want to look at him anymore.

All she wanted now was to leave Luke and go somewhere she wouldn't be disturbed.

The only question was, how could she even reach the outside world?