Rage twisted inside me, squeezing my heart like a vice.

Charlie answered a video call.

On the other end, Raine was sobbing. Pathetic.

"Charlie, is Madelyn still refusing?" Her voice trembled like she was the victim here. "If she exposes me, I won't blame her. They are her parents. But I never had a family... I just wanted to know what it's like to be loved. Is that so wrong?"

Charlie's grip tightened on his phone.

Raine sniffled dramatically. "If I'm going to be called a fraud today, I'd rather just end it all and jump off this building!"

Fake despair flashed in her eyes, but Charlie fell for it.

"Raine, don't say that! Don't do anything stupid—I'll take care of everything," he promised.

Then he picked up a knife.

And walked toward me.

"Madelyn, can you really stand by and let Raine die over this?"

A cold wave of dread crashed over me. I clutched my chest.

He hesitated for half a second, but Raine's voice rang through the restroom.

"Charlie, if my parents were still alive, do you think I'd be this desperate for love?"

His eyes hardened. He stepped closer.

"No, Charlie..." My voice barely came out. "You swore you'd never hurt me."

His tone was steady. "Raine's parents died saving me. I owe her."

"Madelyn, just this once... be good. I'll make it up to you. Twice over."

Someone grabbed my arms, pinning me down.

Charlie pressed the blade to my chest—right over my birthmark—and sliced.

Fire tore through my skin.

I screamed. The sound ricocheted off the tile walls.

Tears blurred my vision. My mind flashed back to all the times Charlie had traced this mark with his fingers, whispering promises.

"I'll help you find your parents, no matter what," he'd said.

Now, he was ripping away the only proof I had.

To make sure Raine had nothing to fear, he destroyed it.

I crumpled to the floor, shaking.

Charlie pulled me into his arms, voice soft. "Once Raine's recognition ceremony is over, we'll get married, okay? I'll give you the grandest wedding, make you the most beautiful bride. Even if you're not the Moore heiress, it won't change the fact that I love you."

His words slithered around me like a snake.

If he really loved me, would he do this?

Would he steal my identity, stop me from meeting my real parents, and slice my skin open just to keep Raine comfortable?

No.

He wasn't protecting me. He was just using love as an excuse to break me.

Now that the evidence was gone, Raine finally sighed in relief. Then, with faux concern, she asked, "Charlie, will Madelyn really be okay? No one will suspect me now, right?"

Charlie reassured her. "Raine, stop worrying. Your tattooed birthmark looks exactly like hers. Once the DNA test confirms you, no one will doubt it. Plenty of people try to fake connections to the Moore family. Without the birthmark, they won't believe her."

As he spoke, he filled a vial with my blood.

He had thought of everything for Raine. Not one second spent thinking about me.

The pain in my chest was nothing compared to the pain clawing at my heart.

Charlie turned back, urgent. "Madelyn, don't be upset. I'll find the best plastic surgeon to fix this. I won't let you have any scars before our wedding, I promise."

Raine's voice rang through the phone. "Charlie, come back. I don't feel safe without you."

Charlie glanced at me. "Stay here. Once Raine officially becomes the Moore heiress, I'll come back for you, okay? Be good."

Marriage? To him? The guy who hurt me like this for another woman? No way.

I met Charlie's gaze, steady. "We're done."

His expression twisted—panic, then denial. "You don't mean that. You're just upset. I won't take it seriously."

Yeah, well, he should have. Instead, he took my phone, grabbed his guys, and bolted—probably to check on Raine.

Dragging myself to the entrance, I found it blocked from the outside. He'd made sure I wouldn't crash Raine's little coronation.

I pounded on the door, yelling for help. Nothing.

I slumped against the freezing floor, pain ripping through me. My chest burned, blood soaking my shirt. Then a sharper, deeper agony hit my stomach.

I was three months pregnant.

I'd planned to tell Charlie after meeting my parents. It was supposed to be the best day of my life. A double blessing.

But my baby would never see it.

Warm blood pooled under me. My strength slipped away.

Beyond the walls, laughter and celebration rang out. My parents—right there, yet impossibly far.

I had nothing left.

The darkness took me.

***

I woke up in a hospital.

Dr. Reagan Reed stood by my bed. "A janitor found you bleeding in the restroom. They thought you'd... tried to take your own life, so they rushed you here.

"You were minutes away from bleeding out. And... we couldn't save the baby."

I pressed a hand to my stomach. There had been life inside me once.

Dr. Reed hesitated. "Did something happen? Do you want me to call the police?"

I just thanked him.

Then Charlie barged in, looking panicked—like he was still the guy who used to freak out over a paper cut on my finger.

"Madelyn! Why didn't you wait for me? Do you know how worried I was when I couldn't find you?"

Worried about me? Or about me talking?

I didn't answer. Just watched him, cold and silent. If he knew he'd killed his own child, how would he react?

He placed a container in front of me. "I asked the doctor—you must eat a light diet. I made you soup. Eat, okay?"

I hadn't eaten in... who knows how long.

I opened the container. The strong smell of seafood hit me.

The soup was thin, barely there. Someone had already taken a few sips.

Did he seriously not know patients shouldn't have seafood soup?

"Charlie, this soup is really good. You should teach me how to make it sometime."

A voice chimed in from behind him.

Raine.

Draped in designer clothes and glittering jewelry, she looked every bit the wealthy heiress. She'd done it. Stolen my identity.

My appetite vanished.

Even the soup was her leftovers.

Charlie avoided my eyes. "Raine was really worried about you. She insisted on coming. She got hungry on the way, so I let her have a few sips first. Don't be mad—I'll order another one for you."

Raine pouted. "It's not my fault—it was just too good."

Then she turned to me, all sugar-coated venom. "Madelyn, thank you for letting me take your place."

My blood boiled. I wanted nothing more than to rip her apart.

"Fraud! You're nothing but a thief—a liar who stole my life!"

Pure hatred burned in my glare.

Then—crack.

A slap sent my head snapping to the side.

"Madelyn Gibson! I never thought you'd be so cruel to Raine!"

Charlie stared at his own hand, something like regret flickering in his eyes. But his voice stayed firm. "Apologize. Now."

Tears streaked Raine's face. "I know Madelyn doesn't want to give up her identity. I really am just a thief. I don't deserve this! I'll go tell Mom and Dad right now—I'm not really their daughter!"

Her eyes were red and puffy as she covered her face.

"Raine, don't do anything stupid."

Charlie reached for her, and as she moved, a tattoo peeked out from her collar—a sleek arrow with a bold C inked into it.

Something clicked.

Charlie had a similar tattoo on his chest, a Cupid-like design.

When I asked about it, he brushed it off. Just for fun, he'd said.

He always swore Raine was like a sister.

But lies, told often enough, start feeling real—to the liar, at least.

He said he loved me, but his heart had never been mine.

Raine ran out sobbing. Charlie chased after her.

A nurse walked in, checking my IV. "Were those two your friends? While you were unconscious, they were all over each other by your bedside. Had to tell them to keep it down so you could rest."

"Maybe," I muttered.

Whether she was clueless or just warning me, I didn't care anymore.

Between the stolen reunion and Charlie's betrayal, I was drained.

The nurse wheeled me outside. "The weather's nice today. A little sun will do you good."

I shut my eyes, soaking in the warmth.

But peace never lasted long.

"Madelyn, you really have time to lounge in the sun?"

I opened my eyes.

Raine lounged beside me, admiring her freshly manicured nails, her smile dripping with satisfaction.

"You know, I really should thank you," she said, smirking. "If you weren't so stupid, I never could've taken your place."

My hands curled into fists.

"You had no idea, did you?" she went on, her voice sickeningly sweet. "The second you told Charlie about your real identity, he ran straight to me. All I had to do was sigh and say, 'I wish I had parents who loved me too.' And just like that, he handed it to me."

She unlocked her phone, tilting the screen just enough for me to see as she sent a voice message.

To my father. My real father.

"Daddy, I miss you. Can you come pick me up later?"

Rage burned so hot inside me, I thought it might tear me apart.

I wanted to rip her to shreds. Snatch that phone. Scream the truth—I was the real daughter of the Moore family.

Raine tucked her phone away, her eyes flashing cold.

"But as long as you're alive, you're a threat. I can only truly be the Moore heiress once you're dead."

A chill ran down my spine.

Then—she grabbed me and shoved.

My body, already weak from blood loss and the miscarriage, had no fight left. One push was all it took.

I hit the stairs hard.

Instinct took over. A drowning person will grab anything to stay afloat.

I caught Raine's hand as I fell.

Agonizing pain ripped through me as I crashed onto the floor. Blood pooled beneath me.

Charlie arrived, but he didn't even glance at me. He ran straight to Raine.

She lay there, weak and trembling, pointing in my direction. "Madelyn didn't mean to... It's my fault—I stole her identity first. If she pushed me, I deserved it. Charlie, don't be mad at her."

Charlie scooped her up, his arms gentle, his glare at me anything but.

A nurse rushed over and had me sent to the ER.

But Charlie got there first—with Raine.

"Save her first!" he barked. "Raine's health is fragile. Madelyn pushed her down the stairs on purpose—she's faking it!"

I lay on the hospital bed, sinking, my strength slipping away.

Maybe he thought the doctors wouldn't believe him because the next thing I knew, his hands were on me, yanking me up.

"Stop pretending! You hurt Raine, and now you're playing dead? If you have any conscience left, get up and give her your bed!"

I was limp, barely conscious, a rag doll in his grip.

But that only pissed him off more.

"You can run up a flight of stairs without breaking a sweat, but now you're acting half-dead after pushing Raine? You think I'd believe that?"

A doctor stepped in, alarmed.

"Stop! She's lost too much blood—multiple fractures. If you keep this up, you'll kill her!"

Dr. Reed rushed in, breathless, drenched in sweat.

But before he could do anything—

Charlie shoved me off the bed and stomped on my stomach.

Pain exploded through me.

"Say something, Madelyn! You had plenty to say when you pushed Raine, but now you're suddenly mute?! Losing a little flesh and blood, and you're acting like you're dying? Are you teaming up with the doctors to fool me?"

I couldn't even scream. The pain was too much.

Dr. Reed snapped.

Crack!

His fist slammed into Charlie's face.

"That's enough! Who the hell are you to this patient? She just had a miscarriage and fell down a flight of stairs—she's hemorrhaging! Are you trying to kill her?"

Charlie froze.

"What?! You're saying she just had a miscarriage?"