Zeke was on the verge of leaving when Sophie's sobs broke the silence.

"Are you really going? I don't want to be alone. Please, stay with me. I just had the baby, and my whole body aches."

"Alright, I'll stay." He wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. "You just had a baby. You shouldn't cry."

"Okay, I won't if you stay with me."

Relief washed over Zeke when Sophie finally settled down, yet Lily's face flashed vividly in his mind.

"Zeke, please, save our child…"

Her desperate pleas haunted his ears like a lingering echo, tightening the knot in his chest. She'd seemed injured then, and he had no idea how she was doing now.

Footsteps echoed outside the door, and Zeke caught fragments of nurses' voices.

"Aren't you off yet? The night shift ended some time ago. Why haven't you gone home?"

"I'm tied up. A pregnant woman was brought in last night. She was bleeding heavily and struggling through obstructed labor. Dr. Lambert has been fighting nonstop to save her."

"How far along was she? What is her current condition?"

"She was eight months pregnant. Her condition remains critical, and the surgery is still underway."

The nurse sighed before continuing, "That poor woman arrived at midnight, bloodied and ghostly pale, without her husband by her side."

The conversation sent a tremor through Zeke. The words "eight months pregnant", "bleeding heavily", and "complicated labor" echoed in his mind. His thoughts turned immediately to Lily.

Could the woman they were talking about be her?

He told himself it was impossible, that it couldn't be. Yet panic was already tightening its hold. He rose to his feet, determined to seek out someone who could offer him clear answers.

"I need to use the bathroom, Zeke. Can you help me?" Sophie asked.

She caught the nurses talking. There was no way she could have missed it. If that woman were really Lily, then everything would fall into place perfectly.

If Lily and her baby were gone, Sophie and her child could stay with the Connollys openly, as their lady and heir. A sharp gleam sparked in her eyes, only to vanish just as quickly.

"Alright," Zeke said.

For reasons he couldn't explain, a sudden fear gripped him. He couldn't bring himself to face the truth. The idea that Lily and their child might be gone was unbearable.

…

After a long and desperate battle in the operating room, the baby within Lily's womb failed to survive. She had arrived at the hospital with her water already broken.

Her body was weak from the start, and despite all her attempts, she was unable to deliver. She fainted again and again.

Surgery was performed to remove the baby, but it had been deprived of oxygen for too long. The doctors tried every possible means to save the baby, yet in the end, they were powerless.

Wayne Lambert looked down at Lily, who was unconscious on the operating table, and shook his head. Pain was etched across his face.

"We have to let it go. There's nothing left we can do."

"The baby was eight months along, and it's gone. She'll be broken when she wakes."

Wayne sighed as he stitched up her wounds. "And where in God's name is her husband? Leaving a woman that far along, alone at home in the dead of night? It's unforgivable."

…

Lily woke up to her body shaking uncontrollably. The anesthesia was still coursing through her veins. Around her stretched an endless expanse of white, while the sharp sting of disinfectant hung thick in the air.

Slowly, the truth settled. She had been brought to the hospital, after all.

"My child?"

Her hand instinctively moved toward her belly, but it met only emptiness. Tears welled fiercely in her eyes.

She clenched her jaw, trying to push herself upright from the bed, but the searing pain pinned her motionless.

"Mrs. Connolly, you're awake."

Rhonda entered swiftly, having just attempted to contact Zeke.

Wayne had asked if the hospital should take care of the baby's body or if the Connollys wanted to handle it themselves. Rhonda wasn't sure what to decide and kept trying to reach Zeke.

When she finally got through, the call was cut short. She tried once more, but his phone was already switched off.

The moment Lily spotted Rhonda, her voice broke with urgency. "Rhonda… where is my child? Where did my child go?"

Rhonda's expression shifted from surprise to a gentle happiness. "Mrs. Connolly, have you regained your sight?"

"My child. Where is my child?"

Rhonda hesitated, unsure how to bring up the truth.

"Tell me, Rhonda!"

"Mrs. Connolly…"

Rhonda tried to answer, but tears came quickly, tracing silent paths down her face.

Throughout the years, Lily's kindness toward the maids at the Connolly residence had never wavered. Tender and generous, she always shared her best food and belongings with them.

When Lily first became pregnant, Rhonda was by her side at every prenatal checkup. She understood how heavy the burden of this child was on her.

In the earliest months, relentless vomiting left Lily drained. Then, in the final stages, the medicine prescribed by the doctor brought a rash that covered her body and robbed her of sleep.

Having reached the eighth month, she now faced the loss of her child. And Rhonda found herself unable to tell Lily that her child was dead.

Lily blinked, her expression shifting as if a sudden understanding was dawning. Her eyes lost focus, growing empty and distant.

"Rhonda, where is my child? Why are you crying?"

Rhonda broke down, sobbing uncontrollably. "Your child is gone, Mrs. Connolly. The doctors said it was a girl, but she was already lifeless when she was born. They tried everything, but they couldn't save her."

"What are you saying?" A faint smile flickered across Lily's face. "No, she wouldn't die. She's strong. She carried on for eight months. There's no way she's gone."

"The doctors said by the time you reached the hospital, it was already too late. If only you'd arrived sooner—"

"No, she isn't dead. I'm going to find her."

Suddenly, Lily summoned a strength she hadn't known she possessed and pushed herself up from the bed. The agony of her organs settling back was so intense it nearly claimed her consciousness.

She braced herself against the wall and wobbled toward the door, only to fall hard to the floor.

Rhonda cried even harder at the sight. "Please, Mrs. Connolly, don't push yourself. Your child is already gone. You must take care of yourself!"

Lily's scream tore through the air. "Why? Why take her from me?"

All the despair and heartbreak she'd held inside burst forth in a flood. She lay face down on the floor with tears pouring down her cheeks.

"No, my child, my child! I'm so sorry. This is all my fault!" she wailed. Her voice was ragged and strained.

Worn out and shattered, she slipped into unconsciousness.

Rhonda's panic flooded her words as she shouted, "Mrs. Connolly! Someone, please! A doctor! Help her!"

Still in a haze, Lily heard voices nearby.

"Where is her husband? Why hasn't he shown up yet?" Wayne asked.

"Mr. Connolly's phone goes right to voicemail."

"She's weak and distraught. Her condition is poor." After a pause, he added, "And there's the child's body. A decision must be made soon."

With great effort, Lily opened her eyes and whispered, "Doctor… may I see my child just once?"

Wayne hummed softly. His eyes were filled with pity as he arranged for someone to take her to see the baby.

Lily gazed at the tiny body. It was utterly lifeless. She tried to call out, but only a ragged whisper escaped her. She stretched her hand forward, yearning to touch her child, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.

Her heart tightened so fiercely it seemed to stop her breath. Tears streamed down her cheeks, leaving cold, wet trails.

Finally, she closed her eyes and made her decision.

"I'll handle the baby's body myself."

"And the father? Doesn't he wish to see her one last time?"

"No. The baby has no father."

The love Lily once felt for Zeke dissolved completely from the moment he chose Sophie over her.

Sophie's recovery after a natural birth was smooth, and she was discharged just three days later.

Throughout those days, Zeke never left her side. Occasionally, his thoughts drifted to Lily, but each time he checked his phone and saw no missed calls, he told himself she must be alright.

What he never realized was that Sophie had erased every trace of Lily's calls from his phone. She wanted Lily to believe Zeke never spared her a single thought, to push her to surrender and walk away.

That very morning, Lily was also discharged from the hospital.

Her body was frail, and the pain made each step a struggle, yet she insisted on going to the funeral home. Rhonda pushed her wheelchair steadily along the way.

There, Lily watched her child being cremated and placed the ashes into the urn with her own hands.

A drizzle fell as she stepped outside. She glanced up at the sky, and a hollow grief stirred deep in her chest.

"Take me home, Rhonda," she said.

Back at the Connolly residence, the bloodstains on the floor remained stubbornly visible, and the memory of that night lingered vividly in Lily's mind. Her heart ached with a pain too deep to bear.

Clinging to the railing, she climbed the stairs slowly, step by deliberate step. After packing a few belongings, she set the urn and the divorce papers, hidden by Zeke, down on the table.

Once she had finished everything, she made her way downstairs.

The maids stood lined up in a row, and when they spotted Lily descending, they broke down in tears.

"Mrs. Connolly…"

Summoning her strength, Lily said, "I'm leaving. Thank you all for looking after me all these years. Clean the bloodstains on the floor, or Zeke will find fault with you when he comes back."

"We left the stains untouched, Mrs. Connolly! We want him to witness the cruelty of what he did!"

"Exactly. Those bloodstains shook us to the core. He needs to see them with his own eyes."

The maids wept together in sorrow.

Lily pressed her lips tight, yet the tears still slipped free, tracing silent paths down her cheeks.

"Thank you," she whispered.

She brushed the tears away, grasped her suitcase, and stepped out of the Connolly residence. She cast one last glance at the house she'd lived in for five years, then dropped her gaze and left with a quiet resolve.

Soon after she was gone, Zeke's car pulled up.

He helped Sophie to the doorway, then called out sharply, "Bring Sophie's things inside!"

Silent at the doorway, the maids watched him approach. They stepped aside, opening a path for him.

A frown crept across Zeke's face. "Why are you all just standing there?"

Sophie rolled her eyes. "Zeke, you've spoiled them so much that they've grown bold enough to behave like this."

"What exactly is going on?" he demanded, stepping into the living room.

The long streaks of blood caught his eye, and his gaze widened in shock. A crushing weight pressed down on his chest, stealing his breath.

"What's this?" Zeke asked.

"That's Mrs. Connolly's blood," Rhonda replied, betraying no emotion.

"What?" He stared at her, disbelief clouding his eyes. "That can't be. How could she have bled so much that night?"

"Mrs. Connolly begged you to save her and the baby that night, but you turned a blind eye. She had no choice but to drag herself, inch by inch, to my room while calling for help.

"That's how these bloodstains came to be," Rhonda said. Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears.

Pain gripped Zeke with a cruel tightness. Clutching her hand with desperate urgency, he asked, "Where's Lily? Where is she?"

"She's already gone, but she left something for you upstairs. You should go see it."

"Gone? Where could she possibly have gone? This is her home. I'm her husband. Where else would she go?"

"No, Mr. Connolly. You're divorced. Have you forgotten?"

Zeke staggered back, panic rising like a tide. Fear surged through him, and his eyes burned red with tears.

Sophie caught his arm. "Maybe she's just messing with you. Zeke, women bleed this much when they have a baby. I went through the same thing!"

"Get lost!" he barked, turning around to fix her with a glare sharp enough to cut glass. "Do you think I'm stupid, Sophie? Do you honestly believe this amount of blood is normal?"

He rushed up the stairs.

"Stop playing games, Lily. Please, just come out!"

But her room was empty. On the table sat a small box and a bundle of papers.

Step by step, Zeke moved toward the table until his gaze landed on the papers resting there—the divorce agreement he'd hidden away.

"No way!"

How had Lily found them? Though the papers had been hidden right before her, she was blind. She shouldn't have seen them.

Then his eyes caught the box next to the papers, and a cold dread washed over him. His hand shook as he reached toward it.

The moment the lid opened, everything inside him shattered.