Before I could finish, a large hand clamped violently around my throat. "Why did you hide it from me and get an abortion? Why?"

"I didn't." I shook my head. All the warmth drained from my eyes until only a dead, icy chill remained. "Evan, you simply never looked at me. You never cared enough to notice."

Evan was completely blinded by rage. He wouldn't listen to a single word of my explanation.

He snatched my suitcase away and hurled it to the floor. "You think you can walk away unscathed after killing my child? Dream on! Without my permission, you aren't going anywhere!" he bellowed, leaving no room for discussion.

A second later, he grabbed my wrist and dragged me upstairs to the guest bedroom, shoving me inside and locking the door. "You're going to atone for what you did to my child!"

The cold door shut out the light from the hallway and completely severed the last thread of my attachment to Evan. Leaning against the freezing wall, I let out a silent, derisive chuckle. I was laughing at my own stupidity, at how many years I had wasted on him.

A year ago, when I received my pregnancy test results, my heart raced with excitement. I went to find Evan to tell him the good news. However, I accidentally walked in on him and a famous starlet in the middle of an office tryst.

To make matters worse, I heard him trash-talking me with my own ears. "Had Grandpa not threatened me with the position of heir, there's no way in hell I would've married Fiona. Not only is she average-looking, but she's as lifeless as a dead fish in bed. When I'm with her, I picture your face, babe."

Mortified and sick to my stomach, I spun around and fled the scene. Blinded by rage, I missed a step and took a nasty spill down the stairs. Just like that, my baby was gone.

That was the first time I made up my mind to get a divorce. However, before I could confront Evan, my mother-in-law, Chloe Campbell, visited me.

At the time, Evan was at a critical juncture, preparing to officially take over Beckett Group. Afraid that this matter would reach the head of the Beckett family, Ethan Beckett, and jeopardize Evan's position, she used my parents to threaten me, forcing me to keep my miscarriage under wraps.

Well aware of just how vicious Chloe could be, I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut.

I had no idea how Evan had suddenly found out about it, especially right when I was preparing to leave. All I knew was that I couldn't afford to waste any more time. There were less than three hours left before my research team's scheduled departure.

While I was pacing around the room, faint rustling sounds came from outside the door. I thought it was Evan, but when I peered through the crack, it was Astrid, holding a spare set of keys.

"I'll let you go," she said quickly before scanning the hallway. "I've already distracted the bodyguards at the entrance. Leave now, and never come back."

It took me only a few seconds to figure out her motive. She wasn't doing this out of the goodness of her heart; she just wanted to take the position of the lady of the Beckett family.

I didn't utter a word. I didn't even grab the suitcase I had packed. I only took my essential identification documents and left the house I'd lived in for five years. I left without a single shred of regret.

…

Before boarding the research team's plane, I tossed my phone into the trash. From then on, I erased myself completely from the city I had called home my entire life.