When I was five months pregnant, I was kidnapped by a group of thugs.

They used my phone to call my brother, Jeremy Wirkola, and my husband, Grant Sanders, to demand a ransom of ten million, but no one answered.

I was tortured and assaulted until I was barely alive.

When I was finally rescued, Jeremy cried and promised to avenge me.

Grant was in tears too. He vowed to get me treated.

However, while under the haze of anesthesia, I overheard Grant's cold voice outside the door. “Jessie is waiting for a bone marrow, but don’t forget to remove Ashlyn’s uterus. Just tell her the injuries were too severe to save it. Oh, and get the best surgeon for her. She’s afraid of pain.”

His assistant hesitated. He was clearly uncomfortable. “Mr. Sanders, isn’t this going too far?”

Grant paused for a second before he replied firmly. “She refused to donate her bone marrow to Jessie and even used the baby as an excuse. She’s selfish. Besides, if we don’t do this, how can I bring back Jessie and our child into the family? As for Ashlyn, she’s my wife. I’ll make it up to her for the rest of my life. She used to bully Jessie with her status, which resulted in Jessie suffering from depression and almost killing herself. It’s time she paid the price for it.”

As I listened to his heartless words, something inside me shattered completely.

Since they had chosen to sacrifice me for Jessie, let them have what they wanted then.

The doctor could not help but speak up. “Mr. Sanders, what about Miss Ashlyn’s legs? If we don’t operate right away, she might never be able to walk again.”

My husband, Grant Sanders, did not hesitate for a second. “Forget about her legs. Save Jessie first. She can’t afford to wait any longer. Besides, with her legs broken, she won’t be able to bother Jessie again. Maybe it’ll help her learn to be less spoiled.” After saying that, he glanced at me, then turned and walked away.

They thought I was unconscious and could not hear a thing, but his words pierced my heart like knives.

The next moment, the surgical light switched on. It shone down on me.

The person about to operate on me was my brother, Jeremy Wirkola. I wanted to call out to him, to tell him how wronged I felt.

However, the next moment, I heard his soft sigh. “Ashlyn, this is what you owe Jessie. But don’t worry, you’ll always be my little sister.”

Tears slid silently down my cheeks.

He was one of the people hurting me too.

The two people I believed loved me the most in the world had chosen to abandon me for another woman.

Just to protect Jessie Webb, they let others humiliate me. They even wanted to take away my ability to walk again just to keep me from disturbing her.

A flood of emotions surged inside me. They were crashing over me like waves and threatening to drown me.

I could feel it clearly when the baby was taken from my body.

They knew just how much I loved the baby and how much I had been looking forward to meeting the baby.

Tears rolled down my cheeks.

I would not be able to see him even once.

When I woke up again, I was already in a ward. Grant and Jeremy were sitting by the bed. They looked really concerned.

I struggled to open my mouth. “My baby…”

Even though I knew the answer, I could not help but ask again. I had carried a life inside of me for five months, after all. I was not ready to let go.

Grant held my hand tightly. His eyes were bloodshot as tears fell onto the back of my hand. “Honey, you’re awake. Does it hurt anywhere? This is all my fault. I should’ve done a better job of protecting you. Your injuries were too severe. To save you, the doctors had no choice but to remove your uterus. This is all my fault. Yell at me, hit me if you want, as long as it will make you feel better.”

His expression darkened. “What matters is that you’re okay now. If you really want a child, we can always adopt one.”

Jeremy punched the wall with a dark expression. His voice was laced with coldness. “Ashlyn, I promise you, everyone who hurt you will pay for what they did. All you need to do now is focus on getting better. Leave everything else to me. Don’t be afraid, I’ll take care of you for the rest of your life.”

Their faces and words were full of concern and love, but all I felt was fear, a fear so deep it made me tremble.

Tears streamed down my face like a broken string of pearls.

I knew there and then that I would never be the same again. For the rest of my life, I would not stand or walk like a normal person, and I would never have a child of my own.

The ones who caused all of this were the two people I trusted most in the world.

My hands clenched into fists under the covers.

Grant and Jeremy comforted me with promises that they would find the best doctors for me.

They sounded so sincere. Even the worry in their eyes did not seem fake.

For a moment, I wondered if everything I remembered was just a nightmare.

But I did not wish to lie to myself.

I could not look at them any longer, so I closed my eyes.

In the middle of the night, half-awake, I caught a glimpse of shadows by the door.

“Jessie needs a transfusion. The hospital is out of Rh-negative blood, so we have to take Ashlyn over right now.” Grant’s voice was tense with urgency as he ordered the people behind him to take me away.

I wanted to fight back, but my body was limp. I did not have an ounce of strength.

Were they really going to go this far for Jessie?

They knew perfectly well that if they forced another blood draw from me, it could kill me.

“There’s another thing. Dad called just now. He and Mom are coming by the hospital to see Ashlyn. We won’t be able to keep this under wraps with them around,” Grant said with a frown.

Jeremy stayed silent for a while. Then, as if he had made up his mind on something, he said, “Tomorrow morning, I’ll release the video. We’ll say Ashlyn cheated on you with multiple men, and the baby was lost because of the strain. I’ve taken care of everything else. Once that hits, Mom and Dad won’t have the time or energy to question anything. This is what she owes Jessie anyway.”

With that, Jeremy stepped aside. The doctors came in and took me away.

I felt the cold needle pierce my skin and blood drain out together with my life.

My consciousness started to fade. A bone-deep chill spread through me.

“Dr. Sanders, we can’t keep going. Miss Ashlyn just had her bone marrow extracted. If we keep pushing, she could die,” the doctor said with a trace of pity in his voice.

Grant, however, barely spared me a glance. “Keep going. This isn’t nearly enough. I’m a doctor. I know exactly where the line is.”

I lay there motionless. I was unable to tell if I was even still alive.

But if I were already dead, why would my heart still ache?

This was the man I once loved, the man who swore he would love me until death and take care of me when he married me.

If I had known it would come to this, I would have been better off letting Jessie kill me back when she used to bully me.

Jeremy’s voice was low and heavy. “Back when our family’s business was in trouble, it was Jessie who drank herself into a stomach hemorrhage just to secure a deal. And when you nearly drowned, it was Jessie who jumped in without hesitation and pulled you out. We owe her too much.”

I felt like every last drop of blood had drained from my body. Tears streamed down my face, but I was also laughing at myself for being so pathetic.

When our family was in crisis, it was me who went door to door begging on my knees for someone to give us a chance and was nearly assaulted in the process. Yet somehow, all that credit went to Jessie.

And I was the one who jumped into the ocean to save Grant. We nearly died out there. Ever since, I have been terrified of the sea.

Yet in their version of the story, every good deed belonged to Jessie.

How ridiculous. The last shred of hope I had been holding onto was completely shattered.

Maybe it would not be so bad if I just died like this.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back in the same ward.

Jeremy’s eyes were bloodshot, like he had not slept all night. He gently wiped away my tears with concern, as if I were the person he cared about the most in this world. “Ashlyn, you started bleeding last night. I was so scared. I thought I’d lost you. Don’t worry. No matter what it costs, I’ll find you the best doctors.”

I forced a weak smile, but I could not utter a word.

I thought, “My dear brother, I started bleeding? Wasn’t it because you and Grant drained me dry for Jessie?”

Suddenly, loud voices echoed in the hallway. The door burst open, and a familiar figure stormed in. The next thing I felt was a hard slap across my face.

The sting hit me before I even knew what was going on. Half my face went numb with pain and swelled up instantly.

“You’re a disgrace! What did our family do to deserve this? Ashlyn, how could you do something so nasty? You should’ve just died out there. You shouldn’t have come back!” Mrs. Sanders’ voice exploded in my ears, a mix of sobs and fury.

She pointed at me with trembling hands. Her eyes were bloodshot and full of hate. If someone had not held her back, she would have tried to kill me there and then.

Everyone was staring at me. The place buzzed with judgmental whispers and sneering remarks.

“So that is the young madam of the Sanders family? I heard she comes from a prestigious background. Who would’ve thought her private life would be so nasty.”

“Pregnant and still doing that. You have to admit, though, her figure’s incredible. Bet she’s wild in bed.”

“I watched that video. Tsk, never would’ve imagined... I heard her uterus was removed.”

“Look at her, she’s miserable. You think she’ll still be doing more disgraceful stuff?”

Mrs. Sanders grew increasingly furious. She pointed at Grant and snapped. “Divorce her. You have to divorce her!”

I was getting agitated. I tried to struggle up and tell Mrs. Sanders that it was not the truth, that I had not done any of those things, and that those people were saying nonsense, but I did not get the chance.

My resistance was quickly subdued by Jeremy, who held me down and shouted at Mrs. Sanders with rage, “What nonsense are you talking about? I know exactly what kind of person my sister is. I’m warning you, if you dare lay another finger on her, I’ll make you pay for it! And the rest of you, say one more word, and I’ll make you regret it for the rest of your lives!”

Grant stepped in front of me too. His gaze was firm as he said, “Mom, I believe in Ashlyn. I will never divorce her. Mom, please don’t disturb Ashlyn again. If you’re going to force me to divorce her, you’ll lose me as your son.”

Mrs. Sanders was so furious that her eyes rolled back. She nearly fainted on the spot.

I let out a silent, bitter laugh. Such noble words. Such a touching show of loyalty.

This was clearly part of their plan. They were the ones who ruined me, who made the whole world spit on me and call me a shameless woman.

This way, even if people found out that Jessie’s baby was actually Grant’s, no one would blame them.

This was the man I loved, and this was how far he was ready to go to destroy me.

Neither he nor my brother stopped to consider even for a second if what they were doing would break my heart.

Just as they wanted, I became the woman everyone pointed at in disgust. At last, I was no longer standing in Jessie’s way.

Tears rolled down my face, but I could not even begin to explain the weight of the injustice I felt.

The violent struggle tore my wound open again. Blood quickly soaked the pristine white sheets.

“Ashlyn! Ashlyn!” someone was shouting in a panic. It was Jeremy. He was shouting like a madman and calling for a doctor.

“Hurry! Where’s the doctor? My sister’s bleeding out. If anything happens to her, I swear I’ll hold all of you responsible!”

“She’s better off dead! A woman like her doesn’t deserve to live!” Mrs. Sanders spat out, but someone quickly dragged her out of the room.

My mind went blank. My whole body throbbed in agony.

It hurt so much I could barely breathe.

When I woke again, there was no one by my side.

Through the thin walls, I vaguely heard a doctor speaking. It was then that I realized that they had arranged for Jessie to stay in the room right next to mine.

With great effort, I managed to find my phone. The internet was flooded with vicious attacks aimed at me and waves of sympathy for Grant.

I forced myself to look away.

Instead, I reached out to a number I had saved but never messaged before. [I’ve made up my mind. I’d like to be one of the first test subjects.]

The reply came almost instantly. [Don’t you still have family? Are they okay with this? You know the drug is still in early development. It’s never been tested on humans.]

I did not hesitate. [All you need to know is that I consent. You said that if I agreed, you’d fulfill one wish of mine. I want you to fake my death. Make it look like an accident.]

This time, it took a long while before a message came back.

[Deal.]