Elias followed the physician into the back office to collect the prenatal file. Serena, however, murmured something about needing the restroom and stayed right where she was.

Once they were both out of sight, she finally spoke, her voice a slow, lazy drawl. "You can come out now. You've been standing there watching long enough. Haven't had your fill yet?"

I stepped out without a word, my expression blank.

Seeing that I stayed silent, Serena grew impatient. Her gaze sharpened with mockery.

"What, no shame left at all? You knew Elias never loved you, yet you still insist on holding on to the title of Falcone bride?"

I let out a cold laugh. "And you don't find it shameful to be the kept woman, fully aware he's married?"

Serena's lips curled into a smile. Her fingers drifted to the pearl at her ear and held there a fraction too long. "I knew Elias long before you did. If I hadn't gone overseas, you'd never have had the chance to stand at that altar with him."

She placed a hand lightly over her belly, then added smugly, "But I'm back now. And I'm carrying his child. So I'd say it's time for you to step aside."

From the moment I married Elias, I knew he had a woman he considered his one true love. But I never thought she'd hold such an unshakable place in his heart.

The pain that shot through my chest nearly brought me to my knees. My grip tightened instinctively on the report in my hand.

And that's when Serena saw it and snatched it from me.

She scanned the conclusion and burst into wild, gleeful laughter.

"Cancer, huh?" she said. "So, what do you think? Will you live long enough to give birth to that bastard Paolo, or are you both going to die together?"

Her laughter rang in my ears like sirens and something in me snapped. I stepped forward and slapped her, hard.

She staggered back dramatically, then fell to the ground with a wail.

"Bianca, I didn't mean to keep this from you! But I'm pregnant! How could you hit me like that?"

Huge, dramatic tears rolled down her cheeks. And before I could even process her performance, I felt a violent shove from behind. I lost my balance and my belly slammed into the cold, hard floor.

The clinic corridor was empty. No soldiers, no nurses. Just the hum of fluorescent lights overhead and the faint antiseptic smell of a place that existed because the Families needed somewhere quiet for the things hospitals asked too many questions about.

Elias grabbed my arm and yanked me up. I was still dazed, still trying to process the shock, when he yelled in my face.

"Are you out of your mind? How could you push Serena? She's pregnant!"

I stared at him, stunned. Before I could speak, Serena cried out, "Elias, please don't fight with Bianca because of me. I shouldn't have asked you to come to the appointment with me. This is my fault. As long as the Paolo's okay, she can slap me."

She looked like a tragic heroine. Eyes glassy, lower lip trembling.

Elias's face twisted with anger. His voice was low and sharp when he turned to me.

"You've crossed the line, Bianca," he said coldly. "Apologize to Serena."

The sound of it shocked even me. I laughed. Bitterly.

"You want me to apologize?" I said, my voice hoarse. "Elias, do you know what this is?"

I shoved the cancer report into his chest, my hands shaking. My throat tightened with emotion.

He didn't even look at it.

He tore the paper in half and glared at me like I was the problem. His signet ring sat motionless against his knuckle, and the stillness of it was worse than any raised hand.

"I don't care what that says. All I know is you've gone too far. God, you're pregnant, Bianca. How could you be cruel to another woman?"

Tears finally slipped down my cheeks, hot and silent. My whole body trembled. Not from pain, but from sheer fury.

Elias saw me crying and for a moment, his expression softened. His tone shifted to something gentler.

"Alright… can you just apologize? I know I haven't been giving you attention these past few months. But I promise I'll make it up to you once the Paolo's born."

Then, without a trace of shame, he pushed me toward Serena.

She looked back at me, eyes glinting with smug triumph.

I looked hard at Elias, wondering how the man who once swore he loved me could change so drastically the moment Serena came back. Had he forgotten every promise he made the day we stood at the altar? Every vow spoken in that church while both Families watched, while the candles burned, while our blood was still fresh on the oath cloth?

My thumb found the edge of the saint medal at my throat. I held it for one breath. Then I let it drop and lifted my chin.

"No," I said quietly. "I won't apologize. And Elias… you've truly disappointed me."

Then I turned and walked away.

As I walked away, Elias's face darkened. For a brief moment, panic flashed through his eyes. He started to take a step toward me, but then Serena clutched her stomach and groaned.

"Elias, it hurts," she gasped, then forced out a teary plea. "But Bianca's more important. Go after her."

Elias hesitated only a second before shaking his head. "No. Don't worry about her. Right now, your condition is what matters most."

He glanced down the corridor of the private clinic where I'd disappeared, and I heard him mutter, "Bianca's just throwing a tantrum. She's eight months pregnant. She'll be terrified if I file severance papers. I'll talk to her later."

Then he scooped Serena up and carried her into the treatment room.

When I got back to the house, I stood outside for a long moment, staring at the brownstone that was supposed to be ours. Since Serena returned from overseas, Elias had barely come home. The enforcers posted at the gate changed shifts without acknowledging me. I could no longer feel the warmth this house once held.

I walked to the wall, took down our wedding photo, and tossed it straight into the trash.

I didn't want to leave a single trace of myself here. Not one reminder of what used to be.

I packed up all our couple items and stuffed them into a trash bag. I was heading down the stairs with it when the front door suddenly swung open. Elias walked in, carrying Serena in his arms. One of his soldiers held the door and then stepped back into the night without a word.

When he saw me standing silently by the door, a flicker of guilt flashed across his face.

"She's not feeling well after what you did," he said, like that explained everything.

"Not feeling well, huh?" I scoffed. "Then why isn't she at the clinic? Why the hell would you bring her here? Do you think our home is some kind of recovery house for your kept woman?"

"Watch your words, Bianca," he snapped. "I'm trying to fix things here. Whether you like it or not, Serena is staying in this house."

Serena chimed in, her hand moving to gently rub her belly. "It's true, Bianca. There's nothing going on between Elias and me. I'm only staying for the Paolo."

She said it just to provoke me. Her fingers drifted to the pearl at her ear and held there a fraction too long.

I could feel the anger rising in my chest, bubbling and hot. I looked at Elias and said, firm and loud, "This is our house, Elias. I don't want her living here."

Elias paused. His face twisted like he was conflicted. But then Serena grabbed his hand and placed it on her belly.

Elias's heart melted instantly. When he turned back to me, his voice was full of irritation. "That's enough! You're pregnant too. How can you have zero empathy?"

"You pushed Serena. I'm just trying to take care of her. If you don't want her here, then maybe you should leave."

His words hit like a slap.

I stared at him, the blood draining from my face. My whole body trembled. My thumb found the edge of the saint medal at my throat and pressed hard enough to leave a mark.

And then I said, as clearly as I could, "As you wish."

Tonight would be my last night in this house. After this, I'd be gone, and Elias Falcone would be a closed chapter in my life.

With my decision made, I grabbed the trash bag in my hand and marched out the door. The soldier by the gate watched me pass but didn't move. He had his orders, and they didn't include me. Not anymore.

Serena's voice followed behind me, laced with mock pity.

"Don't fight because of me, Elias. Look, she's so angry she even took down your wedding photo."

Elias's voice rumbled low with frustration. "She's just being dramatic. Once she realizes I'm not playing her game, she'll come crawling back."

A tear slid down my cheek. I walked into the cold night and threw the trash away along with the very last shred of love I had left for him.

The second I opened the door, I heard a noise coming from the nursery, and my anger flared up. Elias had renovated that room the moment he found out I was pregnant. He'd filled it with only the best. Every piece of furniture, every stuffed animal, every blanket. He picked them all out himself. For our Paolo.

And now he wanted to give that to Serena?

Fury surged through me. I stormed down the hallway and swung the door open, only to find Serena lying in the crib.

I yanked her up without thinking, rage burning in my chest. But before I could get a word out, Elias grabbed my wrist and pulled me away from her.

"What is wrong with you? You act like a lunatic the second you walk in," he snapped. But when he saw the tears in my eyes, he hesitated, his grip loosening just a little.

"Are you really giving her this room?" I asked, my voice raw and broken.

Elias frowned. "Serena said she likes it. It's not a big deal if she stays here for a while."

"Do you remember…"

"Enough, Bianca." He cut me off, the irritation in his voice carrying that particular quiet command he used when he expected the conversation to die. "Everything you've done these past few days has been disappointing. If you keep acting like this, I'll have to reconsider whether this marriage should even continue." He paused, eyes cold. "You don't want the Paolo inside you to be born without a father, do you?"

He was threatening me. Not with lawyers, not with paperwork. In this life, a dissolved marriage meant losing the protection of the Falcone name entirely. It meant being sent back to my father's house like damaged goods, the alliance between our families shattered, my child marked before he even drew his first breath.

Looking at his face, the side he always turned away when he was done with an argument, I felt the memories unravel. The promises, the whispered sweet nothings, all turning to ash in a matter of months.

He once said this room would always belong to our Paolo. He said he would treasure both of us for the rest of his life.

And yet here we were.

I didn't say anything else. I turned around and walked out, numb. My hand instinctively cradled my belly, feeling the faint flutter of life inside me.

"Don't worry, Paolo. We don't need that room. I'll make you a better one."

Behind me, Elias stood frozen, watching me walk away. That same flicker of guilt from the clinic flashed across his face again, sharp and quick, then buried.

But as Serena called out to him from the nursery, he turned and walked back to her.

Later, when I was back in the master bedroom, my phone buzzed. I got a string of voice messages from Serena.

I opened them one by one, and hearing Elias's doting tone in the recordings, I realized all their past affection was just practice for him.

He was practicing on me and our Paolo, all for the sake of Serena's child.

Every nourishing soup I drank, every gift I received for the Paolo, every parenting tip Elias shared with me. It was all just practice for Serena's Paolo.

Even the nursery itself was prepared by Elias for the child in Serena's womb.

I and the Paolo were just tools for Elias's rehearsal. He didn't want Serena to suffer through his learning curve, so I became the sacrifice.

I listened to the messages over and over, the pain swelling inside me until I laughed. Not because it was funny, because it hurt so much it pushed me over the edge. Everything I had been so proud of since the moment I got pregnant had been nothing but a lie.

Elias's tenderness toward my child? It didn't even come close to what he showed Serena and hers.

I clenched my phone so tightly my hand shook. My thumb found the edge of the saint medal at my throat, pressing hard enough to leave an imprint. It hurt to breathe. All I could do was whisper over and over to myself that it was okay.

It was okay. Because soon, we'd be free of him.

Just me and the Paolo. And we'd be just fine.

The Paolo kicked, like he could hear me. Like he understood.

I wrapped my arms around my belly and held it close.

The compound was quiet around me. No soldiers moving in the hall. No voices from the nursery anymore. Just the silence of a house that had already chosen its side.

I stayed that way for a long time, until I could finally breathe again.