"I have had your husband wrapped around my fingers Elena, all those nights that you were waiting for him, Alex had spent them with me. If it wasn’t for the protection he carefully used, I would have been long pregnant with his child unlike you who is most likely barren.”

“What did you say?” Those words barely left as a whisper, tears streaming down my face.

“You can never give birth to a child, can you Elena?” Jessica closed onto me without an ounce of guilt before continuing “Alex is fed up with your useless barren body, unlike a country bumpkin like you he is a billionaire raised in luxury, how can he not wish for an heir?”

Jessica closed onto me with a smile as she held onto my hand like a good sister.

“Worry not sister, when I am pregnant with Alex’s child, you will be the first one to know.”

“Jessica!” I screamed with tears in my eyes, each and every word she spoke was like a dagger to my heart.

“You are shameless! Even after ruining my entire life, are you still not satisfied?” I swatted away Jessica’s arm only for her to fall down with a cry of pain.

“Elena!” Before I could understand what transpired I heard footsteps rushing forth as Alex came running.

“What the hell are you doing?! He glared at me sharply with so much resentment and disgust that it made me freeze on the spot.

“I-Its alright Alex, Elena was a little angry, please don't be mad at her..I-I am fine.” Jessica cried, her eyes welling with tears making Alex grit his teeth in rage.

“I am asking you Elena! Why the fuck did you harm Jessica?!”

“I didn’t..I never pushed her…” I whispered, trembling all over as I felt penetrating gazes sizing me from top to bottom with contempt as Alex’s friends arrived at the scene.

My husband bowed down to pick me up my sister in his arms protectively as if guarding her against me, the scene made a heart wrenching pain crawl up my chest making me barely stand upright.

“Let’s just leave, Alex…Elena is my little sister, she has been a little…stubborn since a young age..I don’t want her to be h-humiliated..." Jessica’s voice cracked at the end producing a miserable sob. "W-We shouldn't make a scene."

Looking around Alex saw people recording the incident making him bellow in fury.

“Elena, follow me now!”

Surprisingly Alex did not directly take Jessica to her huge princess bedroom in the mansion but turned to unlock what was my previous room- a storage closet where I used to sleep on the floor even in freezing winters.

This room was obviously now used by Jessica to keep her unused items- a storage.

“Sister, the first aid kit is kept at the back, can you bring it for me?”

“Why are you being so considerate to her? That’s the least she can do after ruining your party! I shouldn't have brought her here!” Tears streamed down my face as I saw my husband’s rigid back towards me when he walked ahead without waiting for a reply.

Even after knowing what Alex did to me, my body automatically obeyed him like a doll on strings. When I went to Jessica’s room decorated with luxury, she was already laying her head on my husband’s chest sobbing pitifully.

Upon seeing me Alex separated from her yet his anger poured on me as he clutched my hand in a bruising grip.

“Elena, massage Jessica’s feet now! It's all your fault. Do you have any idea how much you have hurt your sister?” While Alex turned away Jessica looked at me with a small smirk.

“I will not do it.” My heart was so trampled upon, that death seemed better at this moment.

“What did you say?”

“I will not do it!” Infuriated by my outburst Alex pushed me down to Jessica’s feet. I clutched my belly tightly as my knee hit the floor, astonished by Alex’s cruelty I looked at him in horror.

“Do you even know how to behave properly for once?! How dare you tell Jessica that she stole everything from you when you aren't able to do one single thing properly! Even if you had all this you would still end up being unloved!”

“Alex!” I screamed with tears streaming down my face as my husband stepped on heart without any guilt. If my body would not have been supported by the bed I would have fallen to the floor…the possibility of what could have happened to the children in my womb made fear blossom in each pore of my body.

“Alex, how can you do that? Elena is the true heiress of the Dawson family and I am just an adopted child, I occupied mom and dad’s love and even our brothers avoid her like a plague because of me, it's just natural for her to be heartbroken, It's all my fault.

What if she was hurt-”

“It's because she deserves all of it!” Listening to those words my world stopped as I sat there dumbstruck, it was my first time seeing what kind of man I actually married.

“Sister, are you alright? Please get up, Alex was too angry for a spur of the moment. Don't misunderstand Elena.”

"Shut up!" The words burst from my throat before I could stop them. "Just shut up with your fake crying!"

The crack of Alex's palm across my face echoed through the silent room. My cheek stung, but the betrayal in that strike cut deeper than any physical pain. I touched my fingers to the spot, still burning from his hand.

Alex’s hand was still raised in the air when he looked at my broken irises that stared at him in a painful shock, a gut-wrenching sob escaped my lips as blood trickled down from the corner of my mouth.

“A-Are you alright?Elena-”

Alex touched my face only for me to scurry away from him in fright, quickly getting up shakily to move away from him ,afraid that he would harm the children in my womb. Even now his touch felt like acid carving my skin painfully.

“Sister, please forgive me, it is all my fault, Alex quickly apologize to Elena.” Alex was frozen in his place when he saw my fearful eyes looking at him like a stranger.

“Elena, listen to me, if you apologise to Jessica I will forget this incident and we can act like nothing happened at all.”

The humiliation was horrifying as the hot tears trailing my eyes presented a blurry image of my husband that was soon going to father two children looking at me with a guilty expression.

Jessica innocently sobbed with her palms covering her mouth. "Oh my god, I..It was never my intention to create a rift between you...I cannot believe I caused harm to my sister."

Annoyed by Alex trying to appease me, my adopted sister got up before wobbling out of the room in a hurry like she was the person who was bullied but was kind till the end.

"Jessica, wait!" Alex looked at me unsure.

“Elena, go home and apply some medicine. You have disappointed me alot so don’t expect me to come back tonight.” Like a master commanding his slave Alex left me behind as he went searching for Jessica without looking back even once.

Three years of love and my pure sacrifice was thrown away in a moment of anger as Alex ruthlessly disregarded me for my sister.

Even after so much had happened on Alex’s birthday party, I once believed that even when I had a hellish life, at least my children would have their father’s love but at this moment I realised that neither me nor my twins had a place here.

I soon walked outside the luxurious mansion that I once called home, only to realise that I forgot my cell phone inside.

Dragging my feet despite the painful gash in my knee I stood outside Jessica’s bedroom going to knock yet the muffled voice resonating from within the bedroom made me feel like a bucket of ice cold water was poured over my head.

Lust filled moans and whimpers slipped through the crack in the door. My entire body quivered as I covered my mouth in absolute shock when I saw two partially naked bodies entangled on the bed.

“Oh Alex, you should take off your wedding ring…” in between their kisses Jessica complained in a dramatically sweet voice.

“No…to do what is forbidden makes it even hotter. If only Elena was half as sexy as you…” His hands clutched Jessica’s hand to stop her from taking off the ring before they continued to indulge in debauchery.

My husband not only slapped me for my sister but also used that opportunity to throw me out only to have sex with her. The shock was so profound that I stumbled backwards, my lips wobbling when I heard Alex’s words as he continued the disgusting act with my adopted sister.

This was the man whom I once loved even more than my life. Three years ago when Alex was going through a life threatening situation I urged his grandfather to use me as they liked for making my boyfriend’s health better no matter what.

Alex needed an organ donor who could donate him a kidney, at that time being blind in his love, I agreed to be operated upon and use my body for his well being. Later the doctors asked for a blood transfusion, and I readily agreed to them for taking my blood every month to help Alex recover.

When Alex came back home, I considered that he was still sick and needed rest, thus I worked three shifts daily, often working without any sleep to give my boyfriend better facilities.

Three years of memories crashed down around me as I watched the man I loved kiss another woman.

Even after giving up everything for Alex, all these years he just treated me like his maid. For Alex I was not even worth being a substitute for Jessica.

The diamond ring with Alex’s initials on my finger felt like it was a gash on my skin, bile rose my throat as I scratched my finger with nails making blood marks taint my skin in order to take my wedding ring off hurriedly.

I could never love this man anymore.

Today I will lessen his burden, I will go so far away that he will never find me anymore. Like a house of mirrors, my life came crashing down as I kept the ring on the flower table outside and ran away, my heels clicking against the hardwood floors.

This marriage was broken just like my heart.

Hiring a taxi I rushed to the place that I once referred as home- my safe haven where Alex and I spend our most beautiful moments, now it only appeared like a terrible hell where each passing moment was nothing but pure torture.

“Stop it! Please stop it!” I covered my ears in pain, the sounds of those disgusting moans still haunting me as I rushed to the bathroom in daze, my body swaying dangerously.

My stomach churned, making me lurched for the toilet, but nothing came up. After an entire day passed I just realised that I did not ate a single meal today because Alex wanted me to not disgrace him by being late at Jessica’s party.

The thought of my children’s wellbeing overpowered my senses thus I rushed to eat whatever I could grab at the moment with tears continuously trailing down my eyes.

I unlocked my phone, dialing my best friend's number.

“Please draft a divorce paper for me.”

“Alright.” Already knowing my terrible circumstances my friend who was a reputed lawyer drafted a divorce agreement that very night and I received the papers the very next morning.

It was noon when Alex rushed home with a bouquet of white lilies in his hand. Twisting the doorknob to enter through the front door he was surprised to see me having lunch on my own.

My husband gave me my favourite flowers expecting to appease me regarding yesterday’s argument yet when I simply kept them aside without a word, Alex froze in shock.

“Yesterday not only you embarrassed me in front of my friends but also ruined the party, next time you must apologize to each one of them individually for spoiling their mood-” I looked up and his intense gaze met my tired ones at that moment and Alex stopped with his words, sensing an unfathomable emotion in my eyes.

“I apologize that I forgot my place.” Those words came out as a shock making my husband of three years falter.

The screeching of my chair scraping the floor filled the utter silence as I stood up to go to the kitchen to bring a plate for Alex.

Settling it down on table in front of me I uncovered the dishes I made today. It was all Alex’s favorite.

Years ago, after Alex’s kidney transplant was completed, the nutritionist had a huge issue in serving Alex something that he liked also while making it healthy for him. Many of the doctors could not come up with a solution so I took it upon myself to learn traditional cooking from an old master.

All these years even while I was suffering from a terrible fever and was on the verge of fainting, my husband never ate anything other than the dishes that I personally cooked, to please him I suffered all along in silence.

Alex’s face contorted to that of guilt and shame when he saw me limping while I set the dishes for him.

Unknown to Alex, we sat down for our last lunch together as husband and wife.

“Elena, I drank too much yesterday…is your wound alright?” I hummed making him continue.

“There is no need to take what happened yesterday to heart. Once you apologise to Jessica everything will just return to normal.

I know you were raised in the countryside, unknowingly their unsightly manners have rubbed off on you, so you must understand that what I am doing is only for your good.”

My husband coaxed me without any sense of shame, all these years I took his berating words as reminders that I must excel in all fields to keep him happy, that I was unworthy of him, but now it was clear that Jessica was the one who occupied his heart while I could never compare to her.