Clara's expression was tense with worry, as if she genuinely cared about me.

Colter stood beside her, and his expression was just as grim. "Why were you so hesitant to open up that apple pie and take a bite, Jessie?

"You don't think we're trying to hurt you, do you?"

His question left me completely speechless.

It didn't matter to me what others thought, but I had to keep Clara and Colter from getting suspicious. If they realized that I had noticed something was off and took the apple pie away, I would lose my chance to make them pay.

Worse, if they discovered I knew the truth, they would never let me go.

They had been so ruthless in my past life. In this one, I had to protect myself and the baby in my womb at all costs.

What should I do?

After a brief thought, I slowly unwrapped the apple pie, scooped up a small piece, and placed it in my mouth.

Clara and Colter smiled in satisfaction, and I curled my lips back at them.

"You're so kind to me, Clara. I'm so lucky to have a best friend like you. Thank you for worrying so much about my health."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, they headed home arm in arm.

I immediately booked an ultrasound with the doctor and was relieved to find that the baby was still safe in my womb.

I had feigned eating the apple pie right before their eyes when, in truth, I had secretly tucked it beneath my tongue without swallowing. Later, when I wiped my mouth, I spat it out onto a napkin.

After taking a bite, I packed the rest of the pie back into my bag.

After leaving the hospital, I headed home right away and began to plot how I was going to handle Clara and Colter. But just as I settled down on the bed, the doorbell rang.

I opened the door to find Clara standing outside. She held a piece of napkin with the spat-out piece of apple pie sitting on it.

"Did you not eat the apple pie? Why was it in the napkin you used to wipe your mouth?" she asked and stared at me with dark, probing intensity.

My heart pounded violently in sheer panic. Could she have noticed something?

Before I could even reply, Colter clutched his head and collapsed, crashing onto me.

I screamed in terror. His body pressed against me so heavily that I immediately shoved him off.

Pretending to be weak, he opened his eyes, sat up, and popped a candy into his mouth while apologizing to me.

"I'm so sorry, Jessie. Is your baby okay? We should get you to the hospital for a checkup right away.

"I'm very sorry. I didn't mean to do that, but I have no idea why my blood sugar suddenly crashed."

I was livid.

Martha and Wyatt heard the commotion and sprinted out of the house. They immediately rushed me back to the hospital for an emergency examination.

Using concern for my health as an excuse, Clara stood by my side the whole time. Her eyes were completely glued to the words on my report: "The baby is perfectly healthy".

I shot her a cold look and asked, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

She frowned. "No, everything's fine. I was just worried that Colter might have hurt you when he fell. I'll teach him a serious lesson when we get home."

I let out a cold laugh. Her act was flawless, but I could tell that she was checking if the baby in my womb was still alive.

Then, she pressed me relentlessly, demanding to know why I had refused to eat the apple pie earlier. I lied, telling her that I had eaten it but later vomited after feeling nauseous.

Under the guise of caring for my health, she insisted that I eat my meals and ordered three full crates of apple pie to be delivered to my door.

Perfect! The dogs' delicious feast was here!

I couldn't help but wonder what kind of precious baby Clara would end up carrying after the pregnant shelter dogs devoured her apple pies.