My movie star husband's girlfriend suspected I was the other woman. She confronted me in public, beat me until I lost my child, and even left my face scarred beyond recognition.

"You shameless homewrecker! How dare you seduce someone else's man—and even get pregnant?" she screamed in rage. "I'll send you and that child of yours straight to hell today!"

And as for my husband, he didn't even spare me a glance. All he cared to say was, "Why did you bother hitting her yourself? Did your hand hurt?"

But when he finally discovered that the woman his girlfriend had scarred and caused to miscarry was me, he lost his mind.

While browsing through the mall, a group of women closed in around me.

The one who was leading them was a familiar face: Fiona Lambert, my husband Charlie Skyhawk's newly announced girlfriend.

"There's the shameless homewrecker! Let's teach her a lesson!" Fiona's voice sliced through the crowd.

Before I could process what was happening, a stinging slap landed across my face.

Fiona folded her arms, looking down at me with a scornful smile. "You're Destiny Mckinney, aren't you? You knew Charlie was my boyfriend, yet you dared to go after him?"

"Don't waste your breath, Fiona," one of her followers sneered. "Everyone hates a mistress—let's make sure she can't show her face in public again."

Instinctively, I shielded my belly, heart pounding.

"Wait, I'm pregnant," I stuttered. "Would you really—?"

But Fiona's face turned icy, her eyes full of contempt. "Pregnant? You had the audacity to get pregnant with his child? So that's why Charlie left me—because of you and your baby?"

I shook my head, desperate to explain. "No, you're the other woman! I'm his—"

My words were cut short by her kick to my belly.

A wave of agony radiated through me, stealing my breath as cold sweat broke across my skin.

Her lackeys landed more kicks on me.

I staggered from the pain, still trying to protect my stomach, terrified of what they might do to my child.

Fiona's mocking voice echoed around me. "Trying to use a baby to climb your way up, huh? I'll make sure you go nowhere but down."

A shiver ran through me as she laughed, dark and twisted. I instinctively took a few steps back.

But just as I tried to move away, the women surrounding her grabbed me, yanking my arms and legs, holding me in place.

Fiona's expression twisted even further, like a demon savoring her cruelty. "You think you can just go around stealing other people's boyfriends? And then have the nerve to get pregnant?"

Her voice rose to a scream. "I'm sending you and that child of yours straight to hell today!"

Blows rained down on me, one after another, and I tasted blood as it pooled at the back of my throat. Words clung to my lips, unspoken. I wanted to scream, to tell her the truth—that I was Charlie's hidden wife, and she was the one who'd broken into our marriage.

It had only been weeks since I'd seen the announcement on social media: Charlie and Fiona, arm in arm, in a post that went viral.

I'd called him immediately, demanding answers, but he brushed me off with practiced indifference. "The production team wanted us to do some PR to boost the show's ratings," he'd said, his tone dismissive. "It's just for the press, Destiny. We'll break it off after the show airs."

I had protested, and his voice had turned sharp, impatient. "Destiny, when are you going to stop making this a big deal? It's just an act; it's not real."

Fiona grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking my head down to the cold, hard floor. I felt something wet and sticky trail down my face; blood, mingling with the sweat and tears.

I barely had the strength to resist before her foot struck my belly again.

I doubled over, agony ripping through me as tears spilled uncontrollably. My child. The child I'd longed for, fought so hard to keep safe—I felt my baby slipping away, bit by bit.

Through my haze of pain, I saw Fiona dialing her phone. She put it on speaker, and flashed a smile so smug it made my stomach turn.

"Hey, what's up?" Charlie's warm voice flowed through the phone, oblivious.

Fiona giggled, her voice sugar-coated. "If I taught a certain homewrecker a lesson, would you be mad at me?"

He chuckled softly, as if indulging her. "If you had to hit someone, you should've let someone else handle it," he replied. "Did your hand get hurt?"

All I felt was despair, sinking deeper into a darkness where even air seemed to escape me. I opened my mouth, desperate to form words, to cry for help, but only a few strangled groans escaped.

"What's that noise?" Charlie's voice crackled through Fiona's phone, and a sliver of hope flickered inside me.

I groaned louder, praying he'd hear my pain.

Fiona shot me a look, her expression alert as she tried to cover up. "There's no noise. You must be hearing things."

He didn't question it, didn't even hesitate. "Alright. Do whatever you want—I'll back you up."

"Love you," she purred, ending the call with a smug smile.

I collapsed onto the floor, tears wetting my cheeks as Fiona stood over me, gripping my clothes with her fists.

Turning to the growing crowd, she announced, "Don't get the wrong idea, folks. I'm giving this homewrecker exactly what she deserves! This woman had the nerve to come between my boyfriend and me. Tell me, doesn't she deserve it?"

The murmurs around us morphed into a chorus of disdainful agreement. "Looks can be deceiving. Who could've thought someone who looked so proper would turn out to be a mistress! Shameless!" one woman scoffed.

"That's right! She's shameless!" another chimed in. "Honestly, she deserves every bit of it."

"Exactly! Mistresses like her should be taught a lesson!"

The stabbing pain in my abdomen left me unable to respond as my strength drained away.

Fiona basked in their support, a dark satisfaction lighting her eyes. She straddled me, slapping me repeatedly, each blow sending a buzzing shock through my head.

My hand rose, trembling, desperate to shield my belly. "My… child…" I groaned, nearly inaudible.

Fiona laughed, the sound hollow and merciless. "Consider yourself lucky the child hasn't been born yet. Otherwise, I'd have made sure that child knew exactly how ugly this world can be."

Her friends yanked my hair, and my vision blurred, tilting at the edges.

I could barely make out a few people in the crowd growing uneasy. "Alright, that's enough now," one voice finally piped up. "This is… a bit much, don't you think?"

"Just look at her face," another muttered. "Swollen, bleeding… it's over the line."

Someone spat, "Only a homewrecker would defend this woman! If you're on her side, maybe you're a mistress too!"

But Fiona's friend suddenly gasped, "Fiona, there's blood!"

That word jolted me awake.

Blood?

My body shuddered as I gathered my frayed senses, fighting against the pain. "My baby… please, my baby…"

A few voices shifted in tone, apprehensive now. "Is she pregnant? Even if she is the other woman, that's too much! What if she's miscarrying?"

"Oh, now y'all feel sorry?" someone else murmured darkly. "But if she loses that baby, it's on all of you—you all egged it on."

Fiona's mask faltered, and she stepped back, rattled but defiant. "Oh, please, she's faking. This can't make her lose a child—she's not even pregnant!"

Every ounce of my strength drained as I tried to move. I slipped my hand behind me to check and found the damp warmth of blood soaking my fingers.

Fiona motioned to her friends, and they lifted me roughly off the ground.

"Fine, since you're so desperate for the hospital, we'll take you there. But remember," she sneered, "this is your fault for being a homewrecker."

They clumsily dragged me to a dim, musty space. Instinct told me this wasn't a hospital, but my fading consciousness couldn't hold on long enough for me to open my eyes and see.

With a final surge of energy, I opened my eyes and pleaded, "Please… my child can still be saved… just take me to a hospital. I swear, I'll stay away from Charlie, I'll disappear… but please, just save my baby…"

Fiona's lips curled into a scornful smile. "Oh, we're supposed to believe a homewrecker now? You actually care about that child, huh?"

"Well, too bad," she hissed, her face twisted with malice. "You and that kid of yours can rot here together."

She pulled a glinting blade from her bag, running its tip slowly along the side of my cheek. "And just to be sure, I'm going to ruin that pretty little face of yours—the one you used to seduce him."

I had no strength left to resist. "Charlie will find out... he cares deeply about this child. If he learns that you killed his child, he won't forgive you!"

Fiona paused, and for a moment, I thought I'd finally struck fear into her. But then, with a merciless twist, she pressed harder, slashing down my cheek in a swift motion.

"How dare you mention Charlie, you wretched woman!" she snarled. "As if I'd let him know I did this. No, by the time I'm through with you, you'll vanish from his life completely."

I froze, a chill creeping over me as she carved more lines across my face. The stinging pain became so intense that it numbed me.

Seeing the state I was in, Fiona laughed with satisfaction.

"Destiny, you look horrible now. There's no way you'll ever be able to compete with me for Charlie again," she sneered. "I'll make sure you understand what happens when you cross me!"

My body was like a discarded rag doll as she unleashed her fury, slashing and tearing at me. I felt like I was drifting away, teetering on the edge of life.

Fiona's friends began to grow uneasy and watched her in fear. "Fiona, maybe that's enough. She's going to die if you keep it up," one of them said, voice quivering.

Fiona gave a cold laugh. "You're scared? Charlie promised to take care of everything, so what are you worried about?"

I spat out more blood as I lay helplessly on the ground.

She finally stood up. "Fine, we'll call it a day. I'm tired. Leave her locked up here; maybe I'll come back later if I feel like letting out my anger."

With that, Fiona and her group left.

I lay on the cold floor, clutching my stomach, struggling for breath. My world had gone dark, and I felt nothing from within.

"Little one... I'm so sorry. If it weren't for my ties to Charlie, you wouldn't have suffered like this," I whispered, barely holding on. "If I survive, I'll get justice for you, I swear."

Tears mixed with the blood streaking down my cheeks, each drop stinging as it met my wounds.

Time blurred. I don't know how long I lay there, slipping in and out of awareness, until a faint sound reached my ears—someone had entered the warehouse.

Through my haze, I recognized Nick Wesley, Charlie's assistant.

Fiona pointed at me. "So, Charlie really meant it when he said he'd fix everything, didn't he? I might have... gone a bit far," she muttered.

Nick took one look at me and then dialed Charlie. "Boss, this is serious. Fiona went too far... the woman is unrecognizable."

I struggled to stay conscious, realizing Nick was my only hope. I tried to call his name.

Fiona noticed and quickly silenced me with a brutal kick. "Stay down, you worthless thing."

On the other end, Charlie's voice was calm but clear. "How bad is it? Show me."

Fiona tensed, immediately refusing, "There's nothing to see. It might scare you, trust me."

I knew my chance had come. I reached out and clutched Nick's pants, whimpering, praying he'd understand my plea.

Fiona didn't want Charles to see me, afraid he might recognize who I was.

Nick glanced at me with hesitation. "Boss, the situation's a bit complicated. You should take a look."

But Fiona wasn't about to let me get away with it. She quickly grabbed Nick's arm and, with a pleading look at Charles, said, "Charles, you promised to help me handle this. You said so back then."

Charlie chuckled softly, reassuring her. "I did. But let me see the situation first, and then we'll decide how to handle it."

Reluctantly, Fiona had no choice but to let Nick turn on the video feed. He aimed the camera at me.

Charlie's face appeared on the screen, and he stared in silence for a moment.

Then he spoke in a low, steady voice, "Who is this?"