Chapter 1 - She Tried to Hurt Us
Victoria Vance pinned me to the hospital mattress with both hands.
“You will never give my son this baby.”
Her pearl bracelet struck the metal bed rail as she leaned her weight against my shoulders.
I was seven months pregnant.
One arm curved protectively over my belly while the other searched blindly for the red nurse-call button beside the bed.
“Get off me.”
My voice came out thin and breathless.
The heart monitor accelerated, each sharp beep matching the panic pounding through my chest.
Victoria’s perfectly arranged blonde hair had begun to loosen around her face. For two years, I had known her as cold, controlling, and quietly cruel.
I had never seen her lose control like this.
“You trapped Julian,” she hissed. “You think carrying his child makes you a Vance?”
My fingers brushed the bed rail.
Almost there.
“You were never good enough for my son, and that baby will never carry our family name.”
I twisted onto my side, keeping the pressure away from my stomach.
Pain shot through my shoulder.
Then my palm struck the call button.
A sharp alarm sounded.
Victoria jerked toward the door but kept one hand clamped around me.
Footsteps thundered down the corridor.
The hospital-room door flew open.
Julian stopped in the doorway.
His face went blank as he saw his mother leaning over me, my gown twisted, my face wet with tears, and the monitor flashing beside us.
Then shock became rage.
“Mom! What the hell are you doing?”
Victoria released me and stepped backward.
Her expression changed instantly.
“She’s unstable,” she said. “She attacked me.”
Julian moved to my side and placed himself between us.
I held my belly, fighting for breath.
The nurse rushed into the room behind him.
I pointed toward Victoria.
“She tried to hurt us.”
May you like
My mother-in-law looked toward the open doorway.
For the first time since entering my room, she understood she no longer controlled who would be believed.
