The day I found out I was pregnant, a single sentence from my mother-in-law sent shivers down my spine. “You vile slut! My son’s barely been gone a year, and you’re already pregnant with another man’s child? How dare you disrespect his memory!” I stared at her in disbelief, my voice trembling with fear as I tried to explain: “Mom, what are you even saying?! This baby inside me, it’s Liam’s!” Martha’s fury erupted. She slapped me so hard my head snapped sideways, then grabbed a fistful of my hair, dragging me towards Liam’s gravestone. Looking at Liam’s photo on the gravestone, a wave of terror washed over me. “No way! This can’t be real!” Because all this past year, Liam has been right here with me. Just last night, he was in my bed! I stared at Liam’s memorial photo on the gravestone, my mind a sudden blank. Then I ran home like a maniac. “Liam! Liam!” But the living room was silent, save for the frantic pounding of my own heart. “Liam! Where are you?!” The bedroom was empty. The bedsheets were neatly folded, undisturbed. There was no sign of Liam anywhere. I stood in the center of the living room, my eyes frantically scanning the surroundings. His worn-out gray slippers were by the door, and the half-empty coffee mug he’d been drinking yesterday was still on the coffee table. These details screamed that Liam was here, that he’d never left this house. But Martha’s words, the photo on the gravestone – they pressed down on my heart, suffocating me. I pulled out my phone, my hands shaking uncontrollably. It took several tries to dial Liam’s number correctly. The phone rang three times, and then, finally, he answered. “Honey.” Liam’s voice, that familiar low rumble, came through the receiver. My eyes instantly welled up. “Liam! Where are you? Please come home! I’m so scared!” “What’s wrong? What happened?” Liam’s voice immediately tightened with concern. “Mom… Mom just said you died!” The more I spoke, the more agitated I became, tears streaming down my face. There was a few seconds of silence on the other end, then Liam’s voice returned. “What nonsense are you talking about?” “But Mom dragged me to your gravestone! That photo, it was clearly you!” I couldn’t stop myself from crying. “Maybe Mom’s just been under too much stress lately, having another episode.” “I still have some things to handle here. I’ll be back in a few days.” “Stay safe at home, and take good care of yourself and our baby.” Liam gave a few more gentle reminders, his tone soothing. Hearing Liam’s words, a tiny sliver of hope, a small relief, settled in my chest. But just as I sat down on the sofa, a frantic knocking echoed from the front door. “Chloe! Open this door! Don’t you dare hide in there playing dead!” My heart seized up. I instinctively clutched the hem of my shirt and stood to open the door. The moment it opened, Martha burst in, followed by several relatives. Their faces were all grim, radiating anger. “You shameless slut! My son’s barely been gone a year, and you’re pregnant with another man’s bastard child! How dare you betray Liam?!” I retorted, my voice laced with defiance: “Mom! Why are you saying such things again! Liam is fine, he’ll be back in a few days! What kind of mother wishes death upon her own son?!” Martha’s face flushed red with rage, her chest heaving. “Still lying! You’re at your wit’s end and still won’t admit it!” “Liam’s been dead for a year! If it’s not another man’s child, then whose is it?!”
Aunt Carol, Liam’s aunt, quickly chimed in, supporting Martha: “That’s right, Chloe. Liam’s only been gone a year. Even if you did have a lover, you shouldn’t get pregnant so quickly! If word gets out, you’ll bring shame to the entire Miller family!” I looked at their self-righteous faces, a mix of anger and desperation churning inside me. I tried to patiently explain: “How could Liam be dead? He was just having dinner and chatting with me yesterday.” At that moment, Uncle Richard stared at me with an expression of horror and said: “Liam was hit by a car last year and died. You attended his funeral, Chloe, the *entire* funeral!” My gaze was locked on Uncle Richard’s face, and I forgot how to breathe. I was with Liam every single day. Just last night, he was holding me on the sofa, softly telling me he’d take me on a beach trip once he finished this busy period. Why were they all conspiring to lie to me? I suddenly remembered Liam’s company was in the middle of handing over some critical projects worth a fortune. My brother-in-law, Finn, always had his eyes on taking over the company. He’d repeatedly confronted Liam about it, even deliberately making things difficult during board meetings. Could it be him? The more I thought about it, the angrier I became. My eyes, sharp as daggers, landed on Finn in the crowd. “Finn! Who else would want Liam dead so badly, who else would benefit from it?! You’ve always wanted to seize control of the company, and now you’re using these low-down, dirty tactics!” The surrounding relatives fell silent, leaving only the sound of my ragged breathing in the living room. Finn instantly started trembling with rage. “You’re absolutely insane!” “Come on, come in here and see for yourself!” With that, Finn grabbed my hand and started dragging me towards Liam’s study. All year, Liam had repeatedly warned me that his study was strictly off-limits. He said it contained extremely important business documents and he was afraid I might accidentally misplace them. “Let go of me! Liam said no one is allowed in his study!” I struggled wildly, my throat raw from screaming. But Finn ignored my resistance, spitting out, full of resentment: “Today, I’m going to make you go in and see! See what your ‘alive’ Liam really looks like! It’s time for you to face reality!” I twisted my body with all my might, my nails digging into his arm. But his grip was too strong. I couldn’t break free, only being forcibly dragged along. With a loud *bang*, the study door was forcefully kicked open by Finn. Then, everyone gasped sharply at the scene inside. “Chloe! You monstrous slut!” After seeing the scene in the study, everyone’s suppressed anger completely exploded. Martha was the first to charge forward, grabbing a fistful of my hair with a force that felt like she was trying to rip my scalp clean off. “You ungrateful bitch! How could you do something like this?!” Her voice was high-pitched and vicious, laced with biting hatred. I winced in pain, tears instantly springing to my eyes. I struggled to get away, but the relatives next to me held my arms down firmly, preventing me from moving an inch. Dragged into the study, I finally managed to make out the room’s appearance. The room was meticulously clean. Liam’s usual laptop sat on the desk, its screen in sleep mode. It looked like a completely normal study! I cried out, questioning loudly: “What’s wrong with this?! What are you all trying to do?!” “Get out of here! These are all the company’s core confidential documents, no one is allowed to touch them!”
I pushed hard against the people surrounding me. I absolutely couldn’t let them desecrate Liam’s legacy. Finn, pushed by me, lost his footing slightly. Once he regained his balance, he roared: “Chloe, even now, you’re still playing games with us!” “Slap!” A sharp, ringing slap echoed in the study. My head snapped violently to the side. It was Martha who struck me, her eyes bloodshot, her expression terrifyingly distorted. “You beast! You have the nerve to say that?!” “You actually removed and hid Liam’s urn and memorial photo! Do you have any shame after all the good he did for you? Has your heart turned to stone?!” “To cover up the fact that you’re pregnant with another man’s baby, you even dared to touch his memorial photo! You’re not human! You’re a cold-blooded animal!” Looking at their furious faces, I felt it was utterly absurd. Liam was alive and well! What urn?! What memorial photo?! “I’m done wasting my breath on you!” I pulled out my phone with a sudden movement, my eyes firm. “I just talked to Liam! I’m calling him now; he’ll tell you himself!” I didn’t believe Liam’s voice could be faked. But the moment I saw the call interface, My entire body froze, and I even forgot to breathe. The call history was empty. Not a single second of call history! I had clearly just talked to Liam, so how could there be no call record?! His voice was still echoing in my ears; it couldn’t have been a hallucination. I must have accidentally deleted it in my panic! I quickly searched the call history recycling bin, my fingers frantically sliding across the screen, my fingertips trembling. But the recycling bin was empty, not even a single deleted record. It was glaringly blank. Not giving up, I opened my carrier’s app to check the call details for the past year. My heart pounded harder and harder, almost leaping out of my chest. The detailed bill was full of call records with colleagues and friends, but there was no record of Liam’s number, not once! How was this possible?! “Stop looking, you won’t find anything, because Liam died ages ago! He’s been dead for a year!” Then, Finn dragged out a dark red wooden box from the innermost corner of the bookshelf, covered in a thin layer of dust. He yanked open the box and forcefully shoved its contents in front of me. It was Liam’s memorial photo! In the photo, he wore a black suit, his smile stiff and unnatural. Next to the photo sat a small urn. Liam’s name and dates of birth and death were carved onto it in red paint, starkly visible. My mind went *buzz*, and the blood in my veins seemed to freeze instantly. “You’re all insane!” “To snatch control of the company, you fabricated these things and even cursed Liam to die! Aren’t you afraid of retribution?!” “If Liam knew you were doing this to him, he would never let you off when he gets back, he’d make you pay!” While I screamed at them, I pulled out my phone again, frantically searching for Liam’s number. But a robotic female voice, cold and detached, answered. “The number you have dialed is no longer in service.” No longer in service! “Stop calling! His number was disconnected ages ago! Wake up!” “Liam passed away last year. The baby in your belly is someone else’s. Get rid of it now, don’t bring shame to the Miller family!”
“You’re lying!” I still couldn’t believe it, trembling with anger, tears streaming down my face. Seeing my reaction, Martha pointed a finger at my nose and cursed. “Still pretending! You won’t accept the truth until it’s staring you in the face, will you? You’re forcing our hand!” “This child must be aborted today, to protect our family’s reputation and avoid becoming the talk of the town!” “What are you waiting for? Get her! Don’t let her escape!” No sooner had she spoken than Aunt Carol rushed forward. She grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked me to the floor, making my scalp tingle with pain. Uncle Richard also stepped forward, delivering a brutal kick to my leg. I lost my balance and stumbled, falling to the ground, my knee hitting the floor with excruciating pain. “Stop! Please, stop! I’m pregnant, you can’t hit me!” I tightly shielded my belly with both hands, pleading loudly, my voice hoarse. This child was Liam’s and mine. I couldn’t let anything happen to him. Absolutely not! “Hit her! Hit her until she’s dead! Knock that baby out of her, let’s see how she pretends then!” Martha continued to shriek from the side, her eyes fierce, as if she wanted to devour me. I felt increasing pain all over my body, and my consciousness began to blur. My vision swam with black spots, but I still desperately protected my belly, refusing to let go. Then, a sudden, immense force kicked my abdomen. I screamed. I saw bright red blood instantly gush out from below, quickly staining the floor, a shocking sight. If Liam was really dead, how could I be pregnant with his child?! The thought spun in my mind, a vortex of endless despair, threatening to shatter my sanity. Until a loud *bang*. A familiar voice suddenly echoed from the doorway! “Stop!”
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