Eight months pregnant, my husband, Damian, a detective, finally cleared his schedule to accompany me to my first prenatal checkup. We’d barely stepped into the hospital when his secure phone vibrated violently. A name flashed across the screen, a blur, but Damian, usually so calm, panicked instantly. “Anya, red alert, urgent! Another international fugitive has crossed the border. I… I’m so sorry…” He was frantic, his voice carrying the undeniable authority of his position. With a hurried apology, he rushed off. As I watched his SUV speed away, my fingers crumpled the ultrasound report in my hand. Hailing a taxi with my heavy belly, I quickly told the driver, “Follow that SUV.” A “red alert” for a fugitive? What a pathetic lie. My dad’s intelligence agency hadn’t received any such notice, and Damian, a regular detective who usually just assisted with cases, wouldn’t be chasing some high-priority target. I wanted to see who this “boss” was, giving him such urgent “orders.” As soon as I muttered the words “catching him,” the taxi driver floored it, catching up to Damian’s car. I had no idea who Damian was going to meet, but a terrifying gut feeling made my skin crawl. To my surprise, after several twists and turns, the car pulled up to the entrance of the police department’s private community. I let out a long breath of relief. At least it wasn’t a hotel. This was a residential area provided for high-ranking officers by the department, and Damian had been assigned a villa here too. Before my first pregnancy, I’d lived there briefly for a few months; the neighbors were always friendly. But as I spotted a fleet of luxury cars and festive decorations from afar, I felt a pang of confusion. Was today some special occasion? Just as I was about to follow him in, a security guard stopped me. “Officer’s private community. Unauthorized personnel keep out.” I blinked, then chuckled, explaining, “I just went in. I’m Detective Damian’s wife.” To my shock, the guard looked at me with open disdain. “Detective Damian’s wife is Ms. Serena Hayes. Who are you? You should check your facts before trying to impersonate someone.” My body froze, rooted to the spot. Serena Hayes… the living blood bank Damian found for me… Snapping back to reality, ignoring the guard’s protests, I pushed past him, my large belly leading the way to the villa’s entrance. Inside the grand hall, it was packed with celebrities and powerful figures, their laughter echoing through the air. My mother-in-law, Martha, who always preferred a quiet life, was unusually busy socializing. And my husband, Damian, was doing something completely out of character: cradling a baby and bottle-feeding him, smiling blissfully next to a petite woman. That woman was Serena Hayes… In that instant, my heart felt like it was seized by a giant hand, making it impossible to breathe. Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably. When I was pregnant with my first child, Damian had worried about complications during delivery due to my rare blood type. He’d searched the entire country to find a living blood bank for me. That person was Serena, then a struggling student. After I gave birth, he said he’d send her away. Out of sympathy, I suggested we let Serena stay and work as an administrative assistant at the precinct. I even often asked Damian to bring her supplements. But I never imagined that Damian would cheat on me with her, and even set her up here. This villa was our marital home, meticulously decorated by him after he became precinct chief. It was a bit far from the hospital, so when I got pregnant again, Damian, worried about me, bought a new house next to the city hospital and we moved out. I never thought it would become their legitimate home, where they raised a child… “Congratulations, Detective Damian! Your wife is virtuous, and now you have a newborn son. You’re truly a winner in life!” “Oh, Serena is so lucky to have found such a doting husband like Damian. I’m so jealous!” Mrs. Hayes, the Deputy Commissioner’s wife, fawned over my mother-in-law, Martha, patting her hand. Martha’s eyes gleamed with satisfaction as she looked at Serena, then boasted, “It’s my Damian’s good fortune to have married such a wonderful wife as Serena.” Damian didn’t shy away, leaning in to whisper intimately to Serena. I couldn’t hear what he said, but Serena blushed, then raised her glass to the guests. “I was worried it would affect Damian’s reputation at the precinct, so we kept it quiet. Please don’t mind.” She gestured around the room. “Today is our baby’s 100-day celebration. Please drink up, consider it our wedding reception.” Seeing Serena handle the situation so gracefully, everyone chuckled and offered compliments. “How could we mind, Mrs. Chief? We still owe you a ‘Happy New Marriage’!” “I say,” one of Damian’s officers chimed in, “why don’t you two pretend to be the bride and groom again tonight? How about a cross-arm toast?” Damian’s subordinates cheered, and the party’s atmosphere reached a fever pitch. Serena feigned bashful resistance, but Damian wrapped an arm around her waist, linking their arms for the toast. Just as he was about to drink, his gaze locked onto me, standing just outside the door. He shoved Serena away, making her gasp as red wine splashed all over her. “Anya…” Wiping away the torrent of tears with one hand, I rushed forward, my big belly swaying, and slapped him. Smack! The sharp crack echoed through the silent hall, freezing everyone in place. “Damian!” Serena’s eyes rolled back, and she lunged at him, screeching at me, “Anya! How dare you—” Smack! Another slap, and Serena’s cheek instantly swelled, sending her stumbling back into Damian’s arms, whimpering pitifully. I flexed my tingling palm. “Anya…” Damian started, his voice a roar. “Damian!” My voice was even louder, my head tilted, my eyes fixed on him in a cold, deadly stare. “Is this the ‘red alert fugitive’ you were so desperate to catch?!”
Damian was speechless, his mouth opening and closing, but no words came out. The high-ranking officials and their families in the hall stared, utterly bewildered. In the stifling silence, a baby’s cry pierced the air, startling everyone. Martha rushed to take the baby and soothe him. The next second, she opened her mouth and spat at me, “Anya! You crazy hag, you’re divorced! Why are you still bothering my son? Get out of here while you still have some sense, or if you offend an important person, you’ll end up in jail!” Mrs. Hayes, the Deputy Commissioner’s wife, also snapped, “Even if you are Detective Damian’s ex-wife, you can’t assault people publicly! This is considered assaulting an officer!” As soon as my identity was revealed, the hall erupted. People clamored about throwing me in jail to teach me a lesson. But I just frowned, grabbing Damian’s collar, about to ask how I, his lawful wife, had suddenly become an ex. But Serena beat me to it, shrinking into Damian’s arms, looking at me with tear-filled eyes. “Anya… Damian has already divorced you. Why are you still harassing us…” Her tears flowed relentlessly. “It’s all my fault. I’ll give Damian back to you, okay…” At her words, Damian’s expression darkened. He glared at me, suppressing his rage. “Anya! I told you I wouldn’t get back with you! Stop bothering us!” “Get out before I lose my patience! I don’t have time for this!” With that, Damian motioned, and several officers rushed forward, intending to forcibly remove me. Struggling, I stumbled and bumped into Martha. But as I caught a glimpse of the baby in her arms, my world crashed down. The baby Martha held, supposedly Serena’s child, was my firstborn, Leo! The child I’d endured seven agonizing hours to bring into the world! But my baby had died three months ago, and Damian had personally cremated him— Damian… My breath caught, my eyes welling with intense pain. Goddammit, Damian! He faked our child’s death to trick me, just to give him to Serena to raise! “Give me back my child! He’s my Leo!” My teeth gritted, I snatched the swaddled infant, pushed Martha aside, and cradled the crying baby, my heart aching and tears streaming down my face. Serena, suddenly panicked, rushed forward, crying and trying to grab the baby. Her voice was choked and trembling. “Anya, he’s not your child!” “I know Leo died, and you’ve gone mad with grief. Even after the divorce, you kept bothering Damian, wanting another child…” She looked at the crowd. “I pitied you for your loss and tolerated so much, but you can’t steal my child!” “Please, just leave our family alone… I can divorce Damian, just please give me back my baby!” Hearing this, Damian’s face contorted in pain. He gripped Serena’s shoulders tightly, stopping her. “Serena, I forbid it!” “Don’t even think about divorce. No one can break apart our family of three.” “What about me?!” I roared, cutting him off. Watching them exchange tender words, I pointed to my heavily pregnant belly, speaking each word to Damian through gritted teeth. “Damian, I’m carrying your child in my womb! You cheat on me right in front of my face, you call me your ex-wife, aren’t you disgusted with yourself?!” His throat bobbed, and his gaze shifted, avoiding mine. Serena’s tears, however, flowed even harder, as if she were the most wronged person in the world. She turned to the guests, sobbing. “I’m so sorry, everyone. Sister Anya is Damian’s ex-wife. She went mad after losing her child during a difficult labor.” “Later, she kept badgering Damian for another child. After he refused, she… she found other men to get pregnant…” Serena’s voice broke perfectly. “Damian, out of old affection, often looked after her, but I never thought she would try to force him to accept another man’s child, and… and even threaten us into divorcing…” Her words instantly ignited the fury of everyone present. The wealthy women immediately started yelling in disgust. “A crazy slut? She wants to be both! Someone! Get this harridan out of here!” Gently soothing the baby in my arms, I let out a cold laugh. My gaze turned to Serena, eyes like ice. “Who’s the hypocrite trying to play the innocent victim, Serena? Don’t you know your place? Do I need to remind you how much you sold your blood for per milliliter?” “Weren’t you the one who took 30 million dollars from me, then knelt at my feet, begging for a stable job?” Serena’s face grew paler and paler with my words, but I didn’t stop. “What, Damian’s allowance isn’t enough to keep you? So now you’re trying to steal my entire life?” “You’re a mistress trying to act like the legitimate wife. Doesn’t your face hurt?” I wasn’t even finished speaking when a sudden shove sent my heavily pregnant body stumbling.
“You’re the mistress who ruined my son’s family!” Martha’s shrill voice screeched. My back slammed hard against the wall, and my entire abdomen convulsed with agonizing pain. The baby in my arms was snatched away and thrust into Serena’s hands. Immediately, the precinct officers were filled with righteous indignation. “Exactly! Everyone at the precinct knows Damian and Serena are a couple!” “If it wasn’t for Serena providing leads, solving so many major cases, how could Chief Damian have been promoted so quickly?” “You useless ex-wife, all you do is drag Damian down! Your face should be hurting!” Providing leads? Solving cases and getting promoted? Weren’t all those achievements mine that I helped Damian get? Not only did he steal my identity, he was now forcing all those merits onto Serena, giving her a glamorous front. Why?! “Right! Even if you’re crazy, interfering with an officer’s marriage is still a crime!” “You loose slut, stop pretending to be Mrs. Damian and polluting our eyes! It’s a good thing Chief Damian is kind-hearted, if it were me, I would have…” The malicious jeers from the crowd were relentless. In this chilling scene, I, pale-faced, looked at the man who stood by, aloof and detached. “Damian.” My voice was weak. “You tell them… how did you get your position as Chief?” Damian’s fingers curled abruptly. He turned his head, looking at me coldly, a rare flicker of hatred appearing in his usually indifferent eyes. I laughed. “You said the front lines were too dangerous, that you didn’t want to risk your life, you just wanted to stay safely in the rear. I agreed.” “After we got engaged, you said your rank was too low, that you weren’t worthy of me. I went to my dad and begged him.” “You complained that cases were too complex, too hard to solve. I worked day and night, sacrificing sleep to give you leads. And now, this is how you—” “Enough!” Damian roared suddenly. He strode forward and grabbed my throat, his eyes bloodshot with savage rage as he yelled at me, “You’re lying! Everything I have today, I earned myself! What does it have to do with a useless woman like you?!” My neck screamed in pain, the intense choking sensation making my vision go black instantly, my face swelling purple and congested with blood. But the more I insisted, the more enraged Damian became. The high-ranking officials and their wives seemed to catch onto something, murmuring amongst themselves. Seeing this, a dark glint flashed in Serena’s eyes. Cradling the baby, she dropped to her knees before me, weeping tragically. “Anya, I tolerated your mad ramblings on other days.” “But in an important setting like this, if you make up stories, you’ll truly ruin Damian’s future!” “Please, I’m begging you, Anya. I’ll even bow to you. Just stop this madness, okay…?” She crawled a few steps, grabbing my pant leg, bowing low, about to kowtow fiercely. Damian was stunned. His hand, clamped on my neck, instantly released me, and he crouched down to help her up. But the next second, Serena, still holding my leg, flung herself backward. At the same time, she shrieked, “Ah! Anya, you’ll kill me with that kick!” Before I could react, Damian’s hysterical slap came down hard. “Anya! You ungrateful bitch!” A dull ache flared on my right cheek. I tried to strike back, but Martha suddenly kicked me in the lower back. Caught off guard, I was sent flying into a display cabinet. As I stumbled and fell to the ground, an excruciating pain ripped through my belly. Bright red blood streamed down my legs. The ground beneath me was instantly soaked in crimson. I lay slumped in the pool of blood, my whole body aching as if it had been shattered. “My stomach… Damian… my stomach hurts…” Tears of blood blurred my vision. I reached out, pleading for Damian’s help. But Martha above me cruelly stomped on my hand, the pain so intense I felt my bones might shatter. “You slut! Stop pretending! My son won’t be threatened by you!” My vision swam with tears, my lips trembling. “Damian… I’m not faking… please… take me to the hospital…” But Damian didn’t even glance back at me. He only shielded Serena carefully, his voice cold and heartless. “Enough, Anya! Stop pretending and apologize to Serena!” “Always using the baby as an excuse, do you think I’ll believe you?!” With that, Damian turned back in a rage, but then he suddenly spotted the ominous blood beneath me. The disgust on his face instantly melted away, replaced by a hint of terror. Damian knew my true identity; he absolutely couldn’t stand by and do nothing. Staring fixedly at Damian’s panicked eyes, I forced back the soul-shattering pain, gritting my teeth as I spat, “Damian! If anything, anything happens to the child in my belly! You! His own father!” “You will be his murderer! My dad, my brother, they’ll make your entire family pay! Now! Take me to the hospital!”
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