“Well… Henry, don’t…”

“My sister is still waiting for you to get engaged to her. If she finds out about us… she’ll be heartbroken…”

A soft voice drifted over, making Margaret Winslow freeze in place. She stopped in her tracks, stunned.

Holding her nine-month-pregnant belly, she struggled forward with difficulty.

Behind the rockery in the garden, her fiancé, Henry Belmont, was tightly embracing her sister, Serena, their bodies entwined.

“My dear, don’t mention that b*tch!” Henry sneered. “If it weren’t for the 60% share of the Winslow family in her hands, I wouldn’t have agreed to marry her! Filthy!”

“Henry, even though the child in her belly isn’t yours, she’s still the biological daughter of the Winslow family. Are you really willing to give her up?” Serena leaned into his arms, her voice laced with pity.

“Give her up? In the eyes of the Winslow family, you are the true daughter! She’s just a cowardly, adopted nobody! Ever since your mother stole you and swapped you with their real daughter, you became the rightful Miss Winslow.”

As he spoke, Henry took Serena’s delicate hand and kissed it, his tone dripping with reassurance.

“Don’t worry, my love. Once I get the shares her grandfather left her, I’ll divorce her and make you Mrs. Belmont.”

“I don’t understand what her grandfather was thinking—giving so many shares to an adopted girl whose identity wasn’t even confirmed…”

“Henry, you’re so good to me… Um… Ah…”

Their voices trailed off as desire took over.

Outside the artificial hill, Margaret trembled violently, nearly losing her balance.

She stared in disbelief at the two people before her.

One was her childhood sweetheart. The other was the sister who had protected her when she was mistreated by the Winslow family.

And yet, here they were, hidden away in the garden on the very day of her engagement to Henry!

Not only that, but they claimed she was the true daughter of the Winslow family—that Serena had been switched at birth?

And the child in her belly… wasn’t Henry’s? He thought she was dirty?

The shocking revelations slammed into her, making her head spin. She felt like she was about to collapse.

Why?

Who was the man who slept with me nine months ago and got me pregnant?

Margaret clutched her belly, stumbling back, her entire world crumbling.

Clang!

Her foot knocked over a potted plant, shattering the silence and interrupting the two inside.

“Margaret?!”

Henry’s pupils shrank as he snapped his head around. His expression darkened, and he frowned. “Why are you here?”

Serena panicked, shoving Henry away. She hastily straightened her clothes and skirt, her voice trembling as she tried to explain.

“Sister, it’s not what you think! Brother Henry loves you very much. He’s just drunk…”

“Love me?” Margaret let out a bitter laugh, her eyes brimming with tears. “He loves my shares, the Winslow family’s fortune, and a vile woman like you!”

She turned to Henry, her voice sharp as a blade. “You said the baby in my belly isn’t yours. Then tell me—who is the father?”

Serena’s face paled. “Who… Who said that? It’s not like that…” she stammered in panic.

Henry, however, merely scoffed, his patience wearing thin. He frowned, his voice cold and dismissive.

“Since you already know, there’s no need for me to pretend anymore. Nine months ago, I was impulsive and framed you. You were forced in that hotel room. I was in the next room, listening to everything. It was disgusting.”

Margaret’s body stiffened. Her blood ran cold.

Henry’s voice grew even crueler. “If you didn’t have those shares, do you think I’d ever marry you? You’re just a b*tch who lost her virginity at eighteen. You should be grateful you even got the chance to be with me.”

His lips curled into a sneer as he stepped closer. “I suggest you act as if nothing happened and go through with the engagement. Otherwise, once this gets out, your reputation will be ruined, and you’ll become nothing but a joke.”

Every word was a dagger stabbing into Margaret’s heart.

He knew.

He knew what had happened that night. He knew it was all Serena’s scheme.

He had been next door, listening, watching, doing nothing.

She had given up everything—her education, her future, enduring whispers and ridicule—all because she thought she had him.

But it was all a lie.

Her chest heaved as she swallowed the overwhelming agony. Then, she lifted her chin, her eyes burning with defiance.

“Continue the engagement? Dream on! I will never be with a beast like you!”

Her voice turned sharp, unwavering. “I’ll expose you for who you truly are. I’ll make sure everyone in New York knows how filthy and disgusting you are!”

She spun around to leave, but Henry’s expression twisted with rage.

“You b*tch! You just don’t know what’s good for you!”

He lunged forward and shoved her violently.

Margaret crashed to the ground, pain ripping through her body. She gasped, clutching her abdomen. A sharp, searing pain tore through her stomach.

Her baby—

Her vision blurred as she struggled to breathe.

Seeing this, Serena’s eyes darkened. She couldn’t let Margaret leave alive.

If Margaret walked out of here, she was done for.

Serena rushed forward, her face masked with fake panic. “Sister!” she cried out, pretending to check on her.

Then—

She stumbled.

And her foot landed hard against Margaret’s swollen belly.

“Ahhh—!”

A bloodcurdling scream ripped from Margaret’s throat. Cold sweat drenched her body, her face turning deathly pale.

“I-I didn’t mean to… S-Sob… What should we do?” Serena whimpered, eyes filled with fake tears. “Brother Henry, will something happen to my sister? I’m scared…”

Henry’s lips curled into a sneer. “Don’t be afraid. She deserves to die.”

His voice was void of remorse—only cruelty.

“She knows too much. We can’t let her leave alive.”

Margaret’s eyes widened in horror.

Henry stepped forward.

And kicked.

Once.

Twice.

Again.

“Ah—!”

Pain. Agonizing, unbearable pain.

Blood gushed out, soaking through the pure white of her engagement dress.

Her child—

Her poor child—

Her vision blurred as consciousness began to slip away, but even in her final moments, she held her belly protectively, unwilling to accept this cruel fate.

She hated them.

She hated them.

If there was a next life…

She would make them pay.