Chapter 74
CHAPTER 74
BETH
I lay in bed with my head on my pillow as I stare up at the ceiling, touching the bump on my stomach. I take a deep breath before smiling to myself.
A boy.
I’m having a boy.
I don't know why it makes me so happy. I’ve never really thought about what I would be having. I only knew that I already loved this baby and that he will be perfect, no matter who he turns out to be, but I didn’t think further than that. Now, I’m picturing what he’ll look like and hoping he takes after his father in that department.
A barely noticeable shudder echoes through my stomach, and my eyes shoot down to my tiny bump, my eyes wide. “Was that you, or am I just hungry?” I joke to the empty room, but then I feel it again, and tears burn in my eyes. My baby boy is moving, he’s healthy, and we’re both safe.
Nothing could possibly make me happier than this. My son.
Suddenly, my phone beeps from beside me, and my gaze darts to the noise before I turn over, grabbing the offending device.
It’s a text from Nolan. He wants me there for dinner tonight.
My skin crawls from the thought. I haven’t complained, and I’ve managed to keep my mouth shut when I’m around the Gray family. The alternative is putting my son in harm’s way, and I’m doing everything to avoid that. Since I’ve been abiding by his rules, Nolan hasn’t tried to touch me or Martin. Thank fucking God. I swear, if he does it, I’ll intentionally puke on him. Maybe that will deter him from laying a finger on me or Martin.
I respond quickly, letting him know that I’ll be there soon.
I swear, the next demand I will make of this man is to get me a fucking car. Taxis are not cheap, and my funds are getting low. It could be a while before I can start working again.
Right.
I’m marrying into the Gray family, but I won’t start getting paid by them until I actually marry Michael. At that point, I’ll receive an allowance for whatever I want, and money will be put away into two separate accounts for the child I will inevitably have, one for college and one for a trust fund. That kid will be set for life, but if I have it my way, my child will not turn out like Nolan.
This baby growing in my belly will not be subjected to the things whatever child I have by the Gray family will be. This baby will be loved, cared for, and know how to be a decent human being…unlike Nolan. Martin is the exception to the rule. Michael is out for himself. He can’t be trusted to give anyone a helping hand unless it won’t negatively affect him.
It will be a cold day in hell before I let a kid of mine turn out like that.
Climbing out of bed, I get dressed in one of my sundresses and sandals before I call myself a cab. Really, at this point, I should get a loyalty discount, or crazy thought, Nolan should start paying my cab fare. It’s the least he could do after everything he has put me through.
I fire off a couple of texts to Oliver, Judy, and my mom to update them on my plans.
Twelve years can’t fly by quickly enough. I just want to be free of all this and get back to my life because, as it stands, my life is on hold until this contract is up, and the start of the twelve years hasn’t even happened.
I was so lost in my own head that I didn’t notice when the cab pulled up to the mansion.
“We’re here, miss,” the cab driver says, and I sit up before fishing through my purse, pulling out enough cash to cover the fare and a tip.
“Have a good evening,” I mutter with a smile before I climb out of the cab and straighten my dress.
That sickly feeling I got when I came here the first time is back with a vengeance. Something awful is coming, but I don’t know what it is, so I can’t prepare myself for it.
Walking up the steps, my breath catches from the silence in and outside the house. It’s way too quiet, and that alone scares me.
I press my finger on the doorbell, and one of the butlers, Mitchell, opens the door for me with a kind smile. He’s much nicer than the shithead butler that earned a place on my shit list.
“Evening, Mitch,” I say with a smile as I walk inside. “How’s Iliana?”
The help doesn’t talk to me much, but I’m a nosy bitch, so I eavesdrop whenever they gossip. Mitchell has been married to Iliana, one of the kitchen staff, for over ten years. They’ve been struggling for the past five years to have a baby.
It’s so unfair how someone like me can accidentally get pregnant while someone like Iliana struggles for the same end goal. I hate how cruel this world can be.
He nods, a grin in place. “Good days and bad, ma’am.” He escorts me into the main sitting room, where we find Nolan with Cora, Michael, and Martin. Martin sends me an easy smile, and he doesn’t seem worried as his father sits there, reading the newspaper like it’s a regular Sunday afternoon.
A soft sense of relief crashes over me from seeing Martin and how his injuries have healed up nicely. He had me worried for a few days, but the doctor reassured me that none of his internal organs were damaged.
Thank God for that.
“Miss Mercer has arrived, sir,” Mitchell announces as if I’m some important guest of honor. I’m just the rag doll Nolan likes to toy with at this point.
The second the words leave his lips, the tension and fury roll off Nolan like a category-five hurricane, and I just know I’m the one who will be hit by the high-force winds.
“My office…now,” Nolan growls as he moves to his feet, grabbing a red file folder off the coffee table before scowling at me like the devil he is.
“Is something wrong?” I ask, but as he reaches me, he wraps his clammy fingers around my bicep and yanks me to him with a yelp from me.
“Very fucking wrong, you stupid whore!” he growls in my face before tugging me behind him, his fingers tightening on my arm.
“What are you doing?” Martin bellows, and I snap my head around, panic gripping me.Martin jumps up to come to my aid and fear rushes through me.
What the hell is happening?
“Martin!” I cry.
“Keep them in here!” Nolan snaps at his security, and fear turns my blood ice cold as I try to fight his hold, but I barely get my arm free and start to run before he grabs my hair and pushes my back hard against the wall in the hallway.
“Just talk to me, dammit!” I growl as his fingers wrap around my throat. “I have no clue what this is about. What did I do that pissed you off so much? Whatever it is, I didn’t mean to upset you.” I try to call to some kind of humanity, sympathy, or general attachment, but the anger on his face is unyielding.
“You don’t know what you did, huh? Is that what you’re going with?” His fingers tighten around my throat, mildly restricting my airways, but I don’t move. I don’t fight him because all fighting does is piss him off even more, and I need him to calm down.
“I honestly don’t,” I wheeze drily.
“You’re…pregnant,” he hisses.
My stomach drops as his eyes turn black with anger.
“You see, Miss Mercer, when you had your accident, they took some of your blood and ran some standard tests. I just wanted to make sure you were the picture of health. Imagine my surprise when I got your blood results to find out that you were already expecting when you had the accident.”
Tears fill my eyes as he squeezes my throat harder but lessens the restriction of my airway. His fingers dig deep into my neck, and I cringe at the feeling.
“Anything to say for yourself now?”
I tremble as I claw at his wrist. He already has the results. There’s no way I can lie my way through this. Plus, he’ll be able to tell I’m lying. “I didn’t have it confirmed. Women get false positives all the time. I was on birth control. I didn’t think it was possible for me to be pregnant.”
His eyes lighten slightly, and his grip loosens a bit.
“It’s not going to be a problem, I swear. No one will even know about this. I have a plan in place. It won’t embarrass you or your family at all. You can trust me on that,” I plead for him to understand this once and let me handle things, but his eyes harden once more.
“Did you have an abortion?” he asks, his voice level and clear. Calm. Calculating.
“No!” I gasp at his question. “Please, Mr. Gray. I’ve done everything you’ve asked me to. I’ve gone to your parties and pretended to love Michael out in public. I signed the contract. I’ve kept my mouth shut about your secret. I’m trying my best to accommodate what you ask of me. All I want is to bring my baby into this world. I won’t be raising them at all. If you don’t want me to have any contact, I won’t just…please.”
“No,” he growls as his eyes narrow to slits. “You will get rid of that fucking bastard if I have to carve it from your womb myself. And you will do it now .”
Pictures of what could be flash through my mind. A little boy with black hair and icy blue eyes running around a small yard with bright green grass and big, shady trees with an adorable laugh flashes through my mind, and my maternal instinct kicks in.
With no real thought except the adrenaline pumping through my veins, I slam my knee into his groin and knock him back with my elbow to his nose before I run for my fucking life.
For the life of my son.
My feet don’t even make a sound as I sprint down the hall, digging my phone out of my pocket as I go. The liquid speed in my brain pushes me faster and makes me more capable of multitasking as I dial Ollie’s phone number. I put the phone to my ear as I turn the corner with no real clue where I’m going.
I haven’t taken the time to memorize this place, and that fact haunts me like the dead.
The phone rings as I put it to my ear, and after a few beeps, it picks up. “Babe, you know you can’t call me while I’m?—”
I cut him off as quickly as I can. “Oliver! He knows. I–”
I’m slammed into from behind, and my feet come out from under me, throwing me to the ground like an unbreakable glass jar that bounces before it rolls. My arms instantly cradle my stomach as I call out for Ollie, knowing he must hear the struggle on the phone.
“You stupid fucking bitch!” Nolan roars as I come to a stop, and he swings his leg out with all the power in his body, kicking my arm that blocks my stomach. He’s aiming for my baby.
“Ollie, help—” I call out but stop short when Nolan stomps on my phone, effectively cutting out my call for help, but Oliver knows where I am.
“You really thought you could escape? No. You chose the hard option.”
Grabbing his leg, I bite him through the fabric, nearly cracking my teeth from how hard I sink them in. He yells before kicking me in the face. My face vibrates as blood pours down my flesh. The adrenaline masks the pain even though I can feel the throbbing association.
“You’ll have to kill me because that’s what I’ll do to you if you hurt my baby.” I sneer at him as I try to move to my feet, but I only make it to my hands and knees before he gives me a hard kick right in my stomach, and I scream as loud as I can. The pain radiates through my stomach to my back and my hips, all the way down to my toes. I fall face first, cradling my stomach, as he delivers one kick after the other, hitting every part of me, even my face.
“Dad, stop it!” Martin’s voice pierces through the pain, thrumming through every bone, every muscle, every pore of my body, and I can barely open my eyes to see Martin tackle his father to the ground.
“Get the fuck off me!” Nolan’s voice booms as someone slides in front of me, as sobs fall from my lips. I gaze up into Mitchell’s golden brown eyes.
“I’ve got you, ma’am.” He pulls my arms around his neck before lifting my body from the ground. I cry out from the pain that sends tremors all through my body.
“Get her to my car, Mitch!” Martin demands, and Mitchell takes off in a fast sprint as I rest my head on his shoulder.
“I’m so sorry, Miss Mercer. We had no idea this would happen. Master Martin will take you to the hospital and ensure you get treatment.”
“As long as my baby is okay, I’ll be fine,” I rasp as I struggle to pull in air, and Mitchell races through the house, outmaneuvering the security guards, making it out to the garage where Martin’s car is parked down the row of fifteen different luxury vehicles.
Mitchell carries me to Martin’s car and pulls open the front passenger door, depositing me gently into the seat and giving me a wayward smile before leaving me alone.
Tears fall down my face, my lip convulsing with pain and emotion, as I reach down between my thighs and feel the blood slickening my panties. With the confirmation of my biggest fear, I scream and cry over my loss.
My baby boy. My son…is gone.