kicked at my hand, dislodging it from my mouth, then grabbed a piece of the shattered porcelain vase from the table and

fancy food and your broken dreams! You think you're so much better t

ng of my own blood. I gagged, struggling to breathe, the foreign objects lodging in my throat. My body convulsed, desperate to expel them,

rought her heel down, hard, onto my outstretched hand. A sharp, cracking sensation shot up my arm, followed by an agonizing throb. I felt a sickening pop, a sensation

ze full of contempt, and spat. His phlegm landed mere inches from my face, a final, disgusting i

gered on my visibly swollen belly. A slow, cruel smile spread across her face a

anxious wait, every tear shed in hope and desperation flashed through my mind. This child was a miracle, a testame

aby!" The words were garbled, choked with blood and fear, but the intention was cle

e, do you? Now that the little bastard is threatened?" She let out a short, sha

complicate things, Jazmyne. It' s an illegitimate parasite, a stain on the family name. We need to deal with it

out, the word a desperate, broken plea. "You can't! He's... he's Jerimiah's!" The name, whispered through bloody lips, was meant to be a shie

ble to father a child in decades! Everyone knows that! He's practically a eunuch, living out his lonely old age in that fortr

he father to secure her position. As if that would change anything. I am the true Sullivan. The only one left to carr

o manipulate you. Using a powerful name, a convenient lie, to protect her little scheme." He

constructed will. A will designed to protect Helios from Brooks's reckless hands. My father always knew

gain, my voice barely a whisper. "Just call him. Call Jerimiah. He'll explain everything. Just... please." I rea

rs closing around it, and with a grunt of exertion, brought his heel down on i

y stone in my chest. Despai

my skin. "You think you can play games with me, Alexa? You think you can call your power

a kick to the side, or a stomp on my hand. This time, her sharp, pointed stiletto came do

vision exploded into a kaleidoscope of black and red. A searing, unbearable agony ripped through my core, a pain that transcended anything

er. "But isn't it better this way, Brooks? No more complications. Just you. The sole heir. And once she' s out of the picture, perhaps we can convin

wet gush between my legs, a terrifying warmth that quickly turned to icy dr

t the cold marble. "Please... don't. Not my baby. Please. He's... he's all I have left." I b

s glinting in the harsh penthouse lights. "Beg, Alexa. Beg for your life. Beg for your honor. Beg for your baby. And maybe, just