Chapter 1 I Was Betrayed

Katherine's POV

I walked down the hallway toward our bedroom. My fingers trembled slightly as I clutched the envelope containing my pregnancy test results. After three years of marriage, Alexander Hudson and I were finally going to have a baby. Despite his controlling nature and our recent tensions, I knew this news would make him happy.

The sound of voices drifting through the bedroom door made me pause. Alexander was supposed to be at the office until late tonight–a crucial board meeting at Hudson Financial Group that couldn't be rescheduled. Yet I clearly heard his deep, resonant voice, followed by a woman's lighter tones.

My heart began to race as I recognized that feminine laugh. Sarah Porter. My half-sister. What was she doing in our bedroom with my husband?

"Alex, our son William is already born," Sarah's voice carried through the door. "When are you planning to divorce Katherine?"

The envelope slipped from my suddenly numb fingers as I stood frozen in place. William? Our son? The words echoed in my head, refusing to make sense.

"And what if Katherine gets pregnant too?" Sarah's voice continued, thick with implications. "What would you do then?"

A male voice – Alexander's voice – responded with chilling certainty: "Get rid of it."

The world tilted beneath my feet. I pushed open the door, needing to confront this nightmare head-on. The scene before me confirmed my worst fears: Alexander and Sarah, intimately close on our bed. The pregnancy test results burned like a cruel joke.

Sarah's eyes met mine with a triumphant gleam. No shock, no guilt – only satisfaction. Alexander remained eerily still, his face unreadable.

"You backstabbing bitch," I spat at Sarah, my voice trembling with rage. "My own damn sister? How long has this been going on, you two-faced witch?"

Sarah rose from the bed, smoothing her dress with deliberate slowness. "Oh, sweet naive Katherine," Sarah sneered. "Since before your pathetic wedding. Did you really think he could love someone as worthless as you? Someone who couldn't even give him a damn child? You're just his trophy wife – pretty but useless."

"I trusted you!" I hurled the words at her like weapons. "I confided in you about our fertility struggles. And all this time..."

"All this time I was giving him what you couldn't," Sarah finished, her smile cruel. "William is proof of that. Face it, sis – you're just damaged goods."

I turned to Alexander, who had finally stood up. "And you, you lying bastard," I turned to Alexander, my voice dripping with venom. "You're even worse than she is. Or were you just going to keep playing happy family while plotting to murder our baby if I ever got pregnant, you heartless piece of shit?"

Alexander didn't answered me. This kind of silence was undoubtedly an admission of what he had done. I was so disappointed that I ran out. I wanted to leave this place that had broken my heart. But ridiculously, I still picked up my phone, wanting to know the answers, wanting to figure out how much he really cared about our laughable marriage. So I called him.

"Alex, you have a child with Sarah, right?"

"What if it is. You know what you did!" replied Alexander.

"What I did? What are you talking about?"

"The photos, Katherine. Did you think I wouldn't find out?"

"You've lost your mind!" I shouted with tears.

"Katherine." His voice was cold, controlled. The same voice that had just spoken about eliminating our unborn child.

"Is it true?" My voice cracked. "William – is he your son with Sarah?"

"Yes."

One word. One syllable. It shattered my world.

"How could you do this to me?" The words came out as a whisper.

His laugh was bitter. "Katherine, don't pretend to be the victim here."

I shouted, "You're using lies to justify your betrayal! Alex!"

"Save it. I thought you were different. I was wrong."

I jabbed the garage door opener and peeled out onto the private drive, tears blurring my vision. Through the phone still clutched in my hand, I could hear Alexander's breathing change.

"Where are you going?" His tone shifted from anger to something else. "Katherine, slow down. The roads are dangerous in this rain."

The rain had intensified, sheets of water obscuring the winding road down to the main highway. My hands gripped the steering wheel as thoughts raced through my mind: William was Alexander's son. He'd been sleeping with my sister. He wanted to get rid of our baby.

I was so lost in my spiral of betrayal that I almost missed it – the eighteen-wheeler that suddenly swerved into my lane. I slammed on the brakes.

Nothing happened.

I pumped the pedal frantically. Still nothing. The truck's horn blared as it bore down on me. In that split second of clarity, I realized the brake lines must have been cut. This was no accident.

I yanked the wheel hard to the right. The guardrail gave way with a screech of tearing metal.

Through the phone, Alexander's voice turned frantic. "Katherine! What's happening? What was that sound?"

"Oh God, the brakes—they're not working!" I screamed into the phone.

"Katherine! KATHERINE!" Alexander's voice cracked with panic as he leaped up from his desk, sending the photos scattering. "Where are you? Tell me where—"

As the car went airborne, time seemed to slow. I had a moment to rest my hand on my stomach, a silent apology to the life within. The last thing I heard was Alexander's desperate scream through the phone before the world went black.