TERA

My eyelids felt like they were glued shut with cement, heavy and stubborn as hell.

The first thing that hit me was that sterile hospital scent, antiseptic, I always hated that scent, always, just the sight of the hospital usually made me vomit in addition to the metallic scent in the air, like blood.

My blood? Shit, that couldn’t be right.

God, I hate this place.

I forced my eyes open and stared around the room, white walls, sure enough so you can feel like you've ascended to heaven once you open your eyes and the beeping machines, an IV drip snaking into my arm.

Hospital.

Why the fuck was I here? I tried to wrap my head around it but each time I forced it, it seemed like waves were hitting my brain.

It hurt like hell and I had to place my hands to my temple and gently massage them just to be able to breathe properly.

“Oh!” I mouthed as it all crashed back like a tsunami, slamming into my chest and stealing my breath away.

The set, Matteo’s car, Isadora’s smug face, the slap, Dante’s voice.

“Her own baby died and you replaced it with the one her sister gave birth to for you.”

Cassian. My sweet little boy, the one I’d raised, fed, loved with every goddamn fiber of my being, wasn’t mine. Not mine at all.

I scoffed as I stared round the room again in search of....who? Matteo? Of course, he wasn't here.

And then the pain hit again in my lower abdomen, I looked down at my legs in search of the blood that had gushed out of my legs but I had been cleaned up.

Another child ripped away.

My hand flew to my stomach and a sob tore out of me before I could choke it back.

How the hell was this real?

I’d carried that second baby in secret, hiding it from Matteo after his filthy confession at that party. It was supposed to be my lifeline, my reason to claw through the bullshit.

And now it was gone, just like everything else.

Tears burned my eyes, hot and relentless as they streamed down my cheeks like a flood.

I wanted to scream, to rip the world apart for piling this shit on me, the betrayal, the loss, all of it.

Why is my life so fucking miserable?

Matteo had stolen five years of my life, fucked my stepsister behind my back, and swapped my dead kid like some twisted game.

Cassian.

That curly-haired angel with Matteo’s eyes...hold on, No, Isadora’s eyes. How the fuck had I missed it?

The way he clung to me and called me mommy.

I swiped at my face with the back of my hand, the IV tugging at my skin as I tried to blink back the tears.

Get it together, Tera.

You’ve survived worse. But had I?

My mom’s death when I was a kid, the poison I’d always suspected but couldn’t prove, the forced marriage to save Dad’s crumbling company and yet none of them hurt this much.

None!!!

My heart felt like it’d been torn out and stomped into the dirt.

I tapped the call button, needing water, needing something to anchor me.

A nurse walked in, her face was kind but you could see that she just wanted to do her job and leave.

“Ma’am? You’re awake. How are you feeling?”

“Like my fucking world just imploded,” I thought to myself. “Thirsty,” I croaked, my voice rough as I propped my head up against the pillow.

She handed me a cup, and I sipped slowly, the water was cool, it felt good.

“The doctor will be in soon. You had a miscarriage due to severe stress. I’m so sorry for your loss.”

Sorry.

Everyone was always sorry, but it didn’t bring my babies back.

I nodded, biting my tongue to keep me from snapping. I don't know if it was the major loss and heartbreak I had just undergone that made me suddenly irritated by her presence but I just needed her to leave.

I needed to be alone.

After checking my vitals, she was gone and I heaved a deep breath.

Alone again, I stared at the ceiling, my thoughts swirling like a goddamn storm.

Matteo.

Where was that bastard now? Probably balls deep in Isadora, yeah? Consoling her over their son’s death.

Their son.

The car accident had taken Matteo’s mother and Cassian, and in my haze of pain on the set, I’d laughed, called him a murderer.

Was that cruel? Maybe. But after what he did, did he deserve my pity? Hell no.

The door creaked open, and I tensed, struggling to sit up, expecting the doctor.

But it was him.

That man.

Dante Baloney.

The asshole who’d dropped those bombshells like they were nothing.

He stood there in his black suit, tall and imposing, his dark eyes locking onto mine with an intensity that made my pulse race and almost sent the beeping machines into a frenzy.

What the hell was he doing here?

He was my boss, sure, but this was way too personal.

He shouldn't be here. This was all his fault! Was it really? Or did I just need someone to blame for now?

“Tera.” He called out like he was taming a wild animal or something. I always wondered how he did it. “How are you holding up?”

I stared at him for a full second before bursting into laughter.

I laughed so hard, it felt like my rib cage would cave in and break into pieces and slowly, I felt dampness run down my eyes.

That's when I realized I had gone from laughing to weeping in just a second.

“How do you think? I just lost a kid I didn’t even get to hold, found out the one I raised isn’t mine, and my husband, whatever he is now, is a lying, cheating piece of shit.

“Oh, and thanks for shouting my pregnancy to the whole damn set. Real fucking helpful.”

He didn’t flinch, just nodded, his poker face remained cold and without any form of emotion.

“You still call him your husband? That's wild.” He muttered and I found myself biting my tongue.

He was right. Matteo wasn't my husband. He was the fucking devil.

“You’re upset, I understand that. But me revealing your pregnancy stopped Matteo from hitting you again. You were bleeding out there. Would you have loved that? Would you really have died to ease his rage? Because it would have been my pleasure to watch.”