Chapter 4
I didn’t get away.
Gabriel noticed me and, after much coaxing and persuading, managed to bring me back to the bedroom.
After that, he hired someone at a high price to take over his work, allowing him to stay at home with me every day.
He did everything he could to cheer me up. “Evelyn, as long as you take care of your health, we’ll have more children. I promise, no matter what happens, I’ll protect the next one.”
Even Georgia, who was so cold and ruthless the day she forced me to get the abortion, suddenly softened and began preparing various delicious dishes for me.
She said, “Evelyn, don’t blame me. That baby just wasn’t meant for us. When the right one comes along, I’ll help you raise him every day so you can live comfortably.”
Marvin even transferred several properties to my name as compensation. “Evelyn, what happened before was our family’s fault. Consider this our way of making it up to you.”
Even Mom and Dad started calling me more often to check in on me.
Dad urged me to let it go. “Sweetheart, we had no choice back then. Just think of it as losing a piece of flesh. It’s nothing too
serious.”
Mom tried to comfort me. “Evelyn, just rest, replenish your strength, and then try again. Sleep it off and just forget the past. You can focus on your next baby.”
They all spoke of it so lightly, brushing past everything as though nothing had happened. None of them grieved for those three children.
Except for me. Every night, I had nightmares. I dreamt of my babies, asking me why I was so cruel and why I’d abandoned them. I wanted to apologize, but I always started crying before I managed to speak.
After all, my failure to protect them had led to their deaths.
And just like that, I drifted through three months in a daze.
After three months, I stopped mentioning the past, as if it had never happened. Gabriel and I went back to our old life, showing
smiles to everyone.
He was overjoyed. “Honey, thank goodness, you’ve finally moved on!”
He often took me to the hospital for checkups, saying it was to prepare my body for our next baby. He hovered around me constantly, treating me with extreme care.
The doctors praised him as a devoted husband, certain he would be a wonderful father someday. And he seemed to believe that
too.
I only smiled faintly, though the smile never reached my eyes.
Time passed, and soon it was my birthday.
At the dinner celebration, Mom, Dad, and my younger brother, Thomas Walsh, joined us.
I pulled out a pregnancy test right in front of everyone. “I’m six weeks pregnant.”
The moment those words left my mouth, everyone’s expressions hardened.
Marvin went to the study and brought out the parrot. I knew exactly why. He wanted to hear what it would say.
I locked eyes with the bird, and it stared back at my belly.
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Chapter 4
Gabriel’s hand tightened around mine. His voice was uneasy. “Evelyn, if this baby can’t stay, don’t be too upset.”
Mom and Dad had already moved to stand near the door, as though they were preparing to stop me if I tried to make a run for it
again.
And then, just as everyone was holding their breaths, waiting for the parrot’s verdict, it finally spoke.
“Keep the baby! Keep the baby!”
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