The Child Was Never His

Chapter 3

As we passed each other in the hospital hallway, Caelum spoke in a low voice, quiet enough for only me to hear, each word sharp and clear. "Calista, if anything happens to Gideon, I'll make you regret ever being born."

"I swear, I didn't push him. It was Lenora who pushed him down the stairs!" I tried to explain, my voice raw with pain, but he would not listen.

Caelum stepped forward and grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight it felt like he would crush the bones. "Everyone saw what happened, yet you still lie. You've been jealous of Lenora from the start, jealous she has me, jealous she has our child. You're so cruel you'd hurt an innocent little boy."

I struggled desperately, and a circle of dark bruises already marked my wrist.

Caelum pulled out his phone, opened a video, and shoved it roughly in front of my face.

On the screen, my mother lay in a hospital bed, her hands and feet held down tightly by security guards.

The IV needle that had just been inserted was torn out, and a gash opened on the back of her hand, blood dripping steadily.

My heart felt as though it had been torn in two.

He leaned down, his voice in my ear carrying a blatant threat. "Your mother needs special medication to keep her condition under control. Think carefully about what will happen if she stops getting it."

A searing pain spread through every part of my body.

I could not believe these words were coming from the man who had protected me for five years.

The emergency room door swung open, and the doctor's face was grave.

"The child has intracranial bleeding, his condition is critical. He hasn't yet escaped danger."

Caelum turned to look at me, his eyes filled with endless hatred. "Calista Everleigh, you did this to him."

Just then, his phone rang again.

He answered the video call, and my mother's pale face appeared on the screen once more.

When she saw me, she tried to sit up, excited, but the security guards held her down.

Lenora saw this and immediately moved close to the camera.

Her voice was soft, but she spoke loudly enough to be heard clearly. "Auntie, please talk to Calista. Tell her to stop destroying other people's families. If something really happens to my son, Calista's life will be ruined forever."

My mother looked at me in confusion, her breathing fast, her chest rising and falling heavily. "Calista, why would you go after her? Don't you know she's from the As—"

Before she could finish, Lenora covered the camera and began to cry, her voice full of hurt. "Calista, what did I ever do to you to make you treat me like this? Your father betrayed his brothers and set fire to the Docks. How can you have the nerve to come after me like this?"

On the other end of the call, my mother gasped and could not catch her breath.

Her body went rigid, and she fell backward.

"Mom!" I rushed toward the screen frantically, trying to see her again.

But Caelum put his arm out in front of me and pushed me hard away. "That's enough, Calista. You've hurt Gideon, and now you want to kill your own mother? Kneel here. Kneel until Gideon is out of danger. Kneel until you admit what you did."

Eira crossed her arms and spoke to me with a malicious smile. "Calista, just admit it. Don't drag your mom into this, stopping her medication will kill her."

Dashiell leaned casually against the window, glancing at me with contempt. "If you keep making a scene, we'll dig up the old case again. Only you and your mother will suffer for it."

I closed my eyes, broken.

Slowly, I bent my knees and knelt on the cold hospital hallway floor.

Twenty-eight years of pride shattered completely at that moment.

Caelum knelt down and took my chin in his hand. "You always say there's no justice in the world, don't you? Then let everyone judge for themselves."

His assistant stepped forward respectfully and opened the latest trending topics on his phone.

The old Dock fire case from five years ago had been pushed back into the spotlight.

#DockArsonist'sDaughterCausesChaosatEngagementParty

#IntentionallyHurtsChild

#OldCaseReopensAmidControversy

#Victim'sFamilySpeaksOut