After My Kept Husband Betrayed My Name, I Made Him Regret It

Chapter 4 If He Dies

"Ms. Cortes, faking being sick right now is a little pathetic, don't you think? There are victims outside waiting for your apology."

He yanked the door open, and a group of men I recognized rushed in, hurling abuse at me.

"Give us back our hard-earned money! You killed my parents!"

Levi shoved me to my knees with both hands on my shoulders.

"Do you have any idea how many innocent people your brother got killed? Get down and apologize!"

I clutched my belly, and whatever color was left in my face drained away.

He thought I was trying to get out of it, so he used Ian against me again.

I bit down on my lip so hard I tasted blood, then bowed my head and slammed my forehead against the floor.

By the time the room started spinning, Levi had already left with Willow to celebrate.

"Don't bother with her. She's faking it because she's scared. She'll fall in line once I'm gone."

I didn't even get the chance to cry out before the crowd closed in and began kicking and beating me.

Only when blood started pooling beneath me did they finally panic and scatter.

With the last of my strength, I called for an ambulance.

Before it could arrive, the bodyguards dragged me away.

"Ms. Estes is anemic, and Mr. Alvarez sent us to take blood from you."

I begged hysterically, pleading with them to let me go to the hospital.

"I'm pregnant with Mr. Alvarez's child!"

Willow covered her nose and looked at me in disgust.

"Ms. Cortes, you may not be one of the elite anymore, but that doesn't mean you should let yourself get this disgusting just because you're on your period!"

Levi had looked briefly concerned, but his brow relaxed at once.

"Stop testing my patience. You went five years without getting pregnant, so how could you suddenly be pregnant now? To be honest, Willow is already pregnant with my child."

I stared at him in shock, and the pride on his face was unmistakable.

"But don't worry. The Cortes family did help me once, and I'll make sure you're provided for the rest of your life. As long as you stay out of Willow's and my life, I can still make sure you live comfortably for the rest of your life. So right now, the smartest thing you can do is behave and serve as Willow's blood bank for the duration of her pregnancy."

Before I could struggle again, they dragged me away and drained twelve hundred milliliters of blood from me.

Just before I passed out, I heard the doctor shout in alarm.

"No! Mrs. Alvarez may be developing an amniotic fluid embolism!"

When I woke up again, they told me they had been unable to save either the baby or my uterus.

Before I could even begin to grieve, a news alert flashed across the screen saying Ian's identity had been leaked and that he had been taken hostage.

The kidnappers demanded a one-billion-dollar ransom within twenty-four hours, or they would livestream his execution.

The video spread across the internet with terrifying speed, and the public, already out for blood, cheered it on.

A: [Serves them right! The whole Cortes family deserves to pay!]

B: [The kid may be innocent, but why should he get to live off our money while my own child can't even get into private school?]

C: [They should kidnap Liliana too and burn them both alive! Then the Cortes family can finally have their reunion!]

I was so frantic I could barely breathe, and my hands were shaking as I called Levi.

"Why? I already gave you what you wanted, so why are you still hurting Ian? Send the money now!"

An absentminded groan came through the line.

"Liliana, knock it off with the cheap act. I know you staged this yourself. There just happens to be one billion in the trust account, and the kidnappers just happen to be demanding one billion. Do you really think I'm stupid?"

My heart dropped, and all I could do was scream into the phone.

Then Willow's coy voice drifted through the line.

"Levi, he's just a kid. Are you really not going to do anything?"

"If he dies, he dies. It actually works out better that way. Our child will be the only one who matters."

As if he wanted to make sure I heard every second, the sounds on the other end only grew more explicit.

I covered my ears, but despair had already hollowed me out.

I don't know how much time passed before someone pulled me into a familiar embrace.

"So now you finally see them for what they really are. Don't worry. Southeast Asia happens to have room for four more people right now, and I'm sure they'll have a very interesting time there."