The Betrayal

"Keep your eyes open! Keep 'em open!" He panicked as he pushed the stretcher into the emergency room.

Even though there were three other nurses besides the patient, the doctor looked extremely worried.

The patient had just encountered a car crash along the way and fortunately, the doctor who was riding behind her quickly drove her to his hospital.

Several hours later Chloe opened her eyes and the first person she saw sitting next to her was–

"My Prince, you…"

"Just Blake." Blake corrected. 'Of course, she will never say that,' he thought to himself.

"Ouch…" She whined as she gently massaged her forehead where she noticed a bandaid.

He leaned forward and gently grabbed her hands, "Are you alright? Is your head still hurting?"

He slowly withdrew his hands, embarrassed by his overly display of concern, "You shouldn't massage it like that. The stitches will…reopen."

"I'm fine Doctor. I'm…I'm–not fine." She burst out crying.

Chloe was just on her way from another hospital after suffering a miscarriage and she was finally diagnosed infertile after about five miscarriages over the last five years of her marriage.

It was hard to digest considering she was married into a powerful and competitive family where children mattered.

Blake was anxious and his eyes were ridden with worry, "Chloe, what is wrong? What happened to you?"

"I– will never be a mom."

Even though it was a personal matter, Chole didn't hesitate before saying it, after all, Blake wasn't a complete stranger.

Blake Kensington, the CEO of the Castile General Hospital was not only the Crown Prince of Castile but also Chloe's college mate and a former best friend of her husband.

"George wouldn't mind. He loves you." Blake reassured but Chloe wouldn't stop crying as she was beginning to regret telling him because she hadn't even informed her husband about it.

Blake attempted to wipe off her tears but as soon as he raised his hands, Chloe's phone rang, forcing her to stop crying.

When she saw that it was her husband, her heart skipped.

With trembling hands, she eventually answered the call. "Hi– "

"Love, I just saw your car. Are you alright? Where are you right now?" George panicked over the phone and Chloe's heart knew peace again.

Blake knew not to be told before stepping out of the room for her.

Chloe always knew that George loved her more than anything in the world.

In all her miscarriages, he has always been there for her, reassuring her that children won't define their relationship nor will it reduce his love for her.

She tried to clear up her muffled voice before speaking up, "I'm at The General–"

"I'm coming to you now!" He affirmed. "Please stay on the line. I want to continue hearing your voice to be sure you're alright.

" He added and Chloe could hear the whirring of his car engine in the background.

"Honey, drive carefully and stay away from the phone. I'm fine." She warned before ending the call.

In no time, George Marlowe arrived at the hospital and the first place she went to was Blake's office.

Blake wasn't at the office but Chloe was and he immediately pulled her into a warm hug while whispering in her ear, "I heard from the doctor. I should have followed you there. I'm sorry."

"I promise I will never let this ruin us."

"But your parents…"

Sure the news of being barren was disheartening enough but it wasn't the sole reason for her tears neither was it the fear of her husband's reaction. Chloe's tears were because of her in-law's reaction to the news.

They are never going to take it lightly nor were they ever going to accept her again. She used to be everyone's favorite and she feared she might lose that position because George was the favorite child of the family.

"They love you to death. I already told them about this and they are worried you might harm yourself." He reassured her.

Chloe quickly pulled away from him to see his face, "Are you sure about that?"

She looked slightly anxious but George's smile and slight affirmative nod brought joy to her eyes.

"Thank you, Geo. I love you so much." She squeaked with excitement as she showered his face with kisses.

The door creaked open at that moment and Blake walked in on them making out.

Even though it was his office, he apologized, "Sorry…"

"Thanks for today!" Was all George uttered before pulling his wife out of the office?

Over the years, the relationship between the two childhood best friends had become stale but never was Chloe informed about the reason for their separation.

******

Just as Chloe was informed, no one threw shades at her upon her arrival at the family mansion where she lived with her older sister. Instead, the family comforted her and assured her that things will get better.

That night they threw a feast for her to reassure her that she will always be a favorite member of the extended family.

Tall, slender, and pear-shaped Chloe Knightley is the second granddaughter and daughter of Castile's most famous lineage of ancient antique Collector with Jamie Knightley being the first daughter.

Being the younger sibling, Chloe was just a few months younger than her older sister and because of this age gap, it was obvious to the public eye that the two were step-sisters with their father cheating on Jamie's mom to have Chloe.

Growing up, it was obvious Chloe was the favorite child, taking in her father's footsteps in the love of art and he ended up giving out most of their art company's shares to her while Jamie on the other hand was a very famous anchorwoman but just a minor shareholder in the company because of her disinterest in the family business.

But despite the bad blood and the absence of their father for most of their lives, the ladies grew up to be each other's best friends and soulmates, always looking out for one another.

A year into her marriage with George, Chloe convinced him to let her sister move into their home since they had never been apart all their lives.

Long after the feast was over, Chloe and Jamie sat on the patio of their house, chatting and joking around like they always did.

A few minutes past midnight, Chloe scrolled through her phone as she brought up a new topic of discussion. "What do you think about the recent TikTok trend?"

One second passed.

Two seconds passed.

Yet there was no response from Jamie.

Chloe was forced to look over, only then did she realize that Jamie was already dozing off.

She found her sleeping position so funny that she quickly turned to her camera and took a few pictures of her.

The flashlight from her camera jolted Jamie up from her sleep and she immediately pushed Chloe's phone away.

"Hey, stop that. That's not fair!" Jamie complained but Chloe wouldn't stop laughing.

"Girl, you're becoming weak these days. You can't even last a few hours without sleep." She tried to hold up her laughter.

By now, the worries of being barren were completely washed off thanks to the wonderful family she was blessed with.

"Yeah, I agree with that. I will go to bed now." Jamie accepted defeat while turning around to grab a new glass of wine. "Drink this and get some rest too. You had a long day." She advised, gently patting Chloe's shoulder and handing the wine to her.

Soon enough, Jamie disappeared into the room, leaving Chloe to contemplate on her long day.

"Oh, Father! I hope you come back soon and witness the wonderful family I almost missed marrying into because of your persistence." She reflected on how much her father objected to her relationship with George while staring into the stars.

The only reason Mason Knightley, Chloe's father hated George back then was because he was a Marlowe.

Chloe never understood why but he was really adamant and even missed her wedding to go on his usual world tour, leaving only a letter for her.

The last time he ever saw her father in five years was a week before her wedding when they had a heated argument about her disobedience.

To avoid drowning in her sulking mood, she decided to do as advised.

The wine glass hardly touched her lips when a lady yanked it from her hand and gulped it down in one go.

"F*ck men! They are scum!" She cursed, smashing the glass on the lawned pavement.

Chloe flinched, "Ruby, what happened?"

Ruby was George's youngest sister. The last child of Marlowe. Aside from George, Ruby was the closest to Chloe.

"That idiot! He doesn't know who I am. How could he reject me without giving my confession the slightest thought?" Ruby complained. She went on and on cursing the young man who had rejected her.

Chloe wanted to laugh but she knew that would make Ruby cry. Chloe knew her too well. This wasn't the first time she was being rejected because she was exceptionally rude to strangers and very proud. But in a real sense, Ruby was by far the kindest and sweetest member of the family.

As always, Chloe consoled her and sent her to bed before finally retiring to her room.

As she walked towards her room, she felt a sharp pain in her stomach which stopped almost immediately.

"Woah, what was that?" She mumbled as she gently rubbed her stomach.

As soon as the pain subsided, she continued walking but her vision became hazy which made walking a lot more stressful for her but because she knew every nook and cranny of the house, she was able to get to her room without bumping into anything.

She was met with George's absence in the room but she wasn't surprised as she assumed he was in his study, probably working on something.

Exhausted, she barely changed into her nightdress and slumped to her bed, and slept off, certain that her husband will join her soon.

*******

In the wee hours of the morning, Chloe woke up to a twisting pain in her stomach. The pain was severe as she held onto her stomach and rolled up on the bed. She called George for support, only then did she realize his absence.

Her clothes were drenched in sweat as she rolled down her bed to the floor.

“F@ck!” She screamed in pain.

After about ten minutes of intense pain and sweating, the pain subsided, living her gasping for oxygen for several seconds.

It was only when the pain in her stomach stopped did she realize her head felt usually heavy as dull aches tingled her head.

“I didn’t even drink that much.” She whined as she struggled to get on her feet. “Geo, I think I…” Chloe stopped talking as she looked at the bed and remembered George wasn’t even in the room with her.

At first, she thought he was in the restroom but after going in to check, she was sure he was not anywhere in their room.

She thought of going back to sleep but the fear of being woken up by another episode of stomach ache drove her to look for George around the mansion.

As she approached Jamie's room down the hallway, she heard giggles and moans coming out of her room and Chloe knew exactly what was going on.

'That girl didn't do it again!' Chloe sighed as she charged to her room.

This wasn't the first time Jamie was bringing her mysterious boyfriend over and Chloe had warned her severally to avoid getting into trouble with her in-laws.

All the rooms in the mansion were soundproofed but Chloe being able to hear their moans could only mean one thing.

Whoever was inside the room didn't bother to close the door properly!

Even though Chloe was angry at her, she was curious about her sister's lover, after all, she has always talked about him and even flaunts the gifts given to her by him.

She decided to peek through the door to see who it was but just as she was about to push the door open, she heard the question that made her doubt her hearing.

"Geo, when are you going to get rid of her?" Jamie asked in between palpitating breathing.

Inside her sister's bedroom was her husband of five years lying naked, back down on the bed after what seemed like an incredible s*x marathon with her sister.

Chloe's heart sank into her stomach as she heard her husband's response.

"Jamie, can you not ruin the mood by bringing her up? I just want to sink myself in your thoughts tonight." George leaned over her and kissed her lips but Jamie didn't seem as excited as he did.

"But you're going to run back to her arms again in the morning. I'm tired of feeling like the third wheel in this relationship. Your family has gotten everything they need from her but look at the feast they threw for her tonight. Everyone still seems so smitten by her that I'm beginning to doubt if they would ever accept us." Jamie complained. She pushed George off and pulled the blanket over herself, "Having our first son out of wedlock would only make it easier for your brother to overthrow you."

Chloe gasped in disbelief. 'Jamie is pregnant for my husband?' 'No! That's not possible. Not my husband! Not my sister!' She tried to deny the truth but it was right in front of her eyes.

"You know divorce is not allowed in our family. I already informed Dad. I wanted this to be a surprise but since you’re so curious I will tell you.” George sighed as he sat up properly on the bed and asked, “Why do you think I’m taking my time in your room tonight without worrying about her?”

Jamie rolled her eyes, “I don’t know. Because I’m way better in bed?”

“That’s part of it but not entirely my reason. Okay, here is another question. Why do you think my family threw that feast for her after coming back from the doctor with such embarrassing news?” George asked again.

“I don’t know! Can you stop bombarding me with questions and just tell me when I’m going to stop seeing her? Or maybe I should take care of her by myself!” Jamie scolded angrily, leaving Chloe scarred and speechless.

“Okay! Chloe was poisoned at the dinner. Dad and I organized that feast to dispose of her discreetly. She’s probably dying in our room now. WE had to do it that way because you know we can't afford scandals!" George explained persuasively

"How dare you? How could you do this to me, Jamie? Geo?" Chloe yelled in horror as she forced the door open and dashed in, forcing the lover to jump off the bed in haste.

Chloe didn't realize when hot tears poured down her cheeks.

"H–how could you…I-I…I trusted you two." She continued to cry.

“F@ck! You should be dead. Why on Earth are you looking so healthy?” George asked, his eyes widened in shock as if he was seeing a ghost while hastily wearing his trouser.

Jamie looked completely unbothered as she sat up properly on the bed, "Chloe dear, can you not be so dramatic?" She rolled her eyes at her. "You of all people should know how love works. It can make you forget all the reasoning."

"You should have listened to Father when he forbade you from marrying into this family."

Chloe felt her mouth run dry hearing her sister speak with so much disregard, "You?" She mouthed in disbelief.