The Other Side

 *CAMILLA’S POV*

 I sat on the edge of the bed, my hand resting lightly on my stomach. The small swell of life beneath my palm and Jasper my seven year old son from another man, were the only things keeping me going these days. 

Three months pregnant. I could hardly believe it myself. I thought that maybe this could be my second chance. Maybe with the arrival of his baby, Tom would change. And just maybe he would look at me differently, treat me differently. But the hope I clung onto was fragile like a thread that could snap at any time.

I’ve been locked up for three months now and Tom has refused to tell me how Jasper was doing since I tried escaping with him. I’ve tried to talk to him but he has paid me no mind. His actions were all too familiar. I knew if I wanted to see Jasper I would have to do as I was told. I had endured so much pain from Tom and being married to him for 7 years, I had finally reached my limits. I didn’t want to fight anymore.

I was tired of the constant beating, starvation, and being locked up like a prisoner in my bedroom. Tom was a cruel man and this was my unlucky fate. After the escape plan I had made with Jasper’s nanny who was the head maid at my father’s mansion failed, Tom beat me up and had his way with me and now I carried his child. He had broken me down, leaving me a shell of the woman I once was. Yet, despite it all, I thought this baby might be the miracle that could soften his heart.

In two weeks, the Lockwood Company would celebrate its anniversary, and I decided that would be the day. I’d tell him about the pregnancy after the party. I feared how Tom might react to the sudden news. Tom had never been predictable—his temper flared at the smallest inconveniences, and I never knew what version of him I’d face from day to day.

***

The weeks crawled by and I was sure Tom had asked that the maid paid extra attention to my wellbeing. He didn’t care about me but with his company’s anniversary coming up he didn’t want me looking haggard. He cared so much about his image and reputation. Wanting to be the most admired man in high society.

A maid barged into my room without knocking, carrying a tray of food. She barely looked at me as she placed the tray on the table, her voice curt and dismissive.

"You should start getting ready for the anniversary party. Don’t take too long," she said coldly before turning on her heel and leaving.

I stared at the door she had just exited through, feeling a pang of humiliation. Even the staff didn’t respect me anymore. But I shook the thought off. It didn’t matter, not today. I had a plan, and I would stick to it.

“If I act right I’ll get to see Jasper,” I said trying to give myself hope.

I ate my meal and then got straight to getting ready. I had a lot to do. “ covering these bruises would take time,” I thought to myself.

I wore a floral dress that fit me well enough, though it was tighter than usual around my waist, showing the slightest hint of my growing belly. Tom liked clothes like these and he personally saw to it that all the clothes in my wardrobe were changed to similar floral patterns.

I had gained a little weight since the pregnancy began, and I could only hope no one would notice or say anything about it. I wanted to surprise Tom with the news of his baby. He never liked that I had Jasper before I met him.

I was done preparing and one of the maids came to call me. I headed downstairs to meet Tom and we set off.

 “It seems you’re not making a fuss,” he said.

“ you’ve finally learned your place,” he added with a grin across his face. He looked proud of the fact that he had broken my will.

“Make sure not to embarrass me,” he said as he kissed my cheeks. “You know what would happen if you do,” he added as we arrived at our destination.

At the anniversary celebration, the grand ballroom was filled with people—Tom’s business associates, friends, and influential figures. I stayed by his side, smiling when I was supposed to, nodding politely as we engaged in small talk. But it didn’t take long for things to go downhill.

Some of Tom's friends, men I had seen at many of his business functions, began to make sly comments about my appearance. They laughed as they nudged each other, their words like sharp daggers in my chest.

“Looks like Camilla’s been indulging a bit too much, huh, Tom?”

“Putting on some weight there, aren’t you?” One of them spoke looking mockingly at me.

I could feel my face flush with embarrassment, and I instinctively placed my hand over my stomach, trying to shield myself from their cruel jokes. I wasn’t surprised by Tom’s reaction. Instead of defending me and shutting them down, he laughed along with them. And then, his eyes darkened as he turned to me, his jaw clenched in anger.

His expression sent shivers down my spine. That was a bad look. I had embarrassed him. Immediately his friends were out of sight, without a word, Tom grabbed my arm, pulling me closer to him, his grip tight enough to hurt. “You made me look like a fool in front of my friends,” he hissed.

“I’m sorry. I never planned for that to happen.”  

“so what you’re blaming my friends?”

“No no.” His grip tightened. “Tom you're hurting me,” I said before he let go of my arm.

The rest of the evening passed in a blur, and I couldn’t even remember how we made it home. But as soon as we stepped through the front door, Tom’s anger boiled over.

“Look at you,” he snapped, pacing back and forth in front of me. “You humiliated me tonight Camilla. Do you even care about how you make me look? you’ve been too busy stuffing your face to notice.”

“How could he say this to me when he has been starving me,” I thought angrily to myself.

“I warned you not to disgrace me today,” he said grabbing my hair.

“Tom I said I was sorry.”

“Sorry. Is your sorry going to change the fact that you ruined an important—“

“I’m pregnant,” I said cutting his statement short.

For a moment, there was silence. His face twisted in disbelief before he burst out laughing—a cold, bitter sound that made my heart sink. “Pregnant?” he sneered. “Is that your best excuse?”

“I’m not lying,” I said as tears welled up in my eyes, but I forced myself to stay calm.

“Who asked you to get pregnant, huh? Who’s the father, Camilla? Because it sure as hell isn’t me.”

I flinched at his words. How could he say such things? After all the women he had been with behind my back, after all the times I knew he had cheated. He had my every move watched and now he had the nerve to accuse me? “Tom, this is your baby,” I pleaded. “I would never—

“Liar,” he shouted as he sent me flying to the floor. And then, before I could react, his hand came down hard across my face. My vision blurred with tears and pain.

He didn’t stop there. The anger in him exploded, and he unleashed his fury on me, his fists landing on my body with brutal force. I cried out, trying to protect my stomach, but it was useless as the next blow came through. I struggled my way out of his strong hold, reaching my hands out for a vase. I grabbed the vase and without hesitation slammed it on him and he fell to the floor.

I tried running out of the house when my leg was grabbed causing me to fall on my belly and hit my head on the hard floor. My head buzzed and I was in too much pain to get up. By the time my vision had cleared, I felt a heavy kick from Tom sending me to the wall at the end of the room.

“You wretched woman, how dare you,” he shouted.

My body ached in ways I had never felt before, every breath sending sharp pains through my ribs. But that wasn’t the worst part. The worst part was the cold emptiness in my belly. I knew, before I even moved, before I even looked down, that my baby was gone. And I was soaked in my pool of blood.

I thought he would stop seeing my condition but he was blinded by his rage. He continued stomping and kicking me against the wall. There was no doubt about it he wanted me dead.

Tears trickled down my face and even in my sorry state the thought of leaving my baby boy Jasper hurt. His father Dante died a year ago and now I’ve followed suit.

I tried holding on to my last breath but my efforts were futile.

I Died.