Chapter 3

Raina

My whole body was almost trembling with fear of my dad. I set aside the fact that I had discovered that my half-sister's fiancé was the man I had a one-night stand with. I was more worried about Daddy's anger because he would surely take steps that I wouldn't like.

"Tell me that what I heard isn't true, Rina. Tell me you're not pregnant!" Daddy shouted loudly, and I flinched in fear.

"I-It's true, Dad. I'm p-pregnant." My voice barely came out of my mouth due to the intense anxiety I was feeling. I felt like my heart was about to burst out of my chest, and I wanted to fly away from the three of them.

My father closed his eyes and clenched his fists tightly. When he opened them, I could see the great disappointment in his eyes.

"Who? Who is the father of the child in your womb, Raina?" he asked me, trying to control his anger. If Evo Mondragon's presence wasn't there, he might have hurt me earlier.

"She's a disgrace, Dad. She's going to be an unwed mother. Maybe the man who got her pregnant ran away, that's why she can't say who and where the father of the child is," said Rina, for obvious reasons, she wanted to fuel our father's anger towards me. She must be delighted with what happened to me.

"No! This cannot be! The child in your womb cannot be born without a father, Raina!" my father shouted angrily. "Who is the father of that child? Where is that bastard?!" The veins in my Daddy's neck almost popped out from the intensity of his anger. That's how furious he was with me.

I just shook my head while tears welled up in my eyes. I couldn't speak because my voice would surely tremble. At this moment, my father could no longer contain his anger. He quickly approached me and gave me a strong slap.

It was so strong that I was almost deafened by the force of his slap. I even flew onto the bed, and the left side of my lips bled. My Dad didn't care if there were other people around as long as he could hurt me and release the anger he felt.

My Dad approached me and roughly grabbed my arm. He was about to slap me again when a strong hand stopped him.

"Don't hurt her. She's pregnant, and it will be harmful to her condition if you hurt her," said Evo, who stopped my father from hurting me again.

"Why are you interfering, Evo? She deserves the beating. Our family, especially Dad, has high expectations of her but what did she do? She got pregnant and doesn't even have a father to present to us. She's a slut!" Rina said firmly to Evo. But when her fiancé gave her a sharp look, she suddenly fell silent like a meek lamb.

"Don't interfere with our problem, Evo. This is a family issue and you're out of it because you're not married to Rina yet," my father firmly told Evo.

"Yeah. You're right. We're not married yet. And I think we should cancel this engagement for now," Evo replied to my father.

"What? No! We can't cancel our engagement," Rina strongly opposed, giving me a sharp look because she blamed me for why Evo wanted to cancel their engagement.

"That's my final decision," Evo insisted. Our father probably noticed that Evo's decision was final, so he didn't speak to object. But I know deep inside, he was very mad.

Evo walked out of my room but suddenly stopped and turned to my father. "Don't hurt her. As of now, I am not yet part of your family, so I have no right to interfere, but soon, I will be part of your family, and I will make sure it will happen," Evo said seriously before finally leaving my room. Rina immediately followed her fiancé to convince her not to cancel their engagement.

I thought Daddy would hurt me again after Evo left, but he just gave me a nasty look and left my room without a word. I just closed my eyes when he forcefully shut the door to my room.

Like a fire that quickly spread, the news about my pregnancy without being able to introduce a father reached my relatives. They all mocked and insulted me. They showed me their great disappointment in what happened to me. They said I ruined their respect and trust.

Among all the hurtful words thrown at me by my relatives, my father did nothing to defend me. This deeply broke my heart, but I forced myself to be strong for the sake of my baby in my womb. I don't care about them. What matters is that the baby in my womb is safe and I can return to work after my one-week leave.

I was coming to my workplace when I saw Evo standing next to my car. Obviously, he was waiting for me. I had no intention of paying attention to him because I could already guess what he wanted from me, but he held my arm to prevent me from getting into my car.

"What do you need from me?" I jerked away, so he let go of my arm.

"Am I the father of the child in your womb?" he asked me straightforwardly. I suddenly got nervous and paused slightly, but I didn't show it to him.

"Are you crazy? And why would you say that you're the father of my child?" I pretended to be annoyed with him.

"I was the first man you slept with, and you can't deny it because even now, the proof is still on my white uniform."

I suddenly blushed at what he said. I felt embarrassed. It happened a long time ago, and only now did I feel ashamed.

"You are right. You were indeed the first man I slept with. But it doesn't mean that you are the last man I slept with after that night." I want to remove from his mind the idea that the child might be his. Maybe if he finds out that the child is indeed his, he will suddenly take it away from me after I give birth.

"I don't believe you. I think you're not that kind of a woman." He said he didn't believe what I said but why did his face suddenly darken when he heard what I said?

"It's up to you. As for me, I'm telling the truth. The child I'm carrying is not yours. Period," I insisted. I opened the door of my car and got inside. I was about to close the door but his hand stopped it so I couldn't close it.

"I’m willing to do the DNA test. And if I prove that the child in your womb is mine, you won’t like what I’ll do," he threatened me firmly. I couldn’t speak for a minute, so he took the opportunity to tell me his plan. "But if you admit that it is indeed my child, I am willing to marry you. But of course, I won’t bind you to our marriage. Because we will only be married on paper and in the eyes of people. We will both benefit from our situation. If you're willing, I will explain everything to you."

"Are you offering me a marriage of convenience?" I asked him incredulously.

"Yes," he answered me without hesitation.

I took a deep breath before speaking again. "Let me think about it." This time, Evo allowed me to close the door so I could leave and get away from him.

When I arrived home, I was surprised to see Dad Mom, and Rina in the living room with two women who looked like doctors. I think they are waiting for me.

"It's good that you're already here, Raina," Dad said to me before turning to the two women to talk. "We can start now."

"What does this mean, Daddy?" I suddenly felt nervous when the two women held me and, without warning, one of them injected something into my left arm. Within seconds, I felt weak. "What are they going to do to me, Daddy?"

I feel like I can guess what these two women are planning to do to me, but I don't want to accept it. I never thought my own father could do this to me.

"We will get rid of that baby in your stomach, Raina. I don't want to have a grandchild without a father," Daddy said firmly.

"And who said that the child Raina is carrying has no father?" A voice came from the door that suddenly opened. Like a knight in shining armor, Evo entered to stop what my Dad planned to do to my baby. "You are looking for the father of Raina's child, right? He is now in front of you. Because I am the father of the child you want to kill!"