CHAPTER 4: Accident

CLAIRE'S POV,

As Leonard turned to leave, I reached out, grabbing his hand as it rested on the door handle.

“Leo, please don’t go,” I whispered, the desperation seeping through my voice. I almost went to grab the pregnancy report, as if holding it might somehow hold him back. “I really have something important to tell you.”

My voice shook, barely more than a plea. I was almost begging him at this point, dissolving my pride.

“Listen, Claire, I need to be there to help Charlotte.” Leonard sighed, running his hand over his hair. His eyes flashed with annoyance, but there was also a hint of sadness in them. “We can discuss whatever it is you want to say when we are back at our home, okay?”

“Please…” I tried again, but the words tangled in my throat, fragile against the cry for help from Charlotte.

“Claire,” he said, his voice tired, firm. “Don’t make me choose.”

His hand slipped from mine, and with it, so did the last piece of my hope.

I watched him leave, watched the door close, leaving me alone behind, once again. The silence felt like a weight pressing down on me. Even here, even now, I could not find a moment to announce the arrival of our child, to let Leonard know he was going to be a father.

I took a shaky breath, forcing myself to stand tall. I needed to leave. I was never welcome in their life.

Brushing the tears from my eyes, I opened the door, stepping out into the crowded hall with as much composure as I could muster. I felt like a ghost, passing through people who didn’t care, who didn’t see me.

“Claire, where are you going?” Charlotte’s voice rang out, clear and sweet. “The party isn't over yet, dear.”

“I need to go,” I said, trying to steady my voice.

“Are you angry with me?” she asked, her tone full of innocence. “For ruining your anniversary?”

I turned, searching for Leonard, but he was nowhere to be seen. Her voice was coated in sweetness, but I could see her intention clear as day—she had pulled him away on purpose, just to keep us apart.

“Claire, you don't need to create drama every day. Today is Charlotte’s big day,” Leonard’s mother chimed in, her sharp gaze piercing through me as though I were the intruder in her home. “Can you try and be happy for other people?”

Emilia, standing beside her, gave me a smug look and added. “The wedding anniversary can be celebrated every year, but today means a lot to Charlotte.”

The exhaustion seeped into my bones.

“I’m not angry,” I replied. Turning to Charlotte, I added, “And Charlotte, I truly wish you a speedy recovery.”

I could see the gleam in her eyes, the barely concealed satisfaction. Dealing with them had left me too tired to argue, too worn down to resist.

“Claire, could you take me outside for a walk?” Charlotte asked all of a sudden, grabbing my hand with a gentle but firm grip.

I tried to pull away, but her hold tightened. People were starting to look, their eyes lingering on us, and I knew I couldn’t just brush her off without causing a scene.

“Can't you even do this little thing?” Leo’s mother spat words in my face.

With a deep sigh, I took hold of the handles on her wheelchair, pushing her toward the garden path outside.

As soon as we were out of earshot, her expression changed, and the mask she always wore slipped away to reveal the sharp, cruel glint beneath. And under the spreading darkness of the twilight, she showed me her true colours.

“You know, Claire,” she said, her voice low and biting, “you’ve only been warming Leonard’s bed for me all these years. When my legs are healed, I’ll be the real lady of this family.”

“D-does Leonard know?” I asked, trying to ignore her humiliation.

“What?”

“Does Leonard know he’s going to marry you?” I questioned, hiding the pain from the weight of her words.

“Claire, don’t be shameless. No one here likes you. And between you and me, Leonard will always choose me.” Charlotte’s lips curved into a cold smile, her eyes narrowing like a cat. “Both of us already know that, don't we?”

She didn’t even need to say it. I’d seen it in his actions, felt it in every moment he’d left me behind. Her words only brought the truth to light.

We reached the garden path’s slope, where the gravel met a stretch of rough pavement. As I pushed her wheelchair, one of the wheels caught on a stone, and I crouched down to try and dislodge it.

One of my hands was still on the wheelchair when a sudden force hit my shoulder. I stumbled, barely catching myself.

“Charlotte!” I called, scrambling to my feet as her wheelchair rolled down the path, bouncing against the stones as it gained speed.

I tried my best to chase after her, ignoring the pain radiating up my arm and chest where I’d landed.

But just as I reached out, her chair struck a large stone and tipped forward, throwing her to the ground.

Her head hit the stone with a sickening thud, and for a moment, there was only silence, broken by her choked, terrified gasp.

Blood seeped from a cut on her forehead, trickling down her face as she began to scream.

I knelt down, my hands shaking as I tried to help her back into the chair. “Charlotte, it’s okay. You’re going to be okay.”

But she flinched, shrinking away from my touch, her eyes wide with fear. Her hands pushing mine away as she looked around. Footsteps sounded behind us.

I looked up to see Leonard standing at the top of the slope, his face twisted in horror, and eyes burning with anger.