Chapter 6

The anonymous message arrived a day later, a simple email from an untraceable address. It contained a zipped file. My hands shook as I opened it. It held chat logs, meticulously compiled, between Holden and Anika. The dates stretched back years, long before our marriage. The words confirmed every horrifying suspicion.

Holden, her heart condition is getting worse. The doctors say she can't carry a baby. My love, we need to move faster.

I know, Anika. Don't worry. Elinor is doing her part. She's strong, healthy. The perfect vessel.

But what if she gets ideas? What if she doesn't want to give him up?

She won't have a choice. She's signed away her rights. She's nothing without me. And once the child is born, she'll be redundant.

My vision blurred, the words blurring into a sickening tapestry of betrayal. They had planned this. From the very beginning. My entire relationship with Holden was a calculated deception, a means to an end. I was just the incubator, the disposable wife.

Then, there was an audio file. I clicked play, dread coiling in my stomach. Holden' s voice, smooth and deceptively calm, filled the room.

"Anika, my love, you know this is for us. For our future. Elinor saved my life, yes, but you are my life. She's served her purpose. Once the baby arrives, I'll take full custody. She has no resources, no leverage. A tragic accident, perhaps, when the time is right. Something that ensures she can never interfere. And then, our son will be truly ours."

The sound of my own choked gasp was swallowed by the recording. A tragic accident. My blood ran cold, fear and a fresh wave of nausea overwhelming me. He wasn't just going to take my baby; he was going to dispose of me. He was planning my death.

The recording ended abruptly. The silence that followed was deafening, suffocating. My mind went blank, then a torrent of images flashed before my eyes: Holden's charming smile, his gentle touch, the vows we exchanged. All lies. Every single word.

Tears streamed down my face, hot and stinging, but they were not tears of sorrow. They were tears of pure, unadulterated rage. I was a fool. A naive, trusting fool. He hadn't just broken my heart; he had dissected it, studied it, and then discarded it like biological waste.

My stomach heaved, and I barely made it to the toilet. I retched until there was nothing left but bitter bile and raw, burning despair. My body trembled, weak and spent, but my mind was clearer than it had ever been.

There was no turning back. No fighting. No reasoning with a man who saw me as an obstacle to be removed. He was going to kill me. Or worse, he was going to take my son.

I pulled my phone out, my fingers fumbling. I unblocked Holden's number. My rage had given way to a chilling calm, a terrifying clarity.

I called him.

He answered on the first ring, his voice tight with barely suppressed anger. "Elinor? What do you want now? Are you finally coming to your senses?"

My voice was steady, each word perfectly enunciated, dripping with ice. "You want this child, Holden?"

A beat of silence. "Of course I do. He's my heir."

"You will never have him," I stated, my voice like a blade. "Not as your heir. Not as Anika's prize. You will never, ever touch my son."

"Don't be ridiculous!" he roared. "You think you can stop me? I own you, Elinor! I own everything!"

"You own nothing," I countered, a bitter laugh escaping my lips. "You owned a lie, Holden. And now that lie is dead."

"What are you talking about?" he demanded, his voice laced with confusion, then growing suspicion.

"You wanted me gone, didn't you?" I asked, my voice dangerously soft. "You wanted a tragic accident. Well, here it is, Holden. Your wish is granted."

I hung up. Without a moment's hesitation, I pulled out my SIM card, snapped it in half, and dropped it into the trash.

Then, I called "The Underground."

"I'm ready," I told the woman on the other end, my voice devoid of emotion. "Tell me exactly what to do."

The next week was a blur of meticulously planned details. A secluded clinic, a network of compassionate women, and a carefully orchestrated scene. I moved like a ghost, following instructions, my mind focused solely on the precious life within me.

The media reports were swift and brutal. "Tragic Fire at Remote Clinic: Pregnant Woman Identified as Elinor York, Wife of Tech Billionaire Holden Terry, Among the Deceased." They even found a "custom-made ring" in the ashes, a replica I'd had manufactured, a final, twisted symbol of my sacrifice. The news showed images of Holden, pale and distraught, issuing a statement of grief.

I watched it all from a cramped airport lounge, my body draped in layers of anonymity, my hair dyed a harsh black, new glasses obscuring my eyes. My heart felt like a hollow drum.

As the plane took off, soaring above the city that had once been my prison, I placed my hand on my belly. My son. He was safe. He was free.

"We did it, my love," I whispered, tears silently tracing paths down my cheeks. "We made it out. I promise you, Apollo, you will have a life filled with love, freedom, and true happiness. A life far away from the darkness we left behind."

The plane climbed higher, carrying us towards a new beginning, a new name, a new life. And I knew, with a certainty that settled deep in my bones, that I would never look back.