Chapter 2
414words
Our rescuer was Caleb's colleague, Zachary Foster.
His face was smeared black with soot.
Seeing me awakehe offered a tired smile.
"Sophie...knew I heard you. Jessica kept saying... the place was empty..."
Then he collapsed.
Paramedics swarmed around us, loading us into separate ambulances.
All three of us survived, but Grandma had underlying health issues, and Zachary had inhaled too much smoke, they both remained unconscious.
Caleb csme rushing into the hospital the moment he got news.
He saw me, shoved a nurse aside, and slapped me so hard my head snapped back.
"You sick bitch! How could you be so cruel? Why try to kill Jessica?"
"You weren't even supposed to be home! Why did you go back? You almost got Zach killed, you know that?!"
"I never imagined marrying such a monster like you! If anything happened to them, you'd be a murderer!"
Fresh from nearly dying, I crumpled to the floor.
Behind Caleb, Jessica peeked out, putting on a frail show.
"Sophie... I know you hate me. But did you ever stop to think about the other lives you were risking?"
She leaned weakly against Caleb's shoulder, breaking into a violent, hacking cough.
Seeing the specks of blood Jessica coughed up, Caleb turned and kicked me hard as I tried to get up, sending me back onto the cold floor.
"You monster! Why didn't you die in that fire?!"
"I should have dragged Zach to leave you there! Let you burn!"
He glared down at me, pure hatred burning in his eyes.
Jessica, safely tucked in the circle of his arms, gave me a smirk of pure, undiluted malice.
I had no strength left to fight back.
A warm trickle of blood ran down my thighs.
The pain was excruciating.
My throat, scorched by smoke, could only rasp a broken whisper,
"Doctor... please... get a doctor..."
Seeing my agony, Caleb sneered.
"Doctor?"
"Did you think about whether the people you tried to murder would even get to see a doctor?"
I just stared, tears burning my eyes.
Before Jessica came back, he'd been thrilled about the baby.
He'd painted the nursery early, picked out a name.
Harper James.
Caleb said it was the perfect gift—a piece of him and a piece of me.
Now, watching the blood pool beneath me, he simply turned away, shielding Jessica's eyes.
"Disgusting. Don't look, sweetheart. It'll just give you nightmares."
