Chapter 4

A week passed quickly.

The banquet to bring Mark home was held on a grand scale. Almost everyone who mattered in our circle came.

Milena held my arm, lowering her voice to warn me.

"You should have thought it through these past few days. Don't cause any trouble."

I said nothing and didn't look at her.

Not until the five-year-old boy came forward, grabbed my hand, and called me "Dad" in front of everyone.

Only then did I speak.

"I'm not your father. And I won't acknowledge you as my son."

My words instantly caused an uproar.

People looked at each other, suddenly understanding something.

The looks they gave Milena were full of mockery.

Milena lost face. Her expression shifted between pale and flushed. She gripped my wrist.

"What do you mean?"

"If you don't acknowledge Mark today, I'll go to the hospital right now!"

Her attitude was resolute. I couldn't imagine that as a mother, she could say such things.

She knew how hard it had been to conceive this child.

Drinking bitter medicine, getting shots to prevent miscarriage.

Now, for the sake of an illegitimate child, she'd throw it all away just like that.

"I won't raise another man's son."

John in the distance instantly looked aggrieved.

At that moment, the previously silent hall's screen suddenly lit up.

The large screen began displaying intimate photos of Milena and John in bed.

The photos were timestamped from five years ago.

The scene instantly became chaotic.

Milena also froze in place, staring blankly at the screen.

John immediately pointed at my nose, his face flushed red.

"Jeff! I know you have a problem with me, but how can you show these kinds of photos at an event like this!"

"Yes, five years ago was all my fault. Milena was drunk and mistook me for you."

"But what does that have to do with now? No matter how dissatisfied you are, you can't deny that Mark is Milena's biological son."

John's words made everything clear to everyone.

"So it's an illegitimate child. I wondered why it felt so strange."

"Well, they put on quite a show for us."

Suppressed laughter spread.

Milena frantically had someone turn off the screen and slapped me hard across the face.

The metallic taste of blood spread in my mouth. I felt dazed.

I looked up into Milena's hate-filled gaze.

She was so angry her chest heaved violently. She clutched her aching belly, her face twisted in pain.

Seeing this, Milena's mother immediately called emergency services.

When they arrived at the hospital, Milena's face was deathly pale.

Just as the doctor was about to administer the injection to prevent miscarriage, Milena suddenly spoke.

"Help me induce labor. I don't want this child anymore."

My head buzzed.

"I didn't upload those photos!"

Milena pulled at the corner of her mouth.

"Whether it was you or not, Jeff, I just want to teach you a lesson so you'll never dare bully them again."

Thinking of the child, I still lowered my head and pleaded.

"I was wrong. I shouldn't have done that. The child is innocent. It's a life..."

But no matter how I begged, it was useless.

Milena still went into the operating room. The induced baby came out as a stillborn.

It was a daughter who never got to open her eyes to see the world.

I covered my face, crying and laughing, and placed the divorce agreement in her bag.

Carrying my dead daughter, I left.

Looking back five years ago led me into the abyss. This time, I won't look back again.