Chapter 177 Tessa’s Evil Plan
Reality was often cruel. Even though Erin’s family, friends, and lover eagerly anticipated her return, no one found her, not even Chandler. She remained on the deserted island, imprisoned for a full eight months.
Five months ago. Tessa brought Erin out to the sun because she was in an exceptionally good mood one day. Taking advantage of the moment Tessa let her guard down, Erin instinctively ran away.
At that time, Tessa was so mad she was about to shoot Erin in her call, but Jack stopped her just in time. He reasoned that Erin was pregnant, and if she got injured and couldn’t receive proper medical treatment, they might not be able to handle the high fever and complications that would possibly arise out of a wound infection.
They needed to exercise utmost caution due to her injury. Jack and Tessa had planned so long to have their own child. They couldn’t
adopt a child with various health complications at birth.
Erin’s escape attempt ended with Jack catching her and taking her back. As a pregnant woman, she didn’t have any chance against a
strong and fit man like Jack. Hence, she submitted to fate. No matter how Erin begged and pleaded at that time, Jack remained indifferent.
Soon, Tessa caught up as well. She slapped Erin fiercely, and her face became swollen from the relentless slaps. In the end, Jack restrained the emotionally unstable Tessa to prevent her from really harming Erin irreversibly.
Since the escape incident, Erin had been locked in a cell deprived of sunlight. Her skin had become unnaturally pale, even though she had fair skin, to begin with. Now, she had a sickly pallor due to a lack of proper nutrition.
The gray walls were covered in countless tally marks that Erin carved. Each day, she added a stroke to the wall. She had lost track of time. as there were no phones or watches there. She could only guess what time it was based on the three meals Jack brought her every day.
Initially, she would ask Jack about the time, but over time, Jack grew tired of answering her.
Every month, Tessa, who had a medical doctorate, would bring instruments to the cell. She carried out prenatal checkups for Erin. Today
was the day of the checkup.
Each time, Tessa and Jack would enter together. Jack would handcuff each of Erin’s hands far apart to prevent her from attacking Tessa.
After Jack had finished handcuffing her, he looked up and said to Tessa, “I’ll leave now. Let me know if you need anything.”
Devoid of any emotion, Tessa instructed. “Starting today, give Erin an extra meal. She should have four meals a day. We need to improve
her nutrition.”
“Okay.” Jack replied before leaving.
Throughout the process, Erin behaved like she was an empty husk, unresponsive no matter what they said. Her gaze was hollow and silent, like a stagnant pool of water. She’d been locked up for a full eight months. Her emotions kept fluctuating from having an intense will to survive and feeling hopeful for her rescue to disappointment and despair. This cycle repeated itself over and over again.
In the end, she gave up on the possibility that she would be saved. If she continued to face these four walls in the cell with such a strong and intense longing for freedom, she would surely drive herself insane and throw herself against the walls.
If she were alone and had nothing to hold on to, on a night of despair and silence, she might have chosen to end her life in a sudden breakdown. Even if smashing her head against the wall wouldn’t kill her immediately, even if there were surveillance cameras in the cell neither Tessa nor Jack could stop her from ending her life if she was hell–bent on it.
Yet, Erin didn’t dare to entertain any thoughts of suicide. She had a child in her womb. The child was the sole reason she kept herself going. Although Tessa constantly reminded her that her child would be taken away from her once it was born, as long as the child was still inside her, it was hers–it was her child with Chandler.
Thinking of Chandler, Erin couldn’t distinguish whether the love he had for her was genuine or fake. Under such a depraved and desperate situation, any type of love would get worn down and diminished with time. Without the right to freedom or even basic dignity, how could she, as a person, have the mental capacity to think about love and romance?
Erin also became increasingly pessimistic and despaired, gradually believing in the version of the “facts” that she’d imagined. She believed that Chandler had long forgotten about her.
Maybe during the early days of her disappearance, he had sent people to look for her. But it’d been so long since then, perhaps Chandler thought she was already dead.
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Erin went through all the people she had known over these years mentally and gradually understood one truth. Perhaps her mother. Cherry, would be the only one to remember her after her prolonged disappearance. Everyone else would eventually forget her in the torrent
of time.
Human memory often failed to hold up, and so did love.
“Erin, stop walking around like a soulless robot every day. If you continue on like this, your child won’t be healthy when it comes to this. world! Do you want your child to be born with autism?” Tessa asked, having just finished the routine checkup.
But Erin remained silent without any expression. Even her breathing seemed faint and sometimes nonexistent, to the point where Tessa
wondered if she was examining a corpse.
Erin ignored Tessa, choosing to disregard her throughout the entire process, just as she always did.
Seeing her like this. Tessa’s temper flared up. She pushed the examination instruments aside and shouted, “Erin, don’t act like you’re dead inside! Do you think I’ll feel any sympathy for you? No, I won’t! In my eyes, you’re nothing but a tool for producing my child! If I were you, I would find a way to live well, and then seize the opportunity for revenge. Think carefully about who caused you to end up like this. It’s Chandler! It’s that heartless man! He deceived you! He played with your emotions, leaving you here without a care! He abandoned you and left you to fend for yourself”
In an instant, Erin’s emotions surged, and she leaned forward with all her strength. But her hands were cuffed securely, so she could only struggle in vain. However, her gaze was extremely chilling. She stared at Tessa with eyes like poisoned daggers, wishing to pierce through.
her with all her might!
Erin wanted to dig out that heart that was devoid of conscience and see what color the heart really was. Given the atrocities its owner had
committed, could it still be made of flesh and blood?
Tessa observed how Erin glared at her like a beast getting ready to attack. Her crazed eyes showed that she wanted very much to devour
Tessa alive.
Seeing this side of Erin made Tessa shiver and laugh at the same time. “Very well! You even have thoughts of killing me! Then I don’t have to worry that my son will be a coward when he’s born-”
Her words instantly caused Erin to freeze as her emotions became fragile due to the unexpected information that was revealed to her. The
child was her only vulnerability now.
A surge of mixed emotions and bitterness welled up in the depths of Erin’s eyes, and she asked with a trembling voice, “What did you just say? Is my baby a boy?”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she thought of Chandler, the man she loved the most, uncontrollably. If her child was a boy, would he
resemble him?
Chandler’s exquisitely perfect and handsome face unexpectedly flashed through her mind. It was accompanied by a suffocating heartache that followed right after. It had been a full eight months, yet every time she thought of Chandler, her heart still ached.
“Yes, you heard correctly. You’re carrying a boy, and that’s exactly what I wanted. Be good and play your role, Erin. My son will be born
soon!”
Tessa’s words pushed Erin to the peak of her rage. She instinctively spat at Tessa with all her might!
“You venomous woman! Go to hell! He is my son! You hear me? Mine! You won’t snatch him away! You’ll have a miserable end! I’m sure of it!” Erin glared at Tessa with intense hatred, wishing that her stare could bore a hole through the latter’s black heart.
Tessa pushed the instruments aside, opened the iron door, and walked out of the cell. Before leaving, she smiled contemptuously. “Erin. go ahead and curse if it makes you happy. In the end, when the child is born, he will be mine. Your son will call me Mommy! Hahaha-”
“Get lost! Get out of my sight!” Erin could only scream hysterically to express her resentment and despair.
Five minutes later, Jack walked out of the kitchen carrying a tray just as Tessa walked toward him.
Tessa had a serious expression as she said, “During Erin’s prenatal checkup just now, I noticed an abnormality in her heart valve. There’s a high chance she might have a sudden heart attack during delivery. If that happens and the baby doesn’t come out in time, the baby
might suffocate and die.”
Jack was shocked and immediately inquired anxiously. “What do you plan to do then?”
Tessa narrowed her eyes and replied, “One week from now, I’ll perform a cesarean section to deliver the baby.”
