I tried to grasp those little fingers, but the child's form grew fainter and fainter.

No!! In that moment, my heart felt like it was being carved out. I desperately tried to hold on—

"Baby!!"

I jolted awake from the nightmare. A dull ache throbbed in my lower belly, but before I could gather my thoughts, a gentle male voice reached me:

"Nightmare?"

James sat at the edge of my bed, his face full of concern.

"Why are you here?"

He smiled helplessly. "This is our home. Why wouldn't I be? Linda, you—"

Before he could finish, a child's shrill cry cut him off.

The next second, the door slammed open and a five-year-old boy charged in like a cannonball. "Daddy!!"

It was Delia's son, Charlie Abbott.

The boy had complained that not having a father made him a target for bullying. Without hesitation, James let him call him "Daddy" and treated him like his own son.

Charlie hugged James from behind. James asked, "Didn't we agree you'd wait outside like a good boy?"

The child glared at me with venom in his eyes. "I was scared the bad woman would bully Daddy!"

Then, before anyone could react, he scrambled onto the bed, jumped up, and stomped down hard on my stomach.

"Ahh!"

I'd barely slept the night before. My head was spinning, and in that split second, there was no time to dodge.

His foot landed squarely on my lower abdomen. Searing pain tore through me. My back arched involuntarily, cold sweat breaking out across my skin.

"Linda!"

James yanked Charlie away and grabbed my shoulders, his face urgent. "What's wrong?"

I couldn't speak through the pain. Black spots swam across my vision. My belly felt like it was being twisted apart.

I tried to call for help, but a woman's shrill voice drowned me out: "Charlie! James—"

Delia rushed in. Seeing Charlie sitting on the edge of the bed looking dazed, she immediately pulled him into her arms. "Charlie, what happened? Did you get into trouble again?"

Charlie burst into tears. "I didn't do anything! I didn't even step on Auntie, but she screamed so loud!"

James's hands on me went still.

Delia's eyes instantly reddened. "James, maybe we should just forget about what we discussed before."

"Charlie and I are all alone in this world... We just can't compete..."

Her voice cracked. Her expression was pure devastation—as if she'd suffered a thousand injustices.

She didn't finish, but James understood her meaning immediately.