. He brought me breakfast, guiding my hand to the fork. I wanted to

nd Dr. Evans again,

, his voice heavy with reluctance. "The official reason w

one can ever know. She's fragile now.

it is... it's mutilation. I

for me. I promised her. I promised I would make things right. Chloe losing the baby is a tragedy,

iful. He was creating a situation where I would be so dependent on him

performance of compassion. "I'll be her eyes, her strength. She will be mine,

nd of defeat. "I'll pre

nant. I had set up a little surprise, a pair of baby shoes in a gift box. He had looked so happy, l

edator whose trap had just snapped shut. My pregnancy wasn't a blessing to him; it was a p

womanhood, to make sure I could never be a mother, so his daughter, Mia

get you ready for a little procedure, dear. Just a che

a lamb being led to the slaughter. The cold air of the operati

h. Despair washed over me, so total and so vast that it felt like a second death.

kward from ten,

e. To the child I would never h

not be

under, but this time, i