The gift bag she had brought from the hospital sat on the counter, its soft blue fabric a stark contrast to the bitterness that settled in her chest. She stared at it for a moment, wondering if she should even bother giving it to Sierra. No. Sierra wasn’t her sister anymore—not in the way she had once been. The bonds they shared had been broken in that room at Lakeside Medical Center.
Rachel moved mechanically through the motions of boiling water for tea she had no intention of drinking. Her hands moved with precision, despite the storm raging in her chest. She couldn’t afford to lose control, not now, not when everything had already been taken from her.
As the kettle whistled, her eyes landed on the laptop she had left open on the counter. Her fingers hovered over the keys as she hesitated, unsure of whether she was ready to uncover the full extent of the betrayal. But she knew that now was the time. It was no longer about trusting Kevin. It was about the truth. About reclaiming what was hers.
Her fingers clicked open the joint bank account.
For months, she had noticed the irregular withdrawals. Kevin had always explained them away: supplier payments, business dinners, fuel contracts. She had never questioned him, never truly believed that he could deceive her. But now, the details that had once seemed innocuous took on a sinister light.
Her heart pounded as she scrolled through the account, her eyes scanning the transactions with laser focus. Payments to an unfamiliar account. Small amounts at first, almost too insignificant to notice. But they were consistent. And they coincided with the dates Sierra had made appointments for her pregnancy. Rachel’s stomach churned as she clicked through the records, piecing together the trail of lies.
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