Broken Vows and Buried Twins novel Chapter 95

The endless night, thick with agonizing memories, invaded Hester’s dreams once again.

No, it wasn't a dream. It was the horrific reality of what she had survived.

Inside the abandoned warehouse by the docks, the damp air reeked of mildew. The bone-deep chill seeped into her very soul.

"Everyone in Northwood City says you and Julian Weston are the ultimate love story. A wealthy heiress like you supposedly stood by that useless heir and dragged him all the way to the top of Weston Corp. They call your devotion legendary. But look at you now. You've been kidnapped, and Julian won't even answer the damn phone to save your life! Tell me the truth—are you two working together to play us for fools?!"

The baseball bat slammed into the rough concrete next to Hester, the deafening crack echoing through the empty warehouse. Her hands and feet were bound to a wooden chair. The coarse ropes tore at the skin of her wrists and ankles. Her heavily pregnant belly rose and fell rapidly as she hyperventilated in sheer terror.

The babies inside her seemed to sense their mother’s panic, their movements turning violently frantic.

The kidnapper used Hester’s phone to call Julian over and over again, but Julian never picked up!

Cold sweat dripped down Hester’s temples. She kept telling herself that Julian would never ignore her calls. If he wasn't answering, it meant he already knew. It meant he was working on a plan to save them.

She had to stay calm. She had to trust Julian. In a moment like this, she had to believe in him more than ever!

But the kidnappers couldn't reach him, meaning they couldn't even state their demands. Their patience was rapidly disintegrating.

"Do you think just because he won't pick up, we're out of options? Heh. Don't forget, there's more than one of you here. You're about ready to pop, aren't you? Let's play a game. Every time I call Julian and he doesn't answer, I'm going to take this bat to your stomach. We'll keep going until he picks up the damn phone..."

When the bat swung down the first time, Hester was still praying for Julian to burst through the doors, to save her and their babies.

But blow after blow, Julian never came.

Blood pooled beneath her like a river. Her world warped and shattered, leaving behind nothing but a blinding, agonizing red...

She ran as fast as she could, but a familiar voice echoed behind her.

"Hester, please wake up. Please don't leave me..."

It was Julian from five years ago. He was crying, begging her to come back. He said he needed her.

And so, she came back. She returned from the gates of hell, opening her eyes a full two weeks later. Her babies had already been cremated and buried. She hadn't even been allowed a single glance at them.

She was only a week away from her due date. From that day forward, her world had completely collapsed. The death of her children became a cursed chain, forever binding her to that horrific day.

For five years, she wandered between reality and illusion, holding the ultrasound of her twins and talking to empty air. She needed sleeping pills to get through every single night, only to jolt awake from the same kidnapping nightmare time and time again...