The Mark He Bit Into Me novel Chapter 67

Chapter 1

Right when I was due, my husband Nathan Hale brought his parents over to stay.

The very next day, his mother, Sophie Hale, announced she was canceling the

ten-thousand-dollar maternity retreat I had booked.

“You young people just throw money away. Nathan may earn well, but not well enough for

you to waste it like this!”

Her words stung, but I kept my voice even.

“My parents paid for that. They wanted…”

Before I could finish, she was pointing right in my face.

“Don’t hide behind your parents! You married into this family, you are one of the Hales now.

There is no yours and mine!”

“A woman who doesn’t even work doesn’t need a luxury facility. That’s not how the Hales do

things.”

“Think you’re special just for having a baby? If you can’t even give us a son, let’s see if you

still dare to act so proud.”

I was furious. We had a huge fight, and the stress sent me straight into labor and to the

hospital.

After our son was born, Nathan, who had always doted on me, became a different person.

He berated me for disrespecting his mother. Then, while I was still recovering, he took

paternity leave and flew off on vacation with his parents.

He called it a lesson, saying I needed to stay home alone with the baby to learn how hard it is

to be a mother.

The audacity made me laugh. I immediately called my real estate agent.

He wanted me to learn how hard it is? Oh, I learned.

And I learned that this apartment, a wedding gift from my parents, needed to be returned to

them.

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Nathan and his father were out, leaving Sophie at home to “watch” me.

I’d just settled onto the sofa to stream a show, but she waved me over.

“Come look at this debit card. A deposit was supposed to come through today, but I never

got the text alert. I’m a nervous wreck.”

I sighed and took her phone.

“The alerts can be slow. I’ll just install the mobile banking app; checking your statement is

the only way to be sure.”

She nodded quickly, hovering right over my shoulder, watching my every tap.

A few minutes later, I turned the screen toward her.

“See, Mrs. Hale? Here’s the statement. No deposits today. Are you sure they sent it?”

“That’s impossible!”

She immediately snatched the phone back, her anxiety flaring. She started swiping frantically,

griping under her breath.

“I know I processed the refund! Why isn’t it here?”

“They promised it would arrive the same day! It’s almost nighttime. I knew these agencies

were scams. That’s ten thousand dollars!”

Her panic seemed genuine. When she said “agency,” my own stomach dropped.

I assumed she’d fallen for an elaborate phishing scam, the kind that targets the elderly.

The statement didn’t show any large withdrawals, but I was still worried.

“Mrs. Hale, let’s not jump to conclusions. Just think clearly. What money was this?”

“Who exactly promised you this transfer? We have to know the source before we can figure

out what happened.”

I was debating whether to call Nathan back immediately, or perhaps just call the police.

But Sophie’s voice suddenly shot up, practically screaming at me.

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“It’s the money from maternity retreat you booked! I went down there myself this morning

and canceled it.”

“The woman guaranteed me the refund would be in my account today. It’s night! Where is it?”

“I told you! Nobody needs to spend that much money on recovery. It had to be a scam. They’ve probably just run off with the cash!”

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