A car rolled to a stop, and a woman was thrown out of it.
"Uh," Summer winced in pain, her whole body marred with bruises. She looked up at the two sturdy men in black suits who stepped out of the car.
"Please, don't kill me," she pleaded, trembling in fear. "I swear, I'll leave this place and never show up again."
"It's too late," one of the men said coldly. "Mr. Woods wants you gone. We can't let you walk away."
Her heart clenched painfully.
Gideon Woods, the man who once vowed to love her, protect her, and cherish her, had turned cold to her, wanting nothing more than to erase her existence.
'You cheated on me. Seeing your face makes me sick to my stomach.' Those hateful words still had the power to crush her heart.
How could she forget how he had accused her of infidelity, humiliated her in front of so many guests?
Flashback…
Seven days ago…
"Sign the divorce agreement and leave this house immediately." Gideon's cold words rattled Summer's world.
"Divorce?" Murmurs filled the hall. Everyone was shocked.
"You…You want a divorce!" Summer had never thought he would ever want to sever the bond with her.
She had been waiting for him to return home so they could celebrate their daughter's first birthday. But he delivered her a divorce agreement.
"Why?" Her voice shook, her eyes full of tears.
"Still pretending to be innocent?" He shot her a loathing glare. "I feel sick when I look at you. Your very existence disgusts me. Get out of my life and take that girl away. I don't want a bastard child in my place."
Bastard child!
Georgea, Gideon's mother, stepped forward and tugged at her son's hand. "What nonsense are you talking about?"
"It's not nonsense," said Gideon fiercely. "Every word I said is the truth. Hope is not my child."
He flung another bunch of documents toward Summer. "These are the paternity test results, which clearly state that Hope is not biologically related to me."
Summer's scalp went numb. Her knees nearly buckled as she bent down and picked up the scattered documents and checked them. The words blurred in front of her eyes.
"This can't be true," she said, shaking her head. "How could this be possible?"
She had been in love with him for seven years – five years of dating and two years of marriage. She had never thought of another man. It was only Gideon she had in her heart.
"It's fabricated." She looked at him with desperation in her eyes. "You know me. It's only you I have ever loved. I've only been with you. How could Hope not be yours?"
A hurt look crossed Gideon's face. "I also couldn't believe it at first. So I did the tests in three different labs." He curled his lips into a bitter smile. "The results are the same. Hope is not mine. I'm not her biological father."
Another ripple of murmur spread through the hall. Everyone looked at Summer with disgust.
Summer staggered, barely able to stand still. She struggled to understand why Gideon was humiliating her in this way. These reports were fake – they had to. Why couldn't he see it?
Georgea snatched the reports from her and scanned them. "Uh," she gasped, the papers slipping out of her hold. "So, it's true. That child is not part of Woods' bloodline."
She felt like the world spun around her, the darkness closing in on her from the corners of her eyes. "Oh, heavens…"
"Mrs. Woods!" The butler supported her and led her to the sofa.
"This woman…" Georgea lifted her trembling hand toward Summer. "She cheated on my son. You…shameless woman. Get out…" She clasped her chest, twisting her face in agony.
"No…" Summer shook her head desperately. "I didn't…"
Gideon clasped her shoulders in a bruising grip, cutting her short. "Who is her father? Who is the guy you slept with?"
"No, I didn't," Summer sobbed, trying to explain. But he wouldn't listen.
"I loved you so much," he hissed. "I went against my family to marry you. I gave you everything. What did I lack, Summer? Why did you lose interest in me? I did everything to keep you happy – gave you everything you wanted. Yet you deceived me. Why?"
His voice rose higher again as he pushed her away. Summer stumbled and fell on the floor.
Gideon's expression froze momentarily, and he instinctively reached out to hold her. But then the thought of her betrayal stopped him. He pulled his hand back and fisted it tightly as he delivered an ultimatum.
"Sign the divorce agreement and leave this place by tomorrow. I don't want to see your face and that bastard child here anymore."
He turned his back toward her.
"Gideon." She reached out and held his leg. "Don't you believe me? I didn't cheat on you. I could never…"
Gideon closed his eyes, pain evident in his face. He wished she were telling the truth, but the reality couldn't be ignored. Those reports screamed about her infidelity.
"I trusted you the most, but you shredded my trust piece by piece," he muttered. "You humiliated my love. You don't deserve to be my wife. So, I'm stripping away the title of Mrs. Woods from you. You have no place in my house, in my life."
He stormed away, leaving her shattered.
"Gideon, wait," Summer cried. "Please listen to me. Hope is your child. Something is wrong in these reports. You have to believe me. Come back…"
Gideon didn't look back, nor did he slow his steps.
"Why don't you believe me?" she sobbed.
They had been together for so long. She had been devoted to him. In the end, he lost his trust in her just because of some reports.
Was his love for her so shallow?
It was supposed to be one of the happiest evenings of their lives, but it turned out to be a horrible nightmare. He accused her of cheating in front of the whole city, even claiming the child was not his.
Summer could barely hold herself together.
"I shouldn't have accepted this marriage," Georgea started. "I should have stopped Gideon from bringing you into this family. You are a disgrace."
"A woman from a modest background doesn't belong in an elite family like the Woods," someone among the guests scoffed.
"Yes, she never deserved Gideon," another one joined. "It's good that her true color has surfaced eventually. She should be thrown out right away."
"Sign the divorce papers and leave," another voice shouted.
"That's enough," a sharp, commanding voice pierced through the crowd, silencing everyone.
All eyes turned to the woman. It was Danica, Gideon's sister-in-law. Dressed in a silver gown, she looked gorgeous, her presence demanding attention.
"Those reports could be fake." Her gaze swept over everyone. "Gideon might have mistaken something. Stop accusing her."
Hearing Danica's words, a hint of hope crossed Summer's eyes. She believed Danica would help her clear the doubts in Gideon's mind. After all, Gideon respected his sister-in-law. He wouldn't ignore her words, would he?
"Summer!" Danica moved toward her, with worry written all over her face. "Why are you on the floor? Get up. You may catch a cold. I'll talk to Gideon. Let's see how he can throw you out of his life."
Although her words sounded kind, her eyes gleamed with malice. She dug her nails into Summer's flesh.
Summer winced in shock and pain. She tapped on her hand. "Let go of me. You are hurting me."
Danica flailed her arms dramatically as if Summer had pushed her and fell to the ground. "Uh, my baby," she cried out, clutching her baby bump.
Summer froze. She didn't do anything. How did she fall?
Her mind went blank as she saw blood seeping out between Danica's legs.