Tania sat alone in the quiet of the house that she and Ethan once shared. It felt surreal to her; every corner, every piece of furniture held memories of laughter, arguments, and fleeting moments of happiness. The house, once filled with life and light, now echoed with emptiness, haunted by her own choices.
The sudden shrill of her phone jolted her from her thoughts. Gia, her lawyer, was calling.
“Tania,” Gia’s voice was firm yet professional. “I need to go over the custody and alimony situation. It’s important you’re upfront with me about everything. I need full transparency.”
Tania bit her lip, realizing that she had secrets too dark to expose to Gia, yet she felt compelled to share one. “Grace… she isn’t Ethan’s biological child,” Tania said in a low tone. “But no one else knows.”
Gia was silent for a moment before replying, “In that case, you’ll likely have an advantage in the custody hearing. But this makes our position both delicate and risky. No surprises, okay?”
Tania murmured her agreement before the call ended, leaving her with the stillness of the empty house. She scrolled to Fred’s contact, dialing him and tapping her foot impatiently as the phone rang. He finally picked up on the fourth ring.
“What do you want, Tania?” Fred’s voice was curt.
“Fred, I’ve been trying to reach you,” she said. “Where are you? We need to meet.”
“I’m busy, Tania,” he said before abruptly hanging up.
The sound of the disconnect rang in her ear, and she threw her phone onto the couch in frustration. “What’s going on with everyone?” she hissed to herself. First Ethan, then Fabian, now Fred it felt as if her grip on everyone around her was slipping.
But she couldn’t afford to waste time. The court battle loomed, and she needed to stay sharp if she wanted to retain custody of Grace. I’ll handle Fred later, she decided. For now, her focus was on Ethan and making sure he’d suffer through every minute of this court case.
As Tania paced through the empty house, she couldn’t shake the feeling of loss that clung to her like a shadow. Every room felt larger, colder, now that Ethan wasn’t there, and for the first time, the hollowness gnawed at her. She stopped in the doorway of their bedroom the place where so much of their life together had happened and stared at the empty bed, her hand absently moving to her stomach. The reality that she was carrying a child hit her with a new weight, bringing an edge of panic she hadn’t allowed herself to feel before.
But she couldn’t afford to get sentimental now. Sentiment was a luxury she’d never had, not really. If she had, she might have hesitated before acting on her ambitions, before lying to Ethan, before betraying her own sister. No, she reminded herself, this was the path she’d chosen, and she’d see it through. Whatever it took.
As she walked back to the living room, her mind drifted to the court case and the stakes ahead. No one knows the unborn child isn’t Ethan’s, she thought, steeling herself. She’d gone to great lengths to keep her secrets intact. The doctors knew she was pregnant, of course, and she’d made sure they informed Ethan right after she’d cornered him. But no one knew the paternity. The identity of the father was something she’d buried so deeply, even Gia hadn’t questioned it.
Ethan doesn’t need to know. Not now, she told herself. Her hand clenched around her phone again as her thoughts began to spiral. The divorce is over, but if I win custody of Grace, Ethan will be tied to me. Grace was her trump card, a link between her and Ethan that no court decision could sever. If she could hold on to Grace, then she would always have a way back into his life-a way to remain relevant, even if he no longer wanted her.
Pacing mindlessly, she ran over the details in her head. No one else can know, she reminded herself, gripping the phone as if it could erase her secrets. Not about the baby she carried, and certainly not about Grace’s real parentage. That knowledge alone was a dangerous edge, one that could cut both ways. If Ethan or anyone else found out, it could ruin her case, and Tania could lose everything she had clawed and schemed her way toward.
I can’t lose Grace, she thought, the words repeating in her head like a mantra. She’d taken a calculated risk when she’d decided to tell Gia the truth, hoping it would give her the leverage she needed. She hadn’t gone into details, of course Gia didn’t need to know all the tangled lies that lay beneath the surface. As long as her lawyer knew the basics, they could work around it. And with any luck, the court would be sympathetic, seeing her as a mother fighting to keep her child.
But there was still a chance that someone would uncover the truth. Ethan’s lawyer could dig deeper, could question the timing or suspect her motives. Even the smallest detail could unravel the entire story she’d so carefully woven. Tania shook her head, forcing the thought away. I won’t let that happen. She’d come too far to lose now.
As she paced, her thoughts drifted back to Fred, and her frustration bubbled up again. He was one of the few people who knew enough to be a threat if he ever turned on her. Her calls had gone unanswered until he finally picked up, only to brush her off with a cold, dismissive tone. Why was he avoiding her? They had always been close, shared secrets that no one else could know, but lately, he’d grown distant, and it worried her. If Fred knew something, or if he was planning something on his own, she needed to get a grip on him before he became another complication in this delicate balance she was trying to maintain.
“Fine, Fred,” she muttered to herself. “If you want to play games, go ahead. I’ll handle you later. Right now, I have to focus on Ethan and this case.”
Her eyes narrowed as she looked around the room, as if she could will herself to regain control of the situation through sheer determination. She imagined Ethan sitting in court, looking defeated as the judge ruled in her favor, granting her full custody of Grace. She pictured his shocked face when he realized he’d have to keep dealing with her, sharing their daughter with her for the foreseeable future. Just the thought of it sent a shiver of satisfaction down her spine.
Yet a flicker of unease crept into her thoughts, reminding her that her position was fragile. The victory she envisioned was within reach, but only if she kept her secrets buried. The court proceedings would likely be long and grueling, and Gia had already warned her to expect scrutiny. She could feel the weight of it pressing down on her, a reminder of all the hidden truths lurking just below the surface.
“I won’t let them take Grace from me,” she said aloud, her voice echoing in the empty room. She had spent too much, sacrificed too much, to lose it all now. She’d crafted a life where she held all the cards, where no one could cross her without consequences. And if it came down to it, she would use every resource at her disposal to make sure she won.
Taking a deep breath, Tania squared her shoulders. She would need all her cunning for the fight ahead, but she was prepared. There would be no more weaknesses, no more hesitations. The mistakes of the past were behind her, and the future was hers to control.
With newfound determination, she sat down at the desk and began drafting a plan for the coming battle. Every detail had to be flawless. She would face Ethan in court with a story so convincing, no one would dare question it. The unborn child, the truth about Grace, and even Fred she would deal with each of them in turn, ensuring that no one could stand in her way.