NATHAN CAME HOME EARLY
Nathan arrived at the mansion at 10:27 a.m.
He did not park properly.
He left his car crooked in the circular driveway and ran through the front entrance while the butler called after him.
Claire was already waiting in the foyer, pale and shaking.
“Where is she?” Nathan asked.
“East bedroom,” Claire said.
“What happened?”
“I heard your mother call for her.”
Nathan’s jaw tightened.
That should not have been enough to frighten him.
But it was.
Because lately, every time Abigail heard Margaret’s name, her shoulders changed. Her smile became careful. Her hands moved to her stomach like protection had become instinct.
Nathan had noticed.
He had asked.
Abigail always said, “I’m fine.”
He hated himself now for letting those words comfort him.
They reached the hallway outside the east bedroom just as Abigail’s voice came through the doors.
“Please… don’t touch me.”
Nathan stopped.
Claire’s face went white.
Then Margaret’s voice followed, sharp and cold.
“No one will believe you.”
Nathan opened the doors.
The scene inside hit him harder than any sound could have.
Abigail was on the floor beside the bed, white robe twisted around her, one hand braced on the marble, the other covering her belly.
Margaret stood above her.
Too close.
Too angry.
Too calm for an accident.
Nathan stepped into the room.
May you like
His voice came out low.
“Why is my wife on the floor?”
