The Forbidden Birth, Rotting in the Dark

I was nine months pregnant and on the verge of labor, but my husband had me locked away.

His favorite mistress, Josie, had nearly lost her pregnancy after taking labor-inducing drugs just to ensure her son would be the firstborn.

To keep her calm, he forced me to drink ten bowls of a Labor-Lock tincture to delay my delivery.

I knelt on the floor, enduring the agonizing screams of my body, begging him to let my baby come into the world.

Instead, Preston personally forced the medicine down my throat.

By the ninth bowl, the pain reached a fever pitch, and I felt my baby struggling violently inside me.

Preston picked up the tenth bowl and gripped my chin, his gaze cold as ice.

"Josie only wants to give me my firstborn son, yet you tried to steal that from her by forcing your own labor. You almost made her lose her child."

"You've always tried to outshine her, but my firstborn must come from Josie. There is no room for negotiation!"

The contractions intensified, and my water broke, but the medicine kept my body tightly sealed.

My baby was crushed to death inside me, and blood began to pour from between my legs.

While I suffered, Preston was busy comforting his mistress, even taking five days off work to stay by her side.

He didn't remember his imprisoned wife until Josie successfully gave birth to a son.

He had no idea that by then, my body was already rotting in the dark.

After nine bowls of that Labor-Lock tincture, my lower abdomen was a battlefield of agony.

I could see the small, desperate bulges of my baby's limbs pushing against my skin.

Preston stepped toward me with the final bowl of the dark, bitter liquid.

I knelt at his feet, cradling my stomach with shaking hands, my face drenched in tears.

"Preston, please, call the doctor. Save our baby. If you let the child live, I'll step down as your wife. I'll give her everything, just please"

Josie stood nearby, leaning on a maid's arm, her eyes welling with calculated tears.

"Pres, I never wanted to take her place. I just didn't want our son to be treated as less than hers."

Preston's heart immediately melted for her.

"Don't worry, Josie. The child in your womb is my true heir."

He gently stroked her belly, his voice softening.

"Focus on your recovery. I'm here, and I won't let anyone hurt you or our son again."

Then he turned back to me, his expression turning to stone as I lay crumpled on the floor.

"Josie only wants to give me my firstborn. You're the one being malicious, trying to deliver early just to spite her."

"I've let you look down on her for long enough. This child must be hers first."

He grabbed my jaw, forcing my mouth open, and poured the tenth bowl down my throat until not a drop was left.

I choked and coughed, my lungs burning as I struggled for air.

My throat felt like it had been seared with hot coals, and my voice came out as a raspy croak.

"Preston, if anything happens to this baby, I will never let you go!"

He didn't even look at me. "It's just a few days' delay. What could possibly go wrong?"

"If you weren't so obsessed with competing with Josie, none of this would be happening."

Josie wiped her eyes, sobbing softly. "Pres, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have asked for the title of firstborn."

"Don't blame yourself. I've spoiled her too much in the past, and now she doesn't know her place."

The medicine took hold quickly.

My water broke uncontrollably, and my uterus began to contract against the artificial seal, sending waves of cold sweat down my body.

"You'll stay here and reflect. Once Josie's son is born, I'll send someone to help you."

He left me there, paralyzed on the floor, as he carefully escorted Josie out of the room.

I crawled toward the door, leaving a trail of fluid and blood, and banged feebly against the wood.

"Call the doctor save my baby"

The guard outside sounded indifferent. "Ma'am, the Boss said no one goes in. Don't make my job harder."

"The doctor said the tincture just delays things. Your baby will be fine. Just relax."

The pain from the contractions made my entire body vibrate.

I turned pale, unable to make another sound.

The metallic scent of blood filled the room as the rug beneath me turned a dark, gruesome crimson.

My baby struggled one last time, a frantic kick against my ribs, and then went still.

My eyelids felt like lead.

As I drifted into the darkness, my mind wandered back to the beginning.

The wedding veil was lifted, and I looked into Preston's eyes.

"Don't be afraid, my love. From now on, I am your husband. I'll protect you for the rest of your life."

He sounded so sincere back then.

For a year, I was his entire world, and he gave me the best of everything.

He would rush home from the office just to bring me my favorite pastries from the bakery across town.

When I was sick, he would stay up late making me soup with his own hands.

We spent a beautiful year together without a single argument, the envy of everyone in our circle.

Then, Josie was brought into our lives, and everything started to rot.

"She's the daughter of a business partner," Preston had promised me. "I couldn't refuse. She'll stay for a while, and then I'll find her a place of her own."

I believed him.

But within days, Josie began her campaign of manipulation.

If Preston was having dinner with me, Josie's maid would suddenly appear, claiming Josie had cut her finger.

He would leave me alone at the table to rush to her side.

In reality, it was always a tiny scratch that barely bled.

Even if we were already in bed, Josie could always find a reason to call him away.

She was homesick, or she had burned herself making tea, or she just needed him to talk to.

It happened so often that I eventually stopped fighting it, not wanting to seem petty.

But Josie saw my patience as a weakness.

She started acting like I was a cruel, overbearing wife in front of Preston.

She cried to him, claiming I was cutting her allowance or that the staff was mistreating her on my orders.

At first, Preston didn't believe her, but the constant whispers eventually poisoned his mind.

He began to see me as a narrow-minded woman who couldn't handle having another person in the house.

To maintain appearances, he stayed civil, but the warmth was gone.

Then we both got pregnant around the same time.

At nine months, Josie knelt before him and begged for her child to be the firstborn.

She claimed she didn't care about titles for herself, only for the baby's future.

Preston promised her everything.

Because I was further along, it was likely I would give birth first.

Josie took labor-inducing drugs to beat me to it, but it backfired and threatened her pregnancy.

Preston blamed me, calling me jealous and cruel.

I was naturally going into labor, but he saw it as a calculated move to spite his mistress.

And so, he forced those ten bowls of poison into me.

The physical pain finally dragged my consciousness back to the surface.

I could hear the staff talking outside the door.

"Josie is really the favorite. The Boss hasn't left her side since the scare."

"I bet she'll be the lady of the house soon. One word from her, and the Boss drugged his own wife."

"The Missus just doesn't get it. Why fight over a title? Now she's punished and hated."

Hearing them, my heart felt like it had turned to ice.

Everyone knew I had been discarded.

I touched my swollen belly, but there was no movement, no heartbeat.

I tried to knock on the door again, but my hand was too weak.

"Please the doctor my baby"

The heavy door didn't budge.

I realized then that Preston had finally gotten what he wanted.

My child would never stand in the way of Josie's son.

As I felt myself slipping away again, the door finally creaked open.

A servant looked at me lying in a pool of blood and water, covering her nose in disgust.

"Ma'am, the Boss said if you stay quiet until the mistress gives birth, he'll send a midwife."

I couldn't wait. My baby was already gone.

I grabbed the servant's hem with trembling fingers. "Save my baby call the doctor"

The woman pulled away. "The Boss said the medicine is safe. Just wait a few days."

"The doctor is busy with Josie. He doesn't have time for you."

The door shut again, and my hand hit the floor with a dull thud.

I felt the coldness spreading through my abdomen and closed my eyes for the last time.

Suddenly, I heard hurried footsteps.

The family doctor entered with his medical bag, looking relieved when he saw me.

For a second, a spark of hope flickered. Maybe there was still a chance.

But the doctor didn't check my pulse. He just started laying out his tools.

"I'm glad I'm not too late. Josie is still in trouble, and the Boss said he'd have my head if I didn't save her baby."

He held a scalpel over a flame.

My eyes widened in horror. "What are you doing?!"

But I was too weak to move.

He sliced into my abdomen without hesitation. I was so far gone that the pain felt like it belonged to someone else.

The baby was pulled out, purple and limp. The doctor let out a chilling laugh.

"Good, the body is still warm. I might actually live through the night."

"You're really helping us out, Ma'am. Josie needs the heart-essence of a full-term infant as a ritual cure. The Boss said her life is the priority."

Heart-essence? Preston was using our child's life to save Josie's?

How could he be so monstrous? This was his own blood!

I tried to scream, to stop him, but I had no strength left.

I watched as he plunged a needle into my baby's chest.

Blood filled a small vial, and the doctor immediately tossed the tiny body onto the floor like trash.

He hurried out with the vial, leaving me bleeding out on the floor.

My stomach was a gaping wound. I could see my own insides through the jagged cut.

With my final ounce of strength, I reached out and pulled my baby into my arms.

I tried to cover the wound in his chest with my thumb, trying to stop the bleeding that had already stopped.

The coldness finally consumed me, and I stopped breathing with my eyes wide open.

Preston stared at the medicine the doctor brought, a sudden wave of unease washing over him.

Josie's voice pulled him back to reality. "Pres, after the baby is born, I'll apologize to her. I feel so bad about all of this."

Preston frowned and fed her the medicine.

"Why apologize? Seraphina is the one who was being difficult. She needs to learn her place."

"This will be a lesson for her."

Josie took his hand, acting sweet. "She's still your wife. We shouldn't let this ruin your marriage."

Preston patted her hand. "You're so much more mature than she is, Josie."

"But when I left she looked like she was in a lot of pain. Are you sure the medicine is okay?"

Josie squeezed his hand. "The doctor said it's fine. It just delays the birth. Don't you trust me?"

Preston's anxiety eased slightly.

"Once you deliver, I'll make sure you're officially recognized as my equal. Our son won't have to hide."

Josie beamed, though she tried to hide her greed. "I don't care about status, Pres. I just care about our baby."

He kissed her forehead, completely enchanted.

After the medicine, Josie's condition stabilized. The doctor said she'd deliver within three days.

On the third morning, Josie went into labor.

Preston insisted on staying in the room with her, despite the midwife's protests.

Josie was pale and sweaty, gripping his hand. "Save save the baby"

The room smelled of blood and sweat.

After twelve long hours, a boy was born.

The sound of a healthy baby's cry filled the room.

Preston wiped the sweat from Josie's brow, ecstatic. "You did it, Josie! You've given me an heir!"

Josie looked at him weakly. "I'm so happy our son is here."

"Now, go check on Seraphina. Send the midwife to her. I don't want her to hold a grudge."

Preston's mood soured at the mention of my name. "Forget her for now. She can wait another day or two."

"You're too kind. That's why she keeps bullying you."

Josie shed a few tears. "I just love you too much. I don't want to cause trouble."

Then, the midwife's voice turned frantic.

"Something's wrong! She's hemorrhaging!"

Preston grabbed the doctor by the collar. "Fix her! If she dies, you die!"

The doctor panicked and quickly came up with a solution.

"The only way to stop this is a direct transfusion of maternal blood from a relative or another pregnant woman. It's the only way to stabilize her."

Preston immediately thought of me. He sent a servant to my room to bring me over.

He finally remembered me, but only because he wanted my blood for her.

Ten minutes later, the servant came back, shaking.

"Boss the Missus she passed away three days ago"

Preston's world tilted. He couldn't process the words.

"What do you mean she's gone?!"

The servant fell to his knees, sobbing. "She's been dead since the first day!"

Preston lunged at the man and slapped him across the face. "You liar! How dare you curse my wife!"

"Is she refusing to come? Did she tell you to lie to me?"

The servant just kept shaking his head.

Determined to get what he wanted, Preston stormed toward my wing of the house, intent on dragging me out.

As he reached the door, he was hit by the overwhelming stench of decay.

"What is that smell?!"

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