Page 2 of Mase
Something has changed in her recently; her lies and cold demeanor are destroying us. The way she’s been avoiding spending time with me has stopped the arguments but created a distance between us I’ve only been too happy to have. But even I know, despite my traumatic childhood, this isn’t normal, and this isn’t good for either of us.
Of course, I’d never abandon her; I’d never leave her. I made her a promise, and my vows meant something, so I intend to follow through with them. But she’s taken advantage of me for far too long now, and it has to stop.
Has to.
Her right arm is wrapped in bandages, her face marred with bruises, cuts litter her cheeks, and nausea coils in my stomach at the thought of how much pain she must be in. At least she isn’t on oxygen or in a coma. That’s what I keep telling myself.
She appears to be sleeping, and given her current state, that’s probably best for her.
“Mr. Campbell?”
Slowly, I raise my head from staring at my clasped hands.
I clear my throat and meet the eyes of a doctor, one with sympathy oozing from him, and I swallow hard, knowing he’s about to deliver some bad news.
“I’m Doctor Ford, and I’ve been caring for Mrs. Campbell. She was involved in a traffic collision tonight at approximately”—he checks his watch—“one-fifteen.”
I nod, and he straightens his shoulders, releases a deep breath, then opens his mouth.
“I’m sorry to inform you, but the baby didn’t survive.”
A strange sound lodges in my throat, and confusion hits me.
My eyes bounce over his face before I look back at mywife. Does he have the right woman? The right documentation?
“Baby?” I gulp out, in equal parts mortification and panic. There’s no way in hell she was pregnant. None. She hasn’t let me touch her in so damn long I’ve forgotten how she feels against me.
The doctor surveys me further and gives me a swift nod, clearly confident in his assessment. “Yes, sir. Your wife was five months pregnant.”
Shock hits me right in the fucking chest, causing my lungs to burn. I throw my head back on a deep, sarcastic laugh that’s so fucking loud it sounds maniacal.
The doctor flinches, and I can only guess I’m coming across as unhinged.
He stares at me with wide eyes, and I shake my head.
“My wife was not pregnant, never mind five fucking months. I’d have known if my wife was pregnant for five months!” Irritation infiltrates my bloodstream, and blood rushes in my ears. I grind my jaw from side to side, then lift my chin. “You’re wrong,” I declare.
There’s no way Tara was pregnant. Hell, we haven’t had sex in almost a year. She never wants it, tells me she hates me, and in those moments, I hate her too.
“I’m sorry, sir. I delivered the infant myself.” He grimaces, and a flash of dread settles deep inside me. My heart squeezes tight, and I ball my hands into fists and continue shaking my head. I refuse to believe it. She wouldn’t.
She cheated? My wife cheated on me. She was meant to be mine. We made vows, a promise to one another.
And worse, she got pregnant with another man’s child, knowing how much I wanted that. Knowing how much it tore me up when she miscarried our baby. “There’s been a mistake. There has to be,” I whisper. Sure, she says she hates me, but this? She knows how much it would destroy me.
“I’m sorry, sir. There’s no mistake.” The solemn sound of his voice angers me. I don’t need his pity.
Languorously, I push back in my chair, and the squeaking as it scrapes along the linoleum floor grates on my nerves. I stand to my full height, and the doctor takes a step back, with fear flashing in his eyes.
I’m tall—especially compared to his short ass—at six-three, so I must look like a giant next to him, but right now, I feel like the smallest man to ever live.
“Get me another fucking doctor and a second opinion. Now!” I bark, causing him to jump.
He nods frantically, like a fucking idiot, and heads toward the door. When he’s about to go through it, he twists around to look behind him, and his eyes lock with mine. “Mr. Campbell. Just so that you’re aware, the man Mrs. Campbell arrived with tonight passed away. His family is being informed now.” He slips through the door, and my ass hits the chair, hard.
His words ring out in my ears like a warning siren.“Mr. Campbell. Just so that you’re aware, the man Mrs. Campbell arrived with tonight passed away.”She was with another man?
No, she was having a girls’ night. A sleepover with friends. She told me she was.
