Chapter 2

The "wellness retreat" was a hellhole.

It was a front, a place where wealthy patrons paid to watch vulnerable people break.

They forced us into degrading "performances."

Public humiliation was a daily ritual.

The food was scarce, the conditions filthy.

My pregnancy, already fragile from stress, couldn't survive that place.

I lost my baby there, alone, on a cold floor.

The pain was a constant ache, a hollow space inside me.

Three years. Three years I endured.

Then, one day, they released me, just like that.

I was a husk, barely alive.

I made my way back, driven by a desperate, flickering hope.

I found myself outside a small, discreet restaurant where Julian was meeting the Harrisons.

I hid in the shadows, listening.

"She was good for my stability, I'll admit," Julian's voice drifted out, smooth and careless.

"Her presence, it did something for my health."

My biological mother, Mrs. Harrison, chimed in. "Well, Chloe is back now, dear. She' ll be a much better public face for the family."

"Exactly," Julian agreed. "Elara… I suppose I can keep her somewhere quiet. A hidden mistress, perhaps. As long as she doesn' t cause trouble."

Mr. Harrison chuckled. "Sensible. We always knew Chloe was the prize."

My breath caught.

It wasn't me they valued. Not Elara.

It was my "luck." My uncanny ability to bring good fortune to those I was close to.

They had used me, drained me, and now they were ready to discard the shell.

The realization hit me harder than any physical blow at the retreat.

My naivete, my love, had been a tool for them.