He Made Me Take the Blame for His Mistress's Crime

The night of our engagement party, my fianc's first love drove drunk and slammed into me. The wheels rolled hard over my belly.

Then the car stopped. The engine roared, and it reversed, and rolled over me again.

My fianc came running. He spared me a single glance.

A man who couldn't stand a speck of dirt on himself, he crouched down and stripped off his suit jacket to wrap the scraped skin on Flora Pruitt's arm.

I dragged my last strength into one hand and caught the hem of his trousers.

"Jerome Henson. My stomach"

He took out a bottle of liquor.

"Flora's name's in the engagement notice. She can't get a DUI."

He pinned my jaw shut and forced the liquor down my throat.

"Flora barely touched you. She has a clotting disorder, she needs a hospital, now."

"When the police get here, you confess and behave. After you're out, the Henson name is still yours."

The burn poured down my throat and surged through my whole body, like everything inside me had caught fire.

My mind began to slip.

I drifted in the black sky, weightless, holding the hand of my unborn baby.

Baby tugged at the hem of my dress.

"Mama, where's Daddy going?"

"Doesn't he want us anymore?"

My throat went dry.

"No. We don't want him anymore."

""

Baby bowed that little head.

A long moment passed before the eyes lifted again, careful, and gave my dress another tug.

"Mama, I haven't met Daddy yet."

"I want to follow him and look at him. Can I?"

The words caught in my chest.

All I could do was nod, stiff.

"Okay."

Jerome, who never broke a single rule, tore through the streets and blew through one red light after another.

He rushed into the hospital, that always-perfect hair of his soaked with sweat, strands of it plastered to his forehead.

He didn't care. He just kept his head down, soothing Flora in his arms, walking fast enough to outrun death itself.

Baby tipped that small face up at me, eyes full of confusion.

"Mama, why is Daddy so nice to the lady?"

Something twisted in my chest.

"The lady is Daddy's good friend. She's hurt, so Daddy has to take care of her."

Once she was settled, Flora leaned into Jerome's arms and cried, tears spilling right on cue.

"Jerome, I didn't mean to."

"I just saw the two of you getting engaged, and it hurt so much, I only wanted to drive away. I didn't know I'd hit her."

Jerome patted her back, slow and gentle, his voice carrying a tenderness I had never once heard from him.

"I know. You're too sweet, too kind to ever do something like that on purpose. It's not your fault."

Baby balled up two tiny fists, cheeks puffed out with anger.

"The lady's lying. She did it on purpose."

"She drove over Mama's tummy two times. It hurt so much, so much."

My nails dug deep into my palm.

Flora seemed to remember something.

"Jerome, you've only looked after me. Won't she be angry?"

"I saw it earlier, there was so much blood between her legs."

Jerome didn't even crease his brow. His voice was certain.

"Nancy Fox's always been sensible. She won't fuss over something this small."

"That blood is just her period. She forgot to bring pads, that's all."

I went still with shock.

He remembered when my period came. I'd thought he never paid attention to any of it.

A flicker of jealousy crossed Flora's eyes.

"Jerome, you're so thoughtful. You even remember that."

Jerome let out a soft laugh.

"Her period falls on the same day as yours. Hard not to remember."

A nail snapped clean off against my palm.

Out in the hall, a sudden scramble of noise broke out.

Threaded through it, someone shouting, "Save her, hurry!"

Jerome's face darkened. He was about to lose his temper.

A nurse said, low,

"That woman from the car crash earlier, it's awful. I think her last name was Fox?"

Jerome flinched and started to rise on instinct.

Flora's hand shot out and gripped his, tight with nerves.

Another nurse picked up the thread.

"Right? I heard her belly was crushed flat under the tires."

The breath went out of Jerome in plain relief, and he patted the back of Flora's hand.

He smiled.

"You barely brushed against Nancy. It can't be her."

A flicker of panic crossed Flora's eyes.

The nurse went on. "There was a baby inside her too. Two lives, gone just like that."

Jerome relaxed enough to sit back down.

"Same surname, that's all. Nancy and I never slept together. There's no way she could be pregnant."

"And here I was, worried about her."

Flora settled against his chest, the smugness in her eyes impossible to hide.

Baby burst out crying, tears falling fast.

"Stupid Daddy, Mommy really was carrying me."

"Why don't you know? I'm never talking to you again."

The door eased open and a nurse crept in, bowing to Jerome.

"Lawyer Henson, the hospital only had two bags of rare Rh-negative plasma, and you bought both of them."

"The Fox woman is hemorrhaging now. She needs plasma to survive. Could you release one bag?"

Baby flung himself forward, tiny hands clawing at the hem of Jerome's clothes.

"Daddy, hurry, save Mommy."

But he was only a weightless spirit. Jerome couldn't see him at all.

Jerome's face stayed cold.

"Flora has a clotting disorder. She needs a guaranteed supply. There's nothing to spare."

The nurse went pale, said nothing more, and hurried out with her head down.

The room fell quiet, leaving only the sound of blood dripping through the transfusion line.

Drip. Drip.

Before long, nurses passed by outside, talking low.

"That Fox woman is just too pitiful. Bled out alive, and that was it."

"One bag of plasma and she'd have lived."

"Hush. The plasma's in the Henson heir's hands. You tired of living?"

Jerome's thumb and forefinger rubbed slowly together, twice, without his meaning to.

I hovered there at the edge of it all, watching, when Baby turned and looked up at me, choking on sobs.

"Mommy, why won't Daddy save you?"

I looked at his little eyes, swollen red from crying, and the ache nearly tore me apart.

All I could do was steel myself and soothe him.

"Daddy doesn't know it's Mommy. If he knew it was me he was saving, he'd save me for sure."

He should.

He would.

"But I saw it clearly."

Baby's mouth crumpled.

"The lady only scraped a little skin. She wasn't even bleeding. So why did Daddy keep all the plasma for her?"

The breath caught in my throat.

I opened my mouth and couldn't get out a single word.

Flora's eyes shifted, and she spoke in a small, timid voice.

"Jerome, the drunk driving won't come back on me, will it?"

"If they trace it to me, the government job I worked so hard to land is ruined."

Jerome smiled, sure of himself.

"Don't worry. I'm a top lawyer. I know how an accident scene gets cleaned up."

"And I already checked. We got lucky. There are no cameras anywhere near there. No one will ever know the truth."

I laughed coldly.

Lucky, nothing. Flora had scouted that backstreet long ago and picked it on purpose for how empty it was.

Flora wrinkled her nose.

"What if my sister won't admit fault and makes a scene about it?"

Jerome looked like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"She's already Mrs. Henson. She's only taking the blame for you. She has no reason not to be grateful."

As he spoke, he pulled out his phone and texted me.

"You should be at the police department by now. Confess quickly. I'll make it up to you once you're out."

He was about to lock the screen when the phone suddenly rang.

He picked up.

"Lawyer Henson? This is the police department, about your fiance Nancy Fox and the crash"

Jerome cut him off, voice flat and cold.

"She got herself into this driving drunk. Handle it however it needs handling. Don't ask me."

The officer pressed on. "No, that's not it. There's a problem with this case. She's"

"She's throwing a tantrum, isn't she."

His tone dropped colder.

"Leave her be. The Hensons won't shield her. Sentence her however the law sees fit."

He hung up.

But something needled at him, faint and unsettling. He turned to Flora. "I'm going down to the station. Make sure she doesn't cause a scene."

Flora clutched the hem of his jacket, eyes rimmed red, brimming with hope.

"Jerome, you promised me once. You'd take me to the Arctic to see the northern lights."

"Let's leave first thing tomorrow, please? It's my last wish."

His expression melted, and he gave in at once.

"All right."

He sat back down and talked the trip over with her, gentle and full of anticipation.

Baby's eyes were red. His voice came out small. "Mommy, I don't think I like Daddy anymore."

The next morning, Jerome took Flora aboard the Henson family's private jet.

Flora took in the lavish interior, greed she didn't bother to hide.

In the Arctic they watched the lights and rode the sleds, both of them happier than I'd ever seen them.

Baby stayed glum the whole time, little head bowed, not saying a word.

I crouched down and stroked his hair.

"Baby, look how beautiful it is here. Cheer up a little."

He lifted his head, his small face dead serious.

"Mommy, I don't think Daddy and the lady are just friends."

I went still. "Why do you say that?"

"They look more like a husband and wife."

Something clamped tight in my chest.

It was true. All the years I'd been with Jerome, he was forever too busy at the firm, never once willing to walk the shops with me.

Let alone take a month off to travel together.

He said the Henson family kept a strict house, and he slept in a separate room from me the whole time.

Now he held Flora every night, the two of them shamelessly close.

He'd taken so many photos with her, posting them with that radiant smile.

Before, when I'd wanted a single photo together, he frowned and refused.

Said he was the Henson heir and a top lawyer. He couldn't flaunt affection like that and cheapen his standing.

Now none of it mattered to him.

The whole time, the texts kept coming.

One after another, all demands.

"How long did they give you? I checked. A case like yours, a month at most."

"Why aren't you answering? You dare sulk at me now?"

"Nancy Fox, answer me, or I'll cut off the Fox family's allowance."

It was almost funny.

I was dead. How was I supposed to text him back?

My mother's call came through, her voice careful and timid.

"Jerome, the police just called me. They said Nancy died in a crash, that we need to come claim the body."

"What... what on earth is going on?"

Jerome let out a cold scoff.

"There's a limit to how far she'll take a tantrum. Now she's cooking up an excuse this absurd."

"All she did was get detained for drunk driving. How could she be dead."

My mother went straight to placating him. "Yes, yes, of course. The station must have made a mistake."

In the background came my father's low, scolding voice.

"I told you it had to be fake."

"That body's pregnant. The Hensons run such a strict house they wouldn't even let the two of them live together before the wedding. How could Nancy be pregnant."

"Leave the police out of it. If Jerome gets angry, the whole Fox family is finished."

A thread of mockery pulled at the corner of Jerome's mouth.

He'd meant to say he would cut off the Foxes' funding, but in the end the words stayed behind his teeth.

The moment he was back in the country, Jerome went straight home.

He'd turned it over in his head more than once these past days. Nancy really had been wronged this time. A little temper was only natural.

She wouldn't hold it against him.

But the instant he opened the door, he froze.

Dust lay thick over everything, the rooms cold and still, nothing about them suggesting anyone lived here at all.

His face darkened. He yanked out his phone and stabbed at the screen.

"Nancy Fox, you've gotten bold. Now you won't even come home?"

The message dropped into silence. No reply, not a word.

Flora's face filled with guilt.

"Jerome, do you think she's angry?"

"It's my fault. She must have seen what I posted and gotten jealous."

He didn't answer her.

His thumbs only moved faster.

"Don't answer and I'm calling off the engagement."

"Let's see if those gold-digging parents of yours forgive you."

The phone stayed dead.

He stormed into the bedroom and wrenched the closet door open.

Inside, my clothes hung in neat rows, not a single piece missing.

His brow knotted tighter, and an unease he couldn't name crept over him.

His hand trembled faintly as he pulled open the nightstand drawer.

Inside lay a baby's gold anklet, small and delicate, chiming softly at the lightest touch.

Jerome picked it up, and for no reason his eyes went soft.

Baby drifted over at once, happy, reaching out to touch it.

"Mommy, is this for me? It's so pretty."

But Flora leaned in first, her voice all sweetness.

"Oh, what an adorable little anklet."

"Jerome, could you give it to me?"

"No! That's from Mommy, you can't give it to her."

Baby burst into tears, tiny hands batting helplessly at his father's arm, grasping at nothing.

Jerome didn't hesitate for a second. He handed the gold anklet straight to Flora.

"If you like it, keep it."

Flora made a show of concern.

"But won't she be upset?"

"It's fine."

He said it without a care.

"When we have a child, I'll just have another one made for her."

Baby came back to me, crying so hard he could barely breathe.

"Mommy, I don't want Daddy anymore, he's so mean!"

"Why did he give my thing to the bad lady?"

I held him tight, and the tears I'd been holding finally fell.

Every hope, every small thing I'd waited for through these days, all of it was broken now.

My heart was gone for good.

I nodded gently.

"Okay. We won't want him anymore."

Then I took Baby's little hand, turned, and walked out the door without looking back even once.

Jerome's head snapped up, his eyes on the direction we'd vanished.

The unease rose in him like a tide, harder and stronger, until he could hardly breathe.

He began tearing through the bedroom, searching like a man gone mad for anything I'd left behind.

But no matter how hard he searched, there was nothingonly the clothes he'd once bought me.

He remembered, all at once, how I'd come into this house with nothing but a body full of bruises and ragged clothes.

Back then he had pitied me, and decided he would treat me well.

So how had he lost his mind so completely that he'd forced me to take the blame for her crime?

From the very back of the closet, he dug out an old diary.

His hands shook as he opened it.

The 2nd

Dad hit me again. Said the Fox family was nearly bankrupt, that I was useless, that I couldn't even find a good son-in-law.

April 10th

Mom says the Hensons are looking for a daughter-in-law. Maybe there's hope for me.

I just hope he won't hit me. As long as he lets me eat my fill, that's enough.

April 16th

I wore a pretty dress for the first time today.

Jerome Henson is so handsome.

He actually agreed to marry me. I'm so happy.

After that, every page was filled with how good Jerome had been to her.

His eyes burned, and he couldn't stop them from reddening.

But all of it had only ever been a man doing his duty as a husband in name.

May 14th

Jerome proposed to me. I'm so happy.

But he didn't seem happy. He drank so much, and then he took me, and it hurt so much.

He kept calling out a name, Flora. Who is Flora?

The cold dropped through him like ice closing over his head.

The blurred memory sharpened all at once.

That night, the liquor heavy in his blood.

The next morning, when I made him breakfast, I could barely walk straight.

May 14th

Jerome says we're getting engaged.

That's the day I'll tell him. He's going to be a father.

The diary ended there. Just stopped.

"The baby. My baby..."

His face drained white. The words spilled out of him in a broken murmur, and then he was tearing out of the house like a man losing his mind, flooring the car all the way to the police station.

He burst inside and grabbed the arm of the nearest officer, his voice gone raw.

"Nancy Fox, the drunk-driving casehas it been sentenced yet? Where is she?"

Officer Dickerson looked up.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Jerome Henson. I'm her fianc."

For the first time in his life, Jerome was coming apart.

Contempt filled Officer Dickerson's eyes. He let out a short, scornful laugh.

"Lawyer Henson, you're too late."

"Nancy Fox bled out from that crash. She's been dead a long time."

"No one claimed the body. We cremated her. The ashes were scattered into the sea."