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Chapter_168
Whitney’s heart felt like it was shattering into a thousand jagged pieces as she sat on the hospital bed, the weight of her despair pressing heavily on her chest. Every breath was a struggle, as if her body itself was trying to resist the crushing pain that seemed to consume her from the inside out. The agony—both physical and emotional—was unbearable. Each inhalation felt like a reminder of how far she had fallen, how far she had drifted from everything she had once held dear.
Her mind kept circling back to Ludwik’s words—the final, merciless rejection that had left no room for doubt. Hate. That was all that remained between them now. The love they had once shared, the bond they had believed in, seemed like a distant, unreachable memory. Shattered. Irreparably broken. She could feel the coldness of his anger even now, like an impenetrable wall separating them. How could she ever tear it down? How could she convince him that everything that had happened—the lies, the manipulation—had been out of her control?
But the hardest blow of all, the one that still cut deepest, was the fact that Ludwik had once trusted her. He had believed in her, in them. And now, that trust had turned to dust. It was gone. He couldn’t see the truth anymore—not with Elaine weaving her webs of deceit and clouding his judgment. The pain of that lost trust twisted deep in her chest.
Tears stung her eyes once again, but she wiped them away quickly, her hand trembling. Her friends—Valerie, Nolan, and Tiana—were rallying around her, trying to comfort her, but it felt like nothing could erase the sting of Ludwik’s rejection. Their words were kind, but hollow. They couldn’t fix what had been broken. They couldn’t heal the gaping wound he had left in her heart.
Yet, Valerie’s voice cut through the fog of her despair, offering a small flicker of hope amid the overwhelming darkness. “You and Mr. Lippert have a child together. That’s an unbreakable bond.”
Whitney’s hand instinctively went to her stomach, where the life she carried was the only thing that felt real anymore. The baby growing inside her was the last thread connecting her to Ludwik, the last spark of hope she had left. She had to protect this child, no matter what it cost her. No matter how far she had fallen. No matter how hopeless things seemed.
“I’ll never give up,” she whispered to herself, her voice soft but resolute. “I’ll never give up on you.”
The memory of that night when she had helped Natalie escape flooded back—Natalie’s gratitude, the trust shining in her eyes. Whitney had believed, in that moment, that everything would be okay. But now, the weight of what had happened since that night crushed her. She had tried so hard to do the right thing, to protect those she cared about, but each step forward had only led to more pain and destruction.
Why had it all gone so wrong? Her mind spun in a chaotic whirl of guilt and confusion. If only she had known the truth sooner. If only she hadn’t been manipulated by her uncle’s vengeful schemes. If only she could go back and undo everything. But those thoughts were useless. The past was gone, and all she had now was the future—a future she had to fight for, for her child and for the chance to redeem herself in Ludwik’s eyes.
“I will fix this,” she murmured, clenching her fists tightly as though willing herself to believe the words. “I will fix this. For you, for the baby… and for Ludwik.”
The darkness of the situation loomed over her like an insurmountable mountain, but Whitney refused to let it consume her. She had a plan, a path forward—even if it was a long and uncertain one. She had to stay strong. For her child. For the people she still cared about. She would find a way to make things right.
With renewed determination, she wiped away her tears and took a deep, steadying breath. The road ahead would be treacherous, but it was the only road she had left to walk.
