Marriage on Countdown

I still have a week before my due date when a truck suddenly hits me, sending me flying several feet and leaving me bleeding profusely on the ground.

As I lose consciousness, I call my husband, Wallace Brown, begging him to rush over and save our unborn child, only for him to reply coldly, "It's Beth's 18th birthday party today, Meryl. You can't seriously be pulling one of your stunts on a day like this, can you?"

In the next instant, I hear my son, Daniel Brown, exclaiming, "You're always using the baby to threaten us, Mommy! I really hate it when you do that!"

Wallace stresses the importance of Beth's birthday party again, demands that I attend immediately, and then hangs up on me.

With a pool of blood spreading beneath me, I close my eyes, overcome by despair.

When I open my eyes again, I am met by the sight of a death certificate.

The doctor delivers a crushing pronouncement. "I'm sorry, but if you had gotten here sooner, we might have been able to save the baby's life…"

I look at the death certificate, feeling as though my heart died with my baby.

I finally decide to leave this family, yet now they're the ones begging me to stay.

Wallace's Point-of-View

It was 10:00 pm when I returned home with my son, Daniel Brown. I opened the door, only to find that it was completely dark inside.

I furrowed my brow as I flicked on the light, asking, "Why didn't you turn the lights on, Meryl? You do know that the baby's due in a week, right? What if you trip and hurt yourself?"

Without waiting for my wife, Meryl Stewart, to respond, I added, "Go heat up some milk for Daniel, and then prepare a cup of hot coffee for me."

At the time, I had no idea that Meryl had already been rushed to surgery and was lying unconscious in the operating room. She was covered in wounds beyond count, the blood staining her clothes completely.

Daniel and I waited, but the usual prompt reply from Meryl never came. My irritation flared at the delay.

Daniel called out softly toward the room, asking, "Where did you go, Mommy? I want to drink some milk."

Upon hearing no response from Meryl, I instantly furrowed my brow. Marching straight to her room, I snapped, "Do you have any idea how pregnant you are right now? How could you still play hide-and-seek here, Meryl?"

I pushed the door open, only to find it pitch-black as well. I flipped on the light switch and looked around, my gaze hardening once I confirmed that Meryl wasn't around.

I took my phone out and sent her a voice message. "It's Beth's 18th birthday celebration today, Meryl. How could you throw a tantrum just because of that? You can't use our unborn baby to threaten me, Meryl. You should get back here and apologize to Beth. Maybe then I'll overlook this."

Unbeknownst