My Second Husband

The scream from the front made Aletta in the kitchen rush out, witnessing the unsettling scene.

"Blood..." Aletta murmured softly as she saw Bella lying on the floor, blood seeping out.

"Did you do it on purpose?"

Her husband's question left Aletta silent, confused about what he meant.

"SPEAK!!!" Aletta was startled as her husband suddenly raised his voice.

"Clearly say it, was it your doing? Did you intentionally make Bella miscarry so I could accept your pregnancy?"

Aletta took slow steps backward, afraid as she saw her husband approaching with intimidating eyes.

Bella Saphira, a 31-year-old woman with fair skin and beauty, was her husband's lover. After marrying him, he quickly introduced Bella and let her stay in the house given by her parents as a wedding gift.

"Not me, I didn't do it," Aletta answered fearfully, knowing that anything related to Bella would be blamed on her.

"IF NOT YOU, THEN WHO?!" His shout followed by a hard slap made Aletta shocked and fall, unable to match his strength.

Aletta winced, feeling the heat on her cheek and the pain spreading in her lower abdomen.

"Listen to me! If anything happens to Bella, don't expect to get away with it." Gerald threatened, gripping his wife's face tightly.

Aletta cried, acknowledging her mistake from the beginning. She shouldn't have forced a marriage unwanted by her husband. She should have found out if the man she loved had a lover or not; Aletta was terribly wrong.

Gerald left, carrying the still-pained Bella, leaving Aletta crying in silence while feeling the pain alone.

"Ah... Blood... Why is there blood here?!" Aletta panicked and puzzled as she saw blood coming from between her legs. The pain she felt suddenly vanished, replaced by an overwhelming sense of panic.

***

Five hours passed, Aletta remained silent, staring blankly out the window.

She had no idea what had actually happened. Suddenly, she woke up alone in a spacious hospital room.

The scent of medications, her flattened stomach, and a vague sense of pain when she moved—that's what she felt now.

Aletta could guess what happened, but she didn't know what to do.

The sound of the opening door didn't make Aletta turn at all; she stayed silent and sat in stillness.

"Darling, are you awake?" Daffa's voice, Aletta's father, was heard, making Aletta's tears fall effortlessly.

Daffa, understanding the situation, decided to remain silent and not say anything more. He chose to tightly embrace his daughter who cried silently.

Daffa already knew everything. If not for the CCTV in the living room, he wouldn't have known what really happened to his beloved daughter.

"Forgive me, dear..." Daffa whispered softly.

"Forgive me for not knowing what happened in your marriage sooner." Daffa continued, immediately causing Aletta to cry loudly, hugging her father tightly.

***

On the other side, Gerald, in the same hospital, was walking toward where Bella was being treated. For Bella's sake, he ignored calls from his in-laws and decided to care for and comfort his girlfriend who had truly lost her unborn child.

"Do you know? I got rid of that child." Bella's voice, heard as Gerald slightly opened the door, made him stop and fall silent.

"Hahaha, Gerald, just believe that it was your wife who did it, while I myself mixed the medication into the drink she made,"

Gerald was silent, shocked to hear what his girlfriend just said.

"At first, Gerald believed it was his child, so I thought of keeping it. But after thinking about it, Gerald is poor, he has nothing if not for his wife. So, I killed the child,"

Gerald became even more silent, confused by what his girlfriend had just revealed.

"Mr. Dellot didn't want to take responsibility for the child. That's why I had to tell Gerald it was his child, but in the end, I decided to just kill it, as Mr. Dellot suggested."

Hearing this, Gerald quickly opened the door and entered. His hands still gripped the food package he had ordered earlier for his girlfriend.

Bella, seeing him, immediately hung up her phone and was surprised because Gerald entered suddenly.

"How long have you been here?" Bella asked, slightly nervous.

"I heard everything," Gerald replied calmly, though his hands were clenched in anger.

"Let's break up!" Gerald finally exclaimed.

"Why?" Bella asked hesitantly.

"I'm poor," Gerald replied shortly.

After answering, Gerald immediately left his girlfriend's room.

Safe journey home, Gerald thought about what happened to Aletta. However, he treated Aletta quite harshly earlier.

Gerald wondered if his wife would forgive his negligence.

None of these questions were answered. Gerald could only pray that his wife would grant him forgiveness.

Upon reaching home, Gerald entered and called his wife's name. However, he was surprised to find a middle-aged woman in the house.

"Who are you?" Gerald asked quickly.

"I was sent by Mr. Daffa to pack Miss Aletta's belongings," the middle-aged woman replied swiftly.

"Why? Where is Aletta?" Gerald asked a bit panicked.

Mr. Daffa said he would send divorce papers, so you are asked to sign them without much talk." The woman replied without intending to answer Gerald's question.

"And if you don't want to sign them, all the capital given to your family before will be demanded as compensation." The middle-aged woman continued.

"This can't be! Aletta is pregnant with my child!" Gerald responded, unwilling to back down.

"That child is no longer there!" The middle-aged woman replied.

Gerald fell silent, shocked by what he just heard. He wondered if Aletta also took the same medicine to get rid of their child.

"Oh, one more thing, Mr. Daffa has secured CCTV footage of what you did to Miss Aletta, endangering her life. So if you don't cooperate, you'll really get into trouble."

After saying that, the middle-aged woman left with Aletta's essential belongings, while Gerald remained confused about what had actually happened.