The Caged Canary Finds Her Sky

om a lonely orphanage childhood, was finally coming true. Then, a woman's laugh on the inte

in sterile orphanage rooms, I was finally going to build the complete home I a

h the air, asking Holden when he'd dump "that boring, common woman upstairs." Holden's reply, flat and calculating,

ow a disgusting joke. Holden's footsteps approached, forcing me to hide the

r, Estella, adorned with the diamond necklace Holden bought for his "future wife," publicly humiliat

controlled. Wiping away the ink of his false promises, I clutched my flat stomach, a silent vow forming. H

pte

ia

ng of the Clearblue pregnancy test rattled a

en. The little hourglass icon blinked. Ever

rd appeared in solid, un

egn

ars instantly welled in my eyes, hot and fast, spilling

my lower stomach. It was perfectly flat, but beneath my skin,

s chest in the dark. His voice was a low rumble against my ear as h

I never had a real bed, a real toy, or a real family. I had a pathological hunger for a complete home. I

Holden's private number. I wanted to call him right now.

thumb s

. I would cook his favorite dinner tonight. I would light candle

I turned on the cold water tap. I splashed water on my face, trying

y face, a loud, piercing crackle

pped from my hands and

d again, followed by the muffled background noise of the downstairs study

d the panel to pres

ard a woma

e in mid-air. I knew that laugh. It belonged to Estel

a purred through the speaker. I heard the sharp

rue notes of a Romanée-Cont

and dripping with the exact same charm

zed it. My lungs stopped working. The air in t

ng teasing and cruel. "When are you going

opper. My hands clamped onto the edge of the

efend me. I waited for h

usinessman. "Kenia is just a tool. The Dalton family needs to clean up our underworl

asked, a smile evi

use is over," Holden said flatly. "I'll

es gav

ut I barely felt it. I stared up at the marble sink. The pregnancy test was still sitti

sound of clothing rustling. I heard E

violently t

just in time. I grabbed the porcelain rim and threw up. My body heaved,

against the toilet bowl. I was gasp

hook violently. I hit the flush button

n knew I was pregnant, he would never let me leave. I woul

ag, shoved the plastic stick deep into the

utside. I recognized the slight, uneven

the frosted glass door wa

ice bled through the crack in the d