Chrystabliss

Chapter 54 - FIFTY-FOUR: You Disgusting Snake

Chapter 54: Chapter FIFTY-FOUR: You Disgusting Snake


Celeste’s POV


My legs wouldn’t stop moving back and forth, across my room, the heels of my slippers scraping against the marble until the sound grated on my own nerves.


My heart was racing so fast as I now felt some regrets regarding forcing my way into this scheming family.


The phone call from my father replayed in my head like a broken record, making me even more nervous.


"Kendrick is crushing us, Celeste. Suppressing the company, blocking contracts, strangling us from every angle. He’s moving against us and his aim might be to bankrupt us."


I had clutched the phone so tightly my nails left marks in my palm.


At this point, I had a feeling that he might already know the truth about my pregnancy.


He will definitely do everything to prove that he had no relationship with me just to be with Christy.


And now, he wasn’t just ignoring me and acting like I was invisible, he was destroying everything connected to my name. My family’s company, my father’s legacy, everything we had built was being strangled because of me.


Because Kendrick finally saw through the illusion I had worked so hard to build.


I dug my nails into my scalp, letting out a shaky breath. Fear pressed down on my chest like a weight I couldn’t lift.


But fear wasn’t the only thing burning through me. I felt immense anger that made my blood boil.


How dare he?


How dare he expose me, humiliate me, punish me like this, when all I ever did was love him? Did he think he could just humiliate me and tear my life apart, and walk away?


Not when I still have his father wrapped around my finger.


It was about time I changed my target.


I couldn’t sit still any longer. My fists clenched as I stormed out of my room and down the hall, each step echoing in the silence. My chest was heaving when I reached Raymond’s study, and without even knocking, I shoved the door open.


Raymond sat behind his mahogany desk, papers scattered in front of him, but the calm mask he wore cracked the moment he saw me.


His brows knitted, and his lips parted in irritation.


"Celeste," he muttered, voice low and laced with a warning.


"Do you know what time... "


"I don’t care what time it is," I snapped, slamming the door shut behind me.


"I just got off the phone with my father, Kendrick is suppressing our company. He’s ruining everything, and you’re just sitting here?" My voice trembled with rage, but I forced it to steady.


His eyes flickered, but he stayed maddeningly calm.


His calmness only fueled my rage.


"Do something, Raymond! Force him to stop. Force him to marry me like we planned. He won’t dare go against you if I’m his wife." I yelled at him angrily.


Raymond leaned back in his chair, his jaw tightening. For a moment the study fell into silence then, he slowly shook his head.


"There’s nothing I can do," he said with a frustrated sigh.


I blinked, my breath hitching.


"What did you just say?" I asked him as I couldn’t process his words for a few seconds.


His gaze darkened.


"Kendrick already knows the truth about your pregnancy," he said, confirming my earlier suspicion.


My stomach lurched violently, and my nails dug into the wood of his desk as I leaned forward.


"He... what?" The word slipped out as barely a whisper.


Raymond sighed, running a hand through his hair.


"He knows the baby isn’t his, so we can’t use it to manipulate him anymore. He is hellbent on not marrying you." he said while massaging his temple.


It felt like the world tilted and my chest tightened so sharply I thought I might faint.


No... No, this couldn’t be happening.


Even though I knew deep down that it would happen someday, I didn’t expect it to so soon.


All the lies, the nights I spent carefully weaving my plans, the tears I shed, the manipulations I crafted were all wasted?


I staggered back a step, shaking my head furiously. "No...No, you’re lying, he can’t know... He can’t!"


I didn’t want to believe it, why can’t everything go according to my plans.


"Celeste," Raymond said, his tone almost pitiful.


"It’s over...he really knows." he said again, probably to make me face reality.


I slammed my fist down on his desk, the sound was sharp in the silent study.


"Then make him forget! Do something, Raymond! You promised... "I yelled while trembling in rage.


"I promised nothing," he cut me off sharply, his patience snapping.


"You used Kendrick to enter into this family. We had a deal which benefits the both of us and now it isn’t going as planned, so we must bear the loss. There’s nothing we can do at this point to salvage." he said with a serious expression.


My vision blurred with hot tears, but I refused to let them fall. Desperation clawed at me, twisting into something darker.


Fine! .


If Kendrick was out of my reach, then I would claim what I still had.


I straightened, breathing hard, my voice shaking but fierce.


"Then give me a status here, a proper position as the mother of your unborn child, Raymond. That means I’m not just some woman on the side, I’m the mother of your bloodline. Treat me as such." I demanded.


The words left me in a rush, laced with venom and desperation. I wasn’t even sure I believed them fully, but I knew they could tie him down.


The moment the words left my mouth, the air in the room shifted.


Because from the corner of my eye, I caught a movement.


My heart stuttered when I turned and there she was.


Sameen.


Standing in the doorway, her face frozen, her eyes wide with shock and then narrowing with a fury I had never seen in my life.


For a split second, the study fell into a deep silence


"You," she whispered, her voice low and trembling.


"You disgusting snake." she said while pointing at me with a trembling finger.


Her gaze cut to Raymond, before snapping back to me.


"You’ve been sleeping with my husband?!" she questioned me angrily.


My stomach dropped, but instinct made me lift my chin defiantly.


"Aunty Sameen... "


She didn’t let me finish before she lunged at me.


The force of her body slammed me back against the desk. Her nails raked across my shoulder, tearing my clothes and skin. Pain shot through me, and I cried out, struggling to push her off.


"You whore!" she shrieked, her voice breaking with fury.


"In my house? With my husband?!" she yelled while pulling on my hair.


Her hands tangled in my hair, yanking so hard my scalp burned. I clawed at her arms, shoving, kicking, but she was relentless.


The room exploded in chaos, papers scattering, glass shattering as we crashed against the shelves.


"Stop it!" Raymond roared, but his voice barely reached us.


Sameen shoved me back, and I stumbled, slamming against the edge of the desk. My hip throbbed, but adrenaline kept me moving. I lashed out, my palm cracking across her face.


Her head snapped to the side, and for one wild second, I thought she might stop.


But instead, her rage deepened.


She screamed again and shoved me with all her strength.


My body reeled backward, out of the study and into the hall.


And then my foot slipped and the world tilted.


The staircase was just behind me and Raina was rushing up the stairs.


"No!" The scream tore from my throat as I flailed, but there was nothing to grab.


My body fell backward, crashing down the stairs. Each impact stole the air from my lungs,


thud


crack


slam


"Oh my gosh, Celeste!" Raina’s shocked scream came from below.


As the pain radiated through my body, my vision first turned white then red.


When I finally hit the marble floor below, there was a sudden silence.


And then, I felt a warmth spreading between my thighs, soaking the fabric of my dress.


Blood.


I clutched at my belly, panic flooding me in waves.


"No... no... no... please.. " I cried in fear of losing my baby.


I could hear footsteps pounding down the stairs and Raymond’s frantic voice filled the air.


"Celeste!"


He was at my side in seconds, his hands trembling as he tried to lift me. His face was pale and his eyes were wild with fear.


Behind him, Sameen stood frozen at the top of the stairs, her face pale with shock.


"You... " Raymond’s voice broke as he turned to her, fury blazing in his eyes.


"Father, why are you glaring at mother? What does Celeste’s fall have to do with her?" Raina asked with a confused voice as she squatted down beside me with a pale face.


But Raymond ignored her and continued glaring at Sameen.


"If anything happens to this child, I will divorce you!" he roared angrily at her.


"Do you hear me, Sameen?! I will end everything between us!" he yelled again.


Sameen’s hand flew to her face, her eyes wide and glistening, but Raymond didn’t wait for her reply.


He scooped me into his arms, my blood staining his shirt as my sobs ripped through the air.


"Hold on," he muttered desperately, his voice breaking as he rushed for the door with Raina trailing behind.


"Hold on, Celeste. I won’t let anything happen to you or our child." he said and I saw Raina’s shocked expression as she stopped in her tracks and turned towards her mother.


My vision blurred, the world fading in and out, but one thought pulsed through me even as pain consumed my body.


Even while bleeding and broken, I had won something tonight.