Chapter 306:

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Elisa didn’t go far. She couldn’t. Her legs were trembling, and the sheer weight of what had just happened pressed down on her, making it hard to breathe. She found a quiet corridor that led to a terrace, the cool air a relief after the stifling atmosphere of the ballroom.

She leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. The image of August’s face, cold and indifferent, flashed in her mind. The word “fiancée” echoed in her ears.

The sound of running footsteps broke the silence.

“Elisa! Elisa, wait!”

Maeve came skidding around the corner, her heels in her hand. She was panting, her face flushed with anger. “I am so sorry. That was… that was obscene. August Chambers is a monster.”

Elisa opened her eyes. “It’s not your fault, Maeve.”

“It is my fault! I brought you here!” Maeve exclaimed, pacing in front of her. “And that bitch, standing there acting like she’s the queen of the world. And he just let her! He let that old bat treat you like a servant!”

𝖳𝗁o𝘂𝘀𝗮ո𝗱s о𝖿 𝗿𝘦аd𝘦rѕ 𝗼𝗇 𝗀𝗮l𝗇𝗈𝘷e𝗹s.𝘤𝗼𝗆

Elisa let out a hollow laugh. “That’s what I am to him now, Maeve. A servant. A nuisance. A ghost.”

“No,” Maeve said, stopping her pacing. She looked at Elisa, her eyes fierce. “No. You are his wife. You are still his legal wife. And you have power. You just have to use it.”

“What power?” Elisa asked, her voice bitter. “He just announced his engagement to another woman in front of half of New York. He has all the power.”

Maeve glanced nervously down the empty corridor, then pulled Elisa further into the alcove. She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, one that wouldn’t carry. “There is one thing he can’t buy, Elisa. One thing his money can’t protect him from.”

Elisa looked at her, confused. “What?”

“A baby,” Maeve said, the words dropping like stones. “You need to get pregnant, Elisa. You need to have a Chambers heir.”

Elisa stared at her, stunned. “Are you insane?”

“Just listen!” Maeve urged, grabbing her hands. “You’re still married. The divorce isn’t finalized. If you get pregnant now, with his child, Germaine will have to acknowledge it. The trust will have to acknowledge it. Allena will be out in the cold. A baby is the only thing that can secure your position and give you leverage over that woman.”

Elisa pulled her hands away, shaking her head. “I can’t do that, Maeve. I won’t bring a child into this mess.”

“It’s not a mess, it’s a strategy!” Maeve argued, her voice rising. “It’s the oldest strategy in the book, but it works. Stop taking the pill. Seduce him if you have to. Just get pregnant. It’s your only way out!”

Elisa opened her mouth to refuse, to tell Maeve that she already had a child, that she would never use a baby as a weapon.

But before she could speak, a shadow detached itself from the far end of the corridor.

August stepped into the light.

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