The needle pierced her skin. Her whole body seized, and tears fell before she could stop them.
In that moment, Jocelyn's mind hurled her back three years, to the Henson family's ancestral hall.
She had taken thirty lashes of the family rod to marry him. She'd knelt until she blacked out and still refused to give him up.
Ivor had scaled the Henson estate walls in the dead of night, gathered her into his arms, and wept as he swore, "Jocelyn, I will never betray you. Not in this lifetime."
She had believed those lashes were medals of honor, proof of what she'd sacrificed for love.
Now she knew the truth. Everything she'd gambled had bought her nothing but a ticket into the abyss.
The injection finished. Ivor finally exhaled. He pulled her limp body into his arms, fingers fumbling to wipe away her tears.
"Shh, don't cry. I'm only doing this because I'd hate for you to regret it later. It wasn't easy for us to be together. Getting pregnant was even harder. If something happened to this baby, you'd blame me for the rest of your life."
Jocelyn kept her eyes shut, smothering the hatred that churned behind them. Deep inside, she made a vow.