I hadn’t eaten all day.
Slowly, I pulled the chair out.
The scraping sound across the floor made Margaret slam her hand onto the table.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she hissed.
“I just need to sit for a minute,” I whispered. “The baby is kicking hard.”
Her eyes burned with fury.
“Servants don’t sit with the family,” she spat. “Eat in the kitchen after we’re done. Standing up. It’s good for the baby.”
I looked at Thomas, hoping he would defend me.
Instead, he took a sip of wine.
“Just do what my mother says,” he replied. “Stop making a scene.”
A sharp cramp twisted through my stomach.
“Thomas… something’s wrong,” I gasped.
Margaret followed me into the kitchen, her face tight with anger.
“Pretending again to avoid work?” she sneered.
“I’m not pretending,” I whispered, holding the counter. “Please… call a doctor.”
She stepped closer.
“You lazy girl.”
Then she shoved me.
Hard.
I lost my balance, slipping on the tile floor. My back slammed against the sharp edge of the granite island before I crashed to the ground.
The pain exploded through my body.
Then I felt warmth spreading beneath me.
I looked down.
Blood.
“My baby…” I whispered.
Thomas rushed in with his colleague behind him.
He stared at the floor.