Grace felt so alone and scared, thinking about raising a baby in such a cold and loveless environment. As Grace’s belly grew bigger, James grew more distant and cruel. He would bring other women to the house and parade them in front of Grace. He wanted to hurt her and show her that she meant nothing to him anymore.
Grace’s heart broke into a million pieces, but she endured everything for the sake of her unborn baby. Grace’s family in the village did not know what was happening. Grace was too ashamed to tell them about her suffering. She sent them letters saying everything was fine and that she was very happy. Her mother wrote back saying how proud they were that Grace had married such a rich and successful man who could give her everything.
N months passed like a slow torture for Grace. She had no friends in the city and no one to talk to about her pain. The servants pied her but kept their distance. Grace spent her days walking around the big empty mansion talking to her unborn baby. She promised the baby that she would love it enough for both parents.
One evening, Grace felt sharp pains in her stomach. She was 9 months pregnant and knew the baby was coming soon. She called out to James, who was in his study, counting his money and looking at his business papers. Grace held her belly and told him they needed to go to the hospital right away. The pains were getting stronger and closer together.
James looked at Grace with angry eyes filled with disgust and hatred. He had been in a bad mood all day because one of his business deals had failed. He lost millions of dollars because his partner had cheated him. James blamed Grace for distracting him and told her she was the reason he was losing money and his business was suffering.
Grace tried to explain that the baby was coming and she needed help immediately. But James stood up and started shouting at her. He said he was tired of her face and tired of her presence in his house. James told Grace that he never wanted the baby and never wanted her. His words cut through Grace’s heart like sharp knives. James grabbed Grace roughly by the arm and dragged her toward the front door.
Grace begged him to stop and take her to the hospital. She cried and screamed that the baby was coming, but James refused to listen to her desperate please. The servants heard the commotion and came running, but they were too afraid to interfere with their master’s anger. James opened the front door and pushed Grace out into the cold night with all his strength.
Grace fell hard on the concrete ground outside the gate, crying and holding her stomach in terrible pain. She looked back at James standing in the doorway and could not believe this was the same man she had married 2 years ago. James threw Grace’s small bag of clothes at her. He shouted that she should go back to her poor village family where she belonged.
James said he never wanted to see her face again as long as he lived. Then he slammed the door shut, leaving Grace alone in the darkness with nowhere to go and no one to help her. The security guard at the gate was shocked when he saw what happened. His name was Peter, and he had always been kind to Grace.
He wanted to help Grace, but James shouted at him from the window to stay away. James told Peter that if he helped Grace, he would lose his job immediately and he would make sure Peter never worked anywhere in the city again. Peter stepped back in fear because he had a wife and three children to feed. He watched helplessly as Grace struggled on the ground trying to stand up.
Peter felt like a coward, but he needed his job desperately. He turned away from Grace with tears in his eyes. Feeling ashamed of himself, Grace saw Peter turn away and felt completely abandoned by the whole world. Grace tried to stand up, but the pain was too much for her weak body. She crawled slowly down the street looking for help, but all the houses were dark and locked.
Nobody heard her cries in the quiet, wealthy neighborhood where people minded their own business. The pain in her belly grew stronger, and Grace knew she did not have much time left before the baby came. Grace’s dress was torn and dirty from crawling on the rough ground. Her knees were bleeding, and her hands were scraped raw.
But she kept moving forward because she had to find help for her baby. Grace prayed to God asking why this was happening to her. She wondered what she had done to deserve such cruelty from the man she loved. After crawling for many painful minutes, Grace reached the main road. She lay there on the cold pavement, unable to move anymore.
Her whole body was shaking from pain and fear. Cars drove past her without stopping and people walked by without offering help. Grace felt hopeless and scared and thinking she would die alone on the street with her unborn baby. One car slowed down and Grace felt a moment of hope. But when the driver saw her condition, he quickly drove away, not wanting to get involved.
Another person walked past and Grace reached out her hand, begging for help. But the person pulled away in disgust and hurried off. Grace realized that nobody cared about a poor woman suffering on the street. Grace started feeling the baby moving down. She knew she would give birth right there on the cold street.
