My Cruel Husband Ruined My Life, So I Ran Away With His Uncle

Five years of marriage, and Ethan Vance had turned our home into ninetynine different kink rooms.

The models he brought back could easily open a packed nightclub right in our living room.

I chose to turn a blind eye to all of it, solely because of the baby growing inside my womb.

Later, he personally dressed me in a beautiful princess gown, dragged me into the hospital, and forced the doctors to shave my head bald.

All of that, just to make a sick girl smile. I didn’t cry. I didn't make a scene. Until the day of our anniversary, when that same girl clamored to go skiing.

Ethan dragged me to the snowy slopes just to make me act as Chloe Bennett's human shield. On the ski run, Chloe intentionally rammed into me.

I was sent flying through the air, and thick, warm blood began pooling beneath my legs.

I begged him to save our child, but he merely scooped up a completely unharmed Chloe, looking down at me with pure disgust. "Clara Sterling, the number of times you’ve lied to me is more than the times I’ve actually touched you." "If you're hurt, call the paramedics.

If you delay Chloe's treatment, don't blame me for never acknowledging that child!" On the way to the hospital, my baby died in my womb.

While I lay in agony, Ethan allowed his friends to laughingly place bets on Snapchat on whether the kid would survive.

I closed my eyes in utter despair. "Ethan, let's stop torturing each other. Let's get a divorce." ...

The moment the doctor shook his head, I felt something shatter completely inside me. With trembling hands, I signed the death certificate.

Ethan's friends rushed into my hospital room one after another. Seeing my swollen, battered body, they cursed in disappointment. "Tch!

What a waste of money, I lost the bet!" "What did I tell you? Ethan is a god. Look at how thick her coat is.

She was obviously trying to protect the kid." Hearing this, I forced a bitter smile.

With multiple fractures across my body, my abdomen was wrapped so tightly in bandages that it made me look like I was still five months pregnant.

Ethan tapped his long, slender fingers on the bedside table. From beginning to end, he didn't spare me a single glance.

Suddenly, the door was kicked open, and a thick legal document was thrown onto my chest. "Sign it! Name your price!" "You’re a professional skier, Clara.

You’re not fragile like Chloe. A little tumble won't kill you.

Stop being so dramatic." I looked down at the "Waiver of Liability and Injury Assessment" lying on the floor, and a hollow laugh escaped my throat.

I locked eyes with him. "Ethan, the baby is dead." "What if I refuse to sign?" He froze for a mere second before bursting into a mocking laugh. "Trying to make me feel guilty now?

Do you honestly think I’d fall for that? Cut the crap and sign. My sweet Chloe is still waiting for me." I stared at him, my heart completely dead.

He had sat in this room for hours, yet he hadn't asked about my injuries even once. He was just terrified that I would sue Chloe.

Years ago, when he realized how dangerous skiing could be, he had literally risked his life to force me to quit the national team.

Now, for Chloe's sake, he had forced his pregnant wife onto the slopes. Ethan’s eyes turned freezing cold, flashing with impatience.

He dumped a thick stack of cash right over my head. The heavy bills pelted my face, stinging my skin. "Is this enough?

If not, I can give you more!" My fingers tightly gripped the hospital sheets.

Through the scattering money, I saw my own pathetic reflection. "Ethan," my voice was barely a whisper, "let's stop.

Let's get a divorce." If anyone asked what my wish was when I was twentytwo, it would have been to be entangled with Ethan Vance for the rest of my life.

But now, I was entirely numb. Ethan’s face hardened instantly, his eyes burning with sudden fury. "Let you leave? Only when I'm dead.

You will stay and endure my wrath!" His hand clamped down brutally on my bandaged abdomen, pressing right against my surgical wounds. A sharp scream of agony tore from my lips.

He had no idea how many steel pins had just been put into my bones. He had no idea I had almost died on the operating table. And he had no idea our child was truly gone.

I didn't dare complain about the pain anymore. I could never forget the last time I cried out in pain. Ethan had called me a manipulative liar.

He had swapped my severe allergy medication with vitamins, leaving me to almost suffocate to death in a stalled elevator. "Clara, you're playing hard to get in the wrong place.

If you want to leave, rip the baby out and give it to me first!

If you think you can run away with my child, keep dreaming." "If you don't dare, then crawl on your hands and knees from here to Chloe’s room to beg for her forgiveness.

Only then will I forgive you." I froze, my body feeling as though it were filled with crushed glass. Every tiny movement stabbed deep into my flesh.

As soon as he finished speaking, his friends erupted into cheers. It was a sick contrast to the years when we loved each other so fiercely that the whole world knew.

We once shared a bond sealed by life and death. Years ago, I had shielded him from a collapsing structure, nearly never waking up from a coma.

Ethan, who had never bowed his head to anyone, had stayed in a monastery for days, kneeling and praying until his knees bled, writing vows of love in his own blood.

But everything changed on our wedding day. Without a single explanation, he began a silent war of torment against me.

He took the very house we had designed together and turned every inch of it into cheap kink rooms. Stepping into my own home felt like walking into a shady motel.

He would force me to wash the toys and equipment he used with other women, making me clean up their filthy mess.

Thinking of this, My eyes turned red as I looked at him, the physical and emotional pain completely eclipsing my sanity. "Fine." I didn't want to live like this for another second.

I reached out with trembling hands and unzipped my thick winter coat. When my hand brushed against a scalpel on the medical tray, he slammed the door and stormed out.

The vibration rattled my broken bones, sending a fresh wave of pain through my body. After he left, his assistant, Austin, walked forward with a sigh. "Mrs. Vance... Mr.

Vance ordered you to go to Ms. Bennett’s room to serve her. Otherwise, he says he cannot guarantee your brother’s grave will remain untouched."

My movements stiffened, tears finally spilling over my lashes. "Tell him to do whatever he wants." I didn't go to Chloe’s room. Instead, I went straight to the cemetery.

Right next to my brother's grave, I purchased a tiny plot for my unborn baby. I knelt there for a long time, until footsteps crunched on the gravel behind me.

Ethan was there, his arm wrapped tightly around Chloe. He sneered, "So when you said 'whatever,' you meant coming here to protect him? Clara, what am I to you?

A joke?" He shoved Chloe aside and violently yanked me up by my collar. "Since you want to protect him so badly, let’s see if you actually can." In the violent struggle, my wig slipped off, exposing my bald, scarred head.

Chloe screamed, covering her eyes. Ethan grabbed the back of my neck and slammed my forehead against the cold tombstone. "Look at your hideous self!

Do you think he would still love you if he saw you like this?" Staring at the cracked tombstone, I bit my lip until it bled.

I loved him, yes, but the man buried here was my biological brother, Leo. On our wedding day, I hadn't run away.

I had only rushed to the hospital to see my dying brother one last time. I had tried to explain it to Ethan a thousand times.

But in return, he locked me in those playrooms, forcing me to watch him sleep with other women. Ethan ignored my tears.

He gently patted Chloe’s back, coaxing her with a soft voice. "Chloe is the bravest girl. Don't be scared. See how ugly she is?

Doesn't that make you feel better?" The harsh mockery pierced my chest like a physical blade. Tears silently traced down my cheeks.

I reached up, touching the jagged, centipedelike scar on the back of my skull. To protect him years ago, my skull had fractured, requiring eighteen stitches.

I hadn't uttered a single cry of pain back then. The beautiful hair I once took pride in was gone, and I hadn't resisted.

Yet, all my sacrifices had turned into the very weapons he used to destroy me. Noticing my movement, Ethan’s fist clenched tightly at his side.

But Chloe stepped forward first, wrapping her arms around me, her eyes pooling with crocodile tears. "Clara, it’s all my fault. I shouldn't have laughed at you.

I’m so sorry." But as she leaned in close, she whispered in my ear, her voice dripping with venom: "I crashed into you on purpose that day.

Your stupid baby deserved to die." My brain shortcircuited. Rage consumed me, and I lunged at her.

Chloe instantly shrieked, clutching her ear and sobbing to Ethan that I was trying to bite her ear off, even though I hadn't even touched her.

Ethan flew into a rage, stepping forward and delivering a brutal slap to my face. My ears rang violently, and the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth.

Suddenly, a bright flame illuminated the dark cemetery. Ethan was holding the only photo I had left of my brother. "Consider this my greeting to him!" He signaled his men.

Within minutes, they detonated a small explosive charge, blowing my brother’s grave to absolute pieces. The urn shattered. The ashes vanished into the wind.

I screamed, a primal, guttural sound of pure agony. My soul felt as though it had burned to ashes in that very moment.

I threw myself toward the debris like a maniac, but Ethan grabbed me back, pinning me to the dirt. "Are you insane?!" I collapsed onto the ground, every ounce of strength drained from my body.

That was Leo. The brother who had raised me, my only remaining blood relative. Why did they have to do this to him? Yes, I was insane.

A lifetime of my devotion couldn't compete with a single lie from Chloe. The truth was right in front of him, yet he refused to investigate even a little bit.

Did I really deserve to die so badly? My throat burned. I let out a dry, hollow laugh, and then blackness welcomed me. When I woke up, Ethan was pinning my arms down.

A thick needle plunged into my vein. I was so numb that I couldn't even feel the physical pain anymore.

Then, he ordered the surgeon to slice a small patch of healthy skin from my arm to graft onto Chloe's minor scratch. I stared at him, my eyes completely devoid of light.

This was nothing compared to what he had done before. He had once forced me to buy toys for them.

He had blamed me when Chloe got hurt by a prop, letting her prick me with needles as revenge.

And when I was pregnant and burning with a fever, I had begged him to take me to the hospital. But he thought I was faking it out of jealousy.

He forced me to clean up after Chloe while my body shook with chills. I could never understand how two people who once loved each other so deeply could end up like this.

Even my dead brother had to be desecrated and slandered. With trembling fingers, I pulled out my phone and dialed a number I hadn't called in years. "Hello.

I'd like to arrange a desert ashscattering ceremony."

During the year we were happiest, Ethan once told me he wanted us to be buried in the vast, empty Mojave Desert, becoming the most beautiful legend of the wild.

At a time when we were far too young, we had already planned our final resting place. But now...

When I arrived back at the villa, the entire house was glowing with flashing, colorful lights. I knew they were experimenting with a new "theme" again.

Numbly, I sat down on the cold concrete steps outside, my eyelids growing heavy.

Suddenly, a warm coat that didn't carry Ethan's scent was draped over my shoulders. "Why are you sitting out here?

Is Ethan acting up again?" I looked up and realized the elegant man standing before me was Julian Vance, Ethan's uncle.

I gave him a faint, exhausted smile. "Julian, can you help me expedite my visa?" The man paused, his deep voice carrying a quiet sigh. "Okay." The next morning, Chloe stood over my bed, her arms crossed.

She splashed a bucket of freezing water directly onto my face, her expression twisting into something ugly. "Did you enjoy eavesdropping last night?

Ethan and I tried so many new positions. He praised me so much that he gave me this jade bracelet. We even used it to..." I snapped my head up, staring at her wrist.

Tears instantly welled in my eyes. My brother had skipped his own medical treatments to save up enough money to buy me that jade bracelet as a wedding gift.

To think they had desecrated it in such a disgusting way made my blood boil. "Give it back to me..." Chloe smirked, leaning down to whisper in my ear, "Want to play a game?" Before I could react, she grabbed my hand, forced her own head into the toilet bowl, and began screaming at the top of her lungs. "Help!

Clara, please stop! I won't do it again!" Ethan burst into the room.

He grabbed me by my hair and shoved my head into the filled bathtub, holding me under until I was literally suffocating.

Then, he gently pulled Chloe into his arms, treating her like a fragile glass doll.

Seeing him tenderly kissing Chloe, even as she was dripping with dirty toilet water, my eyes widened in sheer horror. "Ethan, this bracelet must be really important to Clara.

I don't want it if it's going to make her try to kill me," Chloe sobbed hysterically. Ethan didn't say a word.

He threw a venomous glare at me, scooped Chloe up, and rushed her to the hospital. I held my stomach, vomiting up the bathwater I had swallowed, my eyes burning.

Not long after, Ethan’s bodyguards dragged me to the hospital clinic. They forced charcoal and emetics down my throat, pumping my stomach over and over again.

They did it ten times, until I was throwing up nothing but bile and blood, finally passing out from the agony.

In the VIP room next door, Ethan was telling Chloe stories to keep her entertained while she got an IV drip. Her giggles echoed down the hallway.

To comfort her after the "fright," he had ordered millions of dollars of jewelry to be brought directly to her hospital bed. I closed my eyes.

Years ago, Ethan had spent a whole year preparing special meals to cure my chronic stomach ulcers. With this single day of torture, he had completely destroyed my stomach again.

Ethan walked into my room, his eyes scanning my pale face. His fists clenched tightly. "Clara, don't think I won't ruin you. It’s just a cheap piece of jade.

I can buy you a thousand of them." I coughed, a splatter of blood staining my lips. "Ethan, would you only be happy if I died?" Ethan stiffened slightly at my words.

Then, he looked at my flat abdomen and sneered. "Would you dare? You went through so much trouble to keep that baby.

You wouldn't dare die." Looking at the stubborn, heartless man in front of me, I realized words were completely useless.

Ignoring his rising anger, I ripped the feeding tube out of my nose and walked away. Outside the hospital, Chloe smiled brightly and invited me into their car.

Ethan held her hand tightly, never looking at me once. The car was filled with the heavy scent of fresh orange peels. My severe allergy to citrus meant I couldn't breathe.

I reached to roll down the window, but Ethan snapped coldly, "Leave it. Chloe is pregnant. She can't be exposed to the cold wind." My fingers trembled.

I looked down at my phone, staring blankly at the screen. Ethan’s expression darkened even further. Chloe let out a soft giggle. "Don't be mad at me, Clara.

I was feeling nauseous, so Ethan bought these oranges for me." I didn't reply.

I kept typing Snapchat messages to my moving coordinator, occasionally scratching at the hives breaking out all over my arms.

The moment the car stopped, I threw myself out and dryheaved by the curb until I had no strength left.

When my visa was finally approved, I felt a weight lift from my chest. I cooked a massive table of Ethan's favorite dishes as a final farewell.

But while I was in my room taking a call from the movers, Chloe swept every single plate onto the floor. Ethan didn't get angry. He just patiently comforted her.

I clutched my burning stomach, watching the mess. Years ago, when my cooking was terrible, he wouldn't let a single bite go to waste.

I guess people really do change for the ones they love. Numbly, I knelt down to pick up the broken shards.

Even when the sharp ceramic sliced into my fingers, leaving them dripping with blood, I felt no pain. Ethan’s brow furrowed deeply.

He violently grabbed my wrist and yanked me up. "Are you really this pathetic?

Or did you finally realize that no one else wants a discarded woman, so you're begging for my attention?" I looked him dead in the eye. "Just sign the divorce papers." Ethan’s face twisted in fury.

Chloe stepped forward, pretending to help me up. But before I could even move, she threw herself directly onto the sharp ceramic shards on the floor.

Ethan caught her in time, but in the process, he violently shoved me backward. I fell straight into the pile of broken glass.

With every breath I took, the shards dug deeper into my back, bringing a agonizing pain. "Clara..." Ethan’s voice cracked with a sudden, rare panic.

But when Chloe let out a sharp cry of pain, he froze for a second, then scooped her up and ran out of the villa toward the hospital. I slowly closed my eyes.

Every single servant in the villa had been sent by Ethan to the hospital to pray for Chloe. I lay there alone in my own blood.

When I finally woke up, Ethan was sitting by my bed, his eyes incredibly bloodshot. "Do you finally know what pain feels like, Clara? Why must you be so vicious?

I told you I would acknowledge your child. Why did you have to kill Chloe's baby?!" I blanked out. So, Chloe’s baby was gone. I wasn't surprised, nor did I care to explain.

In his mind, I was already the murderer.

Seeing my silence, he slammed his fist into the wall right beside my ear. "Clara, you are truly evil to the bone!" Even though my heart was completely dead, tears still betrayed me, leaking from the corners of my eyes.

Ethan, have you ever realized how evil you have been to me? To comfort Chloe, Ethan organized a massive charity auction in her honor.

By the time I recovered enough to be dragged there, the event was already in full swing. Ethan sat with Chloe on his lap, drawing envious looks from the highsociety crowd.

Meanwhile, I, his legal wife, was subjected to whispered jeers and mockery. "My sweet Chloe, you can bid on whatever you want tonight.

I even brought some rare spiritual artifacts for you." The auction practically became Chloe's personal shopping spree. She threw triumphant, mocking looks at me.

I ignored her, keeping my head down as I scrolled through my phone. Ethan's face grew darker by the minute. I had no idea why he was angry, nor did I care.

Suddenly, Chloe slid into the seat next to me, a sickening smile on her face. "Clara, put your phone away. You're going to want to see the next item." I looked up in confusion.

Instantly, my mind went completely blank, and the blood in my veins turned to ice.

On the massive projector screen was a closeup of a small, polished white bead. "Our next piece is a highly unique keepsake.

A cremation pearl, crafted from the remains of a miscarried fetus, commissioned specially by Mr. Vance." As the auctioneer's voice echoed, my hands shook violently.

I dialed the hospital, only for the nurse to tell me that my baby’s body had been signed out by Ethan's assistant days ago.

I bolted upright, staring at Ethan, who sat there completely unbothered. This wasn't a standard keepsake. This was my baby.

My baby's bones, ground down and pressed into a bead for his mistress's amusement.

As the bidding started, I raised my paddle with a trembling hand, my voice breaking. "Ten million!" Ethan froze, a complex look flashing across his eyes.

Chloe’s eyes gleamed with malice. She squeezed out a few fake tears. "Ethan... why is Clara trying to take this from me?

Did you forget about our baby..." Without a second thought, Ethan raised his paddle. "Thirty million!" "Forty million!" I screamed, cold sweat soaking my hospital gown. Please, no.

I beg you... "Unlimited bid!" Ethan declared, shutting down the auction. In an instant, my world shattered.

I ran to Ethan, dropping to my knees and grabbing his trousers, begging him like a dog. "Ethan, please, I beg you, just give it to me. Don't you know?

That’s our child... that's our baby..." Ethan’s brow furrowed. He looked at me, then at Chloe, who was weeping softly.

Disgust washed over his face, and he violently kicked me away. "Clara, your lies are getting pathetic. Your baby is perfectly fine at the clinic.

To steal Chloe's spotlight, you'd even make up a lie like this. You are disgusting." "No, it's not a lie!

My baby died a week ago... please believe me..." The wealthy guests began whispering, cursing me for ruining their evening.

Annoyed by the noise, Ethan waved his hand. "Throw her out." He turned back to comfort a smiling Chloe, continuing his bidding.

But just as the auction was drawing to a close, the heavy doors were kicked open. A frantic clinic director ran in, his face pale with horror. "Mr. Vance!

There's been a massive mistake! The fetus we cremated... it wasn't the surrogate's child. It was swapped!"