Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph

Chapter 245 Sophie

The girl whispered "Richard" and then just collapsed. The crowd went wild, and Richard's face twisted as he looked over. She was closest to me, so I stepped up and caught her before she hit the ground.

She was barely conscious, trying to open her eyes, but all she managed were a couple of tears and another soft "Richard."

I rushed her to the hospital. After a bunch of tests, the doctor dropped the bomb: she was pregnant. I stared at the girl on the bed, looking so young and innocent. That was my first impression of Sophie. Thinking back to how upset she was when the judge gave the verdict and her constant calling for "Richard," I thought I had it figured out.

She was still out cold, so I dug through her phone for her family's contact info and gave them a call. A middle-aged couple showed up just before dark, right as Sophie was waking up.

When they heard she was pregnant, the woman lost it, throwing all kinds of insults at her. Sophie just cried, too scared to talk back.

Then the woman turned to me, giving me the once-over before pointing at me and asking Sophie, "Is he the father?"

Sophie shook her head like crazy, but the woman didn't care and started yelling at me.

"You look decent, but what have you done? Sophie's just a kid!"

I wasn't planning to say anything, but she was really pushing it.

I calmly said, "It's not me."

That just made her angrier. She put her hands on her hips and yelled even louder. "Why won't you take responsibility?"

She turned back to Sophie, stormed over, and jabbed her in the forehead. "You're such a disgrace. We raised you, and this is how you repay us?"

Sophie's head jerked to the side, but she just kept crying, not daring to talk back.

The woman said angrily, "You need to get rid of this illegitimate child."

got this fierce look. "No, I won't. I'm

grabbed Sophie's ear. "You've shamed us enough, and now you want to keep

silent man next to her, then sneered. "Sophie, if you keep this baby, you're out of our house. We can't handle

the man out, and I later found out she wasn't Sophie's mom but her aunt. Her parents had died, and she'd been living with her uncle's family. After

calmed down, I asked, "Is the baby

teared up again

about the baby?"

crossed her face, and

added, "Are

with her swollen eyes and said, "I have to keep this

knew there was no point in trying to change her mind. She

said, "I'm Ethan, Richard's older

set on having the baby, I had to find a place for her. Richard had messed up, but I managed to pull him back from the edge. Still, I felt guilty about Sophie

We all had to face the consequences of our choices. Sophie did, Richard did, and

know if Victor had fully kicked his drug habit. If he hadn't, then after Richard got busted for dealing, he should've realized

death anniversary, I drove back to her hometown to visit

buried on a hillside near her home. Unlike a public cemetery that had kept up, her family was small-just her mom and

stood there for another half,

had her name, but I could never forget her face those long lashes, big eyes, and the way she'd shyly look down

cry. Over the years, I've had nightmares, seeing her covered in blood, telling me she was in so much pain

voice called

to see a tall,

She looked a lot like Fiona, but now she

City looking for Fiona; she was just a kid. Now she was

curious and eager to try everything. She even went

you came to see her; she'd be so happy." Faye's voice had this uplifting