CHAPTER 321: A NUISANCE OUTSIDE THE HOSPITAL

Across the city...

Tania stepped out of the hospital gate after her checkup. She moved toward the curb, scanning the road for a taxi when a sleek black car rolled to a stop beside her. Its tinted windows revealed nothing of the inside, only her reflection staring back at her.

She paused and tried to see who it was.

The window rolled down, revealing a familiar face—Jeanne.

Tania sneered inwardly. She had been wanting to meet with her, and finally, it was happening. She didn’t have to do anything. Jeanne had appeared in front of her on her own.

Jeanne’s sharp gaze, burning with accusation, confirmed that she had discovered her husband’s secret affair.

"Get in," Jeanne ordered, her tone crisp.

Tania masked her thrill with a look of panic. "No, I won’t."

Jeanne’s face twisted, eyes blazing like a storm. "Get in if you don’t want to make a scene here."

Tania recoiled under her sharp glare. "I am not going anywhere with you. Who knows what you will do to me? What if you hurt me?" She briskly walked away, but her lips curved in a sly smile. She knew Jeanne wouldn’t let her go so easily.

Sure enough, the woman called out, her loud voice piercing her ears, "You bitch, stop right there." Jeanne flung open the car door and marched after her.

Tania turned. Before she could even open her mouth, a slap came hard and fast, snapping her head to the side. Pain seared across her cheek, and her balance faltered, her feet shuffling backward.

Rage ignited in her chest instantly, demanding retaliation. Her fingers twitched with the urge to strike back. But she forced it down, gritting her teeth. Her goal was far greater than this fleeting satisfaction.

When she finally lifted her face again, her eyes shimmered with tears. She pressed a trembling hand against her stinging cheek, making a wronged face.

The busy street buzzed with the honks of cars and chatter of pedestrians until Jeanne’s voice sliced through it like a whip.

"You shameless bitch," Jeanne spat, her face contorted with rage. "How dare you hook up with my husband?"

Before Tania could rise from the sting of the first slap, Jeanne’s hand lashed out again, this time harder.

"Uh..." Tania staggered, her body reeling from the impact, her knees buckling. She hit the rough pavement, her palms scraping against the concrete.

A sharp burn spread across her skin, but she made no move to defend herself. She could have stopped Jeanne easily. Instead, she let the blows land. The more Jeanne humiliated her, the more sympathy she would earn from Gabriel.

Tears welled and spilled down her cheeks. She lifted her trembling hands, looking at the angry scratches and tiny streaks of blood seeping through the skin.

"You shamelessly seduced my husband." Jeanne lunged at Tania, tugging into a fistful of her hair, yanking her head backward.

Tania’s neck strained. She winced, her scalp hurting.

"First my son, and now my husband. Do you have any shame left?" Jeanne’s hand cracked across her cheek once more. "He is old enough to be your father, and you are crawling into his bed."

Her voice rose, drawing the attention of the people around. "Everyone, come here. Look at this shameless mistress."

Heads turned. People slowed their steps, curious, gathering, forming a circle. Murmurs rose in the air.

Jeanne pointed a furious finger at Tania, who crumpled on the ground. "She is a mistress. She seduced my husband and ruined my marriage. First, she deceived my son, pretended to be pregnant, and tried to marry him. When we uncovered her lies, we sent her to jail. And now..."

Jeanne’s nose wrinkled. "She is back again, this time trapping my husband."

The crowd buzzed with whispers, pointing accusing fingers at Tania, who sat frozen, her hair disheveled, her wide eyes brimming with tears and humiliation.

"What a shameless woman," one of the women spat with contempt. "She should be beaten up."

"Yes," another agreed. "How dare she try to destroy someone’s marriage? Beat her."

"Beat her."

"Beat her."

"Beat her..."

The voices around Tania rose into a furious chant, echoing through the street like a storm, fists shaking in the air.

A cruel satisfaction gleamed in Jeanne’s eyes. This was what she wanted: Tania humiliated, branded, punished.

Her lips curved into a vindictive smile. ’Gabriel, this is my revenge for betraying me. I’ll ruin her and drag your name through the mud with hers.’

Jeanne lifted her fist high, ready to bring it down again.

"Wait..." Tania’s shrill and desperate voice silenced the crowd.

She had been cowering a moment ago, but now her eyes burned with defiance. She pushed herself up from the ground.

"Don’t dare touch me," she hissed, shooting a warning glare at the people circling her. "Or else I’ll drag every single one of you into court for killing my child."

A stunned gasp rippled through the crowd. Jeanne froze mid-motion.

"What?" Jeanne snapped with disbelief, her hand suspended in the air.

Tania turned her glare on Jeanne. "I am pregnant with Gabriel’s child."

Gasps scattered like sparks through the gathered onlookers.

Jeanne staggered, the news startling her.

Tania reached into her bag and pulled out a folded document. She held it up high.

"This is my pregnancy report. It’s not fake—you can verify it yourself."

Jeanne snatched the paper. Her eyes darted across the words – Eight weeks pregnant. The truth stared back at her as if mocking her.

Her knees nearly buckled, her face draining of color.

Around them, the crowd shifted uneasily. Some recoiled in disgust, muttering curses under their breath. Others exchanged wide-eyed glances.

"Gabriel wants a child," Tania declared boldly with no shame on her face. "And I am carrying his child. Do you still want to hit me, Jeanne?"

She tilted her head and shot a challenging look at Jeanne. "If anything happens to this baby, Gabriel will never forgive you. And he will never spare you."

"Impossible." Jeanne shook her head, the report crumpling beneath her trembling fingers.

Tears prickled in the corners of her eyes. "This is not possible. You are lying."

Her voice cracked into a shriek. "This report must be fake."

Tania pointed toward the hospital just behind them. "The hospital is right there. You can go and check if you want. Speak to the doctor yourself. I had a check-up just now. It confirmed my pregnancy."

The confidence in her demeanor clashed against Jeanne’s spiraling disbelief. But she struggled to accept it.

It had happened once before—Tania presenting a false pregnancy report, even bribing a doctor to back her lies. It could be the same trick again, right? And yet... her chest ached unbearably.

Tania’s words sounded too convincing this time, as if she were telling the truth.

Jeanne’s heart squeezed painfully. Her logic screamed Tania was lying, but her heart trembled under the weight of betrayal.

"How can you be so shameless?" she muttered through clenched teeth. "First, you had an affair with my son... and now my husband? Why? Why are you targeting my family?"

Tania’s gaze was cold and unflinching. There was no remorse in them, only a quiet determination. She had a hidden purpose in getting close to the Beaumonts, and nothing would deter her until her mission was accomplished.

Jeanne pressed forward, her voice growing fierce again. "If you really want to settle down, find someone else—someone your age, someone single. Spare my husband. He is married. He has a son. Why are you clinging to a man who is old enough to be your father?"

She took a step closer to Tania and warned her, "Stay away from Gabriel. Leave him, and I’ll pretend none of this ever happened. If it’s money you want, I’ll give you. Just—leave him."

Around them, the crowd remained quiet, their gazes flicked back and forth between Jeanne and Tania.

Tania didn’t even blink. Why would she leave Gabriel? Why should she? She wouldn’t walk away—not until she had taken her revenge.

A cold smile touched her lips. "You are so generous. But I don’t need anything from you. I only want to be with the man I love."

"You—" Jeanne seethed, her hands itching to hit Tania again. "Aren’t you ashamed of yourself? You were with Denis before... and now, you are sleeping with his father?"

Heads shook in disgust, and several pairs of eyes darted toward Tania with open contempt. Fingers pointed, mouths curled into sneers.

But Tania stood unmoved. No panic, no shame, not even a flicker of hesitation passed over her face. She gazed at Jeanne with a cool detachment, as if those words had not affected her at all.

Jeanne was only making things difficult for herself. In her desperate attempt to humiliate Tania, she was instead dragging her own family’s name into the dirt, spitting her son’s and husband’s deeds publicly. People wouldn’t stop gossiping about the Beaumont family, and this would make Gabriel furious, prompting him to drive her out of his life and the family.

Yes, Tania was shameless. Shame, guilt, self-consciousness—these were burdens she had discarded a long time ago. If she had clung to notions of righteousness, she would never have set foot on this path of vengeance.

For her, the line between right and wrong had long since blurred. There was only one truth left: avenging her parents. And if that meant seducing a man old enough to be her father, then so be it. Compared to the miseries she had endured, this was nothing.

"I don’t care what you think," she said flippantly. "What I care about is our feelings. We have fallen for each other in a very short time."