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I cut him off, impatient.
"Anything about you, I don't care."
"Claire, it's all Ellen's fault. If she hadn't lied, I'd never have hurt our children."
He pulled out his phone and played a video.
Ellen, bruised and battered, knelt on the ground, bowing her head and begging. "I'm sorry, Claire. I was wrong. Please forgive me."
"I was greedy, I lied to Mr. Carter, I killed your children."
"Please spare me. I won't do it again."
Whips cracked across her back, and she let out screams. The video ended.
James looked at me, eyes hopeful.
"Claire, I know I failed you. What can I do for your forgiveness?"
"I've punished Ellen."
"I regret it. If I could redo it, I'd never hurt you or our children. Give me a chance to make it right, please?"
I stared coldly.
"Forgive? How can I forgive you for the deaths of our three children? "
"Why don't you and Ellen die together?"
Thinking of my lost children, my heart couldn't calm.
I'd felt them breathe in my womb.
James had rested his head on my belly, feeling their kicks.
We'd named them together, pretending.
Yet he killed them, one by one, for Ellen's" cure."
His own flesh and blood, and he felt no guilt, showed me no mercy.
Seeing my resolve, he knew I'd never forgive him.
"Claire, I'm sorry."
I ignored him, brushing past to leave.
Two weeks later, I received mail from back home.
James had signed the divorce agreement.
It included a bank card—his compensation.
A month later, I heard from James again.
He'd stabbed Ellen, cut out her heart, and fed it to stray dogs.
The Carter Group's stocks plummeted, facing bankruptcy.
His father had a heart attack and was hospitalized; his mother's hair turned white overnight from grief.
At his trial, James went mad.
He claimed three child spirits haunted him, demanding to know why he killed them.
Day and night, their voices filled his ears.
Some said he faked insanity to dodge justice.
Others said it was divine retribution, his children's spirits tormenting him.
Either way, he was committed to a psychiatric ward.
The Carters hired priests to perform daily rituals, the only time he could rest.
None of it mattered to me. Later, James's doctor friend texted an apology.
"Sorry, Claire.I'm partly responsible for your pain."
"You heard our talk in the hospital, didn't you? I noticed movement in your room but didn't tell James."
"I was selfish. I couldn't tell you the truth but didn't want you deceived and hurt."
"I've quit.I'll spend my life doing free clinics in remote areas to atone for my sins."
I put down my phone, lit some incense, and prayed.
"May my three children be reborn into a happy family."
That night, I dreamed of three sweet children bidding me farewell.
They said they didn't blame me and wished me happiness.
