Skin Deep The Billionaire’s Poisonous Love

My husband used my skin to do a graft for his first love, but she complained it wasn't young and soft enough. In his rage, he forced me to bear six children, one after another. But he told me none of the babies survived because of genetic defects. Filled with immense guilt, I blamed my own body for failing him. As I writhed in agony in the delivery room, I overheard a hushed conversation between him and the doctor. "Mr. Vance, this is your sixth child. You’re really going through with this just for Miss Bennett’s skin graft? You don't have to take the baby's life!" "The child is nothing but a tool." "I promised Chloe I'd give her the youngest, most flawless skin. I won't let her have a single scar." So, my happy marriage was nothing but a sickening illusion. My babies and I were just raw materials for him to please Chloe Bennett. Fine. I'll let you two have each other. The doctor looked deeply troubled. "Mr. Vance, this is your sixth child. Are you absolutely sure about this?" "Of course. This one has incredibly soft skin. Let's see how well the transplant takes on Chloe." "Mrs. Vance has been in labor for hours, and her body is failing. You’ve already harvested the skin from her abdomen for Miss Bennett. This will likely be her last pregnancy. It's your own flesh and blood... do you really have no regrets?" "Just do your job and shut up!" The anesthesia was wearing off, and the pain from my incision was excruciating. But the physical agony didn't even compare to a fraction of the heartbreak ripping through my chest. Looking down at the missing skin on my abdomen, and realizing my six babies had all been murdered by their own father, I clenched my fists, tears streaming down my face. And all because I had accidentally spilled hot water on Chloe Bennett once. Ethan Vance actually did this to me! To him, my children and I were nothing but disposable chess pieces. His only treasure was his first love, Chloe Bennett. Hearing his footsteps approaching the ward, I quickly shut my eyes. His hand gently caressed my cheek. His palm was warm, but my heart was frozen solid. "Are you awake? Don't worry, you’ll recover quickly. I got you the best medication available." I slowly opened my eyes, staring blankly at this face that was both so familiar and yet so terrifyingly foreign. Tears slipped down my temples. Ethan pursed his lips, putting on a show of deep sorrow. "Our sixth baby... didn't make it either. The doctor said your body was just too weak." The sixth time. Ethan, you really are a phenomenal actor! How do you manage to deliver the exact same lie every single time without even blushing? I turned my face away, refusing to look at him. I didn't want to expose his lie yet, nor did I want to see my baby's body. I was terrified that if I did, I wouldn't be able to stop myself from killing him. "Just go. I want to sleep." He gently kissed my forehead and turned to leave. He left his laptop on the bedside table. I reached over and opened it, wanting to see just how many more secrets he was keeping from me. He had several computers, but this was his personal laptop, completely free of any work files. Because I had trusted him blindly, I had never once snooped through his devices. When the screen lit up, the wallpaper was a college photo of him and Chloe. She was snuggled tightly in his arms, and he was holding her like she was his entire world. In his Notes app, there was a detailed log of Chloe's daily habits. "Hates cilantro. Loves eating ice cream in the winter. Prefers pink beanies." "Bra size: XX. Shoe size: XX. Clothing size: XX." "Loves white roses, high-end perfumes, and wearing 3-inch heels." "She likes purple now." "She only wears 2-inch heels now." ... He didn't just remember her preferences; he kept track of every single minute change in her taste. The deeper I scrolled, the colder my blood ran. The gifts he bought me over the years were never things I liked. They were either bought carelessly at the last minute or were literally the free gifts that came with Chloe's luxury purchases. In the photo gallery, there were pictures of meals Ethan had cooked himself for Chloe. We had been together for ten years and married for seven, yet I had never once seen Ethan step foot in the kitchen. He had even bought her a luxury townhouse—right across the street from our mansion. And I had been blind to it for all these years. I couldn't even remember when it started, but he was always "busy at work" on every major holiday. Now I knew he was just across the street, keeping Chloe company. I shut the laptop. Right then and there, I booked a one-way ticket out of the country for next week. I had spent the last seven years constantly pregnant, unable to fly out to visit my parents. This time, once I reunited with them, I was never coming back. Right now, my only goal was to recover as quickly as possible.Familiar voices echoed from the hallway outside. My mother-in-law had arrived. "Which room is Chloe in? I heard her skin graft surgery was today, so I rushed over with some homemade organic collagen broth." "Is it still warm? Don't let it get cold." Ethan was with her. My room was right in front of them, but their footsteps passed by without a single pause. "Chloe, sweetie, I heard the surgery was a massive success. Let me see the incision." "I personally simmered this premium broth for you. Drink it while it's hot." "Are you feeling tired? I won't disturb your rest then. Make sure to sleep well and eat up so you can heal quickly." "Call me tomorrow and tell me what you want to eat. I'll cook it myself." On her way out, she stopped by my room. She stormed in, her face twisted in annoyance and condescension. "What? The baby didn't survive again?" "Useless trash. You can't do anything right!" "If you can't even produce a healthy heir, you might as well pack your bags and get out of the Vance mansion. Stop wasting the title of Mrs. Vance!" Once upon a time, my mother-in-law actually liked me. But after one baby after another died, her attitude toward me turned completely hostile. Looking at how she pampered Chloe, it was obvious she already viewed Chloe as her new daughter-in-law. I closed my eyes, refusing to give her any reaction. But her shrill voice kept drilling into my ears. "How disrespectful! I'm speaking to you, and you dare close your eyes?" "Get up and look at me when I'm talking!" With that, she grabbed my arm and violently yanked me up from the pillows. The freshly stitched incision on my abdomen tore open. Pain shot through my body, making me gasp and writhe in agony. Ethan stood by the door, watching coldly. He didn't say a single word to defend me. Eventually, a nurse couldn't watch anymore. She gently took Eleanor's arm and escorted her out. The doctor hurried in to stop my bleeding. Ethan just followed his mother out of the room. I didn't even have the energy to feel sad anymore. I just wanted to heal fast. I couldn't let my physical condition delay my flight next week. Just as the doctor finished bandaging my wound, Chloe walked in, proudly showing off her newly grafted arm. She strutted in with a smug smirk on her face. "Clara, weren't you dying to see your baby? Here, let me show you!" She waved her arm right in front of my face. My eyes burned with pure hatred. I wanted nothing more than to tear her apart. "Clara, this is the sixth one. I heard... you can't have kids anymore? In that case, shouldn't you vacate the seat of Mrs. Vance?" She ran her fingers delicately over her arm. "I must say, this sixth one is incredibly soft. Ethan said this graft turned out the best. He even praised you, saying your body is great at producing good skin!" "Actually, I was perfectly happy with the first graft. But I purposely told Ethan I hated it. I just wanted to see how many times you could get pregnant." "Your babies' skin is so much softer than yours. But every time I make a tiny scratch on it, it ruins the graft. And whenever that happens, Ethan happily forces you to have another baby for me." "Since you can't breed anymore, I guess I'll have to take extra care of this one. Whenever you miss your dead kids, you're welcome to come look at my arm." My fury boiled over. I grabbed the water glass from the bedside table and hurled it straight at her face. Ethan walked in just in time. He blocked the glass with his arm, pulling Chloe protectively into his chest. His eyes turned bloodshot as he glared at me. "Clara, have you lost your mind? How dare you attack Chloe?" "She came here out of the goodness of her heart to visit you! Not only are you ungrateful, but you physically assault her? You're insane!" "You psycho, I am completely sick of you!" Yes, I was insane! I was insane, and I was blind. Otherwise, how could I have ever loved a monster like Ethan Vance? "Ethan, you harvested my skin for Chloe, and you murdered my six babies! Do you honestly think I don't know?" A flicker of guilt flashed through Ethan's eyes, but it was quickly replaced by cold arrogance. "So what if you know? If you hadn't scalded Chloe with hot water in the first place, would I have ever resorted to this?" "Using your skin and the babies' skin to heal Chloe is an honor for both of you!" He turned his head, his eyes immediately softening as he looked at Chloe with pure devotion. "Are you okay, sweetheart? Did this psycho scare you?" Chloe looked incredibly pitiful. Tears welled up in her eyes as she buried her face in Ethan's chest, sobbing uncontrollably. "Thank goodness you got here in time, Ethan... otherwise Clara would have killed me!" "I just wanted to be nice and check on her. I never expected her to be so hostile and throw a glass at me." "I feel so hurt, Ethan..." Ethan glared at me with such venom, it looked like he wanted to strangle me to death right then and there. My heart clenched in sheer agony from their disgusting display. My vision went black, and I passed out. When I woke up again, the room was empty.