C3 The devil she knew was indeed better than the angel she'd thought she knew

Natalia's body sagged against the train window, her eyes sunken and haunted by melancholy. Her brows were furrowed in total anguish and despair.

He wasn't a man anyone dared to defile. And she was just anyone—a bloody nobody at that.

Flabbergasted, she had refused at first. She would rather spend the remaining tenure in prison, where she felt safe, than be with such a menacing and dangerous man.

But it wasn't a matter of choice. Either she did that, or he would be forced to ensure she got life imprisonment this time. She was still defiant until he threatened to make her family's life more miserable than it already was.

He would do that. He doesn't look like a man who would make empty threats. Cowed and defeated, Natalia had meekly and resignedly agreed to the marriage contract, signing the papers without a fuss.

She hadn't even bothered to read the fine print, too exhausted and demoralized to do so. She had to do this. She wouldn't bear to see any other innocent person paying for a crime they didn't even commit.

Her chest heaved with ragged breaths, and her hands clenched into fists as she struggled to contain her emotions. Their wedding was in freaking two weeks!

She didn't even know how to break the news to Kevin yet! He would be in agony just as she was.

Guess it was karma.

They had broken up a marriage before it got the chance to even begin, and theirs was about to get broken. The train pulled into the station, and Natalia's bitter smile faltered.

Tears continued to stream down her cheeks. She wiped them away with a trembling hand, the motion a futile attempt to erase the pain and hopelessness she was experiencing at the moment.

Nostalgia washed over her as she stepped out of the train, the familiar sights and sounds enveloping her like a bittersweet embrace.

The station was just a mile away from Kevin's house, a place she would have never seen again if she had adamantly refused his proposal.

The mere thought of that made her shiver and rub her arms to get rid of the goosebumps that had formed. She hastened to Kevin's house, only to find it occupied by a stranger.

The old homeowner greeted her with a sympathetic look, his eyes filled with concern and pity as he took in her haggard appearance. He informed her that Kevin had packed out a couple of years ago.

Natalia hailed a cab as soon as she obtained his new address from the homeowner. She couldn't afford to waste a minute.

Oh, all those years of not seeing his sweet turquoise eyes and hearing his honeyed, velvety voice had been the real torture, to be frank.

She urged the driver to speed up a little. Her time with him had been cut short by that sinister stranger. As she stepped out of the cab and gazed up at the building, her jaw dropped.

Kevin's house was a luxurious masterpiece! Every detail of the opulent apartment screamed success.

In fact, if all these trappings of wealth were truly Kevin's, then he could easily afford to hire the expensive, eerie man who had come to bail her out a while ago as instructed.

Her chest swelled with pride; she never for a moment regretted her decision; in fact, she felt more pleased and truly vindicated seeing these accomplishments.

Her sacrifice had been worth it after all. Kevin could definitely counter that man and save her from the awful fate of marrying that creepy guy.

She gleefully made her way inside, her heart overflowing with love and excitement.

She knocked on the door and waited for Kevin's response. For a moment, the ache that had brought her to his doorstep faded away, and all she felt was the thrill of being reunited with the one person who truly got her.

She gleamed as she played his reaction in her head, imagining the shock and delight that would spread across his face when he saw her standing there.

With a sly smile, she straightened her shoulders, ready to make a memorable entrance.

The door opened, and Natalia's eyes struck at the sight before her—a radiant pregnant woman stood before her.

Not just any radiant pregnant stranger, but her very own twin sister! "Natasha?"

Natalia shockingly spoke out in confusion and disbelief. The glowing happiness on Natasha's face before she opened the door drained almost immediately.

"N.. Natalia?" She stammered, her own voice a bit pitched.

Still in doubt, Natalia bombarded her with questions: "Is this Kevin's house? Did you come to pay him a visit? Is he a friend to the father of your child?" earnestly hoping her assumptions were true.

Before Natasha would answer, a voice called out from inside. "Darling, who's at the door?"

That voice was Kevin's; she would recognize his voice anywhere. She felt like she had been punched in the gut, every single breath of hers knocked out.

Darling? No! This isn't true; this can't be happening to her! The world around her seemed to spin as she tried hard to make sense of what was going on.

"Darling, why aren't you--?" The words died in his mouth as he stepped into the foyer to be met with the unbelievable sight of his ex-fiancee.

" Natalia?!" Kevin exclaimed in bewilderment, instinctively wrapping his arms protectively around Natasha, shielding her from the sudden intrusion.

What in the world are you doing here?" he demanded with a hint of accusation. Kevin's eyes squinted, his disturbed mind grappling with questions.

How did she escape? How was this possible? How did she find him? The woman he thought was still locked away, paying for his sins, was now standing in his foyer, looking like a fish out of water.

His mind reeled, struggling to process the impossibility of it all.

Yet another unanticipated reception, this one was far more hurtful and heartbreaking.

Recovering from the agonizing shock, she snapped back at his words, "What in the world am I doing here? Is that what a man who is supposed to be in love with me should be asking?"

She let out a scoff. Today has been filled with awful surprises.

"Shouldn't I be the one with the questions? Can you explain what the hell is going on here?"

"I...I can explain," Natasha ventured, trying to dampen the sizzling situation.

"Explain?" Natalia's voice rose, her emotions simmering just below the surface.

"Explain what? Why is my sister standing on the doorstep of the man I thought I was in love with? Why is she pregnant with his child?" Natalia's eyes flashed with hurt and anger, her words spilling out in a torrent of confusion and betrayal.

"Don't raise your voice! How can you be so inconsiderate? Can't you see she's with a child?" Kevin raged, shoving Natasha inside with care.

He then turned to face Natalia. "There's nothing to explain, okay? You have seen it for yourself. I have a life and a wife now. I've moved on. You should too."

"What do you mean you have moved on?" She went up to him, pulling him by his shirt. Tears were uncontrollably escaping her eyes. "What do you mean by that? I sacrificed myself for you. I gave up everything for you! I even got disowned. I lost everything. My pride, my dignity, my family, my career—four years of my youth. Everything!" Her voice was muffled by sobs.

She scrunched her runny nose and continued, still clutching his shirt. "I survived all those tortures and pains, knowing I had a man who stood by me and loved me unconditionally..."

Kevin extracted her hands from his shirt and pushed her away. Natalia lost her balance and fell like a heap on the floor.

He let out a loud laugh, his eyes throwing daggers at her. "Unconditionally? You must be crazy and delusional to think I would have anything to do with you after your arrest. I am a successful businessman with a dignified reputation now. The possibility of marrying a woman with a criminal record is zero! I would never be caught dead doing so. And you being here is a taint to my reputation already! You're an ugly past I have put behind, and I oblige you to better stay that way!"

Natalia's voice got caught in her throat, as she listened to the vile words emitting from his mouth.

She was beyond stunned, and she continued staring at him blankly. Her emotions spiraled in chaos.

" I see you're paralyzed now," he sneered, the contempt in his voice didn't go unchecked. "Security!" he barked, pressing a button on his phone.

The security team arrived in no time, responding to Kevin's urgent summons.

"Take this piece of trash out of here!" he ordered, gesturing dismissively at Natalia.

"And if I find her anywhere near my property again, you will be fired on the spot, with immediate effect!" he threatened, his eyes as furious as a fox.

Natalia stood outside Kevin's house, the cold night air a harsh slap in the face after being so callously thrusted out. She felt utterly wretched, her chest squeezed tight at the shock and betrayal threatening to consume her.

"How would they do this to her!" She forced tears to flow but they seemed to have deserted her too. She had been crying all day, so no tear was left.

But in the midst of all these ugly events, a fierce resolve suddenly burned in her chest. Justice must be served, no matter the cost. Kevin must pay for his own crimes.

She will see to that. She was done paying for his crimes or anybody elses'. She won't be the scapegoat anymore.

She had been blinded by his charming facade, but now she saw him for the cunning coward he truly was.

The ominous man, with his sinister intentions, was at least honest about his nature.

The devil she knew was indeed better than the angel she thought she had known. But where does she go from here?

She had asked the man to give her a week to recollect herself, hoping to spend a memorable week with Kevin and find a way out of the mess.

Her parent's house was out of the question. She was dead to them. She had few friends, well, that was until she got arrested.

As she stood there ranking her brain, " maybe I should head back to the prison util--" a sleek black Lamborghini suddenly screeched to a halt in front of her.

The window glided down, revealing the crude man she had just been thinking about, seated with poise at the backseat.

Without even looking in her direction, his stern order caught the air: "Get in."

Without hesitation, muttering, 'As if I have any other place to go to, ' Natalia opened the door and slid into the passenger's seat.

"To the airport." he barked, his voice firm and authoritative.