Sebastian was in the kitchen, sleeves rolled up, quietly cooking, moving on instinct, muscle mory built from years of doing this for Amara. The soup simred gently, filling the house with a familiar warmth that no longer felt earned.
In the living room, Seren sat curled up with the tablet. The screen lit up.
An image is loaded. Her small brows knit together. A black-and-white picture. Strange. Blurry. Numbers at the top.
Six weeks. Before she could fully understand it, her finger swiped.
Deleted. "Seren, what are you doing?"
Elara’s sharp voice cut through the room. Seren startled, clutching the tablet. "That wicked woman," she said quickly, mimicking words she’d heard far too often. "Amara sent a picture to Dad. I deleted it."
Elara froze. "What picture?" she asked, already knowing.
"I don’t know," Seren shrugged, trying to sound casual. "It looked like... like a baby picture? It said six weeks along."
Elara’s nails dug into her palm. An ultrasound. So she really was pregnant. A slow, venomous smile crept onto her lips.
The baby is already gone, she thought coldly. And you still want to tell him?
Amara, you really are a bitch.
Her gaze dropped to Seren, her daughter, her mirror, the perfect little replica she had been shaping for years. Poisoned carefully, patiently, against the woman who had fed her, bathed her, loved her like her own.
The woman who had practically raised her.
Seren looked up, uneasy. "Mummy... was I wrong to delete it?" she asked softly. "Did I do sothing bad?"
Elara knelt in front of her instantly, cupping her face with practiced tenderness.
"No," she said sweetly. "You did nothing wrong. Not at all."
Seren relaxed.
"You have to rember this," Elara continued, her voice gentle, almost loving. "Amara is a wicked woman. She took everything from ."
Seren’s eyes widened.
"And you don’t want to lose your daddy, do you?" Elara asked quietly.
Seren shook her head fast. "No."
"If you don’t want that wicked woman to take him away," Elara whispered, pressing her forehead to Seren’s, "then you have to help Mummy."
A pause. Then, obediently, Seren nodded.
"Alright," the little girl said. "I rember." Elara smiled.
"That’s my good girl," she said, pulling her into an embrace, one arm wrapped tightly, the other slowly stroking her hair.
Her eyes lifted over Seren’s shoulder, cold and calculating.
"You’re going to help ," Elara murmured. "Help get rid of that wicked woman."
Back at the hospital, Amara stared at her phone until her vision blurred.
Seen. Sebastian’s blue tick sat there like a final insult, cold, indifferent, unmoving. No reply. Her fingers trembled as she typed, deleted, typed again... then stopped. Slowly, decisively, she pressed Block.
The screen went silent. So did her heart.
She turned her face toward the window, tears sliding down soundlessly. She had lost her baby. And she was alone. Outside the room, voices drifted in, low, careless, cruel in their innocence.
---
"How pitiful," one nurse whispered. "She lost the baby, and no one’s here."
"Doesn’t her husband love her?" another asked softly. "Why isn’t he by her side?"
A pause. "Oh, who’s this Mrs. Creed you were talking about?"
The hallway air shifted. Heavy footsteps approached. A man’s voice, sharp, unmistakable.
"Is that my wife?" Sebastian demanded. "Amara Creed?" The nurses froze.
Sebastian stood there in a tailored coat, holding an enormous basket filled with Amara’s favorite dishes, things she used to crave, things she would never touch again. Beside him stood Seren, holding onto his hand.
Elara moved instantly. "Mrs. Creed is infertile," she said smoothly, her voice quick, decisive. "How could she possibly have a miscarriage? You must be talking about soone else."
Seren nodded eagerly. "Yeah, Dad. If Mom were pregnant, she would’ve told you. Right?"
Sebastian’s jaw tightened. "You’re dical professionals," he snapped at the nurses. "It’s inappropriate to gossip about patients." The nurses lowered their heads, murmuring apologies.
Then Sebastian turned, his gaze hardening as it landed on Elara.
"Why are you here?" Elara lifted her chin, wounded but composed. "I ca to visit Mrs. Creed. If she tries to complain about ," she added lightly, "I’ll just say she’s imagining things."
"She won’t be happy to see you," Sebastian said coldly. "You should leave."
Seb... I don’t want you and Amara arguing because of ," Elara said gently. "If apologizing will calm her down, I’m willing to swallow my pride."
"You don’t have to," Sebastian replied imdiately. "I’ll handle everything."
Elara’s eyes softened. "I’m sorry you’re always put in this position. I just want you to be happy."
Sebastian said nothing. "Dad," Seren tugged his sleeve. "Let Mommy visit Mom. Co on."
They turned and walked down the hallway, past the nurses, past the whispers, "Why did you stop ?" one nurse hissed under her breath.
"We can’t afford to cross the Creed family," the other replied quietly. "Do you want to lose your job? Let it go. Don’t stir trouble you can’t survive."
Down the corridor, Sebastian slowed when a familiar, authoritative voice cut through the air.
"Sebastian." He turned. His mother.
Mrs. Creed Senior stood tall, her expression sharp as ever, eyes already full of judgnt.
"Stop letting Amara get away with everything," she said briskly. "If I hadn’t called the office, I wouldn’t even know she was here acting out." Sebastian frowned. "She wasn’t acting out."
"Don’t defend her," his mother snapped. "She’s infertile. A woman who can’t conceive shouldn’t expect to be the only wife. Worse, she’s doing nothing for your career. Why keep a woman like that around?"
The words landed like slaps. Sebastian opened his mouth...
"Ah..." Elara suddenly gasped, one hand flying to her stomach. Sebastian panicked instantly. "What’s wrong?" She smiled, soft and glowing. "The baby just kicked . Seb... your son is very playful."
Sebastian’s eyes widened, sothing feral and eager flashing through them. "A boy?"
"Yes," Elara said gently. "We have a girl already. Now we’ll have a boy."
Mrs. Creed Senior’s face lit up as if a miracle had just occurred. "A grandson! Finally, soone to carry on the family na!"
"Grandma!" Seren clapped excitedly. "Mommy’s giving a baby brother! That’s amazing!"
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