Chapter 2: I Left Before He Could Know

“You're pregnant?”

Ethan's voice was quieter than Ava expected.

He stood beside the dresser, still holding the pregnancy test between his fingers, his dark eyes fixed on the two pink lines as though he were trying to understand what they meant.

Ava stared at him.

For one dangerous second, hope rose inside her again.

Perhaps she had been wrong.

Perhaps the shock in his eyes wasn't fear or disappointment. Perhaps he was simply overwhelmed. Maybe this was the moment everything changed after all.

She searched his face for some sign of happiness.

There was none.

“Are you upset?” she asked.

Ethan finally looked at her.

“Why would I be upset?”

Ava lowered her gaze.

“I don't know.”

He placed the pregnancy test on the dresser with deliberate care.

“How long have you known?”

“Tonight.”

His brows drew together.

“And you didn't tell me?”

A bitter answer rose in her throat.

Because I was going to.

Because I was standing outside your study with a smile on my face, ready to tell you that you were going to be a father.

Because I thought you'd be happy.

Instead, she said, “I wanted to be sure.”

Ethan studied her for a long moment.

Something about Ava was wrong.

He knew her well enough to recognize when she was hiding something, yet he couldn't understand what it was. She wasn't smiling. She wasn't excited. She wasn't even looking at him.

His gaze moved toward the suitcase beside the bed.

“Where are you going?”

Ava's fingers tightened around the hem of her dress.

“Somewhere else.”

“Why?”

“I need some time.”

“Time for what?”

She looked at him.

There were so many questions trapped behind her teeth.

Did you ever love me?

Was our marriage ever real to you?

If your father hadn't forced you into it, would you have chosen me?

And what exactly was Sophia to you?

But she couldn't ask.

Not tonight.

Because she was terrified that if she gave Ethan the opportunity to answer, he would confirm everything she had heard.

So instead, she asked the question that had been haunting her since she stepped away from his study.

“Ethan, if you could go back three years and choose your life again, would you choose someone else?”

His expression changed.

“What kind of question is that?”

“Just answer me.”

“Ava, I don't understand where this is coming from.”

“Please.”

He exhaled slowly.

“There are decisions people make because circumstances leave them with no choice.”

Her heart sank.

There it was.

Not a direct answer, but enough.

Enough to tell her that what she had heard hadn't been a misunderstanding.

Ava nodded.

“I understand.”

“No, you don't.”

“I do.”

“You're acting strangely.”

“I've had a long night.”

“You should rest.”

Ava almost laughed.

Rest.

How was she supposed to sleep after discovering that the marriage she had spent three years protecting had been nothing more than a transaction to her husband?

She looked at him.

“Did you ever regret marrying me?”

Ethan went silent.

The silence lasted only a few seconds.

It was enough.

Ava felt the answer before he ever gave it.

She looked away, blinking rapidly.

“I don't need you to answer.”

“Ava.”

“It's fine.”

She forced a smile that felt foreign on her face.

“I won't make things difficult for you.”

Ethan's eyes narrowed.

“What are you talking about?”

“I'll leave.”

His gaze immediately went to the suitcase.

“You're pregnant.”

“I know.”

“You can't just leave.”

Ava looked back at him.

“Why not?”

“Because you're my wife.”

The words should have comforted her.

Instead, they hurt more than anything else he had said.

His wife.

That was all.

Not the woman he loved.

Not the woman he had chosen.

Just his wife.

A title given to her by a marriage certificate he had apparently never wanted.

Ava lowered her eyes.

“Don't worry. I won't ask you for anything.”

Ethan stepped closer.

“Ava, stop talking like this.”

Before she could respond, his phone rang.

He glanced at the screen.

Daniel.

His chief financial officer rarely called him this late unless something was seriously wrong.

Ethan hesitated.

Ava looked toward the phone.

“You should answer.”

“This can wait.”

“No. It sounds important.”

Ethan studied her for another second before answering.

“What happened?”

Ava turned away.

She didn't want to hear his business problems.

She had enough of her own.

Behind her, Ethan's expression changed.

“What do you mean the acquisition documents disappeared?”

Ava walked toward the closet.

“Freeze every transaction until I get there,” Ethan ordered. “Don't authorize anything. I'll handle it.”

She pulled her suitcase from the floor.

For a moment, she glanced over her shoulder.

Ethan had turned away from her, completely absorbed in the call.

Maybe it was better this way.

If he watched her leave, she might lose her courage.

Ava lifted the suitcase and walked toward the bedroom door.

Ethan didn't notice.

She stepped into the hallway.

Then she stopped.

For three years, this had been her home.

She had arrived here as Ethan's bride with two suitcases and a heart full of hope.

Now she was leaving with almost nothing.

Ava looked back once.

Ethan was still on the phone.

He didn't turn around.

Something inside her ached, but she forced herself to move.

She descended the stairs.

The housekeeper looked up in surprise when she saw the suitcase.

“Madam, are you traveling?”

Ava gave her a small smile.

“Yes.”

“Should I prepare the car?”

“No, thank you.”

She continued toward the front entrance.

The moment she stepped outside, cool night air touched her face.

Ava stopped beneath the covered entrance and took a deep breath.

For the first time that night, she felt as though she could breathe.

Then a dull ache tightened across her lower abdomen.

She instinctively placed a hand over her stomach.

The pain faded after a few seconds.

She frowned.

It returned.

This time, sharper.

“Madam?”

Her driver hurried toward her.

“Where are you going?”

Ava hesitated.

She had planned to find a hotel first. Somewhere quiet. Somewhere Ethan wouldn't immediately think to look.

But another wave of discomfort moved through her.

She looked down at her hand resting over her stomach.

“Take me to the hospital.”

The driver immediately became concerned.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“I don't know.”

He opened the car door.

Ava climbed into the back seat.

As the mansion disappeared behind them, she leaned against the window and watched the familiar lights grow smaller.

That house had once represented everything she wanted.

Security.

Family.

Love.

Tonight, it looked like a cage she had finally found the courage to escape.

Ava closed her eyes.

“Goodbye, Ethan.”

She didn't know whether she was saying goodbye for one night or forever.

She only knew that she couldn't go back.

Not after tonight.

Back at the mansion, Ethan finally ended his call.

The business crisis was serious, but his attention was already somewhere else.

Ava.

Something about her behavior continued to bother him.

He turned toward the door.

“Ava?”

There was no answer.

He walked back into the bedroom.

The moment he saw the empty space where her suitcase had been, his expression changed.

He looked around.

The room was quiet.

Too quiet.

Her clothes were missing from the closet, but several expensive pieces of jewelry remained untouched.

The diamond bracelet he'd given her on their second anniversary was still in its drawer.

Her necklace from their third anniversary was still lying on the dressing table.

Then he saw it.

A small glint of metal beside the pregnancy test.

Ethan walked closer.

His breath caught.

Her wedding ring.

She had left her wedding ring behind.

He picked it up.

For several seconds, he simply stared at it in his palm.

“Ava.”

Something cold settled in his chest.

He immediately called her.

Once.

Twice.

The call went to voicemail.

He called again.

Nothing.

Ethan's jaw tightened.

He had spent most of his adult life believing he could control every situation if he had enough information.

But right now, he didn't even know where his wife was.

He walked out of the bedroom.

“Get the car ready.”

Daniel appeared at the end of the hallway a moment later.

“Mr. Blackwood?”

“Find Ava.”

Daniel hesitated.

“Madam?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know where she went?”

“No.”

Ethan's voice hardened.

“Then find out.”

Daniel nodded immediately.

“Yes, sir.”

Ethan returned to the bedroom.

His eyes fell on the pregnancy test.

He picked it up again.

A child.

His child.

The realization should have made him smile.

Instead, an unfamiliar uneasiness settled over him.

Why had Ava looked at him as though she were saying goodbye?

Why had she asked whether he would choose someone else?

And why had she left her wedding ring?

He thought back to their conversation.

There had been something in her eyes.

Something wounded.

Something final.

Ethan's fingers closed around the ring.

“Ava, what happened?”

He had no idea that she had heard the conversation with his father.

He didn't know what she believed.

And he certainly didn't know that she was carrying more than one secret.

At the hospital, Ava sat on an examination bed while the doctor reviewed her information.

“You said the pain started about an hour ago?”

“Yes.”

“Have you experienced any bleeding?”

“No.”

The doctor nodded reassuringly.

“That's good. We're going to perform an ultrasound. It may simply be normal discomfort, but I'd rather make sure everything is okay.”

Ava nodded.

Her fingers were cold.

Until now, she had been so consumed by Ethan that she hadn't allowed herself to think about the baby.

Now, alone in the sterile examination room, fear finally caught up with her.

What if something was wrong?

She closed her eyes.

Please.

Not my baby.

The examination began.

Ava stared anxiously at the monitor while the doctor moved the device carefully.

Then she heard it.

A rapid, rhythmic sound filled the room.

Ava's eyes widened.

“What is that?”

The doctor smiled.

“Your baby's heartbeat.”

Ava's lips parted.

For several seconds, she couldn't speak.

Then tears filled her eyes.

She had never heard anything so beautiful.

Her baby was real.

Not just a second line on a test.

Not just a dream.

A living little heartbeat was inside her.

Ava laughed through her tears.

Then she noticed that the doctor wasn't speaking.

The smile on the woman's face had changed.

Ava's happiness faltered.

“Doctor?”

The doctor adjusted the screen.

“That's interesting.”

Ava's heart began to race.

“What?”

“Don't worry. I don't see anything wrong.”

“Then why are you looking like that?”

The doctor smiled again.

“Because there's something you weren't expecting.”

Ava stared at the screen.

The doctor pointed toward a second flicker.

“Do you see that?”

Ava frowned.

“I... I think so.”

“That's another heartbeat.”

Ava's eyes widened.

“Twins?”

The doctor shook her head.

“Not quite.”

She adjusted the image.

A third rhythmic flicker appeared.

Ava stopped breathing.

The doctor looked at her.

“Congratulations, Mrs. Blackwood.”

Ava stared at the screen.

“You're carrying triplets.”

The world seemed to disappear around her.

Three.

Three tiny heartbeats.

Three lives growing inside her.

Ava covered her mouth with both hands as tears spilled down her cheeks.

“Three?”

The doctor smiled.

“Three.”

Ava laughed softly, then cried harder.

She didn't know whether she was terrified or happy.

Perhaps she was both.

Her hand moved instinctively toward her stomach.

Three babies.

She was carrying three babies.

For a few precious seconds, she allowed herself to imagine Ethan hearing the news.

She imagined his stunned expression.

She imagined him holding the ultrasound photograph.

She imagined him asking whether they were healthy.

Then the memory returned.

I only married her because I had no other choice.

Ava's smile slowly disappeared.

She looked at the monitor again.

Three tiny heartbeats.

Three reasons to be strong.

“No,” she whispered.

The doctor looked at her.

Ava wiped her tears.

“He can't know.”

The doctor frowned.

“Mrs. Blackwood—”

“I need time.”

“Is there a problem with your husband?”

Ava looked away.

“I just need to figure out what I'm going to do.”

She couldn't tell Ethan.

Not yet.

She didn't know what kind of man he would become when he discovered there were three heirs growing inside the woman he had never wanted.

She didn't know what his family would do.

And she refused to risk her children while she was still trying to understand the truth.

Ava closed her eyes.

Whatever happened next, she would protect them.

Even if it meant protecting them from their own father.

Back at the Blackwood mansion, Ethan stood beside the bedroom window.

Rain continued to fall outside.

Daniel entered.

“Sir.”

Ethan turned.

“Where is she?”

“We traced her vehicle.”

Ethan's expression sharpened.

“And?”

“She went to a hospital.”

He was already moving.

“Which one?”

“We're confirming the location now.”

Ethan stopped.

A sudden vibration came from his phone.

Unknown number.

He answered immediately.

“Who is this?”

For several seconds, there was only silence.

Then a distorted voice spoke.

“Stop looking for your wife.”

Ethan's eyes narrowed.

“Tell me where she is.”

“You don't understand what you're doing.”

“I asked where she is.”

“You should leave Ava Blackwood alone.”

Ethan's grip tightened around the phone.

“That isn't going to happen.”

A low laugh came through the speaker.

“You really don't know, do you?”

Ethan went still.

“Know what?”

The line went dead.

A second later, a message appeared on his screen.

If you find Ava, she won't be safe.

Ethan stared at the words.

His expression changed.

This wasn't about a failing acquisition.

It wasn't about the marriage.

Someone was watching Ava.

Someone knew she had left.

And someone was willing to threaten her to keep Ethan from finding her.

He looked at Daniel.

“Find her.”

“Sir, we—”

“Now.”

Daniel nodded and hurried away.

Ethan looked down at the wedding ring still sitting in his palm.

For the first time, a frightening possibility entered his mind.

Perhaps Ava hadn't left because she wanted to escape him.

Perhaps she had left because she was afraid.

And if someone had threatened her, then the question was no longer why his wife had walked away.

It was who had given her a reason to run.

Ethan's phone vibrated again.

This time, there was no message.

Only a photograph.

His blood ran cold.

It was Ava.

Sitting alone inside a hospital room.

And beneath the photograph were five words:

You should have let her go.