Chapter 3

Cassandra’s POV

Vivian's laughter echoed through the hospital room, but I barely heard it anymore.

Ethan had spent an entire week in the ICU, fighting his way back from the edge of death. When the nurse finally told me he was out of danger, something inside me just... gave out. All those days of holding myself together, and my body decided it was done.

Next thing I knew, I was the one in a hospital bed.

I opened my eyes to find Asher sitting beside me. There was worry in his expression—faint, but unmistakable. I didn't care anymore, and he could tell.

His jaw tightened, irritation flashing across his face. "What's with that look? You blaming me for this?"

I turned away. "I wouldn't dare."

He moved fast, grabbing my wrist with both hands. His eyes had gone red around the edges, and his Alpha presence pressed down on me like a physical weight. "Cassandra, we're barely getting started here." His voice dropped low and dangerous. "After everything I've sacrificed for you, this is how you react? You said you'd be my Luna. Was your loyalty really that fragile?"

Ever since I'd been reborn, Asher had been different with me. I'd assumed it was because events had unfolded differently this time around—butterfly effect, altered timeline, changed feelings. Simple cause and effect.

But now I wasn't so sure.

"Asher," I heard myself say, "did you come back too?"

He froze, surprise flashing across his face. Then he yanked his hand away, his expression turning ice-cold.

"What the hell are you talking about? You've lost your mind!"

He stormed off without looking back.

I stared at his retreating figure, my thoughts churning. In three days, we'd be done. Completely done.

The nurse took me through a whole battery of tests—Asher's orders, apparently. I didn't fight it. What was the point anymore?

The next morning, the nurse burst into my room, practically glowing with excitement.

"Cassandra! Congratulations—you're pregnant!"

I froze.

"What?"

"Your test results came back, and you're almost two months pregnant!" The nurse beamed at me. "You've been wanting a pup for so long, and now it's finally happening!"

My whole body went rigid.

"But the healer said I couldn't get pregnant again."

That night during the storm, Asher had left me stranded outside the city because of Vivian. I'd walked through the rain for hours until I slipped and fell into the lake. I lost the baby. The healer told me the damage meant I'd probably never conceive again.

And now they were telling me I was carrying Asher's pup?

"There are always exceptions," the nurse said gently. "Maybe the Moon Goddess meant for you to have this pup. Just be extra careful this time, okay?"

I sat there in a daze for the rest of the day.

By evening, I'd made my decision—I was keeping this baby.

Whatever was happening between Asher and me, the pup was innocent. This was my blood, my cub.

But I never expected what came next. Someone injected me with a sedative and dragged me into an operating room.

I couldn't move, but I was completely aware of everything.

I heard voices talking.

"Guess the Alpha cares more about Vivian after all. His own Luna and Vivian both get pregnant, and he's making his Luna get an abortion so Vivian won't be upset!"

"Right? The actual Luna can't even compete with a single hair on Vivian's head. How pathetic is that?"

Tears slid silently down my face.

Cold metal instruments moved inside me, and the heart that used to beat for Asher finally shattered into pieces too broken to ever fix.

I regretted everything.

Regretted ever loving Asher.

When the torture finally ended, they wheeled me out of the operating room. The anesthesia started wearing off, and through my haze, I sensed someone standing beside me, watching.

It was Asher.

I kept my eyes closed and played unconscious. I didn't want to deal with him.

Then something warm and soft pressed against my forehead.

He'd kissed me. "Cassandra," he murmured, his voice thick with restrained emotion. "This is the last time I'll ever hurt you. Just get through this one test, and I swear—I'll love you the way you deserve from now on."