LOGINChapter 269ElowenAnna's hands trembled as she folded them on the table, her knuckles white with tension."I was nineteen," she began, her voice flat, like she'd rehearsed this a thousand times in her head but never spoke it aloud. ""I worked as a housemaid for the Ashton family. It was a wealthy estate in the Cotswolds, just outside of London. Beautiful house but ugly people." She paused, reaching for the water glass in front of her with shaking hands.I wanted to ask how she then gave birth to me in US, how I was found outside the orphanage there?This was the reason it took a while to find her, she actually didn't want to be found.I sat, preparing myself for whatever was to come next."The family had a son, his name was James. He was twenty-two years old, spoilt and entitled brat. He was the kind of boy who'd never been told no in his entire life." Her jaw clenched. "One day, his parents went to Paris for the weekend in December. I was left alone to maintain the house. I though
Chapter 268ElowenMy breathing hitched and my vision almost started blurring but I didn't let it show on my face.I kept reminding myself I had two men and a child that loves me.Anna's eyes were cold, distant, like she'd already retreated somewhere I couldn't reach."Not here," she said abruptly, her voice dropping. "I won't be responsible for a scene. If you truly want to know what happened, if you want the full truth..." Her eyes dropped to my rounded belly. "Then come back with whoever's responsible for that."My hands instinctively moved to protect my stomach."I will" I nodded and agreed quietly. She raised a brow before replying."Good." She pulled out her phone, typed something, then looked back at me. "There's a restaurant. Trattoria del Corso. Two streets from here. Meet me there in three days. Six o'clock.""Why three days?""Because I need time to prepare myself for this conversation. And so do you." She turned toward the door, then stopped. "If you don't show up, I'll co
Chapter 267ElowenDr. Ferraro cleared me for travel with strict conditions.No stress. Frequent breaks. Someone with me at all times. First-class flights with extra legroom. Compression socks. Hydration. The list went on.Caroline flew to Rome first, arriving two days before we did. She texted me updates, she'd found a hotel near the university where Anna worked. She'd seen the woman from a distance. She'd cried for an hour because the resemblance was undeniable.El, she's you. She's literally you thirty years from now. Whatever happens, you need to prepare yourself.Matteo, Kian, and I flew out on a Thursday.Giuliana stayed with Alessandro and Margaret, who'd grown into the kind of family friend who didn't need an explanation, just a "we'll be back in a few days" and a hug.The flight was long. I slept fitfully, my head on Matteo's shoulder while Kian held my hand across the armrest.When we landed in Rome, Caroline was waiting.She hugged me so tight I could barely breathe."Are
Chapter 266ElowenThe weeks after the Elera Caldwell dead end were harder than I expected.Not because I'd gotten my hopes up... I'd been careful about that, or so I thought. But because the near-miss had felt so real. The birthmark. The timing. The way Marlene had been so certain.For a few days, I'd let myself imagine it. A young woman, barely more than a girl, who'd carried me and left me believing she was doing the right thing. Someone I could understand, maybe even forgive.And then the blood types had shattered it completely.I tried not to let it show. Tried to keep moving forward with the same steady determination I'd started with.But Matteo noticed. Of course he did."You're not sleeping," he said one night, his voice quiet in the darkness of our bedroom.Kian was on my other side, his breathing steady but I knew he was awake too. Listening."I sleep," I said."You lie in bed with your eyes closed," Matteo corrected gently. "That's not the same thing."I didn't argue becaus
Chapter 265ElowenAnother three weeks slipped by in a rhythm I was starting to recognize. Mornings turned into prenatal appointments and quiet afternoons where I tried not to hover over Kian’s phone every time it buzzed. Giuliana had taken to asking for “search updates” with serious little face, hands folded, like she was ready to problem-solve if needed. I loved her for it and hated that she had to carry even a piece of this weight.Reina and Declan were ghosts in our lives now—efficient, professional ghosts who sent detailed reports through the guys and rarely needed face-to-face meetings. Their last note had been cautiously optimistic: a possible lead on an unlicensed midwife who’d operated out of a small town about forty minutes from Millbrook in the late ’80s and early ’90s. A woman named Marlene Cross. Word-of-mouth from an elderly nurse who’d worked at one of the regional clinics. Cash-only deliveries. No questions asked.I tried not to let hope bloom too brightly. I’d be
Chapter 264ElowenThey left with a list.Not a plan exactly, Declan had been careful to frame it that way when he stood to leave. A plan implies certainty, he'd said, folding his notepad closed. A list implies work. This is work.I appreciated the honesty more than I expected to.The apartment felt different after the door closed behind them. Matteo stood at the window. Kian was at the table, looking at the spot where Declan's notepad had been, as though the shape of what had just happened was still visible there if you looked carefully enough.I stayed on the sofa with my hands in my lap, not ready to move yet."How do you feel?" Matteo asked without turning around."Strange," I responded genuinely. "Like I've been carrying something so long I stopped feeling the weight of it. And now I've handed it to someone else and I don't know what to do with my arms." He turned then and looked at me. "Good strange or bad strange?"I thought about it honestly. "I don't know yet."Kian looked
Chapter 72Elowen I wanted to argue more but my bladder was making demands that couldn't be ignored and I realized he wasn't going to budge on this, so I took care of what I needed while trying to ignore his presence just a few feet away.When I finished I tried to stand on my own but my legs were
Chapter 67Matteo I nodded, not trusting my voice, and moved to her wheelchair to turn it away from the woman and her son, to guide us toward the petting zoo like she'd asked, to get my daughter away from people who didn't deserve to breathe the same air as her."Sì, principessa," "Yes, princess."
Chapter 68ElowenThree days had passed since Matteo disappeared and each morning I woke up hoping to find some explanation, some message, some sign that he hadn't just used me and vanished into thin air like I meant absolutely nothing.But there was nothing.Just silence and his empty chair at bre
Chapter 69Elowen"Go inside," Adrian said, his voice cutting through my declaration like it was nothing, like I hadn't just poured out two years of pain and finally found the courage to tell him the truth.He wheeled his chair toward me and I hated myself for the way my body automatically tensed,







