LOGINThe first thing I felt was cold, a terrible, unnatural cold that seemed to seep through my entire body. My fingers twitched, then my head throbbed. I slowly opened my eyes while groaning.White. Everything was white—the ceiling, the walls, the light above me.For a moment, I couldn't remember where I was. I had forgotten everything. I tried to move, but pain shot through my wrists. I looked down and saw my wrists were strapped to the table. My ankles were restrained too. Panic immediately rushed through me.“W…What’s happening?” I tried to sit up, but another strap held me down. I began struggling.“Help!” My voice echoed around the room.“Help me!”The door opened, and Vivienne walked inside. She looked completely calm. I stared at her in horror.“What did you do to me?!”“You were given a sedative.”My eyes widened. “You drugged me!”“You were becoming difficult.”“You said the tests wouldn't hurt my baby!”“They won't.”“How do I know that? How am I supposed to trust a word that co
I had no idea what time it was. I only knew it was nighttime. I was certain I had spent close to a week in this closet room, though. I sniffed, holding my blanket tighter. This wasn’t what I had in mind for my baby or me. I was tied up like an animal, and the room wasn’t even comfortable. The bed creaked whenever I turned, and I was certain I could hear the sound of something buzzing, or maybe it was just my imagination.I was terrified. Would I really end up giving birth here where no one even cared about me?I delicately placed a hand on my stomach. It was obvious Vivienne didn’t care if I lived or died. All she wanted was this baby. I couldn’t let her take my child.I felt tears well up in my eyes. I should have just spoken to Cassian. Maybe this could have been avoided. If I hadn’t been so stupid and impulsive, perhaps I would still be with the man I actually loved.I had no idea when I slept off with tear streaks on my face and a heavy heart.I woke up the next morning to the sou
I spent the next several hours thinking. I replayed every memory I had of Cassian. The first time he walked into a room, and everyone immediately went quiet. How he noticed everything and how he seemed to know when someone was watching him. The way security systems responded to him and the weird locks at the house. The cameras. The masks. His scars. His eye. I had always thought those things were separate, but they weren’t. Now, everything made sense.Another memory surfaced, one I had almost forgotten. It happened early in our marriage. I was walking through the hallway when one of the security cameras suddenly moved. I looked up, and the lens had followed me, and then Cassian appeared at the end of the corridor. He had looked directly at the camera, and for some reason, the camera immediately turned away.At the time, I had thought it was a coincidence. Now I knew it wasn't. I remembered another time when we were in the car when Tony received a call from security. Someone had entere
The room felt colder after Vivienne left. I stayed completely still, my eyes fixed on the closed door. He was its foundation. The words wouldn't leave my head. I looked down at my stomach again as my hands instinctively moved there. The thought that had been haunting me since the moment I learned I was pregnant suddenly felt different. Vivienne had said my baby mattered because of Cassian. Not because of the Rooke name, not because of an heir, but because of something inside Cassian himself. Something created in a laboratory that had apparently started when he was only a child. “What happened to him?” I asked, but there was no one to respond. I was left alone with my thoughts. What exactly had I gotten myself into? ‘The researchers believed they could enhance cognitive ability by exposing the brain to increasingly complex stimuli.’ The words sounded clinical. It sounded clean or harmless even, but I knew better. “Children,” I whispered. They were running tests on children.
I couldn't stop staring at Vivienne. My wrists were still restrained against the bed, but I barely felt them anymore. All I could feel was the panic spreading through my body at an alarming rate.She knew. She knew about the baby. She knew exactly how far along I was.Exactlyhow long had she been watching me?And the way she had looked at my stomach wasn’t the soft fond look for a grandmother. There was no warmth in her eyes. No excitement, no affection. There was only satisfaction like she had finally found something she had been searching for.I swallowed. "What do you want with my baby?"Vivienne didn't answer immediately. She walked toward the small chair beside the bed and sat down. She looked completely at ease like she knew this moment would come as if kidnapping me was the most normal thing on earth."You still don't understand," she said.I breathed nervously. "Then explain it to me."Vivienne crossed one leg over the other and cocked her head."Do you remember when you first
I didn’t move. I was certain I heard a knock. Who was that?I stilled when I heard it again. "Miss?" It was a man’s voice.I didn’t respond. I got under the covers and shut my eyes tightly. Maybe I was imagining it all. Maybe if I focused on sleeping, whoever it was would go away. I heard the man knock a few more times before silence followed. I let out a deep breath.See? He went away. I had no idea when I dozed off, still safely tucked under the covers.The first thing I did when I woke up was to go straight to the window and take a peep. The black car was nowhere to be found. I sighed in relief. At least now I could make a clean getaway before my stalker came back.I showered and was already drying my hair when I heard a knock on my door.Who was knocking so early in the morning?I tried to ease my nervousness as I walked to the door.“W…Who is it?” I asked nervously."It's hotel staff, ma'am."I didn't answer immediately.“There's a problem with your door," the man continued. "The







