Chapter 2

Ethan’s voice was steady and resolute as he assured Ella that no one would take their daughter away from them.

They stood far too close, and when he bent his head to comfort her, the tenderness in his expression felt effortless, as though they had been destined to stand side by side.

Within moments, Ethan guided Ella up the marble staircase to the second floor of Saint Nocturne Orphanage. Only then did I step out of my car and follow, my heels echoing against the cold stone steps.

Near the director’s office at the end of the corridor, several attendants of the Nightfall Dominion had gathered. They spoke in hushed tones, yet every word reached me with merciless clarity.

One of them remarked that the child must be the girl Lord Ethan intended to bring back to the estate, marveling at how strikingly she resembled him, calling it an extraordinary twist of fate.

Another insisted with quiet certainty that the girl was the Lord’s biological daughter, merely presented publicly as an orphan so that, once the adoption was complete, she could return to his household without scandal and be raised openly as his heir. Someone else asked who the mother was, and without hesitation dismissed the possibility that it could be me.

Then came the more vicious whispers.

They claimed my bloodline was not pure enough, that years ago, in a desperate attempt to be worthy of a Lord of the Dominion, I had submitted myself to arcane fertility rites in the sealed chambers of the Royal Court—ninety-nine attempts in total—each one a failure. They said I could never bear a child strong enough to carry a true pureblood legacy.

Others murmured agreement, suggesting that this was precisely why the Lord had been forced to secure an heir by other means, because a Royal daughter with compromised blood could never guarantee the future of the Nightfall Covenant.

And then someone added, almost wistfully, that although Ella carried only the faintest trace of vampiric essence through a distant ancestor, she was the one the Lord truly cherished; that they had known each other since youth; that standing together, they looked like something ordained by fate.

Their words pierced like silver blades, cutting again and again into the same wound.

For five years, I had not conceived. Ethan had always reassured me gently, saying that vampire conception was rare even among bonded mates; that eternity together mattered more than bloodline; that children were unnecessary so long as we shared the endless night.

Now I understood. He had already chosen another path. He had already planned to bring Ella’s child into his household.

The pain in my chest was so sharp I had to brace myself against the wall to remain upright.

The office door opened. Ethan emerged with Mia in his arms and Ella at his side, their fingers entwined.

When his gaze met mine, a flash of unmistakable panic flickered in his eyes.

Ella greeted me with a bright, almost cheerful smile.

Ethan immediately released her hand and hurried toward me, asking why I was there and explaining—too quickly—that Ella was merely the orphanage’s nutrition consultant, responsible for designing the children’s dietary plans, and that he had only come to discuss Mia’s adoption.

He gently extended the child toward me, his voice deliberately calm as he introduced her as Mia, describing her as the sweetest girl in the entire orphanage.

I nodded and brushed my fingers across her soft cheek, remarking evenly that she resembled him so strongly that, without his explanation, I might have mistaken her for his own daughter.

The child’s scent carried a distinct blend of Ethan’s and Ella’s essence, unmistakable and intertwined, impossible to ignore.

Ethan seemed poised to offer further clarification, but Mia suddenly began to cry.

Ella was already at his side. She gathered the child into her arms with practiced ease, and Mia nestled against her shoulder, murmuring a soft, instinctive “Mom.”

In that instant, Ethan’s complexion drained of color. I could sense the sharp spike in his tension, the subtle shift in his aura.

He rushed to explain that Ella had worked at the orphanage for a long time, that the children often called her mother out of affection, and that once the adoption was finalized, he would gradually correct Mia’s form of address.

I watched him scramble for words and felt a hollow ache spread through me.

Was he afraid of hurting me, or was he afraid of the truth unraveling?

If he truly loved me, why had he concealed the absence of our Blood Covenant registration and left me, his publicly proclaimed Blood Queen, standing on such fragile ground? Why would he bring a child unrelated to me into his Covenant, knowing that every whisper, every rumor, every quiet humiliation would ultimately fall upon my shoulders?