Chapter 3

During the blood draw, I knocked over the tray on purpose.

Three test tubes crashed to the floor. Two of them shattered.

The last one rolled all the way to the door.

A janitor bent down to pick it up, and I caught a glimpse of a blue flame insignia peeking out from under her sleeve.

My heart started pounding. She was a secret enforcer of the Azure Flame Alliance.

She stuffed the test tube into a trash bag and wheeled her cart away.

Anthony stormed over, his expression thunderous.

"Again," he snapped.

I held my arm and backed away. I said, "I'm dizzy."

Iwan caught me before I could stumble. "That's enough. We'll check again tomorrow."

Anthony frowned. "Mr. Eaton, the baby's condition needs to be confirmed immediately."

"I said enough," Iwan snapped.

He carried me into the resting room.

The room had a bed, water, and surveillance. The window wasn't real.

He crouched in front of me, carefully wiping the blood from my arm.

His movements were as familiar as ever. But all I felt was a wave of nausea.

I asked him, "Iwan, do you really want this baby?"

His hand paused mid-motion and said, "I do."

I pressed, "Then why do you let Kristen's people take me away if you want the baby?"

His face darkened. "I never handed you over to her."

The door was thrown open. Kristen came in, eyes red and puffy.

She said, "Mr. Eaton, your uncle has his men blocking the main hall. He says you're hiding some mysterious woman and even let her get pregnant with the Black Crow Syndicate's bloodline. If you don't handle this tonight, he's calling the family council tomorrow."

Iwan stood up.

Kristen handed him an agreement.

She said, "Have her sign a confidentiality agreement and a statement giving up any claim to inheritance. Once the baby's born, it stays with the Black Crow Syndicate, and she gets paid and walks away. That way, your uncle won't have anything to say."

I stared at the agreement.

It even had the payout written right there, 15 million dollars, plus lifetime residency at Southport Villa.

The last clause said if I lost it or threatened the Black Crow Syndicate, Iwan could deal with me and the baby any way he wanted.

I grabbed the agreement, ripped it to pieces, and threw them in Iwan's face.

"You call this protection?" I asked.

Iwan clenched his fists.

Kristen suddenly dropped to her knees and pleaded, "Ms. Hawking, please, don't mess this up for Mr. Eaton. He's been waiting ten years for this."

She grabbed my hand, her nails digging into the wound on my palm.

"You're not good enough for him," she spat.

I leaned in close, whispering in Kristen's ear, "You don't even deserve to kneel at my feet."

Her face contorted in shock.

Without hesitation, I slapped her across the face once more.

She collapsed to the floor, clutching her stomach.

She gasped, "It hurts."

Anthony rushed in. He snapped, "Ms. Forrest is pregnant. She can't take any shock!"

Iwan froze. I froze too.

Kristen was pregnant.

For the first time, I saw blame in Iwan's eyes as he looked at me.

"Phoebe, you've gone too far," he said.

I laughed.

Just then, the clinic's alarm blared.

Someone outside shouted in Bocrea code, "Blood sample matched! We've found Ms. Hawking!"

Kristen's face went ghostly pale.

Anthony's hand trembled.

Iwan whipped around. "Who's out there?"

Sebastian rushed in and reported, "Mr. Eaton, someone's broken into the clinic, an unknown intruder."

Iwan spun around to head out.

Kristen grabbed him. "Mr. Eaton, your uncle's men are still at the main hall. You can't make any sudden moves now."

He glanced at me. "Sebastian, keep an eye on her," he ordered.

As soon as the door closed, the atmosphere in the room turned icy.

Kristen steadied herself against the table and stood up.

The pain in her stomach vanished, and her tears dried up instantly.

I looked at her. "Nice act."

Kristen smirked. "If you grew up in the Black Crow Syndicate, you'd learn to fake it, or you'd be dead already."

Anthony pulled a small bottle from the medical kit.

I stepped back and asked, "What are you trying to do?"

Kristen picked up the torn agreement and carefully pieced together the last page, taking her time with each fragment.

"If you won't sign, then we'll just have to make you sick," she said coldly.

Anthony took out a white pill from the medical kit.

"It's just a mild sedative, makes it easier to move you," he said.

I stared at the pill and said, "That's got something that'll make me lose the baby."

Anthony's face stayed blank.

"Ms. Hawking, you're mistaken," he replied.

I grabbed a chair and smashed it into the surveillance camera.

The glass shattered, and the alarm screeched even louder.

Sebastian rushed in.

Kristen immediately clutched her stomach and screamed, "She's crazy! She's trying to kill me!"

Sebastian paused, unsure what to do.

Anthony and two nurses pinned me down.

I struggled desperately and yelled, "Sebastian, go get Iwan!"

Kristen said coldly, "Mr. Eaton is dealing with the family coup right now. If you go interrupt him, are you trying to get him killed?"

Sebastian froze in his tracks.

In that instant, I burned his face into my memory.

They shoved the pill into my mouth. The bitter taste hit the back of my tongue like a bomb.

Anthony grabbed my chin and forced water down my throat.

I coughed until tears blurred my vision, and sharp, persistent cramps started twisting in my stomach.

Kristen crouched in front of me, tucking stray strands of hair behind my ear.

"You'd better play nice. If you lose the baby, everyone will blame your meltdown. But if you keep acting up, you'll vanish without a trace," she said.

I bit down hard on my tongue, and blood started dripping from my lips.

Kristen frowned. "Filthy."

Suddenly, gunshots rang out from outside the door. One shot, then another.

The Azure Flame Alliance's enforcers were really here.

Kristen's face twisted in shock. "Get her out!"

I was dragged onto a stretcher and pushed into an underground tunnel.

At the end of the tunnel, an unmarked ambulance was parked, waiting.