Chapter 2

Caspian blinked, then let out a soft laugh and rested his hand on my head.

"Where'd that come from? How could I be Caspian?" His thumb brushed my hair back, almost tender. "Drink your milk and get some sleep. Tomorrow I'm taking you to your checkup. A cramp like that isn't nothing."

"This baby's the only thing my brother left behind in this world," he added. "I need him to arrive safe."

I lowered my eyes so I wouldn't have to look at the fake concern pooling there.

"You should go," I said. "I'm tired. I want to rest."

The door clicked shut behind him, and the tears I'd been holding all night finally broke loose.

Caspian and I met at a freshman mixer in college. He'd fallen for me on sight and chased me down with everything he had.

We fell into something easy after that, and two years after graduation, he gave me a proposal I still remember in perfect detail — fireworks lighting up the whole sky, reflected in his eyes, and somehow his eyes had been the brighter thing.

I found out I was pregnant while we were planning the wedding. He'd looked at me like I'd handed him the whole world.

"This baby picked the perfect time," he'd said. "Came to celebrate his parents' wedding. Elowen, I'm the luckiest man alive."

Six years of being the center of his world, and I still didn't understand why he'd cheated — let alone why he'd staged his own death to get out of marrying me.

The next morning, he knocked on my door early.

"Elowen, today's your checkup. You ready?"

We were almost out the door when Zora's voice stopped us cold.

"Caspian, I'm not feeling well today. Can you stay with me?"

He didn't even glance my way. He went straight to her.

"Did you skip your medication again? If you're sick, stay in bed. Don't push yourself — what if you pass out?"

Then, finally, he turned back to me.

"Sorry, Elowen. Zora's not doing well. I can't make it to the hospital with you."

He kept going before I could answer.

"Don't worry, the driver's waiting out front. He'll get you there safe, and I've already called ahead to the doctor."

I shut my eyes, trying to hold back the tears building behind them. When I opened them again, I caught the flash of satisfaction crossing Zora's face.

I didn't say a word. I nodded and walked out the door.

The door shut behind me. My hand drifted to my stomach, and the tears came, falling hard and fast.

The driver got me to the hospital on time, and I went through the full checkup exactly as scheduled. Caspian had already warned the staff — if I didn't show, he'd know something was wrong.

I sat on a bench in the hallway, staring down at the ultrasound printout. In the grainy black-and-white image, there was a small shape no bigger than a peanut. The doctor said that was my son.

I couldn't make peace with it. My child had a father who couldn't stay faithful.

While I was still staring at the printout, a nurse came out and asked me to step back in — the doctor wanted a word.

"Your hormone levels are dropping rapidly, and the placental separation is severe," the doctor said.

"Given the numbers together, I have to be honest with you — there's a real chance this pregnancy doesn't continue."

I felt the blood drain from my face. "Is the baby—"

"Right now, he's still holding on," the doctor said. "But I won't pretend this isn't serious. And given the high risk of dangerous hemorrhaging or infection to you, it's not safe to let this progress naturally. For your own health, I strongly advise we schedule a procedure to terminate the pregnancy as soon as possible."

I walked out of the exam room in a daze, the ultrasound printout crushed in my fist.

Then, my phone buzzed with a video message.

Thirty minutes long.

And in it, Caspian came apart — completely, shamelessly out of control. Six years together, and I had never once seen him like that. He had always been gentle with me. Careful, even in bed, as though I might break in his hands.

Turns out restraint had never been in his nature. He had simply never lost himself like that over me.

I watched the whole thing like I was picking at a wound, needing to see the version of him I'd never been allowed to know.

I don't know how long I stood there before a nurse found me.

"Ms. Voss? Are you all right?"