The days passed in gentle rhythm at the lake house, where Reina nurtured her growing pregnancy with love and quiet joy. She had fallen into a calm routine; morning walks in the garden, healthy meals, journaling about the fluttering life inside her, and long naps with her hand resting protectively over her belly.
The thought of her child, her and Harry's child was a source of endless comfort. The child was a reminder of the love that had brought them together and the battles they had survived.
But peace was always short-lived.
Sasha visited often, always uninvited and always with veiled insults wrapped in sugar-coated concern.
"You're glowing," she would say, eyes narrowed. "Pregnancy suits you. Must be nice carrying my child."
Ana would clench her jaw but say nothing. She knew Sasha only came to stake her claim, to remind her of the cruel deal that hung over her happiness like a guillotine.
Soraya, on the other hand, was a regular presence and not out of obligation, but out of genuine concern. At first, Ana thought she had some intentions. But as days went by, the once aloof Soraya began to warm. She would bring Ana fresh fruit, rub soothing oils on her ankles, and even smile genuinely.
"You're softer than you look," Ana said one morning as Soraya handed her a cup of warm herbal tea.
Soraya raised a brow, then laughed. "And you're stronger than you seem."
The two women, different as night and day, began to understand each other.
The morning of the first ultrasound arrived.
Sasha showed up early in a tailored white dress and dark sunglasses, heels clicking arrogantly across the marble floors of the villa.
"I'm coming with you," she said sharply. "I won't miss any part of this process. After all, it's my baby."
Before Ana could protest, Soraya emerged from the hallway, keys in hand.
"Then I'm tagging along too," Soraya said coolly. "Just in case someone gets too involved."
The tension in the car was as thick as fog.
Ana sat between the two women, her eyes on the window, trying to drown out their biting words.
Sasha smirked. "You know, Soraya, it's cute how you're pretending to care all of a sudden. You've never cared about anyone but yourself."
Soraya didn't even flinch. "And you've always cared too much about things that don't belong to you."
"Jealousy doesn't suit you."
"And obsession doesn't suit you, but here we are."
Ana sighed. Her hand gently caressed her belly. Block them out, she told herself. Focus on the baby. Yours and Harry's. Her heart swelled with warmth. She was carrying their love. Nothing else mattered.
Until the car suddenly jerked violently to the left with a sharp U-turn, tires screeching.
"What the hell...?" Soraya barked.
"Hey, watch the way you're driving!" she yelled at the driver. "What is wrong with you? You can't afford to cause an accident, okay?!"
"I'm sorry, Miss," the driver said, glancing in the rearview mirror. His voice was tight, anxious. "I think… I think someone is following us."
"What?!" all three women exclaimed at once.
"What do you mean by that?" Sasha asked sharply, leaning forward.
Soraya and Ana turned to look and saw it.
A black van. Close. Too close. Gaining on them.
"Oh God…" Reina gasped.
"Mr. Driver, please! Lose them!" Ana shouted, her voice trembling. "They're catching up!"
Almost immediately, the rear window exploded.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Gunshots rang out, tearing through the air. The sound of bullets cracking against metal filled the car.
"Get down!" Soraya screamed, pulling Reina to the floor of the backseat.
The windows shattered, glass raining down like ice.
The driver swerved, desperately trying to evade the assault, but the road was narrow and the van persistent.
"Who the hell are they?!" Sasha cried, clutching her seat.
"I don't know, but if we don't shut up and focus, we might not live long enough to find out!" Soraya snapped, peeking up to assess the damage.
The bullets kept coming.
The driver groaned suddenly. He was hit, blood oozing from his left shoulder. Yet, he gritted his teeth and kept driving with one hand, managing to call for backup with the other.
Ana could hear the panic in the radio's static. "Please," she whispered, clutching her belly, "Please… save my baby."
Glass rained down on them as the rear window completely gave in.
"I swear to God," Soraya hissed, glaring at Sasha. "If you have anything to do with this..."
"Are you insane?!" Sasha fired back. "Why would I try to kill myself? Do I look suicidal to you?!"
Soraya's eyes narrowed. "With someone like you, I wouldn't put it past you. A self-injury stunt just to frame someone else isn't out of character."
"Oh go to hell, you stuck-up..."
"Can you two shut up?!" Ana suddenly screamed. "For once, shut up! Don't you see what's happening? We're going to die if this keeps going!"
But it was too late.
The driver, pale and weakening from blood loss, lost control of the steering wheel.
The car skidded, swerved wildly and crashed violently against the metal railing.
A thunderous impact. Glass exploded. Screams rang out.
Then
silence.
Meanwhile, back at the lake house...
Nina, humming cheerfully to herself, rounded a corner and collided with a solid wall of muscle.
"Ow! My head!" she cried, staggering back and rubbing her forehead. "Are you blind?! Look what you did to me!"
Adonis stood there, unmoved, arms crossed.
"You weren't looking. You should apologize."
"Apologize?!" Nina shrieked. "You nearly cracked my skull!"
Adonis stepped aside, uninterested. "Move. We're even now."
"You can't just walk in and out of this villa like it's your backyard!" Nina snapped, stepping in front of him again. "No outside male is allowed in. When my master returns, you'll be fired."
But Adonis took one step forward, then another, his eyes dark and unreadable.
Nina backed away instinctively. He was terrifying when he was silent just like her master.
"Y-You can't see Miss today!" she called after him as he passed. "She's not home! She's at the hospital for a check-up!"
Adonis stopped.
"Hospital?" he turned slowly. "Is Ana sick? She was fine yesterday. Why didn't anyone tell me?"
Nina blinked, surprised by his reaction. So this ice block can panic too?
She smiled. "She's not sick. Didn't you hear? She's pregnant with the Master's child."
The words hit him like a brick wall.
Adonis staggered back. His chest rose with heavy breaths. Then, with clenched jaws, he gripped Nina's arm and slammed her gently but firmly against the wall.
Nina yelped in pain
"What did you say?! Say it again!"
"Let go! You're hurting me!" Nina cried.
Adonis released her abruptly, horror flashing through his eyes. Nina backed away, holding her bruised arm, tears brimming.
"You're such a bully," she whimpered. "It's true. Miss Ana is pregnant. And there's nothing you can do about it."
She ran off crying.
Adonis stood rooted in place. His breath shallow. His fists clenched.
Then with a roar he punched the wall beside him, his knuckles tearing open and dripping blood.
"No…" he muttered, staring at his trembling hand. "This can't be happening."
He's returned to take away from this place once and for all.
Back on the road…
The scene was carnage.
Smoke curled from the car's wreckage. The shattered glass shimmered on the road like fallen stars. Inside, the driver was slumped over the wheel, unconscious and bleeding heavily.
Ana lay curled in the backseat, unmoving.
Soraya's eyes fluttered open. Pain lanced through her head as she sat up slowly, dazed and bloodied.
"Ana…" she croaked.
Sasha groaned, clutching her leg, blood soaking her stockings. "Somebody help…"
But no one came.
They were alone, vulnerable, and under attack.
And the men in the black van had just stepped out.