Chapter 4

Evelyn POV

I wiped the tears from my cheeks with the back of my hand.

Crying was useless.

But right then, a sharp, stabbing pain bloomed in my lower abdomen. It felt like a hot blade was twisting inside me.

The pain didn't fade. Instead, it grew worse by the second, and cold sweat instantly drenched my back.

With shaking fingers, I dialed Dr. Hale's number.

Marcus was my closest human friend. He was a doctor, and he was one of the few humans who knew about the werewolf world.

I couldn't go to the pack doctor. If I did, Damian would find out immediately.

"Marcus, my stomach hurts so badly..." My voice cracked with pure terror. "Please save my babies. Help me save them."

Marcus's panicked voice came through the speaker. "Don't panic! Get to the clinic right now. I'm clearing my schedule!"

Half an hour later, I arrived at the private clinic alone.

The pain was so intense that my face was completely pale. I wore a large trench coat, sunglasses, and a hat, leaning heavily against the wall just to take a step.

But as I rounded the corner of the VIP corridor to take a shortcut to Marcus's office, I ran straight into the last person I wanted to see.

Damian.

He was carefully shielding Isabella, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist, keeping the passing nurses from bumping into her.

He looked so protective, exactly the way he used to look when he shielded me.

The sheer irony of the scene made the pain in my stomach explode. I froze, clutching my abdomen, watching them walk past me just a few yards away.

"I'm sorry. If it weren't for keeping this from Evelyn, I would have had the pack healer look at you," Damian murmured, his voice dripping with worry.

Isabella leaned against his chest, her voice sweet and submissive. "It's okay, Damian. I'm just an unranked wolf. To be able to carry your child is more than enough for me."

Damian's eyes softened even more. He kissed the top of her head. "You are always so understanding."

He paused, his tone turning slightly annoyed. "Unlike Evelyn. She always demands this and that. I wish she were even half as mature as you."

Right. I was the demanding one.

In that moment, I felt a rush of warm liquid escaping my body.

Then I heard him say, "That blue diamond from the auction—once I get it, I'll have it set into a ring for you. Consider it my gift to you."

So, the blue diamond that allegedly looked like my eyes was actually meant for her.

"Oh," Isabella suddenly said, "does Evelyn like the brooch you gave her last time? I spent a lot of time picking it out. I hope she can be nice to my baby for my sake."

Their baby?

I heard Damian's low chuckle. "Silly girl. Of course she likes it. I already told her that once you give birth, we will take the baby and raise it as our own. That's the only way our child can legally inherit the pack. Don't worry, she will respect you as the child's biological mother."

So, under the assumption that I was barren, he had already planned my entire future.

He wanted me to raise his bastard child with another woman.

No, they were the true mates.

I was just the outsider occupying the Luna seat.

A wave of fury and grief crashed over me. The pain in my abdomen reached its peak, and my legs gave out.

I couldn't listen anymore. I turned around, trying to drag myself to Dr. Hale's emergency room.

Just as I took a few steps, my phone rang. It was Damian.

"Where are you, babe? I got breakfast and roses ready for you, but you're not home," his voice was warm, like he was coaxing a toddler.

I leaned against the freezing wall, feeling the life draining out of me.

"Are you overthinking again?" he said softly. "Don't worry. If you really want a child, we can adopt one in a few months. I'll make sure you get to be a mother, okay?"

Adopt one?

While my own children's lives were slipping away, he was talking to me about adoption?

"No need..."

I spoke into the phone, my voice so weak it sounded like a whisper from the grave. "The babies... are already gone."

The phone slipped from my hand and shattered on the floor.

Before darkness swallowed me, I saw a bright, terrifying pool of red spreading across the white tiles.

Damian, you killed our babies. You did this.