Blood for Lover, Tears for Luna

Chapter 3: Coffee and a Decision

I left the hospital quietly. I did not talk to anyone. I did not look back. The guard by the elevator was busy with a clipboard. The nurse at the station had her head down. I walked down the stairs and out a side door. Cold air hit my face and cleared the last of the hospital smell from my nose. That was enough detail. I was outside.

I did not have a plan yet. I only knew I needed a place to sit, a place where people come and go and nobody asks questions. There was a café two blocks away. I had been there once with Daisy. The lights were on. The chairs were down. I went in and chose a small table near the window. I sat with my hands around a warm paper cup and tried to slow my thoughts. I did not cry. I did not shake. I just breathed and listened to the low noise of the room.

I never thought my husband would lie the way he did. If I had not heard it myself, I would not have believed it. He was always gentle. He always spoke calmly. He looked at me with steady eyes and made me feel safe. Now I knew the truth under that calm. If I had not heard the words, I would still trust that soft voice. I would still believe he was only my husband, not a man hiding other promises.

I pulled my phone from my pocket. My hands were steady. I found Daisy's name and called her. She picked up on the second ring.

“Emma? Are you okay? Where are you?" she asked.

“I'm at the café by the hospital," I said. “I needed to sit down."

“What happened? You texted me you saw something. Tell me."

I kept my voice simple. “I saw Evans holding Eve. I hid and listened. They never broke up. He married me because my blood matches hers. He wanted bone marrow from me first. It failed. Then he decided to use cord blood from my baby. He would not touch me. So he hired a rogue to attack me and make me pregnant."

Daisy was quiet for one hard second. Then she exploded. “He did what? He hired a rogue? Emma, say it again. I want to be sure I'm hearing this right."

“He did," I said. “He said it to her himself. She asked him to repeat the plan in plain words. He did. He said he hired a rogue and set the time and place."

I heard Daisy stand up and start pacing. I could imagine her tugging her hair into a knot the way she does when she is angry. “That monster. That absolute monster. And you were there, listening?"

“Yes."

“You're leaving him," she said. Not a question. A flat line.

“Yes," I said. “I'm leaving him. I won't live with a man who lied like that and hurt me like that. I won't carry his plans any longer. I will protect my child for myself, not for his math."

Daisy took a breath that shook through the phone. “Good. Good. We will get you out. Do you want me to come now? Do you want me to bring the car around to the alley? We can go to my cousin's place. Evans won't look there."

I looked out the window. Snow dusted the curb. A bus pulled away from the stop and left a thin white line of exhaust. I wanted to say yes. I wanted to run fast and not stop until my lungs burned. But I also knew Evans. He needs me to keep Eve alive. He will not let me walk away. He will search every street. He will lock every door I am likely to open. I had to be careful.

“I want to leave," I said. “But it might not be simple. He needs me to save Eve. He will not make it easy. If I move too quickly, he will shut down the hospital, the roads, and the guards. He will put me back in a room and call it protection. He will smile and the world will help him."

“Then we outthink him," Daisy said. “We plan. We get documents. We change phones. We go when he can't move his guards. Tonight, tomorrow, whenever you say. I will get you out."

“I know," I said. “But for now I have to be calm and smart. I won't go back to the room, but I won't run blind either. I need to know what doors are open."

“Emma, you are not alone," Daisy said, softer. “I am with you. Say the word."

“I will."

She was quiet a moment. Then she asked the question she did not want to ask. “Do you want Alexander involved?"

I stared at my reflection in the window. My face looked pale, but my eyes were clear. Old memories moved in my chest. Alexander had protected me when I had nothing. He had always been kind. He would cross a country if I called. But if Evans knew I went to Alexander, he would turn the hunt into a war. I did not want a war. I wanted a clean exit and a life that was mine.

“Not yet," I said. “Please don't tell him. If he reaches out, tell him I'm safe, but don't say where."

“All right," Daisy said, even though I could hear she disagreed. “I won't call him. But promise me this. If Evans corners you, if you feel unsafe for even one minute, you call me and I'll call Alexander. I don't care if it makes trouble. I want you alive."

“I promise," I said. “Thank you."

“Tell me what you heard exactly," she said. “I want every piece. I need to understand how far this goes."

I told her again in clean lines. I told her about the rare blood type. I told her about the test for marrow and the failure. I told her about the plan for cord blood. I told her he said he hired a rogue. I told her he said he would keep me calm and compliant until the due date. I told her he said if I accepted a quiet life later, he would provide one, and if I fought, he would end it quickly. The words felt like stones as they left my mouth. They fell between us and made a wall I would never climb back over.

Daisy cursed under her breath. “I want to break something," she said.

“I know," I said. “Me too."

“What do you want to do first?" she asked. “Do you want to file a report? Do you want to go to the Council? Do you want a doctor who is not his? Say it."

“I want a doctor who is not his," I said. “I want my own file. I want my own tests. I want my own plan for the birth. I don't want anyone in his circle to touch me."

“Done," Daisy said. “I'll make calls. I know a clinic two towns over. They are quiet and careful. They don't ask questions they don't need for care."

“Good," I said. I looked at the door each time it opened. I watched the clock over the bar. My cup was empty. My hands were still steady.

“Emma," Daisy said, voice low, “I am proud of you. You are strong and clear. You are not what he said you were. You are not a plan. You are a person. Hold on to that."

“I will," I said, and I meant it.

We set a small plan. Daisy would gather documents and cash. She would bring a clean phone and a coat with deep pockets. She would park two blocks away and text me a picture of the door. I would leave by the back and keep my head down. If anyone followed us, we would split and meet at a second place. If I lost her, I would go to the clinic on my own and send her a single word when I arrived. It was simple. It was enough to start.

We ended the call. The table felt too small for the size of my choice. I put the phone down for a minute and let my shoulders drop. The baby moved under my hand. I pressed my palm there and spoke in my head. We are leaving. We are leaving because we are more than a cure for someone else.

My phone buzzed again. I expected Daisy with one more question. It was not Daisy. The name on the screen stopped my breath for half a second.

Evans.

I did not answer. The phone stopped. Then it rang again. I let it ring. It stopped. It rang a third time. People at the counter did not look up. The barista wiped a spill. The door opened and closed. The world kept moving. My heart slowed back to normal.

A text arrived. It was short. Where are you?

I did not reply. Another text arrived. Emma. Answer me.

The phone rang again. I let it ring twice. Then I picked up. I wanted to hear his tone. I wanted to know which mask he had chosen for me tonight.

“Emma," he said as soon as the line opened. His voice was low and urgent. “Where are you?"

I did not answer.

“I went to your room and you were not there," he said. “You can't just disappear. Tell me where you are. I'll come right now."

“I needed air," I said. “I went for a walk."

“Where," he said. Not a question. A command in a soft coat.

“I'm fine."

“You're pregnant," he said. “You do not get to make choices that put you or the baby at risk. Tell me where you are."

I looked at my empty cup. I watched steam rise from the machine like a small white flag. I said nothing.

“Emma." My name came out sharper. “If you are angry, we will talk when I pick you up. If you are scared, I will fix it. But you will tell me where you are."

I kept my voice level. “You don't fix me," I said. “I am not something to fix."

He went silent for a beat. Then he tried another tone. He made it warm. He made it caring. “Please," he said. “You scared me. I was worried. Just tell me the street."

I said nothing. I could feel him listening for background sounds, counting seconds between my breaths, trying to place me the way he always does. I gave him nothing but quiet.

“Emma," he said finally, the soft voice gone, the order back. “Tell me where you are."

The call ended there, with the phone warm in my hand, his questions hanging in the air, and me not answering.