~ Ophelia’s POV ~
The strip lay on the bathroom counter like a loaded gun.
Two red lines.
My breath captured a thin, panicked sound that bounced off the tiles. The air felt too thick to swallow.
Each inhale scraped my throat, shallow and sharp, as if fear itself had hands.
It wasn’t supposed to happen this fast. The doctors had only just given me the IV meant to prepare me for Ryker’s plan.
But this… this was impossible.
Or maybe fate had finally run out of patience with me.
It felt like the universe had stopped pretending to be kind.
I sank to the floor, hugging my knees. Please… not now.
Tears clung to my lashes, but even they were afraid to fall.
The silence in the room sounded like judgment.
A knock at the door startled me.
“Miss Nadia?” one of the maids called softly. “Br
