Chapter 5
744 Words
Back at the Ross house, Yara had barely walked through the door when she was informed that Ethan had brought Ava home and installed her there under his personal care.
"Baby, since you're the one who hurt Ava, you're the one who takes responsibility for her recovery."
"Otherwise, I'll have you charged with unlawful imprisonment. I don't think you want to go to prison."
Yara said nothing. She walked back to the study in silence.
Her aide leaned in, voice low. "Ms. Wren — we could just take care of her permanently."
Yara shook her head. "This is Ethan's problem at its root. But look into Ava. Find out who she really is."
Past midnight, a powerful grip yanked Yara out of bed.
Ethan's eyes were black, his voice raw. "Yara. Why won't you leave Ava alone? I know you — you found out she's pregnant and you put something in her soup on purpose. You were trying to get rid of the baby."
Yara's eyes snapped open. "Say that again," she said quietly. "She's pregnant?"
She stared at the man in front of her and felt herself slip back in time.
In the hospital, after it all happened, a doctor had stood at her bedside and told her, "Your uterus sustained severe damage. You won't be able to carry children."
Ethan had knelt at the side of her bed and sworn to the ceiling, "It doesn't matter, Yara. I don't need a child. I only need you."
Then he had reached into his pocket, taken out a ring, and held it out to her. "Marry me."
She hadn't said yes.
For the three months that followed, Ethan had gone half-mad with devotion. He gave her everything, held nothing back.
But how could the head of the Ross family marry a woman who couldn't give him children?
So she had bought a ticket. She was going to leave.
A few days after she left, word came that Ethan had jumped into the sea.
He had told people: without her, he would rather be dead.
Eight years of marriage. Countless women had come sniffing around. Even the Ross elders had pulled him aside. "Since Yara can't give you children, just find someone else to have a baby with. Yara won't mind."
He had refused without hesitation. "The only child I want is one that's mine and Yara's."
Now Ethan saw the color leave her face and released his grip. "If anything happens to the baby in Ava's belly, I won't forgive you."
"You want to kill me over this too?"
Yara's mouth curved with cold scorn.
Ethan didn't answer. He simply took her to Ava's bedside.
Ava lay against the pillows, pale as paper, her voice fragile and small. "Ethan, my stomach hurts so much..."
Ethan's brow creased. "How is she?" he asked the doctor standing nearby.
"Nothing serious. The substance wasn't particularly strong—"
Before the doctor could finish, Ava knocked the glass of water off the side table, sending it shattering to the floor. "Get her out of here. My stomach hurts — make her leave!"
The moment the doctor stepped out, Ava pulled Ethan close and murmured, "I heard from a fortune teller — for the pregnancy to stabilize, the best remedy involves the ashes of an unborn child."
She turned her head. Her gaze landed on the pendant resting at the hollow of Yara's collarbone.
"Ethan — isn't that exactly what's in Yara's locket?"
Yara's hand flew up and closed around the pendant. "You're out of your mind, Ava."
Ethan's brow pulled tight. His expression went dark. He didn't speak.
"Ethan, my stomach hurts so much..."
"You don't care about our baby at all. Maybe I should just die..."
Ava kept talking, and then she reached down, picked up a shard of broken glass from the floor, and held it against her wrist. "Ethan — if the baby doesn't make it, I don't want to live either."
Yara turned and walked toward the door.
"Stop her."
Ethan's voice came from behind her, low and rough. Someone moved to block her path.
She turned back around and said, each word deliberate, "Ethan. That is our child."
Ethan's face stayed hidden in shadow. "That child has been gone for a long time. The child in Ava's belly still has a chance."
He crossed the room to Yara, reached up, and tore the pendant from her neck.
"It's time to let go, Yara."
- Writer
