Chapter 79\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance and Cassian sat in the waiting room, close together, exchanging worried looks. I couldn\u2019t bring myself to sit with them. Instead, I paced a few feet away, my heart racing-rage and fear a heady mix that refused to let me rest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We had been rushed here straight from the chaos, and I felt like a clown pacing around in this damn suit, surrounded by the sterile smell of bleach and lemon-scented cleaners.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Everything was too bright, too sharp. Hospitals were always liminal spaces-caught between real life and the unthinkable\u2014and the weight of that truth pressed on me until it felt like if I stopped moving, I\u2019d never be able to start again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The automatic doors swished open. A doctor approached, his face stern, carefully blank, but his eyes betrayed him. There was a storm there. Fear.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlpha,\u201d he greeted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHow is she?\u201d I demanded, stepping into his space, unable to restrain the aggression I usually kept in check.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was wolfsbane,\u201d he said evenly. \u201cThe injection contained a high concentration of it. Ellie is in critical condition, but we\u2019re hopeful she\u2019ll recover, fortunately\u2026\u201d He hesitated, his tone shifting softer, almost apologetic. \u201c\u2026I don\u2019t think there\u2019s anything we can do for the babies.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The words didn\u2019t compute. They stuck in my brain like static, refusing to form sense. The look on my face must have told him enough, because he pressed on.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlpha, you need to understand-Ellie is going to lose the twins.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Behind me, I heard Lance\u2019s footsteps, but I couldn\u2019t move. Couldn\u2019t blink. The reality was too harsh, too cold.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I had suspected Ellie was pregnant-half-convinced, really-but to hear it confirmed now, like this, was cruelty beyond measure. She was going to be a mother. I was going to be a father. And now-\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNolan,\u201d Lance said gently, like he was approaching a spooked animal.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I turned, half-crazed, and saw him watching me carefully.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe you should sit down.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I shook my head once and looked back at the doctor. My voice was raw. \u201cThe twins.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
The man\u2019s shoulders sagged. \u201cYes, sir. The injection-it was like he was aiming for her womb. It hit too close. We\u2019ll do everything we can for Ellie. But the babies\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Something gave out inside me. My knees, my will-I couldn\u2019t tell. Lance\u2019s arm caught me, steadying me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got him,\u201d he told the doctor. The man gave me one last look before hurrying away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance guided me to a chair and forced me down. My body folded forward, elbows on my knees, head in my hands. The world spun.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Everything about Ellie these past months made sense now-her moods, her anger, her eating habits. I\u2019d seen it all. I\u2019d suspected. But why had I been so stubborn, so willfully blind?\u00a0<\/p>\n
If I had faced the truth sooner, if I had protected her-protected them-things could have been different.\u00a0<\/p>\n
www\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chipreet 76\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
But it was too late. She hadn\u2019t trusted me enough to tell me. And that was on me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now it was all gone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Third person POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan hadn\u2019t moved in several minutes, and it unsettled Lance more than he wanted to admit. His brother was responsible for creating this situation, yes, but seeing him like this, broken, raw, it was rare.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance hadn\u2019t even witnessed this kind of emotion from Nolan when their parents died.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was completely devastated, curled in on himself defensively, his eyes hidden behind his hands. Lance couldn\u2019t be sure, but the occasional shudder in his shoulders gave him away. He was almost certain Nolan was crying.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And who could blame him? Lance wanted to cry too. He already had, earlier, on the ambulance ride over.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ellie had clutched his hand while drifting in and out of consciousness, whispering about her legs feeling numb, admitting she was afraid. The memory shattered his heart.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hurried footsteps broke the silence. Lance looked up to see Rae rushing toward them. She didn\u2019t say a word at first, but the panic in her eyes was question enough.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe doctors think Ellie will recover,\u201d Lance said quietly, \u201cbut\u2026 the babies\u2026\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
}}\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rae\u2019s tears came instantly. She didn\u2019t bother to hide them as they streamed down her face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOh God,\u201d she gasped. \u201cWe should have been quicker-we shouldn\u2019t have waited.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t blame yourself. We couldn\u2019t have predicted this,\u201d Lance reassured her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw the footage,\u201d Rae explained, her voice breaking. \u201cIt\u2019s already all over the news. There are crews outside. Nolan\u2019s security won\u2019t let them into the building, but they\u2019re like vultures.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDamn reporters,\u201d Lance muttered lowly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWho was that man?\u201d Rae asked, looking up at him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance shook his head, but before he could answer, Cassian stepped up beside them, resting a hand comfortingly on Rae\u2019s shoulder.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father\u2019s having it investigated,\u201d he said softly. \u201cYour pack is focused on security, on locking things down and making sure none of his accomplices escape. So my father\u2019s using his resources for background research. It looks like he was a rogue. There\u2019s not much else yet.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cA rogue? Why would he attack Ellie like that?\u201d Rae pressed, an edge of desperation in her voice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said Ellie was supposed to be his.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan\u2019s voice cut through the room, raw and strained. All eyes turned toward him. He still hadn\u2019t moved, but his\u00a0<\/p>\n
words carried.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe kept telling Ellie not to pretend she didn\u2019t know him,\u201d Nolan went on. \u201cIt sounded like he was an old lover. Maybe\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom when she was younger. In the Rogue Lands,\u201d Cassian finished, nodding slowly. \u201cThat would make sense.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut why attack her now?\u201d Lance asked. \u201cWhy suddenly, out of the blue like that? It doesn\u2019t add up.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe he just tracked her down,\u201d Cassian suggested. \u201cOr maybe something in the news caught his attention. He\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
seemed unhinged. I doubt he was thinking logically.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Ellie ever mention an old lover like that?\u201d Lance asked, turning to Rae.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d Rae answered. \u201cBut she never talked much about that part of her life. It didn\u2019t seem like she was hiding anything she just didn\u2019t like to bring it up. And with her memory problems after the accident\u2026\u201d Her voice faltered. \u201cEven if she had known him, I doubt she would have recognized him. For a long time she barely knew who any of us were.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s true,\u201d Nolan said finally, lifting his bloodshot eyes toward them. His voice was hoarse. \u201cIf he\u2019s telling the truth, Ellie wouldn\u2019t have known the difference. Not with her amnesia.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll keep digging into it,\u201d Cassian said firmly. \u201cWe\u2019ll find out the truth. In the meantime, all we can do is wait for word about Ellie\u2019s condition.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy cousin\u2019s on her surgical team,\u201d Rae added. \u201cI know they\u2019ll do everything possible. She\u2019s in the best hands.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan gave a slight nod, accepting her reassurance without speaking.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance and Cassian returned to their seats, Rae joining them. Cassian held her hand, offering silent reassurance as her tears continued to fall.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance kept his own hands firmly on his knees, the stiffness in his shoulders only growing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the tension in the waiting room didn\u2019t lift. If anything, the heaviness grew, pressing down on all of them. They knew action was being taken-the man would be questioned, justice would be done, and Ellie would be protected.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yet the helplessness of waiting, of not being able to do anything for her in this moment, was unbearable. The four of them sat together in silence, staring at the doors, waiting for someone to come out and tell them what was happening.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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A Cold Marriage That Turned Warm 79 Chapter 79\u00a0 Nolan POV\u00a0 Lance and Cassian sat in the waiting room, close […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-unremembered-mate-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23648\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}