The city lights glimmered outside the tinted windows of Ethan's car as it sped through the late evening traffic. Lara sat in the passenger seat, her fingers clenched tightly in her lap, her mind overwhelmed by the events of the last few hours.
"I still don't understand where we're going," she finally said, her voice low but firm.
Ethan didn't look at her. His eyes stayed focused on the road. "Somewhere safe. Somewhere they won't find you."
"They? You keep saying that like I'm being hunted," she replied, trying to mask the trembling in her tone.
He sighed, gripping the wheel a little tighter. "That's because you are."
Lara turned toward him sharply. "You can't keep saying things like that without explaining! Who's after me, Ethan? What do they want? And what does this have to do with me being pregnant?"
He didn't respond immediately. The silence between them thickened like fog. Then, finally, he pulled the car onto a private road lined with trees and parked in front of a large, modern house that looked more like a secure retreat than a home.
Ethan stepped out first and opened the door for her. "Inside. I'll tell you everything. I promise."
Despite her hesitation, Lara followed him into the house. The moment she stepped inside, the scent of cedarwood and warm linen wrapped around her. Everything was quiet, almost eerily so. There were no staff, no security guards—only silence and solitude.
He led her into a spacious living room with tall windows overlooking a garden bathed in moonlight. Lara stood by the fireplace while Ethan poured two glasses of water and handed her one.
She took it, but didn't drink. "Now talk."
Ethan looked tired, his shoulders heavy with the weight of unspoken truths. He sat down on the armrest of a nearby couch and finally met her gaze.
"Lara, you're not just pregnant. You're carrying a child that powerful people are very interested in."
Her breath hitched. "What does that even mean?"
Ethan ran a hand through his hair. "The company I work for isn't just a business. It's part of a much bigger network—one that deals with genetic research, elite matchmaking, and… let's just say… reproductive legacy planning. You were part of a program you never knew existed."
Lara's heart started to pound. "What are you saying? That I was part of some experiment?"
"No," he replied quickly, "not an experiment. But you were chosen. Selected. You were matched based on compatibility—biologically, intellectually, and emotionally. Everything was orchestrated. Including the night we—"
Lara took a step back, suddenly dizzy. "So it wasn't an accident?"
"I didn't know until recently," Ethan said softly. "But when I found out, I knew I had to protect you."
She felt like the ground beneath her had vanished. Her hand instinctively moved to her stomach. "You used me."
"No," he said quickly, standing up. "I never meant for this to happen. I didn't know until after. I swear, Lara. I thought it was real. And maybe it still is. But now there are people who believe that your child is a key—a future leader, a potential figure of influence. And they'll do anything to control that."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her child—a key?
Lara turned toward the window, trying to breathe, trying to process the storm of emotions inside her. "I didn't ask for any of this," she whispered.
"I know. And I'm going to help you stay free from all of it."
Just then, a knock at the door interrupted them.
Ethan froze.
Lara looked at him in alarm. "Are you expecting someone?"
He didn't answer. Instead, he moved toward the door cautiously. But before he could reach it, it opened, revealing a tall woman in a sharp gray suit, her dark eyes scanning the room.
"Ethan," she said smoothly, "you weren't planning on hiding her forever, were you?"
Lara's pulse spiked.
The woman stepped inside without waiting for an invitation. She turned to Lara with a clinical smile. "You must be Miss Evans. It's a pleasure. I'm Celeste. I work for the advisory board at Gen Omega."
Lara didn't move. "What do you want?"
"To offer you protection," Celeste said, her tone too smooth, too polite. "And guidance. What you're carrying is important to us. We don't want any harm to come to it—or to you."
Ethan stepped in front of Lara. "She's not interested in your offer."
Celeste's smile faded slightly. "That's not for you to decide, Ethan. Miss Evans has the right to know what she's involved in. And she'll need support in the coming months."
Lara's voice cut through the tension. "And if I say no? If I say I want nothing to do with any of you?"
Celeste tilted her head. "Then we'll respect that. But know that not everyone else will. There are others, outside of our organization, who would see you as a threat—or an asset. And they won't wait for an invitation to take action."
Lara felt a chill crawl down her spine.
Celeste took a card from her pocket and placed it on the table. "If you change your mind, call me. We can offer you more than safety—we can offer answers."
And with that, she turned and walked out, her heels clicking softly against the floor.
Ethan locked the door behind her.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Lara whispered, "I don't know who to trust anymore."
"You can trust me," Ethan said quietly. "Even if everything else is a lie, I'm not."
But she didn't reply. Not yet.
---
Later that night, Lara sat alone in the guest bedroom Ethan had prepared for her. The moonlight filtered through the curtains, bathing the room in soft silver hues. Her fingers rested gently on her belly. She was more than three months pregnant now. In a few weeks, she'd feel the baby move. She didn't know whether it was a boy or girl, whether it would look like her—or him. But one thing she did know was that she would do anything to protect this child.
She looked at the card Celeste had left behind. It sat on the nightstand like a silent threat—or a promise.
Was this child just a baby? Or something more?
And if Ethan was telling the truth, what kind of world had she stepped into?