Page 41 of Vendetta Crown

We make our way to the dining room, the motion of walking helping to settle my stomach. Ruslan gives my hand a gentle squeeze before heading to the kitchen.

The dining room isn't empty as I expected. Vera sits at the far end, delicately cutting into what looks like an omelet. She glances up as we enter, her expression shifting from neutral to concerned.

"Everything alright?" she asks, setting down her fork.

I sink into a chair across from her, still holding the blanket tightly around myself. "I just threw up during the photo shoot. Nerves, I guess."

Vera's eyes narrow slightly as she studies my face. Her gaze is disconcertingly perceptive, reminding me again that she's survived in this world far longer than I have.

"When was your last period?" she asks bluntly.

"My last period?" I start to answer automatically, then stop, my mind racing through the calendar.

Wait. When was my last period?

It was supposed to start last week. I'm always regular. Punctual to a fault.

But it didn't come.

Oh.

Hannah stands abruptly, her chair scraping back against the floor. "I'm going to talk to Daria about getting a pregnancy test."

My head spins at the word.

Pregnant.

My hand automatically moves to my stomach as I try to count back the weeks.

Whenwasthe last time Ruslan and I had sex?

Our wedding night. That single tender moment when everything felt right while the world was crashing down all around me. That was five weeks ago already?

"Is it even possible to know this early?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

Vera's expression softens. "Every woman is different. Some know early on, and others don't. But I thought it was odd that your bruises are taking longer than normal to heal." She gestures toward me. "I know I had problems with bruising early on when I first found out."

A different horrifying thought crashes through me like a tidal wave.

If I'm pregnant, if that's really what's happening here, then I was already carrying Ruslan's child when Kristofer took me.

When he forced me onto that hotel bed, when his hands were all over me, when he nearly…

My body starts shaking uncontrollably, violent tremors I can't control.

"No, no, no," I whisper, wrapping my arms around myself.

Vera moves quickly to my side, taking my ice-cold hands in hers. Her touch is surprisingly warm and steady.

"Listen to me," she says, her voice firm but gentle. "That monster didn't. He tried, but he didn't. Your baby, if there is one, is safe."

I try to focus on her words, on the pressure of her hands grounding me.

"He hurt you, yes. But not your baby."

Heavy footsteps approach from behind us, and Vera straightens slightly but doesn't release my hands.

"What's going on?" Ruslan's deep voice fills the room. I turn to see him standing in the doorway, a tray with toast and soup in his hands, his brow furrowed with concern.

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