Chapter 3 - Poison in the Nest
Living in the Lake Forest estate felt like being trapped inside a gilded cage. The house was magnificent—sprawling marble floors, floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the forest, a private chef, and a fully equipped medical suite—but every exit was guarded, and my phone was stripped of its SIM card for security reasons.
For three days, Dorian barely left my side. He worked from a high-tech command center in the basement, but every few hours, he would come upstairs just to sit with me, check on my nausea, or simply hold my hand while I rested. The cold, distant stranger from the past six months was gone, replaced by a man who was almost suffocatingly protective.
"You need to eat," Dorian said gently on Thursday morning, placing a silver tray on the mahogany dining table in front of me. On it sat a bowl of light vegetable soup, whole wheat crackers, and a glass of warm milk.
"I'm not hungry, Dorian," I murmured, rubbing my temples. The morning sickness had worsened, leaving me weak and lightheaded.
"For the baby, Alina. Just a few bites," he pleaded softly, sitting down beside me and picking up the spoon. He lifted it to my lips, his eyes soft with an unconditional warmth I hadn't seen in half a year.
I sighed and took a small sip of the soup. It was warm and seasoned lightly. But as soon as the liquid hit my tongue, a strange, metallic aftertaste coated the back of my throat.
My stomach churned violently.
"Alina?" Dorian asked, his eyebrows pulling together in immediate concern as I pushed the bowl away and gagged.
"Something's wrong with the soup," I gasped, clutching my throat. "It tastes... metallic."
Dorian's posture instantly shifted. The warmth in his eyes vanished, replaced by a cold, deadly instinct. He snatched the spoon, dipped his finger into the broth, and brought it to his tongue.
His face turned ashen.
"CALEB!" Dorian roared, his voice echoing through the massive estate like a thunderclap.
Within three seconds, Caleb smashed through the dining room doors, his hand on his sidearm. "Boss?!"
"Lock down the estate! Nobody leaves! Secure the kitchen staff immediately!" Dorian barked, wrapping his arms around me and lifting me effortlessly off the chair into his arms. "Get Dr. Mercer on the secure line NOW! The food has been tampered with!"
Panic seized my chest as a sharp, agonizing cramp shot through my lower abdomen. I cried out in pain, clutching Dorian's shirt as he sprinted down the hallway toward the medical wing.
"Dorian... the baby... it hurts!" I sobbed, terror choking my lungs.
"Hold on to me, Alina! I'm right here! I've got you!" Dorian shouted, his voice cracking with pure panic as he burst into the medical room and laid me down on the examination table.
Dr. Mercer, who had been stationed at the safehouse permanently by Dorian's orders, rushed into the room with two nurses, immediately hooking me up to monitors and preparing an IV drip.
"What was in the soup?" Dr. Mercer demanded, pumping a neutralizing agent into my IV line.
"I don't know, but she only swallowed one sip," Dorian said, his hands shaking violently as he smoothed my sweaty hair away from my forehead. "Save them, Elaine! Save my wife and child! I will burn this entire city to ash if anything happens to them!"
"Dorian, step back and let me work!" Dr. Mercer ordered sternly.
For two agonizing hours, I lay on that table as stomach pumps and neutralizing fluids tore through my system. The cramps were terrifying, sharp spasms that made me scream into Dorian's shoulder as he held me tightly, whispering frantic prayers into my hair, crying openly alongside me.
Finally, as the sun began to dip below the horizon, the monitor beeped rhythmically once again.
Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump.
Dr. Mercer released a long, shuddering breath and looked at us. "The toxin was a mild uterine stimulant—a synthetic derivative meant to induce an immediate miscarriage. Because Alina swallowed so little of it and we flushed her system right away, the placenta held. The heartbeat is strong. The baby is safe."
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I burst into fresh tears of overwhelming relief, collapsing into Dorian's chest. He wrapped his massive arms around me, sobbing silently against my neck, kissing my temple over and over again.
"They won't hurt you again," Dorian growled into my skin, his voice dripping with a terrifying, unholy vengeance. "I swear to you on my life, Alina... whoever did this is already dead."
