Raven's POV
Her words made my stomach churn.
"After that," Axel cut in impatiently, his voice sharp enough to slice through the tension, "how long before the spawn is ready to be used?"
Used. The word echoed in my mind, reverberating over and over until it made me feel sick.
"For the first one," Gessia replied smoothly, her tone composed in a way that made my skin crawl, "I would prefer it grow until the end of the season of conception."
My chest tightened painfully. It was one thing to force me into this… arrangement. I had endured that humiliation, swallowed it, buried it. But a child?
What had it done to deserve this?
I glanced around the room, searching their faces—Axel's cold impatience, Gessia's calculated calm—for any sign of hesitation. Any flicker of doubt. Any trace of humanity.
There was none.
I was dismissed shortly after, as though I were nothing more than an object no longer needed in the room.
I didn't hesitate to leave.
