The hand on the brass doorknob froze completely. It felt as though a bomb had suddenly detonated inside Vivian's mind, shattering her world into a million jagged pieces.
That devastating sentence kept playing on a loop, drilling ruthlessly into her skull: The child is yours! Alen Sin, I have your child!
She realized bitterly that she had been entirely too happy recently. She had grown far too comfortable, completely pushing aside the agonizing memory of that night when Alen and Helen Monsti had ended up in the same hotel room.
And now, this woman was carrying his child, too.
Inside the room, Alen's stern voice rang out with simmering fury. "Helen Monsti, don't talk nonsense in my quarters. Leave this base immediately!"
Vivian couldn't see the expression on their faces. She could only stand paralyzed in the quiet corridor, forced to listen to the agonizing exchange.
