Still, I shook my head and tried.
“I… didn’t…” I rasped, barely audible. “Please… just take me to a hospital… the babies… I can’t… hold on…”
“You’re lying again!” Sullivan snapped, clearly fed up. His brow furrowed. “My mom rushed out of the hospital and brought the lawyers to work overnight—don’t think I don’t know it was your idea. You think if you steal her baby, it’ll make you the official mother of the heir?”
He let out a cold, hollow laugh.
“You already gave birth yesterday, didn’t you? And now you’re here pretending you’re still in labor, half-dead? Trying to guilt me into pitying you?” He sneered. “Save it.”
My whole body ached. Every muscle screamed. Between my legs, I could feel the crusted blood clinging to my skin. The smell—iron, sweat, death—hung heavy around me.
Shannah gagged, covering her mouth, her eyes welling up again.
“Zareena… you know I can’t take the smell of blood after giving birth… Why won’t you clean yourself up?” Her voice cracked, soft and fragile. “Are you trying to make me pass out?”
She collapsed into Sullivan’s chest like a wilting flower, delicate and pale.