I waited for him to read the letter, my heart hammering against my ribs. I could feel the space around me shrinking. Then, I heard a loud, sharp noise in the background, words I couldn’t make out. It sounded like an order. The next sound was the unmistakable screech


    of tires as a car made a sharp turn.


    “I’ming. Don’t worry. Stay calm, alright?” he said, his voice low. He said that, but he seemed more panicked than I was. I moved forward, gently rested my palm on Haider’s stomach, and felt myself calm down just a bit.


    He was so small, so innocent, breathing softly, in and out, oblivious to the storm raging


    around him.


    In the next couple of minutes, the calm was shattered by the arrival of two men in ck and white suits. They were Niki’s men; the guards probably, considering their words,“Sir has


    ordered us to begin preparations for transport.”


    “Alright.” Was all I said as I watched them. The nurses arrived soon after. They moved and started to disconnect Haider’s crib from the monitors, prepping him for transport. They


    moved Haider’s crib and I followed them.


    As we walked through the corridor, Keith, stopped me just outside the reception area, his


    face ashen.


    “Mrs. Vetrov?” he asked, and I paused, my footsteps faltering. I eyed the crib and the workers moving with it and I clenched my fists.


    “Yes?” I asked. I wanted him to hurry, to just get out of the way so I could get to Haider. But


    even so, I walked towards him.


    He stood next to a young nurse, who looked flushed and on the verge of crying, her hands twisting nervously in the hem of her hospital uniform. “I’m so sorry, ma’am,” Keith said, his voice low. “I checked the surveince footage, and no one unknown entered the NICU. However…<i>” </i>He eyed the young nurse standing beside him, his expression one of a disappointed superior. “There was a person who stopped Nurse Irene outside the hospital and told her to leave this envelope outside Haider Vetrov’s crib.”


    2


    I looked at the two of them incredulously, feeling the blood drain from my face. “And you didn’t think to tell me?! You didn’t think that was at all suspicious? How could you just listen to aplete stranger out of nowhere?” My voice was furious. I felt my hands balling into fists again, my nails biting into my palms.


    Nurse Irene finally burst into tears, her shoulders shaking with sobs. She looked young, younger than Keith, like a fresh–out–of–school graduate. “I’m so sorry. He just said that you two were close friends and he wanted to surprise you. I checked the envelope thoroughly, and I even said that I couldn’t for a long time, but he–he kept on insisting, and I–” Her voice broke, and she looked up at me with pleading, tear–filled eyes. The fear in them was real, but it was a fear born of her own foolishness, not of the true danger she had just unleashed upon us.


    I narrowed my eyes at her. The story was flimsy. A stranger convincing her <i>to </i>deliver a sealed envelope to a newborn’s crib?


    “Did he bribe you?” I finally asked, my suspicion evident in the clipped, sharp tone. She froze, her shoulders stiffening, and her eyes darted to the side. I knew I had hit the mark. The flicker of guilt in her eyes was all the confirmation I needed. A wave of pure,


    unadulterated anger boiled up in me, so intense it made my vision swim. I ?started feeling light–headed, and the pain in my stitches intensified.


    I grabbed the counter for support, my knuckles turning white as I held on. I looked at Irene,


    then at Keith, my gaze a burning fire. I wanted to p her. No, strangle her. The urge was so


    strong, so violent, it shocked me to my core. I never hurt women. I was a feminist through


    and through, a staunch believer in women lifting each other up. But at that moment, all I saw was a careless girl who had put my son’s life in danger for a few dors.


    I clenched my fists, my jaw tight. Keith, sensing my fury, finally spoke, his voice grave.


    “Please rest assured, I will make sure that this situation is rectified, and Miss Irene here will


    be disciplined ordingly.”


    I took in a deep, shuddering breath, trying to calm the tempest of emotions raging inside me. “I want the face and name of the person who gave this letter,” I said to Keith, my voice now cold and devoid of emotion. “As for her, my husband will be dealing with it.” The words felt foreign on my tongue, but I meant them. I couldn’t trust myself to deal with Irene in my current condition. At this point, I couldn’t trust anyone, least of all nurses who could be so easily manipted. My blood ran cold at the thought. If a nurse could be so careless, how


    08:55 Fri, 22 Aug


    could I ever trust anyone to look after my baby again?


    60<b>% </b>


    I turned around and walked away with hurried footsteps, wanting nothing more than to be


    beside my son.


    It took almost half an hour for Niki to finally arrive. The moment his eyesnded on me,


    and then at our son his shoulder rxed.


    When he found out about what had truly happened–about the nurse, the bribe–l


    witnessed him using his power and name in a furious disy for the very first time. He


    didn’t waste time on threats. Instead, he pulled out his phone and made a single call.


    “That nurse,” he said, his gaze fixed and burning. “I want her license revoked. Immediately.


    And I want her name and file gged across every hospital and medical registry in the


    country. She’ll never work in this profession again. And make sure word spreads about this,


    so that no one in the future dares make the same mistake.”


    When he returned to me, he seemed to be on edge. He walked to the transport crib where


    Haider had been settled into. He looked down at our son, hisrge hand gently touching the


    stic of the incubator.


    “What do we do?” I asked as I stood up, already changed from my hospital gown into a


    loose–fitted dress.


    He clenched his jaw, the muscle in his cheek jumping. He shook his head, his dark eyes


    never leaving our son. “I’ll take care


    first.” he said.


    everything. Don’t worry, let’s just leave this ce


    “What about the man? Who was it? Who sent this letter?” I asked, needing a name, a face,


    something totch onto. Niki frowned, running a hand through his hair. “The fucker gave a fake name. Jasper. As for his face, it was obscured by his hoodie, and the nurse can’t seem


    to recall any particr detail about him.” The words were a bitter pill to swallow.


    I took in a deep, shuddering breath. “But you have an idea who it is, don’t you?” I asked, already knowing the answer. He scoffed, a dark, humorless sound.


    “Of course, I do. Who else would it be but my dear old father?” he said, his voiceced with venom. Just as the words left his mouth, there was a sharp knock on the door.


    Keith entered and reminded us that the neonatal ambnce was ready. I grabbed my


    ??


    08:55 Fri, 22 Aug <b>. </b>


    60%


    38


    phone and began walking, following the transport crib Haider was in. Niki followed close behind me as he spoke with someone else on his phone.


    The drive to Velhaven took longer than before because of the ambnce’s slower speed. But as soon as we arrived, we were checked into the same hospital where my mother had had her surgery. This wasn’t a standard room, though. It was on a different floor, a private recovery room which meant Haider would constantly be in my room. As soon as I heard


    that bit, a huge wave of relief washed over me.


    “There will be two guards outside, constantly on surveince. Anything thates in and out of this room will be thoroughly checked, even food. ” he said, his voice calmer now, but still carrying that edge of anger.


    He paused, frowning as he looked down at his ringing phone. He looked at me for permission, and I simply nodded. The door was now closed and everything was set. The silence in the room amplified the caller’s voice, even though the phone was not on speaker.


    “Boss. Andrey has gone missing.”


    I went still at this words,


    Niki, though, didn’t seem surprised. His jaw tightened, and he simply asked, “How long


    has it been? And Sergei?” His voice was cold and detached, as if he were discussing a


    business matter.


    “It’s been almost eight hours since he wasst seen. Sergei has been in his mansion in


    Velhaven for the past three days, sir. It seems…” The voice on the phone trailed off, and I frowned, my eyebrows furrowing in confusion.


    “From the intel I have gathered from my men. He seems to be sick.” My brows shot up at


    that statement. He was sick?


    AD


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