Rejected, Forgotten, and Fighting for My Twins

"Audrey, your mate got into an accident and suffered a brain injury. He has amnesia and might not remember anything—including you."

The words struck like lightning, scorching my chest and leaving nothing but an aching hollowness in its wake.

I barely remembered stumbling through the halls of the pack hospital. My lungs burned with every sharp breath, my heartbeat rattling in my ears. The sterile scent of antiseptic filled my nostrils, but all I could focus on was the man lying unconscious on the hospital bed.

Alpha Noah Sinclair. My mate. My husband. My whole damn world.

Tubes ran along his arms, a thick bandage wrapped around his forehead. His usually tanned skin was ghostly pale, and his strong, commanding presence—the one that had always made me feel safe—was reduced to stillness.

"How bad is it?" I whispered, barely recognizing my own voice.

The healer standing beside him gave me a cautious look. "He has retrograde amnesia. His memories of the past are fragmented… but it seems the only thing he doesn’t remember—is you."

The world tilted. I gripped the edge of the bed, my nails digging into the sheets as I forced myself to breathe.

I waited, praying for some sort of mistake, some sign that this was all a misunderstanding. Maybe he’d wake up, take one look at me, and his eyes would soften like they always did. Maybe he’d reach for me, murmuring my name with relief.

But when Noah’s lashes fluttered open, revealing the icy blue eyes I had loved for years, there was nothing in them. No warmth. No familiarity.

No recognition.

"Who the hell are you?" he rasped.

The words shattered something inside me. I choked back a sob, but the pain was unbearable.

He doesn’t remember me.

Weeks later. I stayed. I waited. I hoped.

For weeks, I sat by his side, desperate for a flicker of recognition. I held his hand, whispered stories of our past, showed him pictures from our childhood up until our wedding day.

But nothing changed. Noah’s patience thinned, his frustration turning into cruelty.

“Stop forcing this,” he snapped one night, his voice colder than I had ever heard. “I don’t know you. I don’t love you. Just leave me alone.”

His words were a blade, cutting deeper than any wound I had ever endured. But I still stayed.

Until the day she arrived. Caroline. His first love.

She walked into the hospital room like she owned the place, all delicate smiles and fake concern. And just like that, Noah came alive.

His dull, emotionless eyes lit up at the sight of her. He smiled. He pulled her into his arms.

Right in front of me. I felt my soul crack as I watched them. He held her like he once held me, his voice dripping with warmth—the warmth I had been begging for.

And when Caroline turned to me, her lips curled into a wicked smirk. She leaned in, her breath brushing against my ear.

"I have him back," she whispered. "You should leave while you still have your dignity."

I stood frozen, my mind screaming at me to fight, to yell, to do something. But how do you fight for someone who doesn’t remember loving you?

I walked out of that hospital room feeling numb. How could he remember her but not me?

I had been there through everything. Through every battle, every scar, every sleepless night. I had loved him unconditionally. And yet, I was the one forgotten.

As I stepped outside, the cold night air burned against my skin, but I barely noticed. The world had become one big joke, twisting and turning, laughing at my misery.

Then, like the nightmare wasn’t over yet, Caroline appeared.

"You’re wasting your time, Audrey," she said, her voice laced with mock sympathy. "He’s never going to remember you. The bond between you? It’s gone.”

Something about the way she said it—so confident, so sure—made my wolf stir uneasily.

I clenched my fists, my gut twisting. Something wasn’t right.

But before I could process the feeling, I returned home—only to find my luggage already outside.

The Beta of the Skyler pack stood waiting for me, his expression unreadable.

"It’s over," he said. "Your bond with Alpha Noah has been severed."

My bond? Severed? A bond like ours wasn’t something that just disappeared.

I wanted to argue, to scream, to demand answers—but there was no use. Noah had made his choice.

Silently, I picked up my bags and walked away, tears blurring my vision.

I had lost everything. I didn’t know where I was going. My feet dragged against the dirt path as I walked through the woods, my heart aching so badly I thought I might collapse.

And then, I felt it. A presence.

Someone was following me.

I stopped, my body stiff with fear. Slowly, I turned—only to see a rogue stepping out of the shadows.

My pulse pounded. My wolf was weak from the heartbreak and exhaustion. If he attacked, I wouldn’t be able to fight back.

"Please," I gasped. "Don’t kill me. I’m pregnant."

The rogue’s expression flickered with something unreadable. Then, he spoke.

"I’m not going to hurt you," he said, his voice rough but steady. "Not if you work with me."

My breath caught. "What… what do you mean?"

He took a step closer, his eyes gleaming in the moonlight.

"Your mate’s accident wasn’t an accident," he said. "His amnesia? It was planned. Someone wanted you erased from his life. Someone took your place."

A chill shot down my spine. My heart pounded in my ears.

"Who are you?" I whispered.

The rogue smirked.

"The only one who can help you get your mate back."

Your mate’s amnesia wasn’t an accident.

The rogue’s words echoed in my head, twisting into something sharp and unbearable. I couldn’t erase them, no matter how much I wanted to. My steps were unsteady as I walked through the dark forest, gripping the edges of my coat with trembling fingers.

He said someone erased me from Noah’s life.

I should have ignored him. I should have walked away. But I couldn’t. Not when my mate, my husband, the man who once swore to love me until his last breath, looked at me like I was nothing.

Something was wrong. I could feel it in my bones.

I sucked in a deep breath, trying to silence the pounding in my chest. Doubt clawed at the back of my mind. What if the rogue was lying? What if this was all some twisted trick?

But deep down, I knew.

Noah remembered everything—his pack, his warriors, his childhood. And yet, the one person he had forgotten was the one who loved him more than anyone else.

Then a memory haunts me.

"I will always choose you, Audrey. My pumpkin."

The memory came without warning. He always called me Pumpkin. God I missed the moment.

I could still feel the heat of the bonfire that night, smell the pine and smoke in the air. Noah had cupped my face, his golden eyes filled with something unshakable. His love for me had been so certain.

"I don’t care what fate says. You are my mate. My Luna. My everything."

I squeezed my eyes shut, blocking out the pain. It felt like another lifetime, like a dream I had forced myself to believe in.

But that dream was gone. And I was standing in the ruins of what we once had.

I pressed a hand against my chest, breathing through the ache.

Love doesn’t just disappear overnight. And that love was killing me.

I exhaled shakily, my mind made up. I had to see him.

Even if it destroyed me, I had to see him one last time.

The packhouse loomed ahead, dark and silent. It felt strange walking into a place that was once my home, knowing I was no longer welcome here.

No guards. No locked doors. No one to stop me.

Because I was nothing now.

I moved carefully, my heart pounding in my ears as I reached Noah’s room. My fingers trembled as I curled them around the handle.

I didn’t know what I was expecting.

But it wasn’t this.

The door was cracked open just enough for me to see inside. And my entire world shattered all over again.

Noah was awake, his bare back turned to me as he sat at the edge of the bed. And in his arms was Caroline.

My breath hitched.

She was curled up against him, her hands resting against his chest like she belonged there. His head dipped down as he whispered something in her ear, his voice low, intimate.

The way his fingers traced her skin. The way his lips brushed her temple.

It was the way he used to touch me. The way he used to love me.

My wolf let out a broken whimper, and before I could stop myself, a snarl tore from my throat.

Noah stiffened. He turned his head slowly, his golden eyes locking onto mine.

For one desperate second, I prayed for something—recognition, confusion, anything.

But there was nothing. His gaze was cold, his expression unreadable. Like I was nothing but an intruder.

"What the hell are you doing here?" His voice was sharp. Unfamiliar.

I swallowed back the sob rising in my throat.

Caroline smirked, stretching against him like she knew exactly what she was doing. Like she wanted me to see this.

"Didn’t they tell you?" Her voice was sweet, dripping with false sympathy. "You’re no longer welcome here."

My body felt like it was caving in on itself.

My hands trembled at my sides. I wanted to scream. To demand answers. To tell him this wasn’t right.

Instead, my voice came out small. Barely a whisper.

"Noah… do you feel nothing for me?"

I saw the flicker of hesitation in his eyes. The slight tension in his jaw.

And then—nothing. He didn’t flinch. Didn’t waver.

"I don’t even know you."

Silence. A cruel, suffocating silence that swallowed me whole.

That was it. That was the moment I shattered completely.

I had lost my mate. Not to death. Not to fate.

But to something far worse. To a force I didn’t understand.

The bond between us had been severed, but my heart refused to let go. The pain was unlike anything I had ever felt before—sharp, hollow, endless.

My wolf howled inside me, writhing in agony, but Noah didn’t move.

He just sat there, watching me. Like I was nothing.

I took a step back. Then another. My vision blurred, my chest tightening.

Caroline leaned into him, a victorious gleam in her eyes.

I turned and ran.

The night air hit me like ice as I stumbled blindly into the forest.

I didn’t know where I was going. I didn’t care.

My home was gone. My mate was gone. My pack had abandoned me.

For the first time, I had nothing.

But as I ran through the darkness, one thought refused to leave my mind.

What if Noah was never meant to forget me?

What if someone erased me?

And if so… why?

The forest was dead silent except for the sound of my uneven breaths. My body ached, my legs sore from walking for what felt like hours, but I couldn’t stop. I had nowhere else to go.

The rogue—Hendery, as he called himself—led me deeper into the woods, his steps light, barely making a sound. He moved with the ease of someone who knew every inch of this land. I, on the other hand, stumbled over roots and uneven ground, my body sluggish from exhaustion.

I wrapped my arms around my stomach, feeling the faint warmth there. The reminder of my baby, of Noah, twisted my heart into something raw and broken. He didn’t know. He would never know. The father of my child had no memory of me, and worse—he had looked at me like I was a stranger.

A cold wind swept through the trees, making me shiver. I finally found my voice, though it was hoarse.

"Where are you taking me?"

Hendery didn't stop walking, but his voice was low when he answered. "Somewhere safe. Somewhere they can’t find you."

They. Caroline. The Sinclair Pack. The mate who no longer remembered me.

The pain of it was still fresh, a deep wound that refused to close. I had spent weeks begging Noah to remember, waiting for his warm gaze to soften when he looked at me, praying that he would wake up and realize who I was. But none of it had happened. Instead, I had been cast aside like I was nothing.

The moment I saw him holding Caroline in his arms, I knew I had lost. I bit my lip to keep the emotions at bay, but it was getting harder to hold back.

After what felt like an eternity, we reached a small clearing where a wooden cabin sat hidden between towering trees. It looked abandoned, but when Hendery pushed open the door, I realized it wasn’t.

Hendery motioned for me to sit near the fire, and I didn’t argue. My body was icecold, and for a moment, I just focused on the warmth licking at my skin.

"You need to hear the truth," he said. Hendery sat across from me, his dark eyes serious. "Someone erased his memories."

The room seemed to shrink around me. I shook my head. "That’s not possible. The healer said—"

"The healer lied." Hendery’s voice was sharp. "Or maybe they don’t even know the full extent of it. Either way, Noah’s condition wasn’t caused by his injury. It was caused by black magic."

Black magic.

The words sent a chill through my spine. Magic like that was rare—dangerous. It came with a price.

I swallowed hard. "Who?" My voice cracked, but I forced myself to ask. "Who would do this to him?"

Hendery didn’t answer immediately. His eyes studied me, as if weighing whether or not I could handle the truth.

I already knew.

The moment he spoke her name, it only confirmed what my gut had been screaming all along.

"Caroline."

Of course. Of course, it was her.

She had always wanted Noah back. She had always looked at me like I had stolen something from her. And now, she had taken everything from me.

"She erased me from his life," I whispered.

Hendery nodded. "And she replaced herself in the space where you used to be."

A hollow ache settled in my chest. It made sense. Noah remembered her. He looked at her like she was his entire world. And me? He had only seen a stranger.

I felt sick.

I pressed my hands against my stomach again, grounding myself. I wasn’t just fighting for myself anymore. I was fighting for my baby.

"How?" My voice was barely above a breath. "How do I fix this?"

Hendery hesitated. "Black magic isn’t easy to undo. And the deeper the spell, the more dangerous it is to break."

"I don’t care." The words left my lips before I could think. My wolf stirred inside me, weak but determined. "I have to get him back."

Hendery sighed, rubbing his temples. "You don’t understand. If we try to force Noah’s memories back, it could break him."

I blinked. "Break him?"

"The mind isn’t meant to be tampered with like this," he said. "If we go against the magic, he could lose everything. Not just his memories of you, but all of his memories. His identity. Who he is."

A sharp pain stabbed through my chest. If I tried to make him remember, I might lose him forever.

My hands trembled. The weight of that possibility crushed me.

But could I just leave him like this? Living in a lie? Loving the woman who had destroyed him?

I closed my eyes, exhaling shakily. "There has to be a way."

Hendery was quiet for a long moment. Then he said, "There is."

I snapped my eyes open. "Tell me."

His expression darkened. "You have to get close to him again. You have to make him feel something for you. Only then can we weaken the spell. Only then can we bring him back."

My chest tightened. The thought of facing Noah again—of watching him love someone else while I fought to break through to him—felt unbearable.

But what choice did I have?

I looked down at my stomach. I had no choice.

Noah had the right to know he was going to be a father. And I had the right to fight for the love that had been stolen from me.

Taking a deep breath, I lifted my head and met Hendery’s gaze.

"Then I’ll do it."

Hendery watched me for a long moment before nodding. "Then be ready," he warned. "Because once we start this, there’s no turning back."

I wasn’t turning back. I had already lost Noah once.

I wasn’t going to lose him again.

I had imagined this moment a thousand times before. The day I would tell Noah that we were having a baby. I had planned to surprise him in our room, maybe after a long day of training. He would have pulled me into his arms, kissed me like I was his entire world, and then laughed in pure joy when I told him we were going to be parents.

But that moment would never come.

Instead, I stood at the entrance of the Sinclair Pack’s great hall, my heart pounding against my ribs as I stared at the scene before me. The grand ceremony, the hundreds of guests, the golden light spilling from the chandeliers, it was everything Noah and I had once dreamed of for our own wedding. But now, he was standing at the altar with another woman.

Caroline.

My fingers clenched around the small envelope in my hands. The proof. The only thing that could force them to let me stay.

A hush fell over the crowd as they noticed me. Murmurs rippled through the hall, growing louder as people recognized my face. Some in shock. Some in disgust. To them, I was an intruder, a ghost that should have stayed buried.

Caroline turned first. The moment her eyes landed on me, they widened in surprise, then narrowed into pure fury.

Noah… his reaction was worse.

His gaze was blank. Cold. Like I was nothing more than a stranger.

"Audrey?" someone whispered.

Caroline stepped forward, lifting her chin high. "What are you doing here?" she demanded, her voice sharp enough to slice through the silence. "Haven’t you embarrassed yourself enough?"

I forced a smirk, even though my hands trembled. "Relax, I’m not here to ruin your wedding." I held up the envelope. "I came to deliver some great news."

The tension in the room deepened. Caroline’s eyes flicked to the envelope in my hands, suspicion creeping onto her face.

Slowly, I opened it and pulled out the ultrasound photo. The blackandwhite image of my twins stared back at me, small but unmistakably alive. I turned the photo toward the crowd, letting them all see.

"I’m pregnant," I announced, my voice steady despite the storm inside me. "With Noah’s twins."

Gasps erupted across the room. The elders at the front turned to each other, whispering in shock. A few pack members exchanged stunned glances, while others simply stared at me as if I had lost my mind.

Noah’s expression didn’t change. He remained still, unreadable.

Caroline, on the other hand, looked like she wanted to rip me apart. "You’re lying," she spat, her voice shaking. "You’re desperate. This is pathetic."

I took a step forward, meeting her glare headon. "Lying?" I let out a small laugh, shaking the ultrasound in front of her. "This is proof, Caroline. I would have told Noah sooner, but someone made sure he forgot me."

Noah’s body tensed. His brows furrowed slightly, but he still didn’t say a word.

"The accident," one of the elders muttered. "She’s saying the accident erased her from his memories."

Caroline let out a harsh laugh. "Do you hear how insane that sounds? If Noah forgot her, maybe it was for a reason."

I turned to Noah, swallowing the lump in my throat. "Noah, do you really not remember me at all?"

Silence.

He didn’t answer. Didn’t even blink.

My fingers tightened around the ultrasound. "Before your accident, you loved me. You were going to be a father. This should have been the happiest moment of our lives." My voice wavered, but I forced myself to stay strong. "You promised me forever."

Noah finally spoke. "I don’t remember making that promise."

The words cut deeper than any blade.

I sucked in a sharp breath. I knew this would happen, I had prepared for it—but hearing him say it, with that empty look in his eyes, nearly shattered me.

Caroline stepped beside him, looping her arm through his. "Enough of this nonsense. This is our wedding day, and we don’t need some delusional ex trying to ruin it."

I smiled bitterly. "Oh, don’t worry, Caroline. I’m not here to take him back." I turned to the elders, knowing exactly what to say. "I’m here because the Sinclair Pack needs an heir."

Caroline stiffened.

The elders exchanged glances. "She’s right," one of them murmured.

"The Alpha must have an heir," another agreed.

Caroline’s fingers dug into Noah’s arm. "You can’t be serious—"

I tilted my head, feigning curiosity. "But that’s a problem, isn’t it? You can’t give him one."

A deadly silence fell over the room. Caroline’s face drained of color.

Everyone knew. Everyone knew she was infertile.

For a moment, she couldn’t speak, her lips parting in shock. Then, just as quickly, her fury returned. "You little—"

"Enough," one of the elders interrupted. He turned to Noah, his expression firm. "Like it or not, these children are yours. Audrey is carrying your bloodline. This isn’t something we can ignore."

Caroline let out a strangled noise. "You’re saying she can stay?"

Noah finally met my gaze, his golden eyes dark with something I couldn’t decipher. Then, slowly, he exhaled and turned to the elders.

"She can stay," he said.

For a second, my heart leapt. But then, he finished.

"But only until she gives birth." His voice was as cold as ice. "After that, she leaves."

The room spun. I stared at him, waiting for him to take it back. To realize how cruel he was being. But he didn’t.

He meant it. The final knife in my chest.

I forced myself to nod, refusing to let my pain show. "Fine."

The Sinclair mansion had never felt colder. Months had passed since I returned, my belly now round with the twins growing inside me, but the man I once loved still refused to acknowledge my existence.

Noah didn’t care. Not about me. Not about our pups. He wanted me gone.

I watched from the grand staircase as he walked through the halls, talking with his pack members, issuing orders, acting like I wasn’t even there. His cold indifference cut deeper than any words ever could. I remembered how he once held me, how his eyes used to soften when he spoke about having children. How he once swore that he’d cherish me forever.

Now, those memories meant nothing to him. He had no recollection of me, no attachment.

The only reason I was still here was because of the twins. And even then, he had made it clear—I was nothing more than a vessel. The moment I gave birth, I would be cast aside.

A bitter laugh threatened to escape my lips. How cruel fate was.

Caroline, on the other hand, made sure my life was hell. She took every chance to humiliate me, treating me like a lowly servant instead of the future mother of the Alpha’s heirs.

“Clean this up,” she ordered one morning, pointing to a spilled cup of tea on the floor.

I ignored her, taking my seat at the dining table.

“Did you not hear me?” Her voice was sickeningly sweet, but her eyes burned with anger.

I finally looked at her, unbothered. “You seem to have forgotten your place, Caroline.”

Her expression twisted. “Excuse me?”

I leaned forward, resting my hand on my belly. “I am the mother of the future Alpha. You, on the other hand, are just a placeholder.”

The dining hall fell silent. Even the elders who once sided with Caroline exchanged hesitant glances. They knew I was right. Caroline held no real power. She was only standing beside Noah because of the spell she had placed on him.

Caroline’s face turned red with rage.

I smiled. “Don’t worry. If Noah ever remembers me, you won’t even have a place in his heart anymore.”

Her hand twitched at her side, itching to slap me, but she couldn’t. Not in front of everyone.

But I knew she wouldn’t let this go. That night, she made her move.

I was walking down the hall when I heard her footsteps behind me. I turned just in time to see her lose her balance at the top of the staircase.

She screamed as she tumbled down.

The entire mansion seemed to shake with the impact. Gasps echoed through the halls. Servants rushed to her side as she lay there, sobbing, clutching her stomach like she was in immense pain.

The moment I saw her smirk, I knew. She set me up.

“She… she pushed me,” Caroline choked out, her voice weak and trembling.

The murmurs around me grew louder.

“Liar,” I snapped, taking a step forward, but before I could defend myself, a terrifying growl filled the room.

Noah.

His presence was suffocating as he marched toward me, his golden eyes ablaze with fury.

“How dare you,” he seethed, his hands clenched at his sides. “You would harm her while carrying my pups?”

I lifted my chin, forcing myself to meet his glare. “I didn’t push her.”

His nostrils flared, his aura pressing down on me like a storm ready to consume everything in its path.

I could see it in his eyes. He didn’t believe me. He wouldn’t believe me. His hand shot up, and for a split second, I thought he would strike me.

But then a strong hand gripped his wrist, stopping him midmotion.

The entire hall fell silent. I turned, my breath caught in my throat.

Hendery.

He stood between us, his expression calm but dangerous. His uniform, adorned with the insignia of the Sinclair pack’s highestranking warriors, glistened under the dim lights.

I froze. No… this wasn’t possible.

Hendery, a rogue, now stood as the General Sentinel of the Sinclair pack.

Noah’s fury shifted to him. “Who the hell do you think you are?”

Hendery smirked. “Your new General Sentinel.”

Whispers erupted around us. I saw the confusion in Noah’s eyes, the tension in his jaw as he tried to make sense of it.

Hendery had infiltrated the Skyler pack.

But why? I watched him carefully, searching for answers, but his gaze remained unreadable.

That night, as the pack settled down and the chaos of the day faded, I confronted him in the corridors.

“You planned this,” I accused, my voice barely above a whisper. “You wanted to get close to the pack. But why?”

Hendery simply leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. “You needed help.”

I narrowed my eyes. “You’re hiding something.”

He chuckled. “Aren’t we all?”

I hated that I couldn’t read him, that I couldn’t tell if he was truly on my side or if he had his own hidden motives.

But for now, I had bigger things to worry about.

Like breaking the spell that kept Noah from remembering me.

As I turned away, I caught sight of someone in the shadows.

Noah stood at the end of the hall, watching me.

His face was unreadable, but for a brief moment, something flickered in his eyes. Something that wasn’t anger.

Something familiar. And then, as quickly as it came, it was gone.

The spell still held him.

But for how much longer?

Pain tore through me, sharp and unrelenting. I barely had time to process what was happening before the world around me blurred. The contractions came in waves, each one stronger than the last, stealing my breath and leaving me weak.

I was giving birth.

The realization sent fear and exhilaration coursing through me all at once. I clutched my stomach as another contraction hit, my knees nearly buckling from the intensity. The Sinclair pack’s sentinels didn’t hesitate. They rushed me into a car, driving recklessly through the dark roads to get me to the Sinclair pack hospital.

This was it. The moment I had been waiting for.

The twins were coming.

I barely registered the chaos around me as doctors and nurses swarmed the room, shouting orders and preparing for the delivery. Sweat beaded down my forehead as pain wracked my body, but I held on. I had to. My babies were coming into this world, and they needed me.

"You're doing great," one of the nurses encouraged, but her words barely registered.

My vision blurred as another contraction ripped through me, and all I could do was push.

Minutes felt like hours. The pain, the exhaustion, the unbearable pressure—it all built into something almost unbearable. But then, a sharp cry pierced the air. Then another.

My heart clenched as I heard them for the first time.

My babies.

Tears blurred my vision as I turned my head, desperate to see them. A nurse handed me the first baby, and as soon as I held them against my chest, an overwhelming sense of love washed over me. They were so small, so perfect.

I barely had a second to take it all in before another set of arms reached forward.

Noah.

I froze as he took one of the babies from my grasp, holding them with an expression I couldn't read. For a second, just a second, I saw something flicker in his eyes. Something almost familiar.

But then it was gone.

"This changes nothing," he said coldly. "They're mine. The heirs of the Sinclair pack."

My blood ran cold. It was happening.

The deal. The moment I had feared since the beginning.

Noah looked at me as if I were nothing, as if the life we once had together had never existed. He held his child in his arms, but his gaze carried no warmth for me.

I reached out, desperation clawing at my chest. "Please, Noah. Let me stay. Let me be with them."

"You knew the terms," he said. "You give birth, and then you're gone."

Tears burned in my eyes. "They're my children too. You can’t just take them from me."

He barely flinched. "I can. And I will."

A choked sob slipped past my lips. My body was weak, my heart shattered. I had thought that maybe, just maybe, seeing the twins would make him remember. That something inside him would wake up and see me.

But I was wrong. Noah turned away, cradling the child in his arms. And then Caroline stepped in. Her smirk was cruel, victorious.

"Don’t worry," she said sweetly. "I'll take good care of them."

Something inside me snapped.

"You can't even have children of your own," I shot back, my voice trembling with rage. "You think that makes you a mother?"

Her face twisted in fury. Noah didn’t react. He didn't even look at me.

Instead, he nodded toward the sentinels. "Take her away."

I barely had a second to react before strong hands grabbed me, dragging me from the hospital bed. My body was still weak, but I struggled, screaming, pleading.

"Don't do this," I begged. "Please, Noah. Have mercy on me!"

But he didn't stop them.

I thought this was the worst of it.

But then Noah's voice rang through the air.

"Kill her."

My entire body went numb.

Kill me?

My breathing turned shallow as I turned my head, my heart pounding.

I swallowed, my throat dry. "Hendery—"

"I suggest you keep quiet," he muttered.

I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. Noah had ordered my death.

Tears blurred my vision.

"Please, Noah. Don’t take my baby from me!"

But he didn’t stop them.

As I was hauled from the hospital bed, Caroline stepped forward, her smirk cruel. She tilted her head, feigning sympathy. "Oh, Audrey. You should have known better. You were never meant to stay."

Something inside me snapped.

Before I could think, my hand lashed out, striking Caroline across the face. The sharp sound echoed in the room.

Caroline gasped, staggering back as if I had shattered her entire world. She clutched her cheek like I had inflicted a mortal wound. "Noah!" she whimpered, her voice trembling. "She—she hit me!"

I barely had time to react before Noah moved.

Fury blazed in his eyes. Before I could step away, pain exploded through my stomach. A cold, sharp agony.

I gasped, my breath hitching as I looked down.

Noah stabbed me.

The room swayed. My knees buckled, but I couldn’t look away from him. His hand trembled around the hilt of the blade, his chest rising and falling in ragged breaths.

His expression shifted—anger fading, replaced by something else. Horror. Regret.

And then, in a voice so low I almost didn’t hear it, he murmured, "Pumpkin?"