Chapter 135 To Protect Her

• Through security feed, I watch Alaki sit in the rocking chair, cradling the baby in her arms. She’s been there for hours, lost in the bond I was counting on her to form with the infant.
• The way she holds him, the way she looks at him—with so much love and care—twists something in my chest—an emotion I refuse to acknowledge. Because I know this won’t replace the life that grows inside her. It won’t erase the trauma of what I have to do. But maybe, just maybe, the responsibility of raising him will give her something to hold onto. Something to love that won’t kill her.
• A child that’s safely born. One that can’t be used against us.