Chapter 8: Discovery
Lucy froze. Jack's voice was low, controlled- but there was something else beneath it now. Something sharper. More alert.
"Why aren't you telling me?" he asked again.
Her throat went dry.
"I… " It's nothing," she said quickly, pulling her hand away from her stomach. Too quickly.
Jack noticed. Of course he did.
His eyes lingered on her for a moment longer, calculating, observing— putting the pieces together. "Lucy." Her name sounded heavier this time. Not a question. A demand.
She shook her head. "You're overthinking it."
Jack took a step closer. "You have been dizzy.
You haven't been eating properly. And now this—"
"It's stress," she cut in. "From what?"
Lucy let out a frustrated breath. "From everything!" she gestured around vaguely.
"This marriage, this house, you— everything is too much sometimes." That part wasn't a lie.
But it wasn't the whole truth either. Jack studied her face carefully. Looking for cracks. For hesitation. For anything that didn't add up.
And Lucy could feel it.
That pressure.
That scrutiny.
It made her chest tighten.
"I'll call a doctor," Jack said suddenly. Lucy's eyes widened. "No." The response came too fast. Too sharp. Jack's gaze hardened slightly. "Why not?"
"Because I said I'm fine."
"That's not your decision to make." Her anger flared instantly. "Excuse me?"
"You are not in a condition to decide that right now." Lucy stepped back, pulling herself away from him.
"You don't get to decide anything for me." Jack didn't move. But his voice dropped. "I do when it concerns me." The word hit differently this time.
Lucy's breath caught. "Concern?" she repeated.
Jack held her gaze. "You're my wife." That reminder felt heavier now. More complicated.
More real. Lucy shook her head. "This is exactly why I didn't want things to change," she said.
Jack's eyes narrowed slightly.
"They already have."
Silence fell again. But this time, it wasn't just tension. It was something deeper. Something unavoidable. Lucy looked away, gripping the railing again. Her thoughts were racing.
She couldn't keep avoiding it. Couldn't keep pretending. Because deep down… she already knew.
"I need to go out," she said suddenly. Jack frowned. "Where?"
"Just… somewhere." "That is not an answer."
Lucy turned to him. "I don't need your permission." Jack's jaw tightened.
"And I don't like uncertainty." Lucy let out a small, frustrated laugh. "Well, get used to it." Before he could respond, she walked past him.
Fast.
Determined.
Because if she stayed any longer… She might say something she wasn't ready to admit.
Hours later—
Lucy stood alone in the bathroom again. But this time… It felt different. Heavier. Final. Her reflection stared back at her. Pale. Tense. Afraid.
She looked down at the small object in her hand.
Her fingers trembled slightly. "…This is stupid," she whispered. But her voice didn't sound convinced. She had told herself it was nothing.
Just stress.
Just exhaustion.
Just confusion.
But what if it wasn't?
Lucy closed her eyes tightly. "Think." She tried to go back. To count the days. To remember. Her breath hitched. That night. The balcony. The moment everything changed. Her grip tightened.
"No…"
It was too soon.
Too unexpected.
Too… real.
She paced the bathroom for a moment, her thoughts spiraling. "If it's positive…"
She didn't finish the sentence. She couldn't.
Because that would mean— Everything would change. The contract. Her life. Her dreams. Everything.
Lucy stopped pacing. Her heart was pounding louder than ever. She looked down at the test again. Then slowly…walked forward.
Minutes felt like hours. The silence was suffocating. Every second stretched longer than the last. Her hands were cold. Her breathing uneven. Her mind was racing through every possible outcome.
And then— She looked. Everything still. Completely still. Lucy stared. Her eyes were wide.
Unblinking. As if looking away would change what she saw. But it didn't.
Her breath left her slowly. "…No" she whispered.
But this time— it wasn't denial. It was a realization. Her hand trembled slightly as she lowered the test.
Her mind struggled to catch up with what her eyes had already confirmed. Positive.
Lucy sank slowly onto the edge of the bathtub.
Her body felt heavy. Her thoughts scattered.
This wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't part of the plan.
This wasn't part of the contract.
A baby.
Jack's child.
Her chest tightened painfully. "What am I supposed to do…?" she whispered. Her dreams flashed in her mind. Runaways.
Freedom.
Independence.
Everything she had been holding onto. Everything she had sacrificed for.
And now…
This. Lucy let out a shaky breath. Her first instinct was clear. Immediately. "I can't keep this," she said quietly. The words felt harsh. But they were real.
Because keeping it meant giving up everything she had ever wanted. It meant being tied to Jack
in a way the contract never intended. It meant losing control of her own life.
Lucy stood up slowly. Her decision is forming. Not fully. But enough. She needed to think. She needed to figure things out. But one thing was certain— she wasn't ready to tell him. Not yet.
But as she stepped out of the bathroom— she froze. Jack was standing there. Right outside her room. His eyes immediately met hers.
Sharp.
Searching.
Unmoving.
Lucy's heart dropped. "How long have you been standing there?" she asked. Jack didn't answer right away. His gaze flickered briefly past her—
Toward the bathroom. Then back to her.
"Long enough," he said quietly. Lucy's breath caught. Her fingers tightened at her side.
"What happened in there?" he asked.
His voice wasn't loud. But it carried weight. Authority. Expectation.
Lucy opened her mouth— but no words came out. Jack took a step closer.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Dangerous.
"Lucy," he said, "tell me the truth."
Lucy's lips parted— Her heart racing—
And Jack was standing close enough to hear it.
But instead of speaking— she took a step back.