Chapter 194 A Positive Test

Serena’s eyes widened.

"Eira? Six weeks ago, when you got drunk at that dinner, this was the number that told me to come get you."

Alpha Sebastian went still.

She hadn’t cared.

Not then. Not now.

She had left him drunk in a bar, then left him doubled over in pain outside her house. Both times, she had handed him off to another woman like he was an inconvenience nobody wanted to deal with.

The realization hit hard enough to bring the pain roaring back.

His stomach clenched. His chest tightened. Cold sweat broke across his forehead.

A doctor glanced between them and checked the monitors.

"His labs don’t show another acute bleed," she said carefully. "Stress can make the spasms worse, but we’ll keep monitoring him. If the pain continues, we’ll have GI take another look."

She lowered her voice.

"Once he’s stable, I’d also recommend a behavioral-health consult. Severe emotional stress can trigger very real physical symptoms."

Serena stood frozen beside the bed.

Losing Eira had hurt Alpha Sebastian this badly?

More than she had ever hurt him?

The thought lodged under her ribs, sharp and unwelcome.

She looked from Alpha Sebastian’s pale face to the IV dripping steadily beside him. He had barely reacted to her arrival. He had only come alive when Eira’s name entered the room.

"I need some air," Serena said.

No one stopped her.

--

Down in the hospital’s women’s health building, Eira sat in a quiet alcove outside the outpatient clinics, her hair loose beneath a plain blue surgical mask.

Patients came and went around her. Some checked in at the obstetrics desk. Others crossed the atrium toward radiology, internal medicine, or the outpatient lab.

She looked like anyone else waiting for an appointment.

Only her eyes kept drifting toward the elevators.

If Serena had come to the hospital, she would almost certainly get a prenatal scan while she was there. Eira was sure of it.

Patience came easily to a scientist. So did waiting for the right result.

Sure enough, Serena appeared a few minutes later. She stepped off the elevator, spotted the Women’s Imaging sign, and slowed.

For a second, she looked as if she might turn around.

Then she squared her shoulders and walked to the registration desk.

Serena checked in and took a seat.

From across the atrium, Eira watched her fill out the paperwork.

Confirmed.

About half an hour later, a medical assistant called Serena’s name.

"Serena Winthrop?"

Serena stood and followed her through the doors marked Early Pregnancy Imaging.

Eira did not follow. She stayed in the public seating area, where she could see the doors without drawing attention to herself.

This early in the pregnancy, Serena was probably there for a confirmation and dating scan rather than a full prenatal workup.

At only a few weeks, the ultrasound might show little more than a gestational sac.

That was enough for Eira.

She took one discreet photo of the clinic doors as they closed behind Serena.

A few minutes later, someone emerged from the opposite corridor.

Eira recognized him immediately.

Ryan Sullivan.

They had met years ago at a research conference through Dr. Alaric Thorne.

Ryan was in his mid-forties, tall and broad-shouldered, with dark hair going silver at the temples. He had once worked as a researcher at the Silix Institute. Now he ran his own medical-technology company.

He looked as though he had just come from an appointment. A slim leather folder was tucked under one arm, and a patient checkout envelope rested on top of it.

Odd.

A man like Ryan rarely went anywhere without an assistant, a driver, or someone carrying a laptop bag behind him.

Their eyes met.

Ryan smiled and crossed the atrium.

"Mr. Sullivan," Eira said.

"Eira?" His eyebrows lifted. "Wow. I almost didn’t recognize you. What brings you here?"

"I’m waiting for someone."

"Ryan," he said. "You can drop the ’Mr. Sullivan.’"

She gave him a polite smile. "Are you all right?"

"Fine. Just had a follow-up and some bloodwork done."He glanced at his watch. "I’ve got a meeting across town, so I should get moving."

"Take care."

Ryan nodded and turned away.

As he passed the row of chairs, the leather folder slipped slightly under his arm. The checkout envelope slid free and landed near Eira’s feet.

Ryan didn’t notice.

Eira bent to pick it up, intending to call after him. But he had already reached the elevators.

The envelope had come partly open when it fell.

A folded lab report was sticking out just enough for Eira to catch a single line before she pushed it back inside.

Treponemal antibody screen: Reactive

RPR: Pending

Her fingers tightened around the paper.

A reactive treponemal screen did not prove an active infection. It could indicate a previous infection, successful treatment, or, less commonly, a false positive.

Before she could put the report back in the envelope, the doors to the imaging suite opened.

Serena stepped out, one hand resting protectively over her stomach.

She was alone.

Eira tucked the envelope against her thigh and moved back toward the wall.

Ryan had just reached the elevators when he glanced over his shoulder.

He saw Serena.His expression changed.

"Serena."

Serena stopped.

For half a second, the color drained from her face.

Then she recovered.

"Ryan."

They exchanged a look that lasted a beat too long.

Ryan glanced toward the busy atrium, then toward the emergency stairwell beside the elevators.

"Can we talk?"

Serena hesitated before following him through the stairwell door.

It failed to latch completely.

Eira waited until the corridor cleared, then moved closer. She stayed outside the doorway, keeping to the blind spot beside the wall.

Ryan spoke first.

"An ultrasound?"

His voice was low but sharp.

"You’re pregnant?"

Serena’s answer came after a pause.

"It’s not yours."

"Good." He let out a humorless laugh. "If you were two or three months along, I might’ve wondered if the timing lined up before I went back to California."

Eira went still.

"Whose is it?" Ryan asked.

Serena ignored him.

"What are you doing here?"

"That’s none of your business." His tone hardened. "Did your tests come back?"

Serena was quiet.

"I had the ultrasound today. I’m still waiting to speak with the doctor about the bloodwork."

"Right."

The conversation began to wind down.