Page 27 of Abandoned By My Alpha Husband

Guards pushed me out. Lina turned back around, worry settling on her face again. "Lucifer..." Lucifer wrapped an arm around her shoulder, seeming to comfort her.

The door shut.

I was freezing.

Lina. Kind, gentle Lina who'd cared for Liam for five years. I'd thought she loved Liam, even if she didn't like me.

But I never thought she'd use Liam.

She was dangerous.

I couldn't let her near Liam again!

Even if Lucifer didn't believe me anymore.

Chapter Seven

Lucifer

The healer said Liam was out of danger.

I sat by the bed, only letting myself breathe after he finished that sentence. My shirt was soaked through.

The healer left. Just me and Lina in the bedroom. After the rage and panic burned out, my thoughts cleared. What would Elena gain from hurting Liam? This was a political marriage—our families' interests bound together. And even if she wanted to sabotage it, would she be this obvious?

Liam lay beneath the covers, face still pale, but his lips had color again—faint pink. His chest rose and fell, steady now. I shifted my gaze from him to the other side of the bed. Lina sat on the edge, one hand holding Liam's, the other touching his forehead. She brushed the hair from his face so carefully, fingertips sliding from his brow to his temple and back again, over and over. Light caught her profile. Her lashes were still wet, eyes rimmed red, but she made no sound. She just sat there, hand never leaving him.

She'd cared for Liam for five years. Five years of fevers, scrapes, nightmares—sitting by his bed just like this, fingers resting on his forehead. I thought of what the maid had said. I stood.

"I'll be in my study."

Lina nodded without looking up. Her fingers kept brushing through his hair.

I left and closed the door behind me. Most of the hallway lights were off. My footsteps echoed on stone. When I pushed open the study door, the lamp was still on. The documents lay open to the page I'd left them, pen beside them, a small ink stain blooming on the paper. I didn't look at the files. Just sank into the chair, head against the back, eyes closed.

My mind wouldn't settle on state business. Instead—cake crumbs. White porcelain. Almond flour on her dress. And those eyes when I told her to get out—frightened, hurt.

I opened my eyes to stare at the ceiling and exhaled hard. She'd been trying to get close to me. Bringing me late-night snacks, asking about my schedule. Those amber eyes always watching me, soft and tender. And maybe that's why I couldn't say what needed saying. Maybe that's why she got bold enough to ask about Liam's birth mother. In that moment, I couldn't shake the suspicion—my Luna probing about my mate. Did she want to replace her? Or was she just looking for leverage over me?

You don't treat her like you treat Lina. My wolf's voice was lazy, mocking.

I knew what it was getting at. "Because Elena is Luna. She represents Silver pine. I can't let things get too hostile—"

You said you'd treat her like furniture. My wolf cut me off.

I clenched my fist, caught. The wolf kept going. She made a mistake that hurt Liam, and all you did was tell her to get out of the studio?

"Something's off about this," I said it aloud, remembering her gentleness with Liam. I paused. "She likes him." But irritation still jumped through my veins. Yeah, she liked him so much—so why didn't she ask about the almond flour? Why did she let this happen?

You're holding her to a mother's standard? My wolf spoke again. She's not his birth mother.

I knew that. But I was still pissed. She'd disrupted my life.

I pushed out of the study. At the end of the hall, light leaked through a half-open door. I didn't knock. Elena sat on the edge of the bed. When the door opened, she looked up. Saw me. Stood. Her fingers tightened on her sleeve.

"Liam..."

"He's fine."