Chapter 567

With that, she turned and left. My blood ran cold.

Judy had seen the story... during the graduation ceremony.

That explained why Irene called me frantic, because she, too, had seen the news story. I just didn't realize it was a public scene during the graduation.

I felt sick to my stomach.

I'm not sure how long I stayed in the hospital room, watching Rachel sleep, but I felt numb. How the fuck was I going to explain myself to Judy? She must be thinking the absolute worst about me right now.

My phone rang, bringing me out of my thoughts. I glanced at the screen to see Derek's cousin Monty's number. I stood quickly and rushed out of the room, holding the phone to my ear.

"You better have an update. It's been 2 days, Monty," I said through my teeth.

"You should be prepared," Monty murmured. "I have information for you."

Before I could return, Eliza returned with the ultrasound machine and a fetal paternity test.

"I'm going to wake her up now," Eliza said. "It might take a bit for the paternity test results. But hopefully I'll have something for you by the end of the day. She's a little over a month pregnant, so it's still a bit too early. But werewolf babies grow faster than humans, so I might be able to get actual results for you."

I nodded, my grip on the phone tightening.

Eliza disappeared into the hospital room with the machine, and I turned my back to the door to address Monty, who remained on the other end of the phone.

"Send me over everything you can," I told him. "I'm staying here and waiting for the paternity results."

"Yes, Alpha."

With that, the line went dead.

I walked back into the room to see Eliza setting up the machine and Rachel sitting up in bed with a polite smile on her face.

"Good morning," Rachel said, her eyes finding mine. "Are you ready to see our baby?"

I forced a smile as I reached her.

"I couldn't be more excited," I lied, though she seemed to have bought it.

Once Eliza had everything set up, she performed the ultrasound. The whooshing of the baby's heartbeat brought tears to Rachel's eyes. I felt nothing; there were no emotional ties with the baby because I knew in my heart, it wasn't mine. But I had to fake it in order for Rachel to believe me.

“That's our baby,” Rachel breathed, tears streaming down her flushed cheeks.

I forced another smile, my eyes glued to the screen.

"Very healthy indeed. That's a strong heartbeat,” Eliza told her. “It's too early to tell the gender. But at this rate, I should be able to tell you by next month."

"Really? That soon?" Rachel gasped.

Eliza nodded.

"Yes, the baby is growing at a quick rate. Must be that Lycan blood," she said, glancing my way.

My wolf let out a low growl, though I was able to stifle it before it escaped my lips.

"Now, I'll need to do a little blood work on the baby," Eliza said, pulling out the syringe. I knew the blood was for the paternity test, but Rachel's eyes grew wide.

"Bloodwork?" She asked. "Why??"

"It's just protocol," Eliza assured her. "There's no need to be alarmed. It's how I find out if the baby has any underlying deceased. I also want to know its blood type. There's nothing to be concerned about."

"And this is normal at only a month pregnant?" Rachel asked.

"Typically, d wait until you are about two to three months along, but as said, baby is growing at a quick rate, and it's better to get these things out of the way."

"Is it safe?" She asked, her voice becoming a whisper.

"I would never put either of you in danger like that,” Eliza assured her. "You have

nothing to worry about. The baby won't be hurt."

Rachel swallowed and then nodded slowly.

"Okay," she breathed. "Do what you must."

Eliza smiled, her eyes flickering to me briefly, and I could see the small sense of victory in her eyes before she got to work. She numbed a spot on Rachel's belly before injecting her with the needle. Rachel couldn't look at the needle, but she did watch on the ultrasound machine as the needle found the baby. After a moment, Eliza pulled the syringe out of her and held up a small vial of blood. noveldrama

“Perfect,” Eliza breathed before bandaging the puncture wound. "Would you like

me to print photos of the ultrasound?"

"Yes, please," Rachel said.

Eliza nodded as she pressed print on the machine monitor, and then she packed

up the equipment. As she passed me, she murmured.

"I'll have results as soon as possible."

I nodded, pretending she didn't just murmur something to me.

My phone dinged a moment later, and when I looked at the screen, I saw that Monty had sent over a ton of files.

I excused myself and stepped into the hallway to look at what he had sent me.

There are a ton of videos, each marked for different times and locations.

I didn't have time to watch all the videos then, but one caught my eye. It was the one Monty had labeled: DRUGGED??