CHAPTER 138: 138 - PERSONAL MAID?

138

~Lisa’s POV

I froze when the doctor told me.

Pregnant?

The word hit me so hard I almost couldn’t breathe. I stared at him like he had said something impossible, like the ground had opened under me.

"No... no, that can’t be true," I whispered, shaking my head. My fingers gripped the blanket as though holding on would stop my whole world from falling apart. "He must be wrong, Damon. There’s no way. I... I can’t be."

Damon’s voice was steady, but his eyes betrayed the storm he carried. "Lisa, you are. The healer confirmed it. You’re carrying a child."

I let out a bitter laugh, though nothing about this was funny. "A child? My child? Or... theirs?" My voice cracked on the last word.

I turned my face to the side, not wanting him to see my weakness. My voice came out small. "Belinda will destroy me. You know she will. The moment she finds out..."

Damon’s jaw tightened, his hands curling into fists. "Belinda won’t touch you. I’ll make sure of that. She doesn’t have the power to break you, Lisa."

But I wasn’t so sure. Belinda had already taken too much from me. She thrived on my pain.

I whispered, almost to myself, "I don’t even know if I’ll love this child... or hate it." My chest ached at the words, but they were true.

Damon’s eyes softened. "Don’t say that. The child is innocent. Whatever happens, you’ll love him or her. I’ll make sure you never feel alone in raising our child."

I stared at him, my lips trembling. "And if I can’t? If every time I look at this baby, I see what was done to me?"

For a long moment, he didn’t answer. His silence scared me. But then he said quietly, "Then I’ll love him or her enough for both of us. And maybe, just maybe, you’ll find healing through them."

I pressed my lips shut, not knowing how to respond. His words touched me, but they also scared me. Healing? How could there be healing in a wound so deep?

Finally, Damon stood. His hand lingered on my shoulder. "You need rest, Lisa. I’ll let you sleep. We’ll talk again later."

And just like that, he walked out, leaving me in the heavy silence of his room.

When the door clicked shut, I curled up on the bed, hugging my knees to my chest. My tears flowed freely now, unchecked.

Pregnant.

The word echoed in my mind like a curse. I pressed my palm to my stomach, as though I could feel something already there. But it was too early. There was nothing but emptiness, yet the knowledge of what was growing inside me made my skin crawl.

I whispered into the dark, "I don’t know if I can do this."

The thought of Belinda finding out made my heart race. She would laugh, mock, spit venom at me until I shattered. She would remind me every single day of my shame. She would never let me forget.

And the truth? She wasn’t wrong.

How long could I hide this? A few weeks? Maybe a month? But eventually, my belly would grow. My secret would show.

I buried my face into the pillow, muffling a sob. "I wish it wasn’t true."

But wishes were useless. The child was already there.

I hated myself for the thought, but I couldn’t stop it: Would it have been better if the healer hadn’t told me? If I had never known until it was too late?

The fear, the shame, the anger, it all swirled inside me, suffocating me.

And yet, deep in my chest, a small, fragile voice whispered something else. What if... this child isn’t a curse? What if it’s the only part of me that survives this pain?

I quickly pushed the thought away, burying it under layers of fear. No. I couldn’t let myself hope. Not yet.

For now, silence was my only weapon.

I whispered to myself, a vow only I could hear: "No one will know. Not now. Not yet. I’ll keep this secret as long as I can."

But even as I said it, I knew secrets never stayed buried forever.

The door creaked open, dragging me out of my storm of thoughts. I quickly wiped my face, trying to hide the traces of tears. My heart jumped when I saw who it was.

Kael.

His tall figure filled the doorway, his sharp eyes narrowing as they landed on me lying on Damon’s bed. He looked as shocked as I felt.

"Lisa?" His voice was hard, almost cold. "What are you doing here?"

I froze, my lips parting but no words came out. Kael stepped closer, his gaze darkening.

"Why are you on Damon’s bed? And why aren’t you at your post?"

I swallowed hard and quickly pushed myself up to sit. My body felt weak, but I forced a small, shaky smile. "I... I wasn’t feeling well. I had a fever earlier, so I rested here."

His eyes narrowed further, as though he didn’t buy it. "And since when do kitchen maids rest on Damon’s bed?"

I clenched my fingers in the sheets, panicking inside but trying not to show it. "I... I no longer work in the kitchen," I said quietly, keeping my eyes low. "Damon made me his personal maid. That’s why I’m here."

Kael gave a sharp scoff, almost a laugh but not kind. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Damon’s personal maid?" he repeated, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Interesting. Since when does Damon need a personal maid? Or should I say... since when does he need you?"

Heat rushed to my cheeks. His words cut.

I froze at his words, my chest tightening as though he’d just ripped away the little bit of confidence I had left. The way he said you felt like an insult, like I wasn’t worthy of anything beyond scrubbing dishes in the kitchen. My lips parted, but no words came out immediately.

"I’m telling the truth," I whispered. "He... he decided it himself. I didn’t ask for it."

Kael tilted his head, studying me like I was some puzzle he couldn’t solve. "And you expect me to believe that?"

I bit my lip hard, fighting the sting in my chest. "Believe what you want, Kael. I’m not lying."

For a moment, silence stretched between us. His eyes lingered on me, sharp and searching, as though he could see right through me, to the fear, the guilt, the secret I was desperately trying to bury.

Finally, he let out another scoff, shaking his head. "Unbelievable."