CHAPTER 138: MISCARRIAGE

He laid Ruby gently across the back seat of his car, brushing her hair away from her face, his chest tight with panic.

Rayna jumped into the driver seat of hers just as Stefan slid behind the wheel of his.

The engine roared to life as he sped off, his grip tight on the wheel, with Rayna driving just as fast behind him.

"She’s going to be okay," he whispered. "She has to be." He kept telling himself as he kept driving while glancing at Ruby through the rearview mirror.

And in the backseat, Ruby lay motionless, pale, and silent—as Stefan drove faster than he ever had in his life, praying to a God he wasn’t even sure he believed in that he wasn’t already too late by the time he’d arrive at the hospital.

The white walls of the hospital waiting room felt colder than usual.

Stefan sat stiffly on the plastic chair, his elbows on his knees and his fingers tightly laced together. His heart was pounding—loud, heavy, and uneven. His clothes were stained with dust from the fall, and his palm still burned faintly from when he’d hit the ground shielding Ruby.

But that pain was nothing compared to what was twisting inside of him.

He hadn’t said a word since the nurses rushed Ruby through those double doors. Only the quiet hum of machines, the soft shuffle of feet, and Rayna’s occasional shifting in the chair beside him kept the silence from swallowing him whole.

His eyes were fixed on the wall ahead, but his mind was anywhere but there.

He had been just in time.

One second later, and Ruby would have been—

He couldn’t even finish the thought. What would’ve happened had he not decided to follow them from afar? Though Rayna had said he shouldn’t come, he’d felt too anxious, not wanting to just sit around and do nothing; hence, he’d thought to follow them from the distance, all so he could get a glimpse of Ruby and now this.

That image—her eyes wide, frozen in shock, standing by the side of the road as that car came speeding toward her—would never leave him. His body had moved before his brain had even processed it, pushing her out of the way with every ounce of strength he had.

But it hadn’t been enough. Because now she was inside that room, bleeding, unconscious, and carrying a child he hadn’t even gotten the chance to meet.

His child.

His and Ruby’s.

The thought made something tight squeeze inside his chest. He hadn’t even held her hand since the truth came out. He hadn’t had a single real moment with her where they were free from secrets or fear.

And now, that moment might never come.

"Please be okay," he whispered under his breath, not even realizing he’d said it aloud.

Rayna looked over at him but didn’t say anything.

Stefan’s jaw clenched. He shut his eyes tightly for a second, trying to calm his racing mind.

He wasn’t just scared—he was angry too.

Angry at how fast everything had turned upside down.

Angry at whoever was behind that wheel.

That car hadn’t even tried to slow down. No brakes screeched. No horn blared in warning. Just a loud rev, a wild swerve, and then it was gone.

No apology. No stopping. No checking if anyone had been hurt.

It wasn’t right. It didn’t feel like a mistake. It felt targeted.

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Like someone had meant to hit Ruby. But who could it be? It wasn’t like she had any enemy there in Florittle so what had that been about?

Stefan had memorized the license plate the moment the car sped off—burned it into his brain like it was the only thing keeping him sane.

"Rayna," he said suddenly, turning to her, voice low but firm.

She looked up, her brows raised. "Yeah?"

"I’m calling the police," he said, pulling his phone from his pocket. "I got the plate number. I want it reported."

Rayna blinked. "Wait—are you sure that’s necessary? I mean, it could’ve just been some reckless driver or someone who lost control."

Stefan shook his head. "No. No, Rayna, it didn’t feel like that. That car... it came out of nowhere and aimed straight for her. If I wasn’t there..." His voice cracked, just a little. He looked down, his fists clenched. "If I wasn’t there, she’d be—" He stopped himself again.

Rayna let out a sigh, clearly trying to stay calm. "I know. I get it. I’m not saying we shouldn’t take it seriously. I’m just saying maybe we should wait until we know Ruby and the baby are okay first."

But Stefan was already dialing.

"She could’ve died, Rayna," he said softly, his eyes still fixed on the phone screen. "And that child... that child is mine. I’m not going to just sit here and hope it was nothing. I need to do something. I have to. Besides, who knows if it’s a drunk driver? They need to stop him before he killed someone."

He waited for a second and then canceled the call when it didn’t go through.

Rayna watched quietly as he redialed Ethan’s line and pressed the phone to his ear.

"Come on, Ethan," he muttered.

After two rings, Ethan picked up.

"Stefan?" his voice came through, surprised.

"Yeah," Stefan said, getting straight to the point. "I need your help. Something happened."

"What? Are you okay?"

"No," Stefan said. "It’s Ruby. She was nearly hit by a car this morning. I saved her, but she fainted... she’s bleeding."

"God..." Ethan breathed. "Where are you now?"

"At the hospital. Florittle General. They took her in twenty minutes ago. Rayna’s with me."

"Is the baby okay?"

"We don’t know yet I’m just hoping it’s not a miscarriage."

Ethan didn’t respond right away. Stefan could hear his breathing—uneven, worried.

"But that’s not all," Stefan continued. "I think it wasn’t an accident. The driver didn’t stop, didn’t even try to avoid her. Just drove straight at her and sped off. I got the plate number though. I want to file a report."

"You think someone’s targeting her?" Ethan asked.

"I don’t know," Stefan admitted. "But it didn’t feel right. And I can’t take chances with Ruby or the baby. I won’t."

"I’ll handle it," Ethan said quickly. "Text me the plate number. I’ll head straight to the station and file it myself."

"Thanks, man."

"No need to thank me. Just... keep me updated, alright? I’ll call once I’m done."

"Alright." Stefan ended the call, then quickly typed the plate number and sent it to Ethan.

Rayna sat beside him, silent, her fingers playing nervously with the hem of her shirt.

"You really think someone wanted to hurt her?" she asked, more softly now.

"I don’t know what to think anymore," Stefan answered honestly. "But if someone’s after her, or our child... then I can’t risk staying quiet. If it turns out to be nothing, that it was just a drunk driver, then fine. But if it’s something—if someone is out there trying to hurt her—I need to know. And I need to stop it."

Rayna nodded slowly, her face pale.

She looked at Stefan differently now—not just as a man who had once hurt her best friend, but as someone who was terrified of losing everything he had just started to hope for again.

His hands trembled slightly as he rubbed them together.

He couldn’t lose Ruby. Not now. Not when he had just found her. Not when he was finally ready to be everything she needed. And he couldn’t lose the baby—the tiny piece of them both growing quietly inside her.

A nurse walked by, and Stefan stood up so fast the chair nearly fell behind him.

"Is she okay? What about the baby?" he asked, his voice nearly cracking.

The nurse paused, looked at the chart in her hand, and gave him a small, apologetic smile. "She’s still being examined. The doctors are doing their best. We’ll let you know once we have anything."

He sat down again, feeling helpless all over again.

Rayna placed her hand on his arm gently. "She’s strong. You both are. She’ll be okay."

Stefan nodded once, but inside, he was pleading—pleading with every power in the universe that Ruby would come out of this unharmed.

That the baby would still be safe. He knew Ruby wouldn’t be happy if anything happened to the baby.

That this wasn’t the end, but just a very, very scary beginning.

Because he wasn’t ready to say goodbye—not when he had only just begun to hope for a future with her.

And as the hospital lights buzzed above and the clock ticked endlessly, Stefan Winters closed his eyes and made a silent promise.

He would protect her—with everything he had.

No matter what. All he just prayed for was her safety and that of their child and that this wasn’t a miscarriage or something that’d throw Ruby off and make her sad again.