Sterile.
Impotent.
A legacy destroyed in one cruel twist of fate.
Rafael clenched his jaw until it ached. He had walked into that hospital as a man, and walked out with a silent curse written into his DNA.
He turned away from the window and reached for the glass of whiskey on his desk, but paused.
It wasn't the accident that haunted him most-it was her.
Elira.
His wife. No-his ex-wife.
He had thrown her out of his life three months ago, fueled by rage and humiliation. Rumors of infidelity had spread like wildfire. Photos. Messages. All perfectly timed. And Rafael, already vulnerable from the aftermath of the crash, had believed every lie.
He had screamed at her. Accused her of sleeping with one of his rivals. Called her a whore. And when she stood there, eyes filled with disbelief and tears, begging him to listen, he did the one thing she never expected-he filed for divorce.
He didn't even let her speak.
And now... she was gone. No trace. Her number disconnected. No social media. Her apartment in Bandung-empty.
She had vanished like smoke.
"Sir?"
His assistant, Reina, peeked into the office.
"What," Rafael snapped.
"There's a package. No sender. It was marked personal."
Rafael frowned but nodded.
Reina placed the brown envelope on his desk and quickly retreated. He stared at it, unease prickling beneath his skin. He ripped it open and found a folded ultrasound photo inside.
And a note.
> You said I betrayed you. That I was nothing but a liar. But this is the only truth I ever carried.
This is your child. Conceived before the accident. Before the lies.
You were too proud to listen, so I stopped trying.
I'm not asking for anything. I just wanted you to know-you didn't lose everything.
-E.
Rafael's heart stopped.
His hands shook as he stared at the blurry image of the small fetus inside the womb. A due date was scrawled faintly on the bottom.
Seven months from now.
His knees buckled, and he sank into the leather chair behind his desk, the ultrasound photo slipping from his fingers onto the polished floor.
For a long time, he sat in silence.
His thoughts raced.
Could it be true?
Could Elira be carrying his child?
The only possible heir to everything he was-and everything he could never be again?
He thought back to the last night they were together. It was storming then, too. She had climbed into bed beside him, wrapped her arms around him like she always did. He remembered the warmth of her skin, the softness of her breath against his neck. That night, she had whispered something into his ear.
> "I want to start a family, Raf."
And he had smiled, kissed her forehead, and made love to her like she was his entire world.
That was the last time.
That was the night she conceived.
He had destroyed her after that.
The whiskey glass flew across the room, shattering against the wall. Rafael gripped his hair, breathing hard.
He had a child.
A child.
And he had almost never known.
The intercom buzzed. Reina's voice came through again.
"Sir, the chairman of Komura Group is here-"
"Cancel. Everything," Rafael said, his voice raw.
"But-"
"I said everything!"
He stood, grabbed his coat, and stormed out.
---
Two weeks later – Bali
The sun burned across the ocean as Elira walked barefoot along the secluded shoreline, her hand resting protectively over her small but growing belly. She was staying in a borrowed villa, far from the city, far from the pain.
Far from Rafael.
Every part of her ached. Not just from pregnancy, but from betrayal. The man she had loved with every piece of her soul had broken her so completely, she doubted she'd ever trust again.
But this baby-his baby-was a gift. A miracle she would protect with her life.
Elira sat on the warm sand, closing her eyes.
She hadn't planned to send the ultrasound. But something inside her still needed him to know. That before the ruin, there had been love. That before the betrayal, there had been something real.
Even if Rafael never believed it.
Even if he never came looking.
She looked down at her stomach, tears slipping down her cheeks.
"You don't need him," she whispered. "You have me."
She didn't know that Rafael was already boarding a private jet.
And he had only one destination in mind.
Back in Jakarta, Rafael sat in his jet, the ultrasound photo tucked into his inner jacket pocket like a lifeline.
"Elira," he muttered. "I will find you."
His voice was low and dangerous.
"Even if you hate me-I will find you. And I will not lose my child too."
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