Caroline’s eyes were fixed on Claire’s stomach, her gaze so intense it felt as though it could pierce through her. She hated Claire so much in that moment—she wished her gaze could be a knife, stabbing directly into her abdomen, ending both her and the child at once. But as much as she wished for it, Caroline knew that if she were the one to do it, there’d be no satisfaction in that. What was really interesting was getting Frederick to take action. That was what would make it truly satisfying.
At that moment, the butler, Bailey, finished bandaging Caroline’s wound.
“Frederick, I don’t like the look of Claire’s face. You should really take her to the hospital for a check-up. From what the servants were saying, it’s a bit concerning. If it’s an ectopic pregnancy, it could be dangerous. It’s better to check early and avoid any risks.”
“Oh, and I’ll come with you. Since Claire and I are both women, it’ll be easier to take care of her if anything comes up,” Caroline added, her voice laced with concern.
“Okay.” Frederick didn’t even glance at Caroline, his mind preoccupied with the thought that Claire might be pregnant. He barely registered what she said and simply agreed.
Ten minutes later, the three of them—Caroline, Claire, and Frederick—were in the car, heading to the hospital. Frederick drove, Claire sat in the passenger seat, and Caroline was in the back.
As Caroline glanced at Claire, she spoke softly, “Claire, don’t worry. I’ll go in with you for the check-up.”
Caroline had no intention of offering real comfort. She was only interested in finding out how far along Claire was. Once she knew that, she could move forward with her plan. She needed to calculate the timing and get her hands on something that could prove Claire had slept with Antony. It was risky, but Caroline had already gone to extreme lengths—pushing Claire off a cliff was no small feat. If she could do that, forging a video was nothing.
True, Frederick wasn’t an easy man to deceive, but she would try anyway. If it all backfired, she’d simply shift the blame to someone else—perhaps the woman who had emailed from abroad. That woman had set her up when she had served Noah. Caroline had suffered because of her, so it was time for some payback.
“It’s fine, I’ll go in alone,” Claire said, sensing something was off. She knew Caroline was up to something, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. After all, Caroline was capable of anything—even pushing her off a cliff. What was she likely to do next? But Claire also knew one thing for sure: Frederick trusted Caroline completely. No matter how hard Claire tried, he would never believe that Caroline had been behind the attack on her. Claire could only trust that Frederick would eventually investigate. The fact that Caroline still lived in Halfmoon Manor meant that Frederick hadn’t looked into things as he should have. Claire had to be extra cautious, especially when it involved a child.
But she hesitated. She didn’t want to be with Frederick. She didn’t want to have his child.
Caroline saw that Claire refused and didn’t press the issue any further. After all, all she really wanted to know was how many days pregnant Claire was—nothing else mattered. Whether or not she went in with her wasn’t important. There was no need to keep insisting and make Claire suspicious.
For the rest of the ride, the three of them sat in silence. When they arrived at the hospital forty minutes later, Frederick led Claire directly to the gynecology department. The doctor asked a few questions before explaining that it was too early to confirm anything through an ultrasound, so they would first draw blood for testing. Claire nodded and went to have the blood drawn.
Afterward, when she returned, she stared at Frederick for a long time before speaking quietly. “Frederick, if I am pregnant, I want to terminate the pregnancy.”
Frederick froze in shock.
“What?” Caroline was the first to react, utterly stunned. She hadn’t expected Claire to want to abort the baby.