Chapter 2 - The Red Floor
The crimson stain spread across the hardwood floor like an oil slick, pooling near the scattered remnants of Eleanor’s antique porcelain. The realization hit Ethan with the force of a physical blow: Clara wasn’t just hurt from the impact; her body was turning inside out.
""Lily! The phone!"" Ethan screamed, his throat burning.
Lily scrambled across the slick floorboards, her fingers trembling so violently she dropped the cordless phone twice before managing to dial emergency dispatch. Across the table, Eleanor remained completely motionless, watching the frantic chaos with the detached curiosity of a scientist observing an experiment gone wrong.
""You're going to prison for this,"" Ethan snarled, his voice vibrating with venom as he pressed his jacket against Clara, desperate to stem the unseen bleed. ""I swear to God, if anything happens to my child or Clara, you will never see the light of day again.""
Eleanor slowly took a step forward, the heel of her designer shoe crunching softly against a shard of porcelain. ""You speak with the rashness of your father, Ethan. Always letting emotional attachments blind you to duty. You brought a parasite into our lineage, and you expected me to welcome the rot.""
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Clara groaned, her head rolling back against Ethan’s shoulder. Her eyes were fixed on Eleanor, wide with horror and a dawning, terrible revelation. ""It wasn't... an accident,"" Clara gasped, her teeth chattering uncontrollably. ""The clinic... the prenatal vitamins you sent...""
Eleanor didn't deny it. Instead, the faintest flicker of a smirk touched the corner of her thin lips, just as the distant, shrill howl of sirens tore through the quiet evening outside.
