Morning seeped through the heavy curtains, casting golden rays across the cramped bedroom. Emily awoke, her body still aching from the previous day's ordeals. Every muscle protested as she sat up, but she ignored the pain, letting her thoughts center on what now mattered most to her: the child she carried, the life she was determined to protect.

Alexander lay asleep beside her, his steady breathing betraying deep rest. Emily watched him, his relaxed face a stark contrast to the usual intensity in his eyes. The soft morning light traced his features, revealing a vulnerability she had never seen in him before. This man, who had once controlled every aspect of her existence, had become her protector—but he also embodied everything she had tried to escape: power, violence, control.