Dark Revenge Of An Unwanted Wife: The Twins Are Not Yours!

Chapter 388: Fear? II

The first knock came like a ripple against the fragile cocoon of Athena’s sleep. She stirred but did not wake fully, her body sinking deeper into the silken embrace of the sheets.

Morning light crept in thin slats through the half-drawn curtains, pale and hesitant, as though the sun itself feared disturbing her. It painted her pillow in faint gold, touched the loose strands of her hair with fire, and pressed a promise of peace she wasn’t sure she trusted.

A second knock followed, firmer this time, more insistent.

Athena groaned softly, pulling the sheet over her head for a heartbeat, tempted to surrender back into the darkness. The room was cool, filled with the hushed quiet that followed long nights of worry, and her body longed for one more stolen hour of rest.

But the knock returned, polite yet unyielding, the rhythm of small hands against heavy wood.

With a quiet sigh, she forced herself upright. Her hair tumbled loose around her face, catching the beams of sunlight like strands of bronze. She pushed them back, eyes half-lidded, and let her feet slide from the bed onto the polished floor.

The boards were cold beneath her skin, grounding her. Every step she took across the room carried the reluctant heaviness of someone caught between the safety of dreams and the demands of reality.

When she pulled open the door, two small figures stood waiting, bright as sparks against the solemn morning.

"Mommy!"

The voices chimed together, high and unrestrained. Before she could kneel, Kate and Nate threw themselves forward, tumbling into her arms with the unstoppable force of their affection.

Their warmth pressed against her,comforting her. Athena folded around them instinctively, pressing her cheek against the crown of Kate’s head, breathing in the faint, clean scent of soap.

"You’re up early," She murmured, her voice softened by the weight of love and fatigue. She pulled back just enough to look at them, her hands framing their small faces. "Did you sleep well?"

Both nodded eagerly, faces lit with that uncomplicated brightness only children carried.

"Yes!" Kate replied, her hair bouncing as she moved. "Susan said she’ll take us to school today."

"We just wanted to say goodbye before we leave," Nate added proudly, tugging at her sleeve as though afraid she might miss the point.

Athena’s gaze lingered on their uniforms. They looked too ready, too grown for her liking, the years slipping away faster than she could hold. A pang tightened in her chest as she smoothed Kate’s collar.

"And your aunties? Gianna? Chelsea?" she asked gently, though she already suspected the answer.

"They already went to work," Kate said, her tone casual, her little shoulders lifting in a matter-of-fact shrug.

their hands in both of hers. "Then come," she said warmly, though the firmness in her tone revealed the habit of command she could

music into the corridor as she led them down. For a fleeting moment, Athena let herself drown in the rhythm of their voices, the way Kate and Nate’s laughter softened the edges of her own thoughts. In their presence, the heaviness that haunted her mornings loosened, if

as they entered the

her frame still regal despite the years. She cradled a porcelain cup with both hands, steam curling faintly upward, carrying the sharp fragrance of dark

changes in her family, caught the way Florence’s fingers tightened

drawn closed. From beyond them came low voices, muffled and heavy, the cadence of strategy and foreboding. The weight of it

hesitated. The children didn’t

braid back from Kate’s face. "Go on," she whispered, her voice tender yet edged with urgency. "Say goodbye properly, then wait outside for

they sensed their mother’s seriousness. They darted

steps, Susan waited by the car. Her posture was steady. Athena bent low, planting

teachers," she reminded them, her voice caught between maternal affection and

Nate promised, puffing out his chest like

ache. She straightened,

firmly. "Always," she replied

engines rumbled to life. The vehicle

turn away until the last red flicker of taillights vanished down the

waiting. She set a fresh cup of coffee

"Good morning, grandma..."

love..." she said softly. Her voice carried the weight of experience, and her lined face betrayed both

palms. She took a sip, the bitterness grounding her senses, then rose. She pushed the door of

inside was

wrong in

folded across his chest, eyes dark as storm clouds. Old Mr. Thorne sat stiff in his chair, his cane resting nearby, every line of his face carved deeper by age and strain. Others lingered in the

cheerful on that

let her eyes travel over them before fixing on Ewan. "What

flinch. "Kael

in her chest. Her breath stalled. "Knows... of our

"He sent a message last night. How he learned, we don’t know. Perhaps the mission wasn’t a victory

a chair, knuckles whitening. "Then what do we

heavy with age but unbent, "we do what we have always done—remain alert.

Athena. "And the lab.

ran through the possibilities like pieces on a chessboard. If Kael knew of their involvement, then his sponsor surely did as well. Any