No Strings Attached

As the car sped towards Elle and Clara, Elle, without a second thought, lunged at Clara, pushing her out of harm's way.

With a sickening thud, Elle was sent flying several meters by the impact, crashing to the ground with a heavy fall.

Her first instinct was to protect her child. As she hit the pavement, she instinctively wrapped her arms around her belly. Her arm took the brunt of the blow. A searing pain shot through her, bone-deep.

It was then that Anders' frantic voice pierced the chaos, "Elle!" He dashed to Elle's side, about to lift her, when Elle, through gritted teeth and pain, gasped, "Orin's in that car. Save him first!"

Anders looked up just in time to see the vehicle speeding off towards the main gate. He leapt to his feet, charging towards the car in a desperate attempt to catch it.

Gripping the steering wheel, he engaged in a fierce struggle with the masked man at the wheel. To shake Anders off, the assailant swerved wildly, but Anders, regardless of the blows he took, clung to the wheel with an iron grip.

managed to bring the car to a halt. The assailant was subdued, and little

to soothe him, "Don't be afraid.

looked towards Elle. At that moment, his crying intensified. "Mama's bleeding so much, Daddy. Please go check on

his arms, quickly

Elle was on a stretcher. She was still protecting her belly. Her face creased with pain. She implored, "Doctor, save my baby first. I can handle my

worry. We'll do everything we

Anders gripped Elle's hand. His eyes welled up as he saw her sweating from the agony. "Elle, how

arm for me. No life-threatening danger. But the baby must be safe." Anders felt a lump in his

the result of two grueling rounds of IVF that Elle had endured. She had suffered so much, yet she had never uttered a word

of her children. Their communication was

the operating room. As they reached the door,