Chapter 352 A Kind Lie

• Casper Frost tightened his hold on Rhea Wood’s hand, like he couldn’t bear the grief in her eyes. Panic kicked in. He just wanted her to take the medicine, now. In their tussle, the bowl in Rhea’s hand shattered, and the tonic meant to protect the baby splashed all over the floor. Casper stepped on the brown broth. “Sweetheart, we can talk later. Take the medicine first.” He caught her wrist, pulled out abortion pills, and pushed them toward her lips. Rhea was never the type to submit. She kicked Casper’s leg, tore her wrist free from his grip, slipped out of his hold, and lifted a small pair of scissors at him. Her voice went cold. “Stay back. I’m not taking any abortion pills. I’ll say it again: I want this baby! You have no right to force me!” The scissors were tiny—Morgan’s craft scissors. Even if she stabbed him, they weren’t going to do real damage. But Casper’s face went so dark it looked ink-black. Sweetheart was willing to hurt him for this child. This filthy bloodline should never continue. It shouldn’t stain her. Casper’s phone kept ringing. It had already rung again and again while he stood hesitating at the school gate. He hadn’t answered. Now it wouldn’t stop. Neither of them cared who was calling. They only stared each other down. Lucas Fray was freaking out. When Casper left with the abortion pills, Lucas suddenly remembered that rainstorm that morning—Rhea’s pale face, her gagging and nausea. That reaction looked like pregnancy. His heart dropped. Then who were those pills for? Was Rhea pregnant? Why would Casper want to get rid of Rhea’s child? Lucas scared himself with that thought and kept calling Casper. No answer. He drove straight to Mirage. He didn’t find Casper there, but Dr. Hua confirmed Rhea was pregnant. Lucas went white as a sheet. He’d handed abortion pills to Casper without asking anything first. This was going to blow up. If Casper really made Rhea abort, the sky would fall. Hearing Rhea had gone back to school, Lucas didn’t dare waste a second and sped for Wingston University. Please be on time. Please, please. He still couldn’t get Casper on the phone. Once at Wingston University, he didn’t even park—just jumped out and sprinted in. He asked around and found Rhea’s dorm. He heard banging inside. His face drained. He pushed the door open. Rhea had scissors in her hand and had grazed Casper’s arm. Casper radiated fury like a beast. Lucas shouted, “Stop!” Casper’s cold, lethal gaze slid to Lucas, crazed and bloodthirsty. “You want to stop me too?” Lucas felt like a viper had locked onto his carotid. He swallowed hard. What now? What could he say? How did he explain? How did he get Casper to back off? A thought hit him, and he blurted, tense, “Casper, you can’t abort. Your wife’s body went through heavy chills before. An abortion would wreck her and could cause irreversible damage—maybe even massive bleeding. It could be life-threatening.” Lucas lied. He had no other way to stop this. The moment the words landed, Casper stiffened like he’d been shocked. He loosened his grip, and the white pills dropped, skittering across the floor. If it were only some harm he could mend later, he might still force himself through it. But irreversible damage, a risk to her life—no matter how much he hated the child’s existence, he wouldn’t move another inch. Casper’s brow locked tight. Panic bled through. “Then what do we do?” Rhea still held the scissors tight. Lucas had already lied, so he had to keep going. He gritted his teeth. “You have to let the baby be born.” Casper stared at Rhea’s belly like it was a bastard curse. Born? What happens to Rhea after that? Could he win against a child? He didn’t dare force an abortion now. Unease chewed him up. “Sweetheart…” Rhea cut him off. “Leave. I don’t want to see you right now.” Casper’s breath hitched. Lucas said, “Casper, go first. I’ll talk to her.” He kept signaling with his eyes. Seeing how tense Rhea was, Casper finally lowered his head, turned, and walked out. His look was the look of someone the world had just thrown away. After he left, both Rhea and Lucas let out a breath. Rhea nodded at Lucas, grateful. “Lucas, thank you.” She was brave most days, scared of nothing. But today, pregnant, she really might not have been able to fight Casper off if Lucas hadn’t come. “It’s okay. It’s okay now.” Rhea didn’t answer. Okay? It was only okay for the moment. With Casper that determined, he might try something worse. Lucas sighed. “You’re set on keeping the baby, right?” Rhea nodded. Lucas said, “My lie might fool him for a bit, but it won’t last. You should find time and talk to him.” “Talk about what? The second he learned there’s a baby, his first move was to get rid of it.” “Casper’s extreme, even reckless—but he’s not a real madman. Have you thought about why he’s acting like this?” “I don’t want to know why. I just want to protect my child.” “This child isn’t just yours. It’s Casper’s, too. Even if you carry to term, a child needs a father.” “My child can live without a father.” “We don’t get to decide that for the kid.” Rhea fell silent. She didn’t argue. Honestly, she wanted to know why. The reasons Casper gave weren’t reasons. She wanted the real one, the reason he didn’t want the baby. Lucas said, “Think it over. And your studies—college allows marriage and kids, sure, but it still affects school. Plan ahead.” “Yeah. I will.” “I’ll go. I’m guessing Casper’s still around, probably waiting at the gate. I need to talk to him.” “Thanks.” Lucas left. The dorm fell quiet. The spilled tonic on the floor told the whole story of what just happened. Rhea sat on the bed, exhausted. What now? Talk to Casper? Could you reason with a man that stubborn? Having a baby would hit her studies. Should she take a leave from school, find a hidden spot where no one could track her down, hide from Casper, give birth, then come back? If she really left, Casper might lose his mind.