Amelia had made it her mission, ever since stepping foot in Blackwood Mansion, to come between Genesis and Kieran in everything they did. And she wasn't going to stop now.
She took a deep breath, pushed open the pool doors, and stepped outside.
Genesis and Daisy were in the pool, splashing each other, laughing freely. They looked like they were having the time of their lives. Of course, Amelia hated that. Every bit of it.
Then her eyes drifted to Kieran.
He was lounging in one of the pool chairs, shirtless, his skin kissed by sunlight. His lips wore a faint, amused grin as he watched the two women in the water, and his eyes, those intense, ice-blue eyes shimmered with something she had never seen in him before.
And just seeing him brought it all back.
Amelia shivered, the memory from last night crashing over her like cold water. The press of a gun barrel against her head. Kieran's face, so close, so calm, looking at her like she was nothing. His blue eyes hadn't blinked. They hadn't flinched. He looked like a man who could pull the trigger and sleep just fine afterward.
She had never seen that side of him when they were together.
Last night… it was like she had been speaking to a different person entirely.
But no, it was him.
And that scared her.
The Kieran she once knew would never have done that. He would never have spoken a harsh word to a woman, let alone threaten one.
Tears prickled at the corners of her eyes. She bit her lip, trying to hold them back, but it was no use. The cruel words he'd flung at her echoed again in her mind.
"A breeding cow."
Her throat clenched.
Before she knew it, hot tears streamed down her cheeks. She wiped at them roughly.
"Stupid pregnancy hormones," she muttered.
She looked up and nearly screamed.
Genesis was suddenly standing right in front of her, silent and still, a small frown on her face.
Before Amelia could react, Genesis lifted her hand.
Amelia flinched, expecting a slap.
But instead… her hand gently brushed Amelia's tears away.
Amelia froze, eyes wide.
Genesis's fingers were small but calloused, rough with work, with life. The texture surprised her. It made her shiver.
And then the hand was gone.
Genesis began moving her hands.
They moved quickly, graceful, practiced motions Amelia couldn't quite follow. One hand tapped her own chest. Then she pointed at Amelia. Then both hands swept through the air like she was wiping something invisible. Her brows lifted slightly, her eyes filled with soft concern.
Amelia blinked.
"What the hell is she doing?" she muttered.
Before she could ask again, Daisy appeared beside Genesis, water dripping off her as she crossed her arms with a huff.
"She's asking why you're crying," Daisy said flatly.
Amelia's mouth opened, but nothing came out.
Why… would she care?
Genesis. The woman whose life Amelia was trying to ruin.
The woman she hated.
The woman whose husband she had tried to steal.
Her throat tightened.
She tried to scoff, to roll her eyes, to do something petty. But her body wouldn't cooperate. Her lips trembled. Her fingers clenched the robe around her tighter.
"You shouldn't ask," Amelia whispered, her voice thin and cracked. "I mean… what kind of person asks that? After everything I did?"
Genesis didn't respond. She just tilted her head, patient and calm.
Amelia laughed bitterly, wiping her nose with the back of her hand.
"I'm the woman pregnant with your husband's child. I tried to seduce him. Last night, I tried to take him away from you."
Her voice wavered.
"And here you are… being kind to me?"
Her voice cracked, barely more than a whisper now, full of something far more painful than hatred.
Genesis stepped closer, her wet hair clinging to her cheeks and trailing down her waist. Her lips remained sealed, still silent but her fingers began to speak again. Slower this time. Clearer.
Amelia followed the movements.
Point. Tap. Cross. Open hands, like pages turning.
Then Daisy translated:
"She said… 'Pain makes people do ugly things.'"
Genesis signed again, her expression calm but steady.
Daisy's voice softened:
"'But it doesn't mean they are ugly people.'"
Amelia stared, stunned.
"Why?" she asked, her voice cracking. "Why do you care?"
Genesis didn't answer right away. Instead, she touched her chest, right above her heart then pointed at Amelia's swollen belly. Her fingers moved again, and Daisy paused before speaking.
"She says… the baby didn't ask to be in the middle of this," Daisy said quietly. "And hurting you is… pointless."
That broke something in Amelia.
Her knees gave out, and she dropped to the ground, her robe slipping loose over her lap. Her belly rose and fell with shallow, uneven breaths.
Genesis crouched beside her not touching, just staying close. A quiet presence. A steady rhythm beside Amelia's tears.
And for the first time in months… maybe even years… Amelia didn't feel completely alone.
She felt seen.
She hated it.
But she needed it.
"…Why aren't you fighting me?" she whispered.
Genesis gave a small shrug. She raised one hand, formed a shape with her fingers, then pointed at her mouth.
"She said…" Daisy frowned, thinking. "She doesn't fight with words. She fights with peace."
And for some reason… that made Amelia cry harder.
She buried her face between her knees and sobbed. Loud, messy cries. Snot and tears running down her legs, dripping onto the floor. It was the kind of crying she hadn't let herself do in years.
Daisy raised a brow, clearly unimpressed. She glanced at Genesis, who only looked… sad.
Quietly, Genesis placed a hand on Amelia's shoulder.
Amelia flinched, then shrugged it off. She raised her head, her face blotchy and damp.
"It's just the pregnancy," she said quickly, voice thick. "It's making me… an emotional mess. It's not you. I don't like you."
She tried to snap the words out like they were sharp, but they came out soft. Unsure.
Genesis said nothing. She just crouched there, watching.
Kieran, from across the pool,
had turned to look. His grin was gone. His eyes narrowed. He didn't move. Didn't speak.
But he didn't like what he was seeing.
Something was off.