Chapter 97 We’ll Survive This
Will’s P.O.V.
For a moment, I can’t breathe.
Everything around me fades as my eyes lock on Iva. I’m seeing her after a week. I should feel relieved, but instead, a sharp pang hits my heart, because her condition is worse.
She looks so fragile. Blood runs down her arm. Her half-naked body trembles in fear, and tears flow down her cheeks nonstop.
I feel terrible because I couldn’t keep my professor safe. But this isn’t the right time to drown in guilt. I need to handle this.
The cops rush forward and grab that bloody bastard who destroyed our peaceful life. One of them twists his arms behind his back while another snatches the knife from his hand.
Metal handcuffs click around his wrists. But I hardly see any of it.
All I see is her.
I quickly pull off my jacket and walk straight to her. My hands are shaking as I wrap it around her shoulders, covering her body.
The moment the jacket touches her skin, she breaks. A loud sob escapes her as she throws herself into my arms.
Her fingers clutch my shirt desperately “Will…” she cries.
My arms immediately tighten around her. I pull her close, pressing her head against my chest.
“I’m here now.” I kiss the top of her head again and again. “You’re safe, Professor. I’ve got you.”
She keeps crying, her entire body shaking. Each sob feels like someone is stabbing my heart. It’s killing me.
Behind me, the man who is the reason for her pain starts laughing bitterly as the police drag him away. “You can’t keep her away from me, Will! I’ll return. I’ll come back and take her again.”
My head snaps toward him. Rage explodes inside me. I’m yet to find out all the information about him. But one thing I know, this man has a lot of power, and I’m going to crush it under my feet.
I glare at him being dragged away. For a second, I really want to rip him apart with my bare hands. But Iva’s trembling body in my arms pulls me back.
Control yourself, Will. Iva needs you now. Focus on her.
I tighten my grip around her and ignore him completely, although right now I want to burn this man alive. I want to hear the screams of his agony.
“Let’s go,” one of the officers says.
I nod once.
Still holding her, I guide her outside. She doesn’t stop crying. Not even for a second.
I help her sit in the back seat of my car, but the moment I move away, she clenches my shirt again like she’s afraid I’ll disappear.
So I sit beside her.
She immediately buries her face into my chest, crying harder. Each broken sob feels like it’s tearing me apart from inside.
My mind keeps racing with horrible thoughts. What did he do to her? My hands start shaking as I hold her closer.
“Iva…” My voice comes out rough. “Did he… did he do something to you?”
I dread the answer.
She slowly lifts her head. Her eyes meet mine. They’re red, swollen, filled with a pain I’ve never seen before.
God! I’m trembling with fear now. I don’t want to even think about what he can do to her. Did he…
The thought of him touching her makes my stomach twist with rage.
No. No. It shouldn’t be that.
I’m such an idiot to leave her alone. My fingers tighten around her arms as I wait for her answer, my heart pounding so hard it feels like it might explode.
“Will…” Her lips shake.
I gently brush her hair away from her face. “Whatever it is. I’m with you. Just tell me.”
My chest is tight with fear. Because whatever she’s about to tell me… I know it’s going to destroy me.
Her fingers tighten around my shirt. Then her body suddenly breaks again. “Will… he killed our baby!” Her scream echoes inside the car as she buries her face in my chest again, crying hysterically.
For a second, I don’t understand what she means. My mind goes blank.
Baby?
The word echoes inside my head.
Slowly… painfully… the meaning begins to sink in.
Pregnant.
Iva was pregnant.
Our baby. The child we had dreamed about for so long. And before that dream could even take its first breath… That monster destroyed it.
I was ready to hear the worst. But this… This is beyond anything I imagined. My chest feels like it’s collapsing. My entire body goes still. I feel like the ground has disappeared beneath my feet.
But the sound of Iva’s crying pulls me back.
She’s shaking violently in my arms, completely shattered. And suddenly my own pain doesn’t matter. Only hers does.
I hold her trembling body firmly, forcing myself to stay strong. Because right now, she needs me. And I can’t fall apart when she’s already broken.
I take a deep breath and kiss her head. “It’s okay, love. I’ve got you. I’m here.”
She sobs loudly. Every sound she makes feels like another wound opening inside my chest. I keep kissing her hair, reminding myself again and again—
She’s alive. She’s here with me. And that’s the only thing that matters now.
The pain of losing the baby feels unbearable… but losing her forever would have destroyed me completely. I would have died if I had lost her.
“Will… I can’t take it, it hurts so much. I don’t know how I will—”
“Shhh, baby.” I pull away from her and gently hold her face, making her look at me.
Her eyes meet mine. Red. Swollen. Completely shattered. And something inside me breaks all over again.
But I still force myself to stay strong for her.
“We’ll survive this,” I tell her in a firm tone. “I swear to you… We will.” I press a soft kiss on her forehead.
A tear slips down my cheek before I pull her back into my arms again. She cries until her body finally becomes exhausted.
Then she slowly falls asleep in my arms like a child, her fingers still gripping my shirt.
But I don’t sleep. I just hold her closer. And silently make a promise to myself.
No matter how long it takes… No matter what it costs… The man who destroyed us will pay for every single tear she shed.
But before anything else,
I will save the woman I love.