Chapter 385 Give Birth to the Child

Chapter 385 Give Birth to the Child

Caspian said coldly, "I'm the child's father, so of course I have the right to keep him."

"And Coralie is the child's mother, so she also has the right to decide not to have this baby." Harriet smiled. "Coralie is still young with a long life ahead of her. How is she supposed to date and get married while dragging two kids around?"

Caspian's expression grew colder. "She wants to take my child and date and marry someone else?"

"What else?" Harriet found it amusing. "You think just because she's leaving you, she can't have her own new life? Of course she'll date and get married. She'll have children, but not with you—with another man."

Coralie wanted to speak, but Harriet stopped her with a look, and she forced herself to hold back.

She had never thought about dating or marrying anyone else. Her plan was simple: work hard and raise Qiana well.

After her experience with Caspian, she understood that love wasn't the only thing in life.

Having it was nice.

Not having it wouldn't affect her future.

Caspian's face darkened. "Giving Qiana to her is more than fair, but if she dares to be with another man while taking care of Qiana, I'll make sure she regrets it."

Harriet stood protectively in front of Coralie. "Caspian, no matter how powerful you are, you need to be reasonable. Coralie is single—of course she can date and marry someone else. You have no right to stop her, and you can't."

Caspian's eyes swept over Coralie with a warning look. "That depends on whether she has the guts."

With that, he turned and left.

Harriet almost rolled her eyes. She turned and pulled Coralie down to sit on the sofa. "Coralie, are you okay?"

Coralie shook her head gently. "I'm fine."

"Why didn't you tell Caspian?" Harriet asked. "Although this private hospital isn't under the Romanov Group, the owner behind it knows Caspian. He also knows about your relationship, so when he found out you were admitted for an abortion, he immediately had someone notify Caspian."

"So that's what happened." Coralie's lips twitched. "My fault for not checking things out beforehand."

"This isn't about checking things out." Harriet said seriously. "Caspian doesn't like being deceived. If you had actually gone through with the abortion today, he would've been even angrier. Coralie, I know you're determined to leave Caspian, but let's be fair—when it comes to the child, you should've discussed it with him."

"Harriet, before you came just now, we sort of discussed it. From what he said, he doesn't mind if I have the baby. To him, it's just a matter of spending some money."

Harriet frowned. "Caspian really said that?"

"Yes."

"Your body hasn't fully recovered yet. Having a baby now would really affect your health. I'll talk to Caspian and get him to change his mind."

"Harriet, I have a feeling that this time, even you won't be able to convince him."

"How will we know if we don't try?" Harriet said. "Don't worry, the Romanov family is reasonable. Even if Grandpa finds out, he'll definitely protect you first."

"Thank you, Harriet." Coralie said guiltily. "What happened today was my fault. I clearly promised you I'd discuss it with Caspian first, but I went back on my word."

"What's done is done. There's no point dwelling on it." Harriet said. "I just hope Caspian doesn't get stubborn and start going against you because of this."

Harriet took Coralie home first. After dinner, she went to the Romanov family villa.

"Harriet's back?" Mason greeted her cheerfully. "Why didn't you bring Della?"

"Della's at home painting. Grandpa, is Caspian here?"

"He's in the study, said he has a video conference." Mason complained. "I think he's acting weird today."

"Weird how?"

"Hard to say, but I watched him grow up. When something's off with him, I can tell right away." Mason said. "Did something happen?"

"It's a long story. Let me talk to Caspian first, then I'll fill you in."

"Alright, go find him."

"Okay."

Harriet knocked and entered Caspian's study. As Mason said, Caspian was indeed in a video conference.

He looked up and saw it was Harriet, gesturing for her to sit.

A few minutes later, Caspian ended the meeting and walked over to sit on the sofa. "Harriet, you came specially to see me about Coralie?"

"Yes." Harriet asked, "Caspian, what are you planning to do about this child?"

Caspian pulled out a cigarette and lit it, saying calmly, "Harriet, after coming back from the hospital, I calmed down and thought about what you said. You're right—I didn't use protection, which is why this child exists. I don't love Coralie, but I'd still make concessions for your sake and Grandpa's. That's why when you wanted to give Qiana to her, I agreed."

Harriet nodded. "With your abilities, you could've kept Qiana with the Romanov family, but you still gave her to Coralie. I know you made a concession."

"I did that not just for your sake and Grandpa's, but also for Qiana's." Caspian exhaled a smoke ring. "Qiana depends on Coralie, and I, as her father, can't be with her 24/7 like her mother can."

"For Qiana's sake, I made the concession."

"Now let's talk about the child in Coralie's belly. I was wrong for not using protection, but doesn't Coralie bear some responsibility for what happened today?"

"If she had come to me and explained things clearly, saying she didn't want the child, I would've been inclined to respect her wishes and arrange for the hospital to do the abortion."

Caspian exhaled another smoke ring, his expression growing colder. "But she didn't tell me. She went behind my back to have the procedure. If the surgery had been successful today, I wouldn't have even known I once had another child. To me, that's deception."

"In this world, very few people dare to deceive me, because deceiving me doesn't end well. Of course I'm going to make her pay for her actions."

Harriet explained, "Caspian, I'm sure Coralie was just worried that if she told you, you two wouldn't reach an agreement, so she decided to handle it privately. Don't be angry with her."

"Harriet, she's an adult. When you make a mistake, you have to face the consequences." Caspian smiled coldly. "For your sake, I'll give her one chance and agree to let her terminate the pregnancy."

Harriet felt vaguely uneasy. "But?"

"Harriet, you're smart. You know there's a 'but.'" Caspian smiled. "But Qiana must be returned to me."

Harriet frowned. "How could Coralie possibly agree to give Qiana back?"

"I said she made a mistake, so she has to pay the price." Caspian's slender fingers flicked the ash off his cigarette. "If she doesn't want to give Qiana back, that's fine. She has another option—have the baby in her belly and give it to me to raise."

Harriet was silent for a moment before speaking. "Caspian, you love Qiana and Della very much, so I can tell you like children."

"If you like children, you can date, get married, and have children with a woman you love. That's the right way to do it."

"You can't dislike Coralie on one hand while demanding she have a child for you on the other. That's completely unfair to her."

"Childbirth carries huge risks for women. She's already been through it once, and now you want her to go through it again. I don't think that's reasonable."

"If you think it's unreasonable, then go convince her to give Qiana back to me." Caspian smiled faintly. "It's true that Qiana can't be without her, but children just need a little time—they'll adjust eventually."

"I'm sure Qiana wouldn't have a worse life with the Romanov family than with her."

"I've said what I needed to say. You can go tell her and ask her what she chooses."

When Harriet got home, Coralie was putting Qiana to bed.

Seeing Harriet come in, Coralie immediately handed Qiana to the nanny and followed Harriet out, asking anxiously, "Harriet, how did it go?"

Harriet shook her head and relayed Caspian's words to Coralie exactly as he'd said them.

After hearing everything, Coralie collapsed onto the sofa. "This is all my fault. I should've listened to you and been honest with him instead of secretly trying to get an abortion. Harriet, I regret it so much."

"What's done is done. Regretting it won't help." Harriet said honestly. "Coralie, from now on you need to think more carefully before making decisions, especially about big things like this."

Coralie covered her face with her hands, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Coralie, stop crying." Harriet sighed softly. "I can tell Caspian is very angry. He didn't even soften his attitude toward me, let alone toward you. So even if you go to him, it won't help."

"Harriet!" Coralie suddenly grabbed Harriet's hand and pleaded, "Please, I'm begging you to help me. Can you prepare some medicine for me to lose this baby?"

Harriet was shocked. "You want me to help you abort this child behind Caspian's back?"

"Yes, I really can't think of any other way!"

"No." Harriet refused firmly. "Coralie, I've always respected you. In this matter, I haven't taken sides—I've been analyzing things from an objective standpoint. Considering your health, I won't try to convince you to keep this baby, but I absolutely will not give you medicine to kill the child in your belly. No matter what, this is a human life. If you as the parents don't want him, I have no right to interfere or stop you, but I absolutely won't be the executioner who kills him. Don't forget, the child in your belly is related to me by blood. I'm his aunt. How could I possibly do such a thing?"

Coralie cried silently without speaking.

Harriet continued, "And Coralie, can you please not think about this so simplistically? Caspian is angry right now. If you dare to secretly abort the child again, I can tell you clearly that the worst outcome is that he'll forcibly take Qiana away, and you might never see Qiana again. Can you handle that situation?"

Coralie was completely stunned. "Harriet, really?"

"Caspian's meaning is very clear—you give birth to this child for him to raise. If you abort the child, Qiana goes to him. If you secretly abort the child, aren't you basically choosing the latter? With his domineering personality, of course he'll take Qiana away."

Coralie sobbed. "So I have no other choice but to have this baby and give it to him, right? But Harriet, you're a mother too. You should understand—after carrying this baby for ten months and giving birth, how could I possibly bear to give the child to him?"

"From what I can see, you really don't have more options." Harriet analyzed. "Right now you can only take this one step at a time. Of course, Caspian is angry now, but once he calms down and his anger subsides, there might be room for negotiation."

"So Coralie, listen to me—you absolutely cannot act impulsively. With your current situation, you have no way to fight against Caspian."

"Although Caspian treats me well, he has his own boundaries. If you continue to anger him, I'm worried I won't be able to protect your interests."

Coralie nodded through her tears. "Harriet, I understand. I'll listen to you. I absolutely won't act impulsively again."

Back in her room, Harriet video-called Tristan.

Seeing her worried expression, Tristan asked, "Honey, what's wrong? Your talk with Caspian didn't go well?"

Harriet nodded and told him everything.

After hearing it all, Tristan smiled. "Caspian's just being stubborn. Don't take his words to heart—he's not targeting you."

Harriet raised an eyebrow. "You men understand men best. Tell me, what's Caspian's mindset right now?"

Tristan took a sip of tea and smiled. "Like I said, he's being stubborn because he feels deceived."

"So once his anger subsides, will his attitude change?" Harriet asked urgently.

"I can't guarantee that." Tristan analyzed. "Caspian isn't someone who dislikes children. If I put myself in his shoes, I'd also choose to keep this child."

Harriet pursed her lips. "He wants this child—he makes it sound so easy, but the child's mother's physical condition doesn't allow it."

Tristan said, "Honey, if your body didn't allow it, of course I wouldn't let you have the baby, because I love you. In my heart, you're a thousand times, ten thousand times more important than any child."

"But Caspian's different with Coralie. He doesn't love Coralie, so naturally he won't consider her physical condition."

"In other words, after weighing the pros and cons, he'll still choose to have this child. Simply put, the root of the problem is that he has no feelings for Coralie."

Harriet nodded. "That's exactly where the problem lies."

Tristan asked, "Would Coralie really be in danger if she has this baby?"

Harriet shook her head gently. "With me and my godmother here, plus how advanced medical care is now, we won't let her be in life-threatening danger. It's just that her body hasn't fully recovered yet—it's not the optimal time for pregnancy."

Tristan nodded. "Since she won't be in mortal danger, Caspian is even less likely to compromise. I think this can only end with Coralie having the baby."

Harriet disagreed. "From a man's perspective, you can empathize with Caspian. But from a woman's perspective, I empathize more with Coralie."

"After carrying the baby for ten months and giving birth, how could she possibly bear to hand the child over to Caspian and accept being separated from her child?"

"So I really understand her. Her thinking is that if she can't give the child a complete family and a good environment to grow up in, she'd rather give up this child."

"And you all need to understand—having an abortion and losing this child, the person who suffers the most is still Coralie herself."