Reborn to Protect My Twins

The first cries of my son, then my daughter, filled the delivery room.

Twins. Mark would have been so proud.

A nurse laid them on my chest, tiny and perfect.

Then the world tilted.

A memory, sharp and brutal, slammed into me.

Another life. This exact moment. Giving birth.

Aethel Corp. The Thorne family. Damian Thorne. His cold eyes. Cassandra Vance, his mistress, her fake tears.

My baby chosen. Then fire, screaming. My child, gone. And Damian' s hands on me, ending it all.

"No," I whispered, clutching my newborns.

It wasn't a dream. It was real. It happened.

And it was happening again.

My heart hammered as Damian Thorne walked in, Cassandra Vance on his arm.

They were here. Just like before.

I fell to my knees, renouncing any claim, begging him to let us leave, to sever all ties to the Thorne family.

He forced me to the Serenity Pines retreat, a gilded cage.

Cassandra' s 'therapy dog' lunged straight for my twins, its teeth snapping, and Damian blamed me.

Later, Cassandra framed me, claiming I cursed her child, convincing Damian I was a source of dark energy.

"Take her children!" he ordered, intent on a "cleansing ritual" for my newborns.

I fought and clawed, begging him to take me instead, to leave my babies alone.

He wouldn't listen.

They dragged me out, tying me to a lone tree in a brewing storm.

He left me exposed, alone, to die, just like before.

I stared at the hidden burner phone, a fragile lifeline.

Genevieve Thorne. The Empress Dowager. My only hope.

Could she act fast enough?

The first cry of my son, then my daughter, filled the delivery room.

Twins.

Mark would have been so proud.

A nurse laid them on my chest, tiny and perfect.

Then the world tilted.

Not from blood loss, not from exhaustion.

A memory, sharp and brutal, slammed into me.

Another life. This exact moment.

Giving birth.

Aethel Corp. The Thorne family.

Damian Thorne.

His cold eyes.

Cassandra Vance, his mistress, her fake tears.

The "Thorne Legacy" scholarship.

My baby chosen.

Then fire, screaming. My child, gone.

And Damian' s hands on me, ending it all.

"No," I whispered, clutching my newborns.

It wasn't a dream. It was real. It happened.

And it was happening again.

A nurse smiled. "Mrs. Hayes, you did wonderfully."

I barely heard her.

My gaze shot to the door as it opened.

Damian Thorne walked in, his expensive suit immaculate, his face a mask of polite concern.

Behind him, Cassandra Vance, pale and leaning on his arm, a picture of fragile beauty.

They were here. Just like before.

My heart hammered. My babies. I had to save my babies.

Bianca, my friend, my rock through all this, was by my side.

"Ellie, are you okay? You're white as a sheet."

I couldn't answer her.

My eyes locked with Damian's.

He nodded, a slight, almost imperceptible acknowledgment. Did he remember too?

It didn't matter. I had to act.

Ignoring the pain, the dizziness, I slid off the bed.

My legs buckled. Bianca caught me.

"Ellie, what are you doing?"

I pushed her away gently.

I stumbled towards Damian Thorne, the acting CEO of Aethel Corp, my late husband Mark's distant cousin, the man Mark had trusted to be a guardian if anything happened.

The man who had murdered me and my child in another life.

I fell to my knees before him, right there in the pristine hospital corridor.

Gasps echoed around us. Nurses, other Aethel Corp families.

"Mr. Thorne," I said, my voice hoarse, desperate.

"Eleanor," he replied, his tone smooth, unreadable. "You should be resting."

Cassandra watched, a flicker of something unreadable in her eyes.

"I renounce any claim," I blurted out, the words tumbling. "Any claim for my children to the Thorne Legacy scholarship. Any Aethel Corp benefits."

Damian raised an eyebrow. "What is this, Eleanor?"

"We want nothing," I insisted, my voice cracking. "Please. I just want to take my children and leave. Sever all ties. We don't want to be a burden. We don't want anything from the Thorne family or Aethel Corp."

I bowed my head, my forehead almost touching the polished floor.

"Please, I beg you."

Let us go. Let us live.

This was my only chance. Appease him. Show him we were no threat.

My twins. I had to protect them.

Mark' s children.

The memory of his Medal of Honor, the respect people had for him, it meant nothing to Damian in that other life.

It would mean nothing now.

Only my complete submission might save us.

Damian Thorne stared down at me, his expression unchanging.

"Get up, Eleanor," he said, his voice quiet but firm. "You're making a scene."

Cassandra simpered beside him. "Oh, Damian, she must be delirious from the birth."

Delirious? No. I was terrifyingly sane.

He didn't offer a hand. Bianca helped me to my feet, her face etched with worry.

"All new Aethel Corp mothers and their infants will be moved to our Serenity Pines wellness retreat for post-natal care," Damian announced, his voice carrying easily. "Standard procedure. For your comfort and recovery."

My blood ran cold. Serenity Pines.

That' s where it all went wrong last time.

"No," I whispered. "Please, Mr. Thorne. I can go home. Bianca can help me."

Damian' s eyes, cold and assessing, met mine. "It's not a request, Eleanor. It's for the well-being of all Aethel Corp families."

He believes I'm being manipulative, I realized with a jolt.

He remembers too.

But he sees my desperation as a trick, a ploy. Just like before.

The transfer to Serenity Pines was swift and impersonal.

The retreat was beautiful, nestled in lush hills, but to me, it was a gilded cage.

My assigned suite was small, basic. My twins' bassinets were plain.

Later, I saw Cassandra. She'd also "given birth," though I hadn't seen her in the maternity wing before Damian' s arrival.

Her suite was a luxurious spread, overflowing with flowers and expensive baby gear.

Damian was doting on her, fetching her water, adjusting her pillows.

He' d stripped me of any comfort, any privilege.

The nurses were polite but distant. My requests for extra blankets for the twins were met with slow compliance.

Bianca tried to run interference, but Aethel Corp staff controlled everything.

"He's doing it again, B," I whispered to her that night, the twins finally asleep between us in my narrow bed.

"Doing what, Ellie? He's an ass, sure, but..."

"He's isolating me. Punishing me. He thinks I'm trying to trick him by renouncing the Legacy."

Bianca frowned. "Why would he think that?"

"Because he remembers the last time. And he thinks I' m playing the same game."

The next morning, Damian made an announcement in the communal lounge.

"To celebrate the new arrivals, the Thorne Legacy scholarship selection will proceed as planned in three days," he said, his gaze sweeping over the assembled mothers.

His eyes lingered on me for a moment, a glint of something I couldn't decipher.

Then he smiled at Cassandra. "Aethel Corp is proud to support its families."

My stomach twisted.

The selection. The catalyst for disaster.

He was pushing forward, daring me.

He was convinced I wanted that scholarship, that my pleas were a lie.

His blindness, his obsession with Cassandra, it was all repeating.

I was trapped. Again.