* * *
“Ugh…”
The cave was dark and cold.
A chill like midwinter wind cut through Adam’s clothes.
He curled up, shivering violently.
His body, weakened by pregnancy, screamed in protest.
‘Cold. So cold…’
“Haa…”
He had run and run, fleeing the chaos, but he couldn’t keep going.
The life inside him made sure of that—any more running would push his body too far.
So Adam had chosen to hide here, in a cave he’d stumbled upon.
Sitting on the ground, he cradled his belly.
‘What should I do?’
Should he try going out again?
But what if he ran right into them?
The image of the men fighting the guards flashed in his mind.
Could he really escape such skilled fighters?
‘I’ll be caught for sure. Maybe I should wait here until morning… but it’s so cold…’
He didn’t know.
He didn’t know anything.
He lightly tapped his cheeks with his palms.
“Get a hold of yourself.”
Panicking here would do no good.
He needed to figure out the best way forward—but how?
His thoughts were a tangled mess.
As his gaze wandered, it fell on his belly.
The tension in his green eyes eased, replaced by a firm resolve.
“Yeah…” he murmured softly.
“I’ll protect you.”
For the dukes’ sake, if nothing else, he had to.
Faces of Isaac and Chester flickered in his mind, bringing with them a bittersweet ache.
“Haa…”
Adam pushed himself to his feet.
That’s when he heard it—a voice from outside the cave.
“You idiot!”
His body went rigid.
Someone was out there.
‘Who? One of ours?’
It was possible.
Maybe someone had come to find him after he’d broken away.
But if not…
‘What if it’s those masked men?’
Before he could decide, the voice came again.
“You fire a gun from there?! What if you hit the Omega, huh?!”
“S-sorry! He suddenly tried to run, I couldn’t help it…”
“‘Couldn’t help it’? So did you catch him?”
Adam’s heart plummeted.
It was them.
They had come here for him.
He backed deeper into the cave, moving as silently as possible.
‘Please, please…’
Just pass by.
Take another path.
His hands clenched into fists so tight that the veins bulged darkly across the backs of them.
“Gasp…”
Adam inhaled sharply.
Even in the darkness, he could see the cave ended abruptly.
His palm skimmed over the wall—stone upon stone.
‘Please… just go…’
His hand stopped.
Light was seeping through a gap between the rocks.
Faint, because it was evening, but still sunlight.
“Check inside here?”
“Of course.”
The echo of their voices nearly made Adam scream.
“He’s pregnant—he can’t have gone far. Or he’s hiding somewhere like this.”
The man’s guess was dead-on.
Adam was in the deepest part of the cave.
He didn’t hesitate—his eyes darted to the light streaming in.
If he could just move a few stones, he could get out.
“You’re right. We should search every inch.”
The voices of the men grew nearer.
Adam grabbed any stone he could find and hurled it.
One rolled away and clattered to the side.
“Wait. Didn’t you hear something just now?”
“…!”
Fear crawled up his spine.
He felt like rough hands would grab his shoulder at any moment.
Adam wanted to look back, but he didn’t.
Better to use that time to pull away one more stone.
‘Hurry, hurry, hurry!’
“What are you all doing? Go check it out!”
By some miracle, a large stone finally came loose.
Adam shoved himself through the gap.
Rocks scraped his face and tore his clothes, but he didn’t care.
“Haah!”
Fresh air wrapped around him.
Instinctively, Adam clutched his stomach.
He didn’t feel joy at escaping—he couldn’t, not with pursuers right on his heels.
He sprinted forward with all he had.
‘Ugh.’
His body felt heavy.
Only then did he notice his hands, clutching his stomach, were drenched in blood.
His knuckles and fingers were slick with it from ripping away the rocks, and one nail had been completely torn back.
Yet Adam felt no pain—only pressed his wounded hands harder against his abdomen.
‘If I keep going like this, they’ll catch me. I need to find somewhere else to hide. Somewhere…’
His thoughts froze.
His face turned pale, like the moon had drained it of all color.
‘No way.’
He stared ahead in disbelief.
‘A dead end?’
A cliff loomed before him.
Beyond its edge stretched a breathtaking view—the sun was half-hidden by the mountains, the crimson twilight bleeding into the blue sky.
Adam’s gaze darted around for options, droplets of blood falling with every turn.
“Well, well. All that effort for nothing, eh?”
The mocking tone pricked at him.
Adam turned toward the voice, his face drained of color.
A group of masked men stood together.
“You still made it pretty far, though. Look over there.”
One man pointed with the tip of his blade.
“You can see your house from here. A little further down and you’d have made it—if you hadn’t hidden like a rat in that cave.”
Adam caught his breath, then spoke slowly.
“Who are you?”
“You think we’d tell you if you asked?”
“…”
“Come on, be smart and get over here.”
Adam’s eyes sharpened.
The men chuckled at his wary expression, finding it amusing—until their smiles abruptly vanished.
“Wh-what are you doing?” one stammered.
Adam had taken several steps back—toward the cliff’s edge.
The men moved to rush him.
“Don’t come any closer. One step and I jump.”
“You crazy bastard! You wanna die?!”
“How touching, you care so much. Why? Afraid you can’t afford to lose me?”
Adam forced a smirk on his bloodied face. His body trembled with tension, but he pretended otherwise.
“Hah.”
The man who seemed to be their leader gave a short, incredulous laugh, quickly regaining his composure.
“Trying to bluff? Look at your situation.”
“I am.”
Adam took another step back.
“I know exactly how important I am.”
“Lunatic. What, you’re really gonna jump?”
“Why not?”
“Because of what’s in your belly—”
“Because I’m pregnant? And the baby’s Carlisle?”
Adam stepped back again.
A loose stone rolled beneath his foot, tumbling down with a soft clink.
He drew in a long breath.
“That only matters to you.”
With a few more steady breaths, his mind cleared just enough.
“The dukes don’t care. An omega can be replaced. They can just make another heir.”
“…What?”
“You’re trying to take me alive, aren’t you? To use me against them. I don’t know exactly who you are, but I know enough—you’re here to harm the dukes. And I know you’re trying to catch me to do it.”
Adam’s voice slowed, each word sharp and deliberate.
“I’d rather die than be taken. That’s the only way to protect them.”
Hearing himself say he would die felt strangely foreign.
At the same time, the turmoil in his chest stilled.
There was a solution—jump, and he wouldn’t be a weakness.
‘Could I really do it?’
Slowly, he hugged his stomach tighter.
He’d wanted to protect it, but couldn’t.
A pang of guilt struck him for the child not yet born.
‘Emily.’
His little sister’s face came to mind, leaving his heart damp and heavy.
But he wouldn’t change his decision.
The dukes were the reason Emily was alive and well.
They had given his only family a miracle.
He wouldn’t repay that kindness by becoming a burden.
“Quit putting on a show and get over here.”
“Take one more step, and I jump.”
“You lunatic—!”
The man finally lost his composure, anger spilling over.
He clearly hadn’t expected Adam to mean it.
“What do we do? Should we rush him—”
“Stay put!”
The group erupted into disorder.
* * *
