Part 1 – The Quiet Before
The Moroccan morning was golden and still. Sunlight poured through gauzy curtains as Alexander lay awake, watching Liana sleep. Her hair spilled over the pillow like ink on parchment, her face serene, lips slightly parted. For a moment, the world outside didn't exist no Julian, no conspiracies, no empires.
He gently ran his fingers along her bare shoulder.
"I could wake up like this every day," he whispered.
Liana stirred, smiling drowsily. "You planning to stay still long enough?"
"I'd stop time if I could."
They laughed, shared kisses, and moved slowly through breakfast on the terrace. The calm was unfamiliar but welcome.
Until the call came.
Part 2 – The Breach
Alexander's secure phone buzzed once, twice, the signal for critical alert.
He stepped away from the table. His face tightened as he listened.
"Zurich has been hit. Two of our data vaults breached. Protocol Eleven is down."
Liana stood as he returned. "It's him?"
"Yes. Julian's making his move."
The next days blurred into action.
Alexander left briefly for covert countermeasures mobilizing his shadow unit, dismantling Julian's puppet networks. One by one, Julian's fronts across Berlin, Singapore, and Cape Town were exposed and burned. But the attacks didn't stop they evolved, more personal, more psychological.
Liana held strong by his side, analyzing information, helping with medical logistics for Alexander's people. But exhaustion crept in unnoticed at first. Her body grew heavier, her head often light.
By the sixth day, Alexander found her collapsed on the floor of the study, unconscious and pale.
Part 3 – The Revelation
He caught her before she hit the ground, shouting for Elena and his private medic, who was airlifted in within hours.
They placed her in the guest suite, hooked to monitors as Alexander paced like a lion in a cage. Guilt clawed at him he had promised to protect her, and yet, here she was, lifeless beneath pristine sheets.
The doctor entered after an hour, removing gloves with a measured calm.
"She's stable," he said.
Alexander exhaled. "What happened?"
"She collapsed from stress and fatigue. But…" the doctor paused. "She also has an elevated hCG levels. We ran a blood test to confirm."
Alexander narrowed his eyes. "What are you saying?"
The doctor smiled. "She's pregnant."
"Early stages, but yes. I'd say between six to seven weeks. She didn't know?"
Alexander shook his head slowly. His chest felt tight but not with fear. With awe.
He stepped into the room where Liana was just waking up, eyes fluttering open.
"Hey…" she murmured, confused. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
He sat beside her, brushing hair from her face, voice raw.
"You're not just my wife now," he whispered. "You're carrying our child."
Her breath caught.
And in that moment despite the war outside, despite the enemies at their gates they held each other tighter than ever before, hearts beating as one.