Chapter 625

This was her ace in the hole.
With the child in her grasp, Charles could only belong to her. And as for Evelyn- there would be nothing left but pain.
Charlie glanced back at Luna, wide-eyed and uncertain, her gaze searching for reassurance. Luna fixed her with a pointed look, silent but commanding, and Charlie, after a long, shaky pause, slowly lifted her tiny arm. It hovered, awkward and trembling, not quite brave enough to reach its mark.
Without missing a beat, Luna placed both hands over Charlie’s. Guiding her with a touch that seemed gentle but was anything but, she helped Charlie’s little arms wrap stiffly around Charles’s neck.
The hug wasn’t Charlie’s at all—it was Luna, orchestrating the whole thing through her, turning the embrace into a cold, calculated performance.
Right then, Charles’s entire being was wrapped up in his daughter; he didn’t register Luna’s presence, didn’t even care that she was there.
“Aurora, call him Daddy,” Luna whispered right against Charlie’s ear, her voice low and hypnotic, almost like a spell.
Under the weight of Luna’s expectation, Charlie’s small frame trembled. At last, pressed to the edge, she squeezed out a voice so faint it was barely a breath, thick with fear:
“Da…ddy…”
Bang.
The word hit Charles like a blast, detonating every emotion he’d buried for years -despair, agony, guilt, and now, a tidal wave of joy.
He couldn’t hold back. Tears burned in his eyes, blurring everything until the world was nothing but shapes and light. His throat closed up, and from somewhere deep inside, he let out a broken, raw sound:
“Ah-!”
Losing all control, he pulled her tight, desperate, holding her like he’d never let go. Hot tears slid down his face, landing on her tiny shoulders, breaking whatever remained of his composure.
He shook, overwhelmed. This was too good to be real-better than any dream, more miraculous than anything he’d ever dared to wish for.
His Charlie. His flesh and blood. His life. Alive, in his arms, calling him Daddy.
Luna kept her eyes lowered, lashes casting long shadows that hid the icy satisfaction in her gaze. She watched their tangled shadows on the hospital floor, blurred but unmistakable, echoing the words in her mind:
See, Evelyn? Charles is mine. Even your daughter is in my hands now, calling me Mom.
You’ll never beat me.
…
Charlie stayed stiff in Charles’s embrace, every muscle tense. She wasn’t used to being held by anyone but Luna.
To her, Luna was everything-her mother, her world, her only safety. She did whatever “Mommy” said.
That hug, that “Daddy”-they were just tasks, orders to obey. Nothing more.
…
Charles felt it all-the resistance, the discomfort. His heart twisted, but he forced himself to let go, slow and careful.
He couldn’t scare her. He couldn’t push her further away.
The moment he loosened his grip, Charlie sprang free as if she’d been held captive. She shot out of his arms and dove straight into Luna’s, curling up tight, the very picture of escape. Her little back radiated determination not to look back.
Charles watched her retreat into Luna’s arms, and it felt like someone had carved out a piece of his heart He took a deep, shaky breath, straightened up, and let the harsh hospital lights stretch his shadow long and lonely down the corridor.
His eyes, still wet from tears of joy, hardened with resolve.
There was no more doubt.
This was his Charlie. His daughter. His blood. He would never let her slip away again.
He’d bring her home-back to him, and back to Eve.