Dark Revenge Of An Unwanted Wife: The Twins Are Not Yours!

Chapter 394: Tests III

"So, is it bad?" Ewan joined Athena in peering at the vial, after it had been stirred and allowed to settle for a few

minutes.

When she sighed wearily, dejectedly, he knew it was indeed bad. His chest tightened as he wished, almost

desperately, that he could erase the consequence of what lay before them — the fallout, the chaos that would

ensue, the weight that would press unyieldingly on her back.

"Athena..." he murmured, needing words, needing to know what they were up against. "Is it as you feared?"

Athena nodded slowly, straightening her shoulders with effort. "It’s a variant. Much worse than the Grey virus. |

don’t think the cure | manufactured would be able to do anything against it..."

"But you haven't tested it out? Maybe—"

Athena shook her head sharply, cutting off Ewan’s hurried response. "I know what | am saying, Ewan. This is so

much worse. | will need to spend a lot of tin the lab from henceforth... and | will need you to be there for the

children. Gianna is not always around, as you must have noticed, and I think Chelsea is too busy with her day-to-

day activities..."

A pause. Her brows furrowed as she realized she didn’t exactly know why her friend was always out of the house

first thing in the morning. If she didn’t know better, she would say Chelsea was looking for a job.

Wait. Athena sighed inwardly. Was her friend really looking for a job? What happened to her previous one?

"Athena, what's the problem?"

"I think Chelsea is up to something. But that’s by the way..." She waved the thought aside, returning to the

present. "As | was saying, you have to be there for the children. Working on the drugs, the experiments... it

consumes a lot of time. | hope you can understand..."

"I understand, Athena. | understand perfectly well," Ewan cut in softly, his gaze meeting hers with quiet

tenderness. "You don’t have to explain yourself. Take as much tas you need to deal with this. I'll be here if

you need anything."

Athena searched his face, lingering in his eyes for truth, then exhaled gently. "Thanks for this, Ewan. And | am

sorry if—"

"Don’t apologize for doing what you should," he interrupted gently. "You're also doing this for them. And no, it's

not a burden."

Her lips parted slightly, then closed firmly. "I see. Thank you."

Ewan wanted to tell her that she shouldn't be thanking him, that this was his responsibility as much as hers, but

he sensed he had already cut in enough for the day. Instead, he said, "Good. Are you starting today?"

"No, | won't. Maybe tomorrow. I'm too mentally fraught to do anything now. But | will speak to Herbert and

collect skind of permission, should in case working here tampers with my hours in the hospital. Fortunately,

there are a lot of competent doctors in the Whitman hospitals."

"That's right," Ewan muttered, his mind stewing over a particular thought, one he knew would upset Athena.

"What is it?" Athena’s voice was sharp. Just as Ewan was adept at reading her, so was she at reading him. She

pushed aside what the truth of that meant and focused on the possible weight pressing against his mind.

"The gang..." Ewan paused, licking his lower lip. "If Kael still operates the same, he won't be content being just a

pawn in the game. The gang is rarely a pawn. We always wanted to top whatever was happening. And if | should

take a guess, | would say that Kael would be occupying a position as an advisor. That he would advise they

release the virus today, latest tomorrow, since the hideout has been discovered."

"I know." Athena muttered, looking crestfallen. Her shoulders slumped, and her fingers tightened around the

edge of the counter. "But | can’t work in this state of mind. | need to get home, eat, refresh myself, and talk with

my children... and then Herbert. Because if | enter that lab mode, a lot of things will need to be running without

my presence. And as much as it painsthat | won't be able to do anything for those who will be infected by

the new virus, my hands are tied."

A weary sigh escaped her lips as she turned away, feeling her eyes sting with tears. "Why can’t these people just

give up, Ewan? For a second there, | even thought this had turned into a challenge against my stubbornness,

more than the earlier arrangement to make money or whatever it was."

"And you're not wrong to feel that way. The gang can be petty... and so can their sponsor. We just have to keep

pushing, keep holding the fort. Because if we don’t, then our children might not have a future."

Athena nodded faintly. She knew he was right. Things left untreated usually found a way of coming back to haunt

the future.

Silence reigned between them for a while.

"So, the virus," Ewan asked finally, his tone heavy. "How long does it take before acting once it gets into a

human system?"

Athena knew why he asked — and the truth only made the air heavier. Whereas the Grey virus took at least a

week or two before showing signs, this one could manifest in mere days. And creating a drug, test-running it,

that would take much longer. She needed a miracle.

"Just a couple of days." She exhaled deeply. "Let's leave here. | want to go home."

"Are you okay with staying at the mansion?" Athena asked as they approached the Thorne gates. "Doesn't it get

tiring, shuffling between here and your mansion?"

Ewan shrugged. "To be honest, | haven't been at the mansion since the court case."

Athena’s brows furrowed. "Still traumatized?"

Ewan laughed at her attempt at humor. "I'm not sure. But | don’t want to stay there... it brings bad memories.

The servants keep it clean and all, but... I've been staying at Sandro’s place. | only return to the mansion when |

need clothes."

"But Sandro is staying at a bachelor’s pad, isn’t he? Why not stay with Zane at the Whitman mansion? There are

more than enough rooms there, and it’s closer to the house."

Ewan shook his head firmly. "I don’t want to live in the sspace with Herbert. We're two business moguls, and

we're bound to clash at spoint. And he’s family. | don’t want to mix business with pleasure. I'm sure he feels

the sway, even if he says otherwise."

Athena nodded, biting back the urge to point out that Old Mr. Thorne was also a business mogul. It wasn’t her

question to ask. What mattered was that he chose the space he was most comfortable with.

"You don’t have to worry about me, Athena. I'll be okay staying at the Thorne mansion. It's not weird. And if it

does get weird, I'll stay with Sandro. There's not much to it."

Athena nodded again and turned her gaze to the window. This billionaire was becoming homeless. It would have

been comical, if only the situation around them wasn’t so grave.

When they stepped out of the car, the twins were already waiting by the porch. The moment their gazes met, the

children ran into the embrace of their parents — Kathleen straight into Ewan’s arms.

A daddy's girl, Athena mused, watching her daughter laugh and chatter with her ex-husband before moving over

to greet her.

"How was school today?" Athena asked softly, kissing the child's head.

"Fine!" Kathleen chimed brightly.

They walked into the sitting room like a family, a sight that brought a smile to Old Mr. Thorne’s lips — a good

change from the foul mood that had plagued him since he saw the news.

"What's happening?" the old man asked once the twins had been ushered to their rooms by a servant.

"A Grey virus variant," Athena said, shrugging tiredly. "Much worse than its predecessor. Ewan thinks it will be

released tonight or tomorrow."

Old Mr. Thorne fisted his hands in anger, the weight of it pressing against his chest. He hadn't found his

granddaughter after all these years just to watch her stew in stress and misery. No. He would lighten her load,

however necessary.

"So, what do you need?"

"Food. Now." Athena's lips curved into a sad smile when the joke didn’t register at first.

When it did, the old man hissed softly.

"It’s good you can still tell a joke," he said. "You'll need your wits about you this period. But don’t worry. Ewan

and | are already working on discovering the hub of this madness. And find it, we will. Trust us."

Amazingly, Athena discovered that she did. For the first tin her life, she felt she could hand the reins to

family and focus on her own field.

"Thank you, Grandpa. But | really am hungry."

Old Mr. Thorne chuckled, joined by Ewan. "Of course, my dear. Of course. Food will be ready in twenty, according

to your grandma."

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