The Rose He Killed novel Chapter 292

Chapter 256: The Next Day-2

“That is for Isabella to decide, not you, Sebastien said firmly.

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The room finally settled back into a tense, heavy quiet. Sebastien let out a slow breath and turned toward my bed, leaning down to press a gentle kiss to my forehead.

“How are you feeling?” he asked softly, his hand touching my arm.

“Tired,” I whispered. “But I’m okay.”

Sebastien turned his head to look at the plastic box. A soft, emotional look washed over his aristocratic face as he took in the sight of the tiny baby. “He is beautiful, Isabella. He looks just like you.”

Enzo, despite his lingering fury at Caleb, couldn’t resist the urge to see his new nephew. He walked over to the glass, looking through the plastic porthole. His face broke into a genuine smile, his anger completely evaporating. “Oh, good. Someone in this family finally has her mother’s eyes and a spine to match,” he said, casting a quick, pointed glance back at Caleb. Then he looked down at the baby. “He’s perfect, Bella.”

Olivier walked up last, standing beside Sebastien. He looked at the tiny, fragile baby, then looked at me with a quiet, respectful nod.

Caleb remained by the window, completely silent. He looked broken, watching my family gather around the bed and the incubator, knowing his own actions had almost locked him out of this circle entirely. But he stayed right where he was, refusing to run away from the mess he had made.

On Saturday. The door opened, and Diana walked in, tying the strings of a yellow hospital gown over her clothes. She let out a long, exhausted breath. “I think the nurses checked my ID three times and watched us scrub our arms up to the elbows like we were going into surgery,” she murmured, giving me a warm but

tired smile.

Behind her, Nadia entered, looking equally sterile in her own yellow visitor’s gown. She was holding Tom by one hand and gently guiding Grace, who was toddling along in her bright red shoes.

The hospital staff had made the adults wrap a small, protective plastic apron over Grace’s little outfit, and even Tom was wearing a miniature gown over his clothes.

Tom immediately gravitated toward the window corner where his backpack was waiting, pulling out a puzzle to occupy himself. Grace, however, had other plans. She broke away from Nadia and came toddling straight over to the incubator, her grey-and-amber eyes enormous as she looked around the blinking medical equipment. She stopped right in front of the plastic box, staring inside with total concentration.

“Baby?” Grace asked, pointing a tiny finger toward the glass.

“Yes, Grace. That’s baby Victor,” I said softly from the bed.

Grace reached her small hand out, wanting to pat the plastic box.

“No touching, sweetie,” Diana said quickly but gently, stepping forward and catching Grace’s hand before it made contact. “We have to keep the baby safe from germs. Just look with your eyes.”

Grace pulled her hand back and tucked it behind her back. She looked at Victor for a long time. Inside the incubator, the baby made a sharp, fierce movement, uncurling his tiny fist. Grace watched this with great

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Chapter 256 The Next Day 2

interest, then gave a firm, single nod.

“She approves of him,” Diana said, looking up with a small smile.

“Grace has high standards, replied softly.

“Clearly she got them from somewhere,” Diana murmured.

Nadia stepped forward with a quiet, practiced grace, gently taking Grace’s hand. “Come on, little bird,” Nadia whispered softly. “Let’s leave the baby to rest and go help Tom with his puzzle.”

Grace let herself be led over to the small toy corner by the window, sitting down on the mat next to her older brother.

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Once the children were quietly occupied, the warmth left Diana’s face. She turned her head and looked directly at Caleb, who was standing silently near the foot of my bed. Her expression became completely serious, her voice dropping into a low, firm whisper.

“Caleb,” Diana said, her eyes locked onto his. “We need to talk. In private. Right now.”

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