Caught II

Immedieatly flora screamed, the two bodyguards revealed their hiding spot and held both her and Athena captive. Sasha was too distracted to look at them as it seems Regina had gone totally nuts.

She had this dead but crazy look on her face which made her look different at that moment. It was clear that she summoned all her strength to push sasha and forcefully collect the big piece of meat she was holding. ' hunger '

" I haven't eating anything in a week now, so give me that! " She screamed and used the meat to slap Sasha, and made to run outside while everyone was distracted. She only took few steps before she fell down and hit her face on the floor—She wasn't thinking straight

Sasha turned to the guards who were having trouble holding down only Flora. Athena was too shocked to move. She was scared out of her wits and did the only thing she thought was wise at that moment. She picked up her phone to call the police, but Sahsa's brother happened to walk in at that moment looking really pale. " Where's the bride?! "

Everyone froze. 'Bride?'

His gaze met the rugged looking Regina lying on the floor, and he gasped. " What happened here?!"

Flora managed to loosen her grip while everyone was distracted and ran forward towards Regina. " Are you okay?" She asked in a worried tone, but there was hardly any response.

Sahsa got up from the floor and quickly sat up. " What are you doing here?! " She asked and casted Regina a look of disgust.

" I should be asking you that. Anyway there's no time the groom's family had an urgent meeting that was scheduled to hold later today. They want to bride to meet her groom today. " He spoke more horridly than usual and let out a ragged breathe, before using his hand to brush his head backwards.

" What do you mean today? They mentioned that it was not until next week, now they want to... Argh! Anyway these two snuck in and we need to get rid of them. " Her gaze landed on the scared Athena and a worried Flora. She wasn't worried about the fact that they were going to do something to her, she was more worried about how her friend was doing. She felt something in her pulse a while ago, but couldn't quite decipher it. It seems as though she was pregnant...

Flora deduced that as she struggles to survive on only water for over a week, Regina is unaware that she is pregnant. Despite her own malnutrition and dehydration, her body has instinctively prioritized the tiny embryo's needs, nurturing it with stored energy reserves and nutrients.

The embryo, implanting in her uterus just a week plus prior, is still in a relatively low-energy-demand phase of development. Her body's stress response has also triggered the release of certain hormones that help sustain the pregnancy, even in the face of adversity.

Unbeknownst to her, the embryo continues to develop, protected by the mother's body, which is working hard to support the pregnancy despite the challenging circumstances.

Since Flora was a medical student, she has been trained in basic medical assessments, including taking vital signs like pulse and blood pressure.

While checking her friend's pulse, she notices a subtle but distinct change in the rhythm and pace of the heartbeat, which is a common indicator of pregnancy.

Specifically, she observes an increase in the resting heart rate and a slight irregularity in the heartbeat pattern, known as the "pregnancy pulse".

This is a classic sign that has been used by healthcare providers for centuries to suspect pregnancy, even before modern pregnancy tests were available.

Although she's still a medical student, her friend has had enough training and exposure to recognize this subtle but significant change in her friend's pulse, leading her to suspect that her friend might be pregnant.

Her face was pale and lifeless. She could loose her baby at this rate. If she's pregnant for that stranger, isn't it a good thing?'

" Hey! Get off her now! " Sasha suddenly became caring and like a useless plot twist changed her character and began to feel Regina's temperature. " Bring in the maids, we need to get her glowing. The chef! Tell the chef to prepare food this instant, all of my sister's favorite."

" You know they're not here yet, you don't need to pretend. " Flora spoke up with an annoyed tone, and got up. She has a murderous glint in her eyes as she spoke. " You won't get away with what you all are doing."

Athena gulped hard. She knew Flora was only able to confront Sasha like that because both their families were on the same level of power and neither could really afford to get on each other's neck. But if it's true that the Regina was marrying a Harrison then ...

" Flora, please... Let's just go. " She spoke up in a very weak tone and brushed her hair back. They'd been caught trespassing which was a huge crime to be honest. She didn't want to get any of her family members hurt by thinking of her friend's life.

Although it sounds selfish, it's true. If she we're to choose Regina then her whole family would criticize her for taking such risk.

' I can't afford to see my family loose everything they've been building for generations.' she thought to herself and lowered her head. '' I'm sorry if you found our act offensive, but we needed to do something to reach our friend since you deprived us of the opportunity when you lied to us."

Her heart pummelled against her ribcage and she gulped hard. That wasn't what she initially wanted to say... ' I hope I'm not screwed.' she whimpered to herself.

Flora looked displeased by Athena's attitude as she took careful glances at everyone present in the room. What she was doing: Her eyes captured every inch and corner of the room. She spotted security cameras in different hidden angles and micro speakers... Explains how she easily detected them.

" Let's go, Athena. You don't need to apologize. " She got up and casted Regina a 'sorry' look. She knew that for the night, Regina was safe. They had to treat her well because of the guests that're going to arrive pretty soon. She would have to come up with a rescue plan before the engagement.

"Imagine if the Harrison's discovered the pregnancy before the marriage... Regina would be as good as plain flesh."