40: No Fondness for Raising Someone Else's Child

Lillian needn't put herself in Serena's shoes to know the impossibility of acceptance. But Lillian was just that—Lillian, not Serena. And she could only view the unfolding events from her own perspective.

"Pity, I'm not as magnanimous nor do I possess such a spirit of self-sacrifice. The child is in my body; to birth or to abort lies within my liberty. Aside from myself, no one can decide the life or death of my child."

"You..."

"If you wish for me to repay a favor, that's possible. Should you need help with anything else, command and I shall obey, but this matter is non-negotiable."

Her baby was her kin. She herself couldn't bear the thought of termination, so how could she let an outsider dictate the fate of her child?

"I command, and you'll obey?"

"Yes, as long as it's reasonable."

Debts of gratitude must be repaid, but if Serena's demands were excessive, they were out of the question.

Serena fell into thought. She had anticipated Lillian's refusal even before coming here. Who was