Let's give Bella a happy home

Cathleen's gaze was ice, her form rigid as she confronted the impossible scene before her. The weight of her stare pinned Xavier down, even as he cradled the infant—allegedly theirs—in his arms. Her lips trembled, a single tear carving a path down her flushed cheek. Anguish and disbelief warred in her eyes.

"Xavier, I know I blamed you for her death, but this baby isn't our Bella," she asserted, her voice laced with a venomous mix of sorrow and accusation. She turned on her heel, desperate to escape the torment of his deception.

"Cathleen, stop!" Xavier's plea sliced through the thickening silence, raw and pleading.

"Xavier, I know you want to make it up to me," she spat out, halting but not turning to face him. "But bringing another baby can't change anything."

"Look at her," he commanded, closing the gap between them, his voice a mix of steel and desperation. "You don't have to touch her; just look at her."

She stood immobile as if her feet were cemented to the floor. Xavier edged c