Carefully placed.
Almost… protected.
Isabella frowned. In her world, anything that looked too nice usually meant trouble.
Still, curiosity tugged at her.
She stepped closer.
The basket was covered with a soft cream-colored blanket—far nicer than anything she had ever owned.
For a moment she hesitated.
Then she slowly lifted the blanket.
Her breath disappeared.
Inside were three babies.
Triplets.
They were wrapped in delicate white clothes that looked far too expensive for the streets of Santa Esperanza. Their tiny cheeks were rosy, their skin soft and pale.
And their eyes—
All three pairs were an impossible shade of blue.
They weren’t crying loudly. Instead, they made small, tired noises, as if they had already learned something heartbreaking.
That no one was coming.
The quiet sound pierced Isabella’s chest.
She knew that silence.
It was the same silence she had felt the night she realized no one was coming back for her.
For a long moment, she simply stared.