Seraphine's POV

The pack doctor held the glowing moonstone before my eyes.

I hadn't believed him. It was simply too good to be true.

But now, looking at the transparent stone, pulsing with a bright light at the tip, it was all the confirmation I needed.

I hadn't been poisoned. I was pregnant.

The doctor's voice was soft, almost reverent.

"H-how..." My voice was thick with emotion. "How far along am I?"

"One week, Luna."

One week.

I pressed a trembling hand to my stomach, as if I could already feel the spark that had taken root the last time Fael had shared himself with me.

That night, had made a baby.

Two years ago today, Fael had carried me over the threshold of this house, the pack howling outside, the mating mark fresh and burning on my neck. I had worn white, and my father had been pardoned of all he owed.

Two years, and I had spent every single day waiting for him to look at me the way an Alpha looks at his Luna. Instead, he looked through me, past me, into the bodies of every she-wolf who could give him things I couldn't.

Until now.

This pup would change everything.

He would have to claim me publicly. He would have to crown me. He would have to wash the blood and tears from my skin after my heats, because the heir growing inside me would be his.

He would have to love me.

I closed my eyes and let the moonstone's glow paint the inside of my lids silver.

The doctor wrapped it carefully in velvet.

"You must tell him soon, Luna. An Alpha senses these things eventually."

I planned to.

I would walk into the pack hall tonight with every ranking wolf in attendance, and I would place Fael's palm over the place where his child slept. I would watch the shock turn to pride and devotion.

He would fall to his knees this time.

He would beg me to forgive him for the sake of our unborn little one.

And I would let him.

Because this pup was proof that the Moon had not abandoned me after all.

"Doctor Cuwan." I grinned so hard it almost hurt. "Don't tell anyone about this. Please, I... I want to surprise him."

He bowed.

My eyes widened for a fraction of a second.

No one here has ever bowed to me before today.

"As you command, Luna."

{THREE HOURS LATER}

Fael wasn't here yet.

There was some political squabble going on, and the staff said he was still in talks with the other Alphas.

I was pacing around our bedroom, hand on my stomach.

The table had been set for our anniversary celebrations.

Candlelight. Wine and food.

"Maybe I should go to him?"

I asked no one in particular.

"But he never likes me present during his meetings."

My wolf purred lightly. She was ecstatic and eager for our mate to hear the good news.

Enough waiting around, Seraphine.

If Fael wouldn't come to you, go to him.

"Excuse me," I waved to his Beta, Anton. "Is Fael in?"

He grumbled with a gruff snort.

"The Alpha is indisposed at the moment."

I held onto the basket of moon cakes I had baked and brought.

"He's been in there for quite a while. I brought some food for him."

Anton crossed his arms.

"The Alpha is well fed and not hungry. Liora has made sure of that."

My eyes narrowed, and I had to purse my lips together to avoid saying something that could get me punished.

"B-but Beta Anton, please, just let me in. It'll only be a minute."

He shook his head, standing firm.

I attempted to bypass him, but no sooner had I tried when I found myself crumpled to the ground, my cheek pressed against the cold stone. The basket broke, and the cakes I had so dutifully baked scattered across the ground.

"Anton!"

I screamed, pounding my small fist against the ground.

Don't cry in front of him, Seraphine, don't. Everyone knew Anton was a big meanie, especially to me.

"Scram, weakling. Or I'll rid Fael of you, permanently."

Something in me was triggered, and I found myself holding onto Anton's collar, yelling hysterically, and trying to push him out of the way.

"I am your Luna! You will respect me!"

He laughed mockingly, and I felt my eyes sting.

Still, I didn't give up.

"Luna? More like a recipe for ruin."

I didn't budge. I kept trying to push him away, and he let me, until he had had enough.

Anton shoved me aside, and I stumbled, my head knocking against the wall.

Just as I was about to tumble to the ground again, the door opened, and in a quick blur, Fael stood behind me.

"Anton. What are you doing?"

His eyes were narrowed. Angry, even.

I felt a flutter of hope in my stomach.

"Disciplining the omega, cousin. She was doing too much, yelling, causing a scene, and insisting on seeing you-"

"Enough."

Anton stayed silent, bowing without remorse, a snarky smirk still painted across his lips. But I didn't care. Fael had defended me, for the first time in forever. Maybe he could already sniff out our little one? His senses were sharp after all.

"Fael..."

He grabbed my wrist and pulled me to the corridor. Out of earshot or eyesight from the other wolves.

"What is it, Seraphine? You know I don't want you anywhere around the pack hall during political meetings."

I nodded and grabbed onto his shoulders.

"I know, I know... but, but it was an emergency."

His eyes lit up.

"Did... Did you finally..." His tone rose slightly, his fingers crawled under my dress. But then light in his eyes receded.

"I still feel no sign of your body's welcome."

I shook my head, rambling.

"No, that's, that's not it. You see, when you left, I felt this... internal pain, and I assumed it was another involuntary shift, but then it felt different in a way. My stomach felt fuzzy, like water was flowing inside it, but around a huge stream... no, that's not right. Like, the stream was blocked by a stone, and I coughed up this gooey whitish-"

"You have three seconds to go straight to the point, Seraphine."

I inhaled deeply. Grabbing his palm, I placed it on my stomach.

"I'm pregnant, Fael."

Seraphine's POV

The moment I uttered those words, time stood still.

My eyes searched his face for a reaction, anything at all.

Eventually... he spoke.

"You think you can play me for a fool in front of my pack?" he snarled.

He held the moonstone I had presented to him and crushed it in his palm before throwing what remained of it to the ground.

"Explain yourself, Seraphine. Right now. How dare you claim that is my pup when you've been nothing but a barren disappointment for two years?"

I backed against the wall.

"It is not a claim, it is the truth. Doctor Cuwan tested me and told me himself that I am a week gone. From that night last week when we had the pack meet, and you were angered by men from Alpha Serbian's pack, you came to our room and shared yourself with me, remember? You held me as your mate until dawn. This is the result."

He laughed.

"Varyns do not breed with damaged, lowborn strays like you. You think a glowing rock proves anything? I've joined with you countless times, poured my hopes into you, and now suddenly, when I have been buried in pack business and haven't lain with you in days, you magically conceive?"

"That's...I can't explain it, but I really am pre-nngh!"

He grabbed me to his side and pressed his palm to my stomach, feeling around for signs of life. Fael's lip curled when he felt a heartbeat and his hand didn't pull away this time; instead, his claws pressed against the fabric, sharp tips dimpling my skin. A threat so cold I knew he meant to harm the baby inside me.

My eyes widened when I felt his claw break through my skin.

"Tell me, little omega, whose seed actually fathered this unhallowed child? Because it sure as the Moon isn't mine."

He was going to harm the child inside me.

"Fael, please," I whispered. "Listen to me-"

"I've listened enough."

He released my wrist only to grab my throat, slamming me back against the wall.

The other Alphas that had been in the hall with him had started trooping out. Finding amusement in the scene.

His hand tightened, claws grazing my stomach, and I screamed from the pain and terror.

"You will go to the healer's den, and you will have him rip that thing out of you before the next moonrise. Or I'll do it myself, right here."

I screamed, my hands flying to protect my stomach.

"No! Fael, stop! The pup! Our pup!"

I twisted, shoving at his arm with all my strength.

"Please, Moon above, no! It's yours! I beg you, feel it! Sense it!"

He growled and bared his fangs.

His eyes carried genuine hurt.

"Sense what? A faithless whelp from some lowly wolf who might've taken pity on you? You disgust me, Seraphine. You've shamed me, shamed the Varyn line. I should have never marked you."

"Fael... mate... please..."

With a savage snarl, he shoved me harder against the wall, his claws grazing my stomach, and I screamed again in agony.

"Stop!"

He released my throat, and I felt he had finally listened.

Only for him to step back just enough to chant the words that every mated wolf dreaded.

"By the Moon Goddess, I, Fael Varyn, Alpha of the Grimfang Pack, sever the bond between us. I reject you, Seraphine. I reject our bond."

The pain in my stomach was nothing compared to what hit next. It felt like a thousand silver blades slicing through my chest, my wolf howling in agony as the mate bond shattered.

I collapsed to my knees, clutching at my heart, gasping for air that wouldn't come.

I looked up through tear-filled eyes, blood seeping from the wounds on my belly.

"I wish I had never met you."

A copper taste filled my mouth.

"Fate will punish you for this. You will regret it!"

He scoffed, grabbing my arm and hauling me toward the door.

"Fate abandoned you long ago. Now get out."

×

I was thrown out of the pack gates.

It was raining. He had not given me a single suitcase, and my clothes were soaked in muddy water. My tears streaked my face in the design of roots, and I sobbed for what seemed like hours.

In a pathetic attempt to save the life of my little one, I forced my wolf to shield the pup within, letting my own skin bruise and ache in its place-the price of internal mending. But I didn't care.

Fael. Mate.

Those words kept ringing in my head. How did it all come to this?

How?

×

I was a dot near losing consciousness. But a pair of arms slid under my side and lifted me from the ground.

In a weak intake of breath, I tried to make out who it was. But I couldn't. My vision was blurry, but all I knew was that we were moving.

Moving where?

"I-I....w-who are...."

My words were barely audible. But he had heard me.

"Reserve your strength."

"Mm... My...my pup."

He placed a hand on my stomach.

"It's healing just fine."

I was curious about who this man was. He smelt like mountains, plum-bloom cologne, and ash, pinewood ash to be specific. But nothing familiar in the least.

"Your pup will be okay. I'm taking you somewhere I can tend to your wounds properly."

"Where....?"

"My home." He looked down at me, feeling the need to add the next sentence. "In the mountains up north."

The West never crossed over to the North. This man was carrying me to forbidden territory. It was known knowledge that banished wolves all took solace in the north.

And under the rule of one man, and one man only.

Darius Varyn.

The fates had truly forsaken me.

I forced the words out of me. Panic settled deep in my bones because of how firm he held me.

"Why?"

"You're asking why I'm taking you to my home?"

I managed a nod.

"Because I want to claim you and your pup as mine."

My tired eyelids snapped open almost immediately.

Seraphine's POV

I expected rocky grounds and dusty walls, typical of caves in the northern mountains. But his den was nothing as I had imagined.

The surprise in my eyes seemed to amuse him.

"A moment. I'll get you something to soothe the burn."

On our way up the trail, he had handpicked a few leaves from the entrance and squeezed them in his hand until they turned a pasty mix. He had then applied it to my injuries, my stomach, and then to my forehead. And almost like magic, a cooling sensation washed over me, and my wounds stung no longer.

Until the paste turned hot on my skin.

All I could do was nod as my back hit warm sheets.

What he said... about claiming me and pup. I was incredibly confused about why Fael's uncle, a banished tyrant, would say that to me. Did... did he perhaps have plans to subjugate me to slavery here in his den?

No Seraphine. You need to get out of here.

I could barely place my feet on the ground when he came back. Carrying a ceramic bowl in his palm.

"Leaving so soon?"

I swallowed.

"Don't...don't come close to me until you tell me what you really want with me, and my baby." My hand immediately moved to my stomach. "Because I would die before I let you-"

"Harm the pup?"

"Y-yes."

He placed the bowl on a stool beside us. His movements were too gentle for an Alpha.

"I watched my nephew nearly sink his claws into your womb because he was convinced that you were carrying a bastard. And then he rejected you, throwing you out even though you were bleeding, leaving you for dead. If I wanted to harm you or your unborn, I would have."

"How... how did you-"

"I'm a good hacker." He shrugged.

And I instantly knew that he was likely referring to the surveillance stones in our pack. Right. He was going to be Alpha before he was banished anyway, of course, he would have found a way to have access.

"Then why did you bring me here?"

"Because we've both been wronged by people we've loved. Because we both deserve second chances. I found mine, here in the north, in my den, forming a pack of my own. I want to give you a chance to find yours."

I sat up a little, and he moved to place an arm under my back, but I refused. He had red in his eyes, the sign of a feral wolf. A half-beast in a sense. He could wake up in the moonlight and rip me apart.

"How can I trust you, Darius?"

"If you want me to swear an oath to you, I will."

Was he even willing to swear an oath?

There has to be more to this.

"Why me, though...I mean. I'm not the only wronged she-wolf out there."

"Because you're special."

I blinked.

"Because I'm special? Or because I'm the ex-mate of the nephew you're feuding with?"

Something in this man's eyes carried so many secrets.

"From the very first day you were given to my nephew, I wanted to take you instead."

"W-why?"

"You'll know someday. I promise. But right now, I think you should take a chance on me. You've been told stories about me, about the north. Allow me to rewrite those notions."

It all still didn't make sense. Even if he had some hidden agenda, it wouldn't be beneficial in any way.

"Swear the oath first. Let me be sure that you wouldn't turn me into a... bed warmer the moment you claim me."

His hand raised above my head, and I flinched. But no hit came, his fingers merely threaded through my hair, soothing my scalp.

"Smart girl."

I...I had never been called smart before.

-[NIGHTFALL]-

A drop of his blood rested on my forehead. A white dress had been provided for me, a 'kikh' they called it. And a part of my stomach had been bare. And his blood was smeared over it.

Darius had solidified his oath to me and my pup.

At a point, I doubted my own eyes.

What was he even doing?

Swearing an oath to an omega whom he could easily trample under his feet?

He had told me that he needed a Luna.

But it still didn't feel like that was why he saved me.

"Your finger," he murmured.

I accidentally wiggled my thumb in his direction. He nearly dropped the lamp on the ground, laughing so hard.

"Your ring finger."

He laughed.

Had he found me funny?

Was someone capable of finding me funny?

I gave him my ring finger, feeling slightly dazed from all of this.

I had gotten married under the moonlight, on the night of what should have been the celebration of my second anniversary with Fael.

So much had happened in a single night.

I watched as he slid a jade diamond ring on my finger, sliding a replica of it on his.

When I had wedded Fael, he had given me a plastic ring, despite all his wealth.

I thought maybe I would earn something better during the anniversaries, if I did well.

"It's done."

"Mm... just like that?"

He nodded.

"So... we're married...then?"

He nodded again. Gathering the items that sat between us.

"Where would you like the mark? Somewhere hidden or...?"

"I thought Alphas decided."

"It's your body, the decision is yours."

I stuttered so badly I turned crimson, choosing to settle for my neck.

"Everyone would see it..." I murmured as he came closer.

"That is the whole point of this. I want everyone to know whose Luna you'll be, and who the father of your pup will be."

These words were foreign to my ears. And I found myself hoping against all odds that this wasn't a deception.

"Is this the part where I thank you and vow to be loyal?"

His teeth sank into my neck, and the moment they drew blood, I felt a slightly aphrodisiacal sensation wash over me.

"This is the part where I set my sights on proving myself worthy enough to win your loyalty."

A slight movement in my stomach startled me so bad that I stood. Drop dripping down the two small holes on my neck.

My lips parted as I felt my pup stir at just a week old.

This was impossible.

"No way..."

He stood to his feet. Looking around, alarmed.

"Is something wrong? What happened?"

I grabbed his hand instinctively and placed it on my stomach. In no less than a second did I feel the stir again.

"What was th-"

"Impossible." I gasped. "The baby...the baby has accepted your imprint."