Isabella s POV 

"Isabella!"

My name was called sharply and I came to myself.

I was awhile uncertain where I was. Still in my mind like a nightmare,  was the memory of the council hall, the accusations, Clara betraying me, Adrian rejecting me and the council sewing my fate. Despite it happening  months back,  it felt like it was yesterday.

"Did you become deaf?" the jail warden barked at me ." Get back in your cell!"

"Yes... I'm coming," I said quietly.

The other inmates started heading to the door. The majority of them were rogues we had taken in the patrol of the borders--wolves who had long since been out of the law of the pack. Dangerous. Unpredictable.

And now I was one of them. My hand then just naturally lay on my stomach as I trailed the others into the dungeon.The passage was damp and stale. The torches in the walls glowed feebly, and made long shadows upon the stone floor.

I needed rest, but I knew too well that was a fantasy.

"Well, the Luna is back,"  a coarse voice said.

I lifted my eyes slowly.

My fellow inmates

Three huge ladies. All rogues. Every one was stronger and more experienced in fighting than I was.

The speaker was leaning on the wall with crossed arms. Her hair was dark and dishevelled and there was a long scar on her cheek. I called her Scar behind her back.

"Be careful, girls, careful," Scar said in a loud voice. "The Luna has returned."

The other women broke out into laughter.

I didn't say anything. I just went to the end of the cell and sat down on the cold stone bench.

Silence was safer.

Regrettably they had no intention  to leave me alone.

"Pray tell me something, Luna," Scar said as she came nearer. "Look at me!" She barked. 

I kept my gaze lowered.

"Stay away from her," another voice suddenly said.

I looked up slightly.

The speaker was a tall rogue woman with braided hair standing close to the bars of the cell. She was a spy who single-handledly killed four wolves from our pack. 

The lady added. "Pick on someone your own size. Can't you see she is pregnant?"

I experienced a little relief that moment.

Scar narrowed her eyes.

"Oh?" she said slowly. "You defending her now?"

The braided woman shrugged. "I'm just saying-"

Her sentence never finished.

Scared, startled, struck her, and the braided woman hit her back  against the wall.

"Don't tell me what to do!" Scar hissed. 

"Touch me once more and you'll become the fifth reason I'm in here." The woman with braids warned. 

The atmosphere in the room was transformed immediately. The other rogue sat up, subtly cracking her knuckles, ready to jump in for her friend,Scar. 

I felt my stomach tighten.

"Please," I said quietly. "Don't start a fight."

No one listened.

Scar sprung forward, and seized the shirt of the braided woman. In their crash, they struck a wooden stool and knocked it over against the wall. The beat of fists upon flesh was heard filling the little cell. Immediately the other woman  jumped in.

What began as a push ended up as a full fight in a few seconds. Bodies were smashed in the walls. Scar  cursed loudly. The other woman screamed and was punched on the face. I attempted to make more way into the corner. But there was nowhere to go.

Scar was thrown back before I could do anything. Her body struck me right to the ground. The blow made me feel as though I had no lungs left. Such a collision with the stone wall sent pain through my side. My hand flew to my stomach.

"Ah-!"

An excruciating pain was twisting somewhere within my stomach. I doubled over instantly. The pain grew worse. My vision became red and blurry. 

Something was very wrong.

"I-" I gasped, trying to breathe. "Stop-please-"

"Fuck!" I heard a scream. "Guards! The Luna is bleeding!"

Footsteps were rushing down the corridor rattling the metal bars.

"What the hell is going on here?" a guard screamed as keys clattered against the metal bar.

The cell door burst open. Two guards broke their way in and started tearing the fighting women apart.

"Break it up!"

"Enough!"

On my knees, I held  my stomach. My dress was covered with blood. 

"Oh damn," he muttered.

A second guard moved nearer and swore to himself.

"Hospital, we need to take her to the hospital, she may be in labor."

The words echoed in my head. Labor. No. It was too early. I was struck by the pain, this time worse. I shouted a little when another contraction ripped my body.

"Raise her up," the guard on the right said. "Now!"

They hoisted me up, but each action caused a kind of pain in my stomach. 

"Hold on," one of them said.

I could barely hear him. The only thing I could do is to concentrate on the pain. And the fear. Please. Please let my baby be okay. They took me to the pack hospital and the lights there were painfully bright. Voices filled the room.

"Get the healer!"

"She's already bleeding!"

"Hurry!"

Someone helped me onto a bed. The following hours melted. The agony came in waves, each stronger than the last. I held on to the bedside when the healer told me to breathe.

"Push, Isabella, push," the woman said sternly.

And just another contraction tore through me and I screamed.

"I can't-"

"Yes, you can," she replied. "Push!"

Time lost meaning. Pain. Breathing. Pushing. Over and over again. At last I was devoured by fatigue. The final thing I had recalled was the healer screaming something at the nurse. Then everything went dark. 

I opened the eyes and the room was silent. Too quiet. My body felt weak and heavy. The doctor appeared next to my bed, and this was the first thing I saw. His expression was grim. My heart began to race.

"Doctor..." I whispered weakly.

My voice was parched and strange.

"Where... where is my baby?"

The doctor hesitated. It was a little pause that filled my heart with a fear.

"Doctor..." I said in a panicked manner, please. "Let me see my baby."

 She lowered her eyes. Her voice was low when she finally spoke up.

"I'm sorry, Isabella."

My heart stopped.

"The child..."

 She hesitated once more and completed the sentence.

"...was born stillborn."

Isabella's POV

"No."

I said the word without being aware of it.

I could not relax my hands on the thin hospital blanket as I looked at the doctor standing next my bed. Her  face was still serious, and her  eyes were down as though she did not want to see me in the eye.

"I am sorry, Luna Isabella, I am sorry," she said.

I kept on hearing those words.

My baby... stillborn.

"No!" I let out a blood curdling scream. "That's not possible."

I felt my voice shaking and my chest felt tight, panic beginning to build up. I compelled myself to sit up though it was very painful in my body.

"I want to see my baby," I said.

The doctor  did not react right away. She  just stood, with clasped hands before him.

"I want to see my baby!!" I screamed again. 

The nurse who was close to the door moved impatiently.

"That will be impossible," the doctor replied, and said nothing more.

My heart beat was increased by his answer.

"It is not possible, what do you mean by that?" I demanded.

"That's my child," I continued. "You can not simply tell me the baby is dead, and expect  me to take it without seeing--

"The body had been already taken away," she interrupted.

My breath caught in my throat.

"Taken... away?" I repeated slowly.

"Yes," she said. "The matter has been handled."

Handled.

The word sounded so cold.

"That was my child," I whispered.

My face was filled with tears and all the burden came crashing down on me. My baby was gone. I had not even been given a chance to hold my child. I put my hands over my face and wept and wept.

"No..." I sobbed. "No... this can't be real."

The room was silent during a few minutes only, save for the sound of my weeping. And then there was a knock  of the door. The nurse looked up first.

One of the young pack messengers came in.

"Doctor," he said quickly. The Pack Council demands  Isabella be present at the meeting room, now." 

The words  sliced my sorrow like a knife.

"The council?" I repeated hoarsely.

The messenger nodded. "They desire that she should come to the council hall at once."

I let out a weak laugh.

Immediately?

I had just given birth. My body was still sore and heavy and I could hardly sit up.

"Tell them..." I started, my voice shaking. "Tell them I can't-"

"We are to use force should you refuse." The messenger said,forcing me to swallow my remaining words.

The physician heaved a sigh, and gazed at me again.

"I'm afraid you'll have to go."

My heart sank.

Of course. I wasn't the Luna anymore. I was a prisoner. Some minutes later two guards came into the room. They helped me off the bed. Each and every step was painful as I went down the corridor.

My mind felt even worse.

The baby was gone. The same thought kept on replaying in my mind. I had been bearing that child months. I had talked to my baby day by day. 

And now... Even now I was not permitted to look at the body. It seemed a long walk to the council hall. As the big doors were opened, what I saw first was that the elders had been seated.

Elder Rowan was seated in the centre with his face as gloomy as ever.

But something felt strange.

Adrian wasn't there.

I frowned slightly.

Where was he?

Was he mourning the loss of our child?

My eyes were sweeping slowly about the room. The members of the council were mumbling to one another. Some of the pack members were standing close to the walls watching.

It seemed that all the eyes focused on me as I was escorted into the premises by the guards. In the middle of the hall I stopped.

Elder Rowan said in a formal way, "Luna Isabella."

His tone sounded distant.

"We have called you to finalize  some things."

My chest tightened.

Finalize?

The big doors behind me flew open once more before I had an opportunity to inquire what it was. The noise reverberated in the hall. They all looked in the direction of the entrance. I slowly looked back.

Adrian walked in.

My heart skipped.

Painfully I felt relief. Perhaps he had gone to make it all plain. Possibly, he had learned the lesson. But I looked who stood beside him.

Clara.

She moved with dignity alongside Adrian like she was part of him.

My stomach dropped.

Then my gaze went toward her stomach.

The shape could not be missed because her dress was tight around her body.

Clara was pregnant.

My thoughts had completely cleared.

No.

That couldn't be right.

I looked back and forth between Clara and Adrian, who were heading towards the front of the hall.

Clara appeared  totally confident.

Her lips even smiled a little.

They both paused before the seat of the Luna and alpha.

My seat.

I stood with a speechless amazement and Clara walked away and sat down on the chair of the Luna.

Everything appeared to stop.

After which all members stood up and bowed their heads a little.

Elder Rowan stood up from his seat, "Luna Clara." 

The title hit me like a slap.

Luna.

Adrian stood there with her. His hand touched her back lightly. The gesture looked natural. Familiar. It was as though he had done it many times. I could feel the pain in my chest.

I looked about in the face of Adrian.

He looked calm.

Cold. Quite indifferent to the consideration that I was standing only a few feet away. Clara sat back in the chair with ease. She smiled to the members of the council and put her hand on her stomach.

My best friend.

My mate.

Together?

"Luna Clara?"

What was happening?

My voice came out weak.

"Clara..."

She turned her head slowly towards me. For a moment, our eyes met. Her face was free of guilt. No shame. Only quiet satisfaction.

"How are you feeling, Isabella?" Clara asked casually.

Her tonewas rather distant.

Almost.

It was as though the room was spinning.

"You..." I whispered.

My voice became tremulous as the pieces fell together.

The testimony  of Clara at the trial.

Her accusations.

Adrian's silence.

Her pregnancy.

Her sitting in the Luna's seat.

It all suddenly made sense.

The dreadful reality began to sink in the pit of my chest.

Clara had betrayed me.

Not just betrayed me.

She had replaced me.

My dearest friend... had stolen my mate... and my Luna place.

I was chilled to the core of the hall as it had all dawned on me.

Clara Wells was sitting in my seat now.

Beside my mate.

As new Luna of Shadowfang Pack.

Isabella's POV 

"Proceed," Adrian said after he took his seat.

"Long live the alpha." Elder Rowan said and bowed. "We shall now commence the council meeting."

The hall resounded with his voice. I gulp slowly, and I had to remain standing despite the weakness of my legs. 

"Isabella Hart," Elder Rowan said, and stared directly at me. We are told that you gave birth to a child earlier today."

I felt my chest tightening upon hearing the word baby.

"But," he said quickly. "It was a stillborn."

"I would like to see my child," I insisted. "I deserve to see my baby."

None of the elders reacted. The fact that they were not talking increased my frustration.

"I carried that child in my belly for months, he was fine, I stuck to my diets! Even in that cold dungeon!" I said, and my voice shook. "You cannot simply inform me that my baby is dead and not to show me the body. Let me see the body and then I'll believe I have birth to a dead child."

The members of the council looked at each other in a short glance. Then Elder Rowan spoke again.

"The council is already aware of the state of the child. And we did the needful."

"My child is not a condition and one of you oldies have the right to decide what happens to my baby!" I screamed before I could restrain myself.

A number of guards moved a notch higher at my sudden outcry. I didn't care.

"I must see my baby," I said and my voice was breaking. "Please."

For a moment, no one answered.

Then Elder Rowan spoke, in a cold voice.

"The child was born dead, stop insisting on seeing a dead child."

My heart clenched painfully.

"No," I whispered.

"Yes," he said firmly.

Tears filled my eyes. I glanced about the hall, and wished somebody, anybody, would take a little sympathy. But the faces that gazed back upon me wouldn't care if I had shed alongside the son.

I felt completely alone.

Elder Rowan clasped his hands together.

"Your ultimate punishment will be decided by the council soon," he said.

My head lifted slightly.

"Punishment?"

"Yes," he replied. "We are expecting a guest, he added. The final judgement will be given by him."

A guest?

My confusion deepened.

How come that a stranger should determine my destiny?

I turned toward Adrian.

He should be able to do something to prevent this madness.

My voice had softened now, I said, "Adrian. Don't you feel anything? He... was your son... our son.."

"Please," I begged. "Tell them this is a mistake."

Adrian's expression didn't change and he said nothing.

The silence was there between us. "Say something! How can you let them treat me like this! I am your mate! I am your Luna!"

Then Adrian spoke.

"You are neither my mate nor Luna," he said coldly.

The words were an additional blow to my chest.

"What?"

Adrian looked about at Clara, and then his eyes came back to me.

"I have met my mate ," he said.

I was struck by the words as they came.

My breath caught in my throat.

"What... did you say?"

Clara just broke into a little laughter.

"Adrian is speaking the truth," she said.

My eyes slowly moved to her.

She sat back easily in the chair of the Luna.

"You know, Isabella, Adrian and I have found our mate-bond not long after your real self was revealed." 

Her stomach was caressed with her hand.

"The Moon Goddess eventually revealed the truth."

My head shook slowly.

"No."

This couldn't be happening.

"Yes," Clara said to herself, with a little smile. It is rather a shame to you, though. You tried but you could never be the original, the real one. You had spent years by Adrian, and never got his mark."

My heart sank aching.

This was a sensitive topic  between me and Adrian. Even after years of being with me, several nights spent together, he had never maker  me as his mate.

Clara tilted her head slowly to the side revealing her neck.

My breath caught again.

There was a mate mark on her skin.

My stomach knotted in pain.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Clara said proudly.

The words cut deep. I was like the ground had fallen out of my feet.

"Why?" I whispered.

I looked at her as my voice shook.

"Clara... why would you do this?"

"Reveal your true nature?" Clara mocked.

The room felt suffocating. I couldn't breathe properly. The great doors of the hall burst open once more before I had time to reply. All looked toward the entrance. A man, old, was walking slowly in. His hair was entirely white, and he walked slightly with a wooden staff.

As soon as the elders beheld him they rose all respectfully. Everyone rose,except Adrian. 

"And the judge is here," Elder Rowan said.

The elderly wolf slowly made his way to the hall. His quick eyes examined me keenly. I had never seen him before. But all this changed instantly in the room.

He also appeared to be respected by everyone.

"Is this the accused?" he asked.

"Yes," Elder Rowan replied.

The old wolf nodded once.

Then he looked directly at me.

"Isabella Hart," he said.

His voice was old but strong.

"You are guilty of killing Helena Blackwood, mother of Alpha Adrian." 

My stomach twisted.

"According to the testimony of a credible witness, the last punishment has been determined," he went on, very calmly.

The hall was as quiet as death.

My breathing was too loud even to me.

The old wolf raised his staff a little, and spoke again.

"The sentence for your crimes..."

He paused briefly.

"...is death."

My heart stopped.

"You will be burnt before the pack tomorrow at sunrise," he answered.