Chapter 6

The excited voices outside faded away.

An invisible fist clamped around my heart, squeezing the air from my lungs. The pain spread from my chest through my entire body.

Seraphina was pregnant?

With Austen’s child?

Two hours later, Austen finally returned.

He looked flustered, but he was trying to hide it behind a mask of nonchalance.

"Evelyn, about Sera's pregnancy, I need to explain."

I put down my book and looked at him.

"The baby isn't mine," he said, walking toward me, his tone certain. "It has to be her ex's. She just broke her bond with her previous mate, right? The timing fits perfectly."

He said it so casually, as if it were a minor inconvenience.

"So?" I asked calmly.

"So, you don't need to worry." He sat beside me, trying to pull me into a hug. "There's nothing wrong between us. You're overthinking this."

Overthinking?

I looked at his matter-of-fact expression, and a wave of sadness washed over me.

Did he really think a few simple words would put me at ease?

Did he think I was still the same foolish woman who would forgive anything he said?

Just then, I heard laughter from outside the window.

My gaze drifted down to the garden.

Seraphina was standing there, surrounded by a crowd of fawning girls.

She had one hand on her stomach, a satisfied smile on her face.

It wasn't the look of a nervous, first-time mother.

It was the smug look of a victor.

When she thought no one was looking, she glanced up toward the main building, a sly glint in her eye.

In that instant, I understood everything.

The child was Austen's.

In my past life, this never happened.

Seraphina was never pregnant, and she certainly never had a child with Austen.

Was it my distance this time that pushed them together?

Was it my coldness that made him seek comfort in her arms?

"I get it," I said, standing up again and walking to my closet.

"Get what?" Austen frowned.

"I get that you two are a perfect match." I shoved the rest of my clothes into my suitcase. "Now that she's having a baby, your future together is even more secure."

"Evelyn, what are you talking about?" His tone grew impatient. "I told you the baby isn't mine. Why won't you believe me?"

"It doesn't matter if I believe you or not," I said, closing the suitcase. "What matters is, I'm leaving."

His face changed. "What?"

"You heard me." I dragged my suitcase to the door. "I'm leaving."

"No!" He shot to his feet, physically blocking my path. "You can't leave. You are my Luna. And you are carrying our child!"

"A child?" I scoffed. "Aren't you more concerned about the one in Seraphina's belly?"

"It's not mine!" he snapped, growing agitated. "Evelyn, stop being unreasonable!"

Unreasonable.

That word extinguished the last bit of warmth in my soul.

"Fine." I moved around him. "Since I'm so unreasonable, you don't have to worry about me anymore."

"Where could you possibly go?" he demanded, his voice dripping with terrifying confidence. "Outside this pack, you are nothing. You have nothing."

His voice was dripping with a terrifying confidence.

As if I was his property, and I could never truly leave him.

I didn't answer. I just walked out of the room.

Downstairs, I made a call on a secure line.

"It's me, Evelyn," I whispered. "Arrange for pickup. I'm leaving ahead of schedule."

"Understood, Master. We'll meet at the old oak tree on the back hill in two hours."

After hanging up, I glanced at the clock.

Two hours to go.

I headed to the back garden to wait.

Night fell, and the pack grew quiet.

I sat alone on a stone bench, watching the distant lights.

This place was once my home.

Now, it was the place I was most desperate to escape.

When the time was almost up, I started toward the back hill.

The moonlight was faint, the path rugged.

I walked carefully, trying not to make a sound.

Finally, I reached the old oak tree.

I saw a figure waiting in the shadows.

"You came."

A familiar voice.

My heart sank.

It wasn't my contact from the Alliance.

It was Seraphina.

She stepped out of the shadows, a cold smirk on her face.

In the moonlight, her expression was sinister.

"Surprised?" she purred, stroking her belly. "The men you were waiting for? Let's just say they've been... detained. Permanently."

I took a step back. "What do you want?"

"To send you on your way, of course." She pulled a black crystal from her robes. "Since you want to leave so badly, you can just never come back."

The crystal began to glow with an eerie red light, a foul energy filling the air.

"The Soul-Devouring Curse," I recognized the forbidden magic.

"Clever girl," she sneered, chanting an ancient spell. "But you're too late."

"You and that little bastard in your belly can go to hell together!"

A spear of black energy shot from the crystal, aimed right at my stomach.

A searing pain tore through my consciousness.

I could feel the small life inside me writhing in agony, its faint heartbeat fading fast.

"No! My baby!"

I desperately summoned my healing energy to fight back, a silver light clashing with the black curse.

But the curse was too strong. I couldn't block it all.

"Hahaha!" Seraphina's laughter was manic. "After you're dead, I'll be Austen's Luna! It's all your fault for stealing everything that was mine!"

I felt the life inside me growing weaker, about to slip into an eternal sleep.

"My baby..." A silent scream tore through me for the child I was about to lose. "I'm so sorry..."

My vision went black, and I collapsed onto the cold, rocky ground.

Before I lost consciousness, I heard Seraphina's triumphant voice.

"No one can save you now."