The Pathetic Husband

ELARA 

I locked the door behind Ronan, hearing his footsteps fade away.

The room was warm and quiet, but my mind was spinning so fast I could barely breathe. I walked over to the bed, sat down on the edge of the bed, and looked down at my shaking hands. My wolf gave another tiny, pathetic whimper deep inside my chest, then went completely quiet again. 

I felt so tired, so useless, and so weak.

I laid down on the soft bed without changing out of my clothes, pulling the blanket up to my chin. 

I thought about Damian, about the way he looked at me in his office like I was nothing more than an annoying problem. I thought about Brielle smirking at me while she fixed her dress.

I rested one hand gently over my stomach, feeling a tear slip down my cheek to the pillow.

"I won't let him take you," I whispered to the quiet room, closing my eyes as sleep finally pulled me under.

~

When I woke up the next morning, bright sunlight was streaming through the bedroom window.

I felt an ache on my head, and my throat was dry, but the overwhelming exhaustion from the night before had cleared up just enough for me to sit up. I checked my phone on the nightstand and saw three missed calls from Damian, along with a text message that made my blood turn cold.

You are making a huge mistake, Elara. Come home right now, or I will make sure your family regrets helping you.

I gripped the phone tightly, my jaw clenching as a rare spark of anger flushed through me. I didn't reply. I deleted the message, swung my legs out of bed, and put on my shoes.

I unlocked the bedroom door and walked out. The house was surprisingly quiet, but as I made my way down the stairs, I heard voices coming from the kitchen.

"She needs to eat something solid today, Kieran," Jace was saying, his tone unusually serious. "She looks like a light breeze could blow her over."

"Her blood pressure was dangerously low last night," Kieran replied quietly. "Her wolf isn't just sleeping, Jace. It feels completely suppressed."

I paused near the kitchen door, holding my breath as I listened.

"Damian said she's been taking pills every night for years," Ronan's deep voice interrupted, sending a chill down my spine. "We need to figure out what those pills actually are before Louis gets here."

I took a step forward, letting my shoes scuff on the floor so they knew I was there. 

"Good morning," I said softly, stepping into the kitchen.

All three brothers turned to look at me instantly.

Ronan was leaning on the counter holding a mug of black coffee, looking tall and broad in a plain grey shirt. Jace was sitting on a stool near the island with a plate of toast, while Kieran stood near the sink, holding a small notepad in his hand.

"Morning, little bird," Jace said, offering me a quick, warm smile as he pushed a plate of fruit toward me. "Look at you, actually awake and walking."

"How are you feeling, Elara?" Ronan asked, setting his mug down and stepping closer to me. His gray eyes searched my face carefully.

"I'm okay," I lied, sitting down on the stool next to Jace. "Just a little headache."

Kieran walked over and placed a glass of water in front of me, his green eyes fixated on mine. "Elara, do you have any of those pills Damian gave you last night?"

I blinked in surprise, looking up at him. "No. I left the bottle at Damian's house in the medicine cabinet."

"Can you describe them to me?" Kieran asked, pulling out a pen. "The shape, the color, any markings on them?"

"They were just plain white pills," I said, frowning as I tried to remember. "Round, very small. Damian always gave them to me right before bed with a glass of water. He said our pack doctor prescribed them specifically for my defective wolf."

"Your pack doctor is Dr. Vance, right?" Kieran asked, writing something down on his pad.

"Yes," I nodded. "He's been treating me since I was twenty-two."

Kieran looked over at Ronan, his brow furrowing slightly. "Dr. Vance retired to Eldermere two years ago, Elara. Damian never mentioned that to you?"

I froze, staring at Kieran in confusion. "What? No... Damian took me to see him at his private clinic just three months ago."

Jace let out a sharp, breathless laugh, shaking his head. "That bastard has been lying to your face."

"Jace," Ronan warned sharply, giving his brother a strict look before turning back to me. His expression softened just a bit. "Elara, Louis is going to be here in an hour. He called from the road. He said Damian showed up at the Voss family home early this morning looking for you."

My heart instantly started to beat so fast. "Did he hurt anyone? Did he talk to my father?"

"Your father told him you weren't there," Ronan said, his deep voice calm as he reached out, laying a reassuring hand on my shoulder. "Damian left without causing a scene, but he knows you're not with your family. He will start checking the club's territory next."

"He can check all he wants," Jace gritted out, leaning his elbows on the counter. "He steps one foot past our gate, and I'll break his jaw myself."

"We need to stay smart," Kieran said quietly, closing his notebook. "Damian is an Alpha with a lot of connections. If he realizes Elara is staying with us, he will use the pack law to claim she was stolen from him."

"She left him because he cheated," Jace argued, turning to face Kieran. "Pack law doesn't protect a cheating husband."

"It does if she doesn't file for a formal separation," Kieran pointed out calmly. 

"And right now, Damian still holds legal authority over her medical care and her home."

I looked down at the glass of water in my hands, feeling that familiar, suffocating feeling creeping back into my chest. "He told me he won't give me a divorce unless I give him the baby."

The entire kitchen went completely silent.

Ronan's hand tightened on my shoulder for a second before he pulled it back, his gray eyes darkening with a terrifying, silent rage.

"He said what?" Ronan asked, his voice dropping so low it was almost a whisper.

"He read the pregnancy test on the floor," I whispered, tears pricking the corners of my eyes again as I remembered Damian's cold face. "He said he would only agree to a divorce if I give him full custody of the child once it's born."

Jace slammed his fist down on the counter, making the plates rattle. "I'm going to kill him. I swear to God, I'm going to rip his throat out."

"You won't kill anyone," Ronan said, his voice flat and commanding, though his own jaw was locked tight. He looked down at me, his eyes dead serious. "He is not taking your child, Elara. Not while I am breathing."

Before anyone else could speak, the loud sound of a car horn echoed from outside the house.

"That's Louis," Kieran said, heading straight for the front door.

I stood up from the stool quickly, but my vision suddenly blurred, and my knees gave out under me.

"Elara!" Jace yelled, reaching out instantly and catching me around the waist before I hit the floor.

Ronan was beside us in a split second, taking me out of Jace's arms and lifting me up into his broad chest as if I weighed nothing at all. He carried me back toward the living room couch, his heart beating fast against my cheek.

"I'm sorry," I gasped out, trying to push myself up, feeling embarrassed. "I just... I got dizzy."

"Stop apologizing and stay still," Ronan ordered gently, laying me down on the soft couch.

The front door slammed open, and my brother Louis rushed into the room, his dark hair messy and his eyes filled with absolute fury.

"Where is she?" Louis demanded, his gaze locking to me on the couch. He rushed over, dropping to his knees beside me, grabbing my hand tightly in his. 

"Elara! Are you okay? What happened?"

"I'm fine, Louis," I said, giving his hand a soft squeeze. "I just got a little lightheaded."

Louis looked up at the three Blackwood brothers standing around the couch, his face twisted with anger and worry. "I spoke to Damian two hours ago. He called my phone."

Ronan narrowed his eyes. "What did he say?"

"He said Elara is unstable," Louis said, his voice shaking with rage. "He said she made up the story about Brielle because of her weak wolf affecting her mind. And then he told me that if she doesn't come home by tonight, he's filing a report with the council stating that you three kidnapped his wife.”