Chapter Three

FIONA

I was wobbling in pain when I got home. My mother opened the door for me and she saw my state but could not be bothered, she only told me to quickly bathe and eat so that I could resume my work at 9am.

“Mother, I am not going back there again.” I leaned on the wobbly dining table, trying to catch my breath.

“Why?’ She snapped, her eyes burning with fire. “Look at the state of your father!” she pointed to his pale body laying discarded on our patched-up sofa. “His condition worsened through out the night. We will lose him if you continue to be lazy Fiona.”

I retrieved the stacks of hundreds and thousands of dollars from my bag and laid it on the table. Her mouth opened in shock. “I don’t have to work for up to six months if we can properly manage this money better. Also, Lisa and Sam can resume school, while dad can be treated better.

Her fingers massaged the crisp dollar bills. “Where did you get this amount of money from?”

My mind flashed to the passionate sex from last night and then the near-death rejection. I turned away from her. “It’s not important.”

“Did you steal it?” She raised her voice.

“Do you want me to return it?” I yelled ack, my exhaustion giving way to anger.

She fell quiet, her shoulders slacking. 

“Just as I thought. So please, take the money and let me be please.”

I held myself together as I walked up the stairs. I didn’t want her to see that I was in pieces. It would lead to more questions and I would have to talk about the rejection. In my pack, rejected wolves were treated worse than dormant wolves.

As I stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror, I knew that I was in even greater trouble. I was pregnant. My wolf told me. Wolf pregnancies only lasted for two months and in two weeks, my stomach would be the size of a medium sized pot. If he rejected me, he would also reject this baby. An unmated pregnant wolf was even worse than a rejected wolf and dormant wolf put together.

I sat on the toilet seat, perplexed. What was I going to do? I knew that the Alpha had no heirs yet. If he knew that I was carrying a potential heir, would he be more open-minded to accepting me as his? My chances of having a chosen mate would reduce drastically if I gave birth to an unmarked child.

I had to let him know somehow. Travel all the way to the inner city and maybe face a second humiliation. It was better than the mockery I would face here all my life.

SERGIUS

As I slipped into the car, I could still feel the shock from the severed mate-bond. What I did was for the best or that’s what I like to think. My knuckles which had long healed were bleeding again. My phone rang beside me and it was my Beta. When I picked he told me that there was another emergency meeting and I needed to be there as soon as possible. I looked at my watch. Five thirty-eight am. Just wow.

“We’ve found a solution.” Elder Morteus said as soon as I stepped into the throne room. The elders were all standing and they sat when I did. I edged closer towards them. “Tell me more.”

“You would have to give birth to a child within the year of the blood moon.”

“And that will stop my madness how?” My eyebrows quipped.

“A child ensures the continuity of your lineage. It means that there would be no end to your bloodline.”

I sat back up in my chair, a trifle disappointed. Fair point. It didn’t stop my death, but it was a solution anyways. I have been to focused on leading my kingdom than raising a family. I was ready to try.

“And since the moon goddess has not mated you yet, we have come up with a solution.” Elder Ciana spoke up.

“You had a mate,” my wolf chided me. I shut him down.

“Yeah? What is the solution?”

“Here,” One said, stretching his hand out and a lady I did not notice who was seating daintily at the corner of the room, walked gracefully towards us.  I locked puzzled gazes with my beta standing at my side. What was this?

The lady was very beautiful. She was dressed in a regal blue dress and her strawberry blonde hair was perfectly styled into a ponytail.

“This is Yvonne Chenille, crowned princess of the prestigious Chenille pack.” Morteus cleared his throat. “We have brought her here because we believe that she would be the perfect Luna for you, Alpha.’

This had to be a sick joke. I surveyed their unsmiling faces. “Who do you think you all are, trying to make decisions for me and forcing your choice down my throat. Where is my Liberty to choose? What you should have done was to assemble the ten best and let me pick.”

“But, Alpha, we the elders have chosen her as our Luna. In fact, we suggest that you both get engaged tonight.”

I stood up quickly. “Because I am sick, does not eradicate my right to choose. I am very capable of making a healthy decision.”

“Alpha, it is not the way you see it.” Ne tried to appease. “We stayed up all night, sorting and eliminating, and we have come to this conclusion. She is perfect, and she ticks all the boxes.”

“We don’t have time Alpha.” Morteus continued. “We need you to be wedded immediately so that we can determine her fertility.”

I gave her my outstretched hands, she took it and I pulled her closer. I surveyed her silent beautiful form. This was a lot better than some faded girl in shabby clothes.

“But what if it doesn’t work?” I asked them.

“Then we would set up a breeding station for you.”

I nodded once and kissed the back of her hand. “The wedding preparations will start in earnest, but it will not take place until the full moon, I’d like to know her better.”

“Your Majesty...” Morteus tried to interrupt. But the rest chorused as “As you wish, your majesty.” And shut him up.