Divorce

Calista’s POV

“I’m sorry your highnesses…”

No.

“We tried our best…”

No please…

“But the child couldn’t be saved.”

The physician’s words rang in my head like a broken record, but I didn’t want to believe it.

My trembling hand reached for my stomach, desperately searching for the gentle warmth that had become so familiar over the past few months.

“My baby….” I muttered deliriously, shaking my head. “Where’s my baby….”

A suffocating ache spread through my chest, making it hard to breathe.

I gasped for air as tears streamed uncontrollably down my cheeks, tightening my grip on the bed sheets.

The harsh reality settled heavily on my shoulders, crushing my heart and soul with its weight. Just yesterday, I had imagined holding them in my arms, wondering whose eyes they would inherit.

Now there was nothing left.

My baby was gone

I was so consumed by grief that I didn’t notice when Aldrid and his parents walked in.

Queen Helena faced the physician, her expression set in stone. “How could this happen?”

He hesitated before answering, lowering his gaze. “After the examinations we conducted, we found traces of substances in the princess’s body that are known to be harmful during pregnancy.”

“What?!” Queen Helena snapped, her wolf aura flaring.

He nodded solemnly. “We couldn’t determine how they entered her body, but they are the most likely cause of the miscarriage.”

My brows furrowed, wondering what that could mean. I had been extremely careful throughout my pregnancy, so how was that possible?

Queen Helena slowly turned toward me, her eyes blazing with rage.

“You…” she pointed at me, her voice sharp and cutting. “How could you be so careless?”

My eyes rounded.

“I-I wasn’t…” There was a crack in my voice, “Your Majesty, I would never—”

“You had one responsibility!” she shouted, cutting me off. “One! We entrusted the future of this kingdom to you, and you couldn’t even protect our heir!”

“No…” my lips quivered, her accusation searing through my already wounded heart. “I didn’t do anything… I swear…”

Queen Helena’s face twisted in disgust, looking nothing like the woman who had held my hand only days ago, offering advice on how to care for myself during my pregnancy.

Only now did I realize it had never been about me. It was always about the heir.

“I never expected much from a lowly omega like you,” she spat. “I convinced myself that your rare Moonborn bloodline would amount to something, but it seems everything good about your kind died along with them.”

I squeezed my eyes shut, chest heaving as my teeth sank into my bottom lip.

“Helena,” King Edric placed a hand on her shoulder. “Enough.”

She glared at me still, looking like she wanted to say more but didn’t. King Edric whispered something in her ear, and only then did she oblige, following him out of the room.

Aldrid stayed behind, and I couldn’t bring myself to look at him.

“There’s one more thing….” The physician broke the silence, his expression turning grave.

I unconsciously held my breath, bracing myself for what he was about to say.

“The miscarriage caused extensive damage to your womb…”

Every nerve in me went rigid.

“And I’m afraid… it is highly unlikely that you’ll ever be able to conceive again.”

That was it.

The final blow.

It felt as though the last piece of me had been ripped away, reducing me to nothing more than an empty shell.

My mind went blank, trying to make sense of everything.

I lost my child….and now….the future I had spent months dreaming about crumbled before my eyes.

Slowly and dreadfully, I raised my gaze.

Aldrid stared back at me, his jaw set tight. He didn’t say a word, and in his eyes I searched for something more.

I didn’t expect him to tell me everything would be alright.

I didn’t expect him to hold me.

But after everything we’d just lost…

I wanted him to at least acknowledge my pain.

“…Aldrid…” Fresh tears welled in my eyes, “Please…..say something…”

He held my gaze for a long moment, then, his lips parted.

“Pathetic.”

With that, he turned on his heel and walked out, slamming the door shut behind him.

My whole body shook as I buried my face in my hands, and the physician quietly excused himself.

I cried until my throat burned and my eyes stung, curling into myself as though I could somehow keep myself from falling apart.

****

Eventually, my tears ran dry, and I found myself staring blankly out the window.

My entire life, I had done exactly as I was told.

The Council taught me never to question. Never to argue. Obey first, no matter how unfair it seemed.

And I always had.

But this time…

I couldn’t.

I hadn’t done what they accused me of. I would never have done anything to harm my child, and right now, I just needed one person to hear me out.

Taking a shaky breath, I forced myself out of bed. I had to speak to Aldrid. I knew he was disappointed, but I would try to make him understand.

Soon I reached his chambers, but my steps faltered when I heard muffled voices through the small opening of the doors.

“I’m so sorry for your loss,” I instantly recognized Seraphine’s voice.

“Don’t be,” Aldrid answered, his voice soft and soothing. “It’s that stupid omega’s fault.”

The insult dug deep.

At the end of the day, I was just an omega to him.

Seraphine started to cry, and I could imagine Aldrid wiping away her tears, something he would never do for me.

“But…I feel so guilty…” she sniffled, “I shouldn’t have kept Calista’s secret.”

My brows furrowed.

“What secret?” Aldrid voiced my thoughts

A beat of silence passed.

“She begged me not to tell anyone…” Seraphine continued, causing dread to pool in my stomach.

“Every time we had lunch together, I warned her not to drink alcohol or take anything that could harm the baby, but… she insisted it wouldn’t matter.”

My jaw hit the floor.

“What?!” Aldrid roared, and I shivered as I felt his Alpha aura spike.

“I thought she’d stop…” Seraphine cried, “If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve told the Queen immediately.”

“No!” I shoved the doors open, unable to contain myself. “She’s lying!”

They both turned toward me. Seraphine seemed startled, while Aldrid’s eyes darkened.

“I never did any of that!” My chest heaved. “I would never endanger my child!”

Aldrid rose to his feet, closing the distance between us in quick strides.

“How dare you?”

I winced as he snatched my arm, his nails digging into my skin.

“I was generous enough to let you be, but it seemed you're aching to be punished.”

Before I could react, he flung me to the ground. My body skidded across the floor, slamming against a stone pillar.

I yelped as he grabbed a fistful of my hair, forcing me to look up at him.

“Aldrid, please listen to me! She—”

“Enough!” He pulled harder, cutting me off. “You think this is a game?”

Just then, my gaze met Seraphine’s. She hid behind her hands, pretending to be shocked, but the satisfaction gleaming in her bright blue eyes told a different story.

At that moment, my mind wandered back to the baby shower. I remembered the sinister smirk that had flashed across Seraphine’s lips just before I collapsed. And at the time, I thought I imagined it. But now… everything clicked into place.

It was her.

She was the one behind it.

But before I could say anything, Aldrid hurled me to my feet and threw me out of his chambers.

I crumbled to the ground, and for a long while, I simply knelt there, staring at the polished floor.

Then the whispers began, hovering over me like a dark cloud.

“What a disgrace.”

“I heard she drank while carrying the baby.”

“She’s useless now.”

“She can’t even give His Highness another child.”

Each word struck harder than the last, but at the same time, I couldn’t feel anything.

I returned to my chambers not long after, moving through the halls like a ghost.

As I stood in the middle of the room, my gaze drifted over the walls that had been my home for the past three years.

What was left for me here?

I could no longer give Vargath an heir. Aldrid despised me. And the hope I clung to had withered away.

So with that, I came to a conclusion, one that threatened everything I stood for.

Taking a deep breath, I walked over to my desk and pulled out a sheet of paper. As I raised my pen, I blinked back the tears that threatened to fall, letting my heart bleed into the ink.

‘To the Council of Wolves,

I am requesting that my marriage to Alpha Prince Aldrid be dissolved.

I can no longer fulfill the duty for which I was sent to Vargath. Since I am unable to bear children, there is no reason for this marriage to continue.’

After folding the letter and slipping it into the envelope, I felt strangely relieved.

The thought of finally putting myself first strengthened my resolve.

But not long after I sent the letter…

“Calista!”

Aldrid burst into my room.

And I had never seen him this angry.

“What is this?” he demanded, shoving a piece of paper in front of me.

I narrowed my eyes to examine it, and my blood ran cold.

It was my letter.

How did it get to him?

“You want a divorce?” His voice dropped to a dangerous whisper, his Alpha aura pressing down on me like an invisible weight.

Every instinct told me to back away, to shake my head and tell him it was all a mistake.

But I didn’t.

Instead, I squared my shoulders, my heartbeat drumming in my ears.

“Yes,” I answered, my voice quiet but steady.

“I want a divorce.”