Chapter 2

Vivienne Fox

Zara's voice tore through the fog clouding my mind like glass shattering in silence.

"Vivienne?" Her voice was thin, terrified, and it barely reached me through the dizzying hum in my ears. The room swayed.

The floor felt too far below, the walls too close. I clutched at the chair, breathing like I'd forgotten how.

"Oh God," Zara whispered, helping me sit.

Her hands cold, shaking cupped my face, trying to ground me. "What's happening to

you?"

"I'm fine," I lied, but my voice came out slurred, like my mouth no longer belonged to me. My skull throbbed with each heartbeat.

"No, you're not." Her grip on my jaw was firm, and her fear,

it wasn't silent anymore. It was loud.

Desperate. "Viv, you barely eat. You've been fainting for days."

"I just haven't been sleeping-"

"This isn't just exhaustion." Her voice broke.

"Something's wrong."

I couldn't look at her. Couldn't say it.

Because the truth was already clawing at my throat.

***

"You're pregnant," Dr. Oliver said. "Three weeks."

The room was silent. Cold. And suddenly very small.

I laughed— a hollow, shaky sound that didn't feel like mine. "You're joking."

His stare could've cut bone. "Do I look like

I'm joking?"

No. He looked disappointed. Angry. Like I'd personally betrayed the entire medical wing.

He shoved the scan into my hands like evidence of a crime. My fingers trembled as I stared at the proof-tiny, blurred, undeniable.

My lips parted. I couldn't breathe. "What...

What happens now?"

His face twisted. "The Alpha will decide."

No. No, no, no.

"Exile is on the table. Or worse," he added quietly. "You know what they call girls who get pregnant without a mate, Vivienne."

Slut. Curse. Shame.

"I didn't mean for this to happen," I whispered, voice cracking.

"Who's the father?"

I couldn't say it. The name clawed its way to the tip of my tongue but burned too much to be spoken.

"I-I can't," I choked. "I'm sorry."

His tone sharpened. "Is it someone from our pack? Do you even know who it is?"

"Stop," I begged, tears slipping down. "It's not like that—he's not—"

He wasn't mine. Not really.

"I just need to talk to the Alpha-"

He laughed. Cold. Merciless. "The Alpha?

On the day his fated mate arrives? He doesn't have time for your mess."

Every word sliced deeper.

"He'll give Garrick the order, and you'll be dealt with. Quietly."

I stood. My knees shook. My hands flew to my stomach instinctively, protectively. "I can't... I won't get rid of it," I said, voice barely above a whisper. "I'll take whatever punishment he gives me. But I won't kill this baby."

He sighed-long and heavy, like I was already lost. "Then leave. Before he finds

out. Before anyone else does. This is your one chance, Vivienne Fox. Take it."

He shoved a bag of medication into my hands and turned away. Just like that.

—

I wasn't supposed to hear what I did next.

But fate has a cruel sense of timing.

I paused outside Garrick's quarters-drawn by the sound of Darius' voice. Of his voice.

"When did you know Celestria was your mate?" Garrick asked.

I stopped breathing.

"I noticed her scent," Darius replied. His voice was quiet. Controlled. "It was... different."

Different. That's all it took.

"You're sure she's the one?"

"I'm sure."

There it was. Confirmation. Like a knife sliding beneath my ribs.

"She'll give you an heir. Strengthen our alliance. That's all that matters," Garrick said.

"I'll mark her if I must," Darius murmured.

Garrick hesitated. "You once said you'd never mark anyone."

"She's the only one I could ever accept," Darius said flatly.

And me? I was just a body he touched in the dark.

And I wanted to leave.

Goddess, I should’ve. But of course—he scented me before I even reached the doorway. His eyes found me like they always did, locking on like heat-seeking fire.

“Can you leave me, for now?” he said without looking, voice sharp.

“Yes, Alpha,” his Beta replied, stepping out without hesitation.

I moved in slowly. Every step heavy. Every heartbeat louder than the last. I already knew. I'd heard it all—about her. The perfect princess. The Luna-to-be. The one he'd give an heir to like it was his duty, his destiny.

And somehow… I wondered if he’d ever even accept a child from me.

If he knew.

If he ever cared enough to want to know.

“I’m sorry,” he said flatly. “I should’ve told you earlier we wouldn’t be meeting again, but I’ve been busy. There’s no time.”

“That’s not why I’m here, Alpha Darius.”

“Then what?” he snapped, not even trying to hide his impatience as he checked the time. “You’re interrupting something.”

“You’re waiting for someone?” I asked, biting the inside of my cheek.

No response. Just the click of his watch as he twisted it tighter on his wrist.

I swallowed hard, wiping my face. “You see—”

“Vivienne.” His voice sliced through mine like a command. “It’s time.”

I blinked. “Time… what?”

“To break everything off. To end our agreement.”

Just like that. Cold. Formal. No hesitation.

“And you didn’t think to tell me the moment you find out she’s your mate?” My voice cracked. “You really only cared about my body.”

He raised a brow, unapologetic. “That’s what it always was, wasn’t it? Don’t pretend you came here for love.”

I clutched my forehead, the sting behind my eyes unbearable. “I gave you everything.”

“And I gave you what you needed,” he said coldly. “Shelter. Silence. Release. You weren’t supposed to stay long enough to confuse that with something real.”

“I’m sorry, Vivienne,” he added, voice suddenly gentle—and somehow worse for it. He reached out, touched my shoulder, like he had the right. “But I need you to leave. Now. Before they come.”

“They?” I echoed, numb.

“I can’t let them see that I’ve been keeping a dirty—”

“I’m dirty now?” I whispered.

He paused. “That’s not what I—”

“No. Say it.” My voice cracked, low and sharp. “Go on, Alpha. You meant it.”

He exhaled, looking everywhere but me. “It’s not personal. It’s just... I can’t let you ruin everything I’ve built. Not you. Not this. It’s over.”

This.

Not us.

Not even me. Just this. Like I was a sin he regretted.

My heart shattered so violently my wolf whimpered inside me. But I still managed to smile. That's the curse, isn’t it? Omegas always learn how to smile through ruin.

And then the door opened.

She walked in like a painting—Celestria. Regal. Stunning. The future.

“Am I early?” she asked, her voice like silk.

“No,” he said, without missing a beat. “You’re right on time.”

And then she kissed him, he didn’t even push her away, and look at me after.

“Who is she?”

“Just an Omega who served me food.”

The room went silent.

So did my soul.

His words scorched my skin like wildfire, ripping through everything I had ever believed about us.

Not the pack. Not the others.

Him.

I could’ve braced for cruelty from anyone—anyone—except Darius.

Tears prickled, hot and unforgiving behind my eyes. But I refused to let them fall.

Not here. Not in front of her. Not in front of him.

I swallowed hard, my voice trembling with everything I couldn’t scream.

“I… I need to tell you something.”

But he didn’t even look at me.

“What are you staring at?” His voice dropped, sharp and cold. “Leave. You’re making Princess Celestria uncomfortable.”

I stood frozen, disbelief and betrayal flooding my veins like venom.

“But Darius—”

He stepped forward, towering, expression unreadable but cruel.

“Leave, Vivienne.”

My name in his mouth sounded like filth. Something inside me snapped.

I wasn’t just heartbroken.

I was done.

I walked out of that room like a ghost—empty, numb, hollowed out from the inside.

And yet—

my hands still fluttered to my belly.

The secret I’d been trying to share… moved. A soft flutter, like a whisper from the universe.

Like he was reminding me he was still there.

I collapsed outside, behind the elder trees where no one could see me cry.

My knees hit the earth, hands trembling against my stomach as the moonlight spilled over me.

“I still have you,” I whispered, sobbing quietly.

“You’re mine. You’re the only piece of him that didn’t destroy me.”

I wanted to hate the child inside me.

I wanted to scream and rip this bond out, to forget every breath tied to his name.

But then I remember I wasn’t supposed to exist. I was the miracle my mother bled to keep alive. And now, here I was… carrying a life I couldn’t protect, from a man who didn’t even look back.

He had no crown.

No rank.

No title.

But he had me.

And I’d never let anyone—not even his father—break him like I had been broken.

I rose, slowly, like something reborn from the ashes.

If Darius wanted to forget me, he could.

But one day…

he would look into our son’s eyes and see himself.

And that would be the curse I left behind.