Chapter 1

MAELIS

"My lady, you have to push with more strength," The midwife urged with a strained voice.

The room was smothering with heat, the resulting sweat ran down my temples like the dripping drench of water, mingling with the tears that wet my lids at the burning sensation from below, "I can't," I muttered weakly, my hands digging into the bloodstained sheets below.

"You have to, just one more push, the baby is almost out," The midwife said, popping her head upward to give me a quick concerned glance.

"Push, my lady!" She directed one more.

My teeth gnashed, agony ripping through me like lightning zapping through the sky, I threw my head back and let out a loud cry, pushing with all my might, my body trembled, my mind split into fragments of anguish....Then, it all stopped.

A sharp cry broke through the silence, loud, unmistakable.

My baby was here.

"It's a boy," The midwife cried with joy and my lips tugged back into a faint relieved smile.

My eyes clouded with an haziness, the baby's wail lulling me to sleep.

I don't know how long I was out for, could have been an hour, or a couple of minutes but when I opened my eyes, it took a moment for them to adjust to the candlelit room.

The hearth crackled with the sound of burning wood, providing an additional source of light.

Compared to earlier, the number of people in the room had drastically reduced, leaving two midwives who were speaking in hushed voices in a corner of the room.

With some difficulty, I dragged myself to sit upright, garnering both of their attention with the effort, "Bring my child to me," I commanded weakly.

Right after I woke up, I had darted a quick glance around but caught no sight of my child and assumed he had been taken away to be clothed.

"Where's Ronan?" I added after, my gaze sweeping down to the bloodstained sheet that still remained wrapped around me.

Shouldn't somebody have changed them?

Ronan should have been here as well, to witness the birth of his child but he wasn't.

"Get the tonic," One of the midwives signalled the other, heading towards me.

"Didn't you hear me, I asked for my child to be brought to me," I repeated, my frown deepening.

Compared to the concerned look from earlier, there was an iciness in her gaze now and rather than answer, she turned to face the other woman who had returned with the requested tonic, "Drink this Luna, it will calm your nerves.”

Luna, the word soothed my worry.

Ronan had promised I would be crowned today, I would officially be known as his wife, I no longer had to be subjected to the shadows, hidden from sight.

My gaze lifted to the drink in the bowl, the smell of boiled herbs merging with the coppery scent of blood in the room.

There was one smell I however could not miss, the smell of Thornmilk sap, the swiftest acting sedative for our kind.

My gaze grew guarded, "I'm not drinking that, take it away."

"Where's my child?" I demanded with an anxious urgency.

"You need to rest, my Lady. This will help" She responded, lifting the bowl to my lips.

I slapped it away, the content and the bowl itself splattering onto the ground.

A gleam of impatience flashed through the eyes of the midwife and she turned to her companion, "Brew another tonic."

Something was wrong, terribly wrong.

'I had to see Ronan, maybe he could get them to listen to him,' I thought, dragging myself off the bed whilst ignoring the burning sensation between my thighs and the trickle of blood that made its way down my legs.

"You can't leave my Lady," The midwife stepped forward to bar my path.

"Get out of my way!" I snapped with a hoarse voice.

She reached to hold me back and I shoved her out of my path with a strength I did not think I could muster, heading straight for the door.

Each step I took felt like a march towards a bloody battlefield yet I forced myself to go on.

As I made my way down the hallway, cheers and applause reached me and the low chattering of voices came to me.

I followed it until I reached the great hall, grabbing the walls for support until he came into view.

Ronan, standing atop a dais, our child safely tucked into one of his arms.

My Father, the Alpha king of Pyreth, stood next to him, with a stony face, a look he regularly wore.

“Today, we celebrate the birth of my heir, The future of Pyreth!” Ronan proclaimed and another terrific applause followed his words, a roar of approval.

Like he knew I was there, his gaze found me, I smiled at him, relieved, vulnerable and grateful, expecting a smile in return, I got none.

He withdrew his gaze, returning them to the crowd, "Now, let's all bear witness..."

My breath hitched, it was time. A frown crossed my face the next moment, I didn't look presentable.

Still, I waited. Waited with bated breath for him to announce me as his bride, his Luna.

But my world came crashing down a minute later, when Ronan said, "Serina, daughter of Pyreth, is to be my Luna, Mother of my child."

Mo...Mother of his child? What did he mean by that?

The words stunned me in place and I only reacted when Serina stepped into view, clad in a stunning Red gown, hair brushed down her back like tidal waves. She took Ronan’s hands and stepped next to him, a satisfied smile on her face.

No, no, this had to be an illusion.

"There is no way this is true,” I mumbled, staggering forward but before I could move past the tall stone column that hid me from plain sight, I was intercepted by two guards.

They held me back like they had been waiting for me to make a move and I never got to reach the dais.

"No, let me go! That's my son!" I struggled against their hold.

My mouth was muffled before I could scream and I was dragged away, a crimson trail of blood left in my wake.