Aria’s POVThe wind was cold as we walked away from the pack that had saved us during the rogue ambush and child labor. I came in with a pregnancy but now they said my pup died. Tavin claimed the Gracie child was mine, but Freya, my wolf, doesn't acknowledge the child as mine. I held my arms close to my chest, though it wasn’t just the cold that made me shiver. It was everything, the pain, the loss, the truth still sinking in.Beside me, Kael walked silently. His jaw was tight, eyes ahead, like he was ready for anything. But I knew him. I could feel the storm inside him. The same storm lived inside me.Behind us, Alpha Lucien stood still. He didn’t try to follow. Not yet.Instead, it was Damian leading the way now.Damian. The man who once said he had killed both our mothers. The same man who now promised to protect us. I didn’t trust him. Not completely. Maybe not at all.But Kael and I had no choice. We couldn’t stay with Lucien. We couldn’t return to Mooncroft Pack, not after every
Alpha Lucien’s POV“Bring the baby,” I commanded, my voice echoing coldly through the small healer’s quarters.Gracie froze mid-step, her shoulders stiffening as though my words had struck her like a slap. She didn’t turn to face me. Instead, she clutched the infant closer to her chest and took a step backward.“Gracie,” I growled, standing up slowly from the chair, my patience thinning. “I said bring me the child.”She glanced over her shoulder, her eyes wild and unreadable. “You’re not taking my son,” she whispered.Before I could respond, she spun and ran out of the room. I surged forward, but Kael stepped in front of me.“Let her go,” he said flatly, his voice low and dangerous.I stopped short, breathing heavily. My eyes narrowed on him, anger prickling under my skin. “You don’t understand what’s at stake.”“No,” he said, “I understand exactly what’s at stake. That’s why I’m not letting you touch that baby.”“That child is Mooncroft blood,” I said. “I need him. The sacrifice…”“Y
Alpha Lucien’s POV“Alpha!”The soldier’s voice rang through the corridor, desperate and shaking. I didn’t need to ask who he was or what this was about. I’d been waiting for news all day, restless, on edge, a storm building in my chest.He burst into the room, dirt and blood smeared across his uniform. His eyes wouldn’t meet mine.I stood from the desk, my instincts prickling. “Speak.”He swallowed hard. “We were ambushed.”My heart stilled.“What?”“Rogue wolves, Alpha. We didn’t see them coming, they came from all directions.”My jaw tightened. “Where?”“At the southern ridge, near the border of the Dark Pine territory.”“Where Kael and Aria were hiding,” I said under my breath.He nodded. “Yes, Alpha. We tracked Gracie there as ordered, but something went wrong. There was magic, and then chaos. We tried to intervene, but the ambush was coordinated. It wasn’t random.”“And Kael?” I asked. “Aria?”“They survived… but Alpha, there’s something else.” The soldier hesitated.“What is it
Aria’s POV“No!”The scream tore from my throat, raw and broken, as the healer’s words echoed in my ears.Tears streamed down my face, hot and bitter. I couldn’t stop them, not when my entire world had shattered in a moment. The child I had carried, the little heartbeat I’d felt fluttering inside me for months, was gone.Kael rushed to my side, pulling me into his arms. I clung to him, but I was numb.“I’m so sorry, Aria,” he whispered into my hair. His voice cracked, even though he didn’t cry. I could feel the pain rolling off him in waves, deep and restrained.“You have to take heart,” he said again.Take heart?How could I take heart when the pup I had loved before even seeing her face… was dead?I carried her through war, betrayal, exile. I starved to keep her fed. I fought to keep her safe. And now… she was just gone.I pulled away slightly, my voice shaky. “What happened? Where is she?”It was the first time I’d managed to ask the question, where my daughter was. What they had d
Gracie’s POVI couldn’t breathe.Pain shot through my body, stronger than anything I’d ever felt before. My eyes widened, and I looked down, gasping. Warm water ran down my legs.No. Not now.We are in the midst of something important, Kael must follow me back to the pack, that's the promise I made when I was about to leave the cell. Alpha Lucien promised me that I would be release if I could bring him back alive. I staggered, holding my stomach. “No, no, no…please not now,” I whispered, but the pain didn’t stop. It grew sharper, stronger, deeper.Then I looked up, and saw her.Aria.She was hunched over, holding her belly just like me. Her face twisted in pain. She let out a cry, one that made my skin crawl, not because I hated her, but because I knew what it meant.We were both in labor.At the same time.Kael’s head snapped around. “Aria!” he yelled, rushing toward her.Of course, he went to her. Not to me. I was the one who didn't carried his child. I was the one suffering. And s
Kael’s POVThe wind shifted before I saw her. A foul, familiar scent drifted through the trees, twisting into the air like a warning. Then, from the edge of the woods, Gracie stepped out.My body went still.Her eyes locked onto mine, wild, burning, yet triumphant. Her swollen belly was clearly visible beneath her cloak. She looked thinner than I remembered, but not weak. No, there was something sharp in her presence, like a dagger hidden beneath silk.And then her gaze snapped toward Aria.“Aria, you foolish girl,” Gracie spat, her voice loud and venomous. “You think you can take my mate from me?”I stepped in front of Aria instinctively, but Gracie’s eyes were already glowing with unstable magic. Before I could react, she launched herself into the air, fueled by a dark burst of power, and flew toward us.“Gracie, stop!” I shouted, but she wasn’t listening.She shot at Aria like a cursed arrow.But Aria was ready.With a smooth motion, Aria raised her arm and caught Gracie’s wrist in