Chapter 3

A few days later, I secretly summoned our trusted physician.

He sensed the change in my scent. He slid the ultrasound probe over my lower abdomen.

He stared at the screen. His voice shook with excitement.

“Congratulations, Alanna. By the Moon Goddess… two heartbeats. They are very strong. It is twins. You are over two months along.”

I did it.

Jackson heard the commotion and burst into the bedroom. He froze on the spot.

His pupils flashed a feral gold.

He crushed me in a hug. He buried his face in my neck. He desperately inhaled my new milky scent.

“It worked! Twins! I must tell Father right now!”

I grabbed his arm. I pulled him back.

“Tell no one.”

His smile died. “Why?”

I looked him straight in the eye.

“It is too early. The pups are vulnerable.”

“If Bianca finds out now, she will strike.”

“I guarantee you, she will be at our door tonight. She will bring a special ‘tonic’. Laced with wolfsbane.”

In my last life, Bianca never got pregnant.

But every time I tried, she stopped me. She brought me “tonics” every day. She claimed they helped conception.

They were pure poison. Wolfsbane is lethal to pregnant wolves.

Bianca feared our bloodline. She destroyed my body.

The joy on Jackson’s face turned to ice.

He was silent for a few seconds. Then he pulled me close. “I trust you,” he murmured into my hair. “Whatever you say.”

I leaned into him. A knot tightened inside me.

These two pups were my life now.

If anyone touched them, I would tear them apart.

In the following weeks, I became a ghost.

I canceled all events. I hid my pregnancy meticulously.

As my belly swelled, I stayed inside.

The pack women gossiped. They said I was too ashamed to show my face after the scandal.

I heard them and laughed in secret.

I wanted them to forget I existed.

The Hunt Festival was the biggest event of the year for the major packs.

I wore a loose cashmere coat. It hid my belly completely.

I stepped into the great hall. Bianca spotted me instantly.

She glided over. She held a wine glass. She stared at my waist.

“Alanna, do you have… news?”

I shook my head and looked down. “I've just been eating too much lately.”

She studied my face. Then she smirked.

She stepped closer. She raised her voice for the crowd to hear.

“Alanna, do not gorge yourself just to pretend you are trying.”

“You will ruin your health. Jackson will lose interest.”

My face stayed blank. Inside, I sneered.

She thought I was still weak. She thought she could crush me.

The crowd chimed in.

“I thought Alanna loved ‘freedom’. Why try for a pup now?”

“She is just barren. Freedom is a cheap excuse.”

They aimed for my throat.

I stood in silence.

Seeing me quiet, Bianca assumed I surrendered.

She linked her arm through mine. She looked at the crowd with fake pity.

“Please, stop judging Alanna.”

“I waited all these years. I wanted us to get pregnant together.”

“As the future Luna, I cannot bear to leave her behind.”

The crowd gasped in awe.

“Our future Luna is so kind!”

“Alanna should learn from Bianca. She respects the rules.”

They treated her like the Moon Goddess herself.

She whispered in my ear.

“Do not lose hope, Alanna. I will handle the pack’s pressure for you.”

I smiled faintly. I said nothing.

We both knew who was really under pressure.

She had no idea.

I was three months pregnant. With pure-blood twins.

A blessing I begged for in my past life.

This time, the Moon Goddess was on my side.

I watched her perform.

The more smug she became, the more certain I was.

Every lie she told pushed me higher.

When the time was right, I would slam my cards down. Right in her face.

I covered my belly gently.

Just a little longer, my pups.