Chapter 2: He Chose Her and Her Child

I couldn’t sit still.

Not anymore.

The party went on around me, loud and bright.

People laughed.

Music filled the air.

Voices rose and fell.

But to me…

it was all distant.

Empty.

Like I didn’t belong there.

My eyes kept searching for him.

Eugene.

But every time I found him,

he was gone.

Or turning away.

Or speaking to someone else.

Avoiding me.

Again.

And again.

And again.

Like I was something he didn’t want near him.

Like I was… wrong.

The pain grew sharper each time.

I tried to talk to him.

More than once.

I asked him why.

Why he was acting like this.

Why he wouldn’t even look at me.

But he said nothing.

Not one word.

Not even a glance.

There was no hug.

No kiss.

No smile.

Nothing.

The moment I had waited for…

The moment I had dreamed about for a whole year…

never came.

It was gone.

Like it had never existed.

I didn’t even get the chance to tell him…

how happy I was that he came back alive.

My chest felt tight again.

But I held it in.

Not here.

Not in front of everyone.

I had to stay calm.

I had to act like nothing was wrong.

Even if everything inside me…

was falling apart.

And that woman…

She was still here.

In his room.

Why?

Why was she there?

Why wasn’t she leaving?

The questions kept coming, one after another.

Burning.

Relentless.

But no one gave me answers.

Not Luna Lorraine.

Not Alpha Dave.

They all said the same thing.

“Later.”

“After the party.”

But later never came.

And the feeling inside me kept growing.

Heavy.

Sharp.

Like something inside me was about to break.

Maybe it was just me.

Maybe I was thinking too much.

But…

the other warriors,

they looked at me differently.

Their eyes held something I couldn’t ignore.

Pity.

Like they knew something.

Something I didn’t.

Something I wasn’t ready to hear.

Time moved slowly.

Too slowly.

Every second dragged.

Every second hurt.

Until finally,

“It’s time.”

We were called into the Alpha’s study.

My legs felt weak as I walked in.

The room felt too quiet.

Too closed.

I sat beside Luna Lorraine and grabbed her hand.

Too tight.

My fingers started to ache, but I didn’t let go.

It was the only thing keeping me steady.

Tears blurred my vision.

I didn’t even know why I was crying anymore.

Was it anger?

Pain?

Fear?

Or all of it at once?

I couldn’t take it anymore.

The silence was suffocating.

Pressing down on me.

“What is happening?” I asked.

My voice shook.

“What do you know that I don’t?”

I swallowed hard, forcing the words out.

“Who is that woman?”

My question hung in the air.

Heavy.

No one answered.

No one moved.

The silence grew thicker.

Like it was wrapping around my throat.

“Let’s wait for Eugene,” Alpha Dave said at last.

His voice was calm.

Too calm.

“He will explain everything.”

But his words didn’t help.

Didn’t ease anything.

Because deep inside…

I already felt it.

Whatever he was about to say,

was going to break me.

Nothing eased the weight in my chest.

I wanted to ask more.

I needed to.

But I couldn’t go against him.

He was the Alpha.

So I stayed quiet.

And waited.

But the silence in that room…

felt heavier than anything before.

Like the truth was right there,

waiting to break me.

We waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Time dragged.

Each second pressed harder against my chest

until it was hard to breathe.

Then,

The door opened.

My heart jumped.

Eugene walked in.

And she was with him.

Ruby.

They entered side by side.

Close.

Too close.

Something inside me twisted.

The air shifted.

Cold.

Heavy.

Wrong.

For a moment…

a sharp fear rose inside me.

Like something terrible was about to happen.

But I pushed it down.

No.

This was Eugene.

My mate.

He wouldn’t do this to me.

We were meant to be.

There had to be a reason.

A mistake.

Something I didn’t understand yet.

There had to be.

But then,

He sat down.

Beside her.

Not me.

He didn’t look at me.

Not once.

My heart dropped.

Hard.

This was the same man who faced death without fear.

The same man who fought battles without stepping back.

But now…

he couldn’t even look at me?

Why?

Why was it so hard for him?

“Mother… Father…” Eugene said.

His voice wasn’t steady.

He cleared his throat, his hands clasping together.

Tight.

A habit I knew too well.

“This is Ruby,” he continued.

“The woman I mentioned in my letter.”

My chest tightened again.

What letter?

“I… will take her as my chosen mate.”

Everything stopped.

The words hit me like a blow.

Sharp.

Crushing.

I couldn’t breathe.

Chosen mate?

My mind went blank.

The room disappeared.

The voices.

The people.

Gone.

I sat there, frozen.

I had waited for him.

Believed in him.

Loved him.

And now,

he chose someone else.

I didn’t even exist?

Not a single word for me.

Not even my name.

Luna Lorraine’s hand tightened around mine, trying to steady me.

But I was already falling.

Breaking.

Cracking from the inside.

“What about me?”

My voice came out weak.

Shaking.

“What am I to you now?”

The words burned my throat.

“Why are you doing this to me?”

I swallowed hard, but I couldn’t stop.

“Who is she?”

The questions kept coming.

Fast.

Messy.

Desperate.

My body trembled.

My heart raced.

This wasn’t right.

Nothing about this was right.

How did it come to this?

Why didn’t he tell me?

Why didn’t I see it?

Eugene took a deep breath.

Slow.

Heavy.

Like even breathing hurt him.

Then finally,

He looked at me.

Our eyes met.

And what I saw…

was not the man I knew.

It was someone lost.

Someone drowning.

Guilt.

Shame.

Fear.

All of it was there.

Like he wanted me to understand.

Like he was asking for forgiveness… without saying it.

But I couldn’t understand.

Not this.

Never this.

“What is happening?” I asked again.

My voice echoed in the room.

Empty.

Broken.

Like I was begging for answers I wasn’t ready to hear.

Eugene’s hands clenched.

His knuckles turned white.

He opened his mouth,

But no words came out.

He couldn’t say it.

He couldn’t face me.

And before he could try again,

She spoke.

“You must be Irene.”

Ruby’s voice was calm.

Too calm.

Too controlled.

She looked at me, but there was no warmth in her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly.

“But things… didn’t go the way we planned.”

My chest tightened.

We?

“Right now,” she continued, her tone still gentle,

“Eugene has to take responsibility.”

Responsibility?

The word landed hard.

Cold.

Heavy.

And suddenly…

everything inside me went still.

Because deep down…

I already knew.

Something was very, very wrong.

The world started to spin.

Each word she said felt like a stone hitting my chest.

Heavy.

Unforgiving.

“What kind of responsibility…?” I asked.

My voice was barely there.

I turned to Luna Lorraine.

Her grip tightened again,

like she was trying to hold me together before I shattered.

But I was already falling apart.

Eugene pressed his lips together.

Tight.

He still wouldn’t look at me.

Not now.

Not even now.

And in that moment…

I knew.

He wasn’t going to answer me.

He didn’t have the courage.

So she did.

“I’m pregnant with the Alpha’s first child.”

Ruby’s voice cut through the room.

Calm.

Cold.

Too calm.

Like she had said it before.

Like she was ready for this moment.

“I’m sorry you found out this way… but it’s the truth.”

Everything inside me shattered.

Pregnant?

The word echoed in my head.

My ears rang.

My chest ached.

His child?

My breath caught.

I couldn’t breathe.

It felt like the walls were closing in.

Like the air had disappeared.

My eyes dropped on their own.

To her stomach.

Flat.

Still small.

Early.

Which meant,

My heart sank deeper.

He had been with her…

while writing to me.

Those letters.

Those soft, sweet words.

“I miss you.”

“I love you.”

“I can’t wait to come home.”

Lies.

All of it.

Every single word.

My chest burned.

How could he do this?

How could he make me believe in something so real…

while breaking it behind my back?

I felt it.

My world coming apart.

Piece by piece.

But I wouldn’t cry.

Not here.

Not in front of them.

Not in front of him.

“How long…?” I asked.

My voice was low.

Shaking.

But sharp.

“How long have you known?”

I turned to Alpha Dave.

Then to Luna Lorraine.

She was crying now.

Quietly.

Looking at me like she had no right to speak.

No one answered.

The silence twisted my stomach.

“Two months,” Alpha Dave said at last.

His voice was heavy.

Filled with guilt.

Two months.

The words echoed again and again.

Two months.

They knew.

All of them.

And they said nothing.

They let me wait.

Let me hope.

Let me believe…

I was still his.

Something inside me snapped.

I pulled my hand away from Luna Lorraine.

Hard.

I stood up.

My chest felt too tight.

Too heavy.

I couldn’t stay there.

Not one second longer.

I turned and walked out.

Fast.

I didn’t look back.

“Irene!”

His voice followed me.

Loud.

Urgent.

Footsteps came after me.

Then,

A hand grabbed my arm.

He turned me around.

Forced me to face him.

“Don’t be like this,” Eugene said quickly.

“We can talk about this.”

Talk?

My chest shook.

“What is there to talk about?!” I snapped.

My voice broke.

“You got another woman pregnant!”

My hands trembled.

I wanted to hit him.

I wanted to scream.

“It was a mistake!” he shot back.

“You weren’t here. I was lonely!”

The words hit me again.

But this time…

they burned.

Slow.

Ugly.

So that was his reason?

Lonely?

A bitter laugh left my lips.

Cold.

Sharp.

“Do you want me to go to war next time… just so you won’t feel lonely?” I said.

My voice shook with anger.

With pain.

With something deeper than both.

“Is that what you expect from me?”

I stared at him.

Really looked at him.

And for the first time…

I didn’t see my mate.

I saw a stranger.

Someone I didn’t know.

Someone I couldn’t trust.

My chest tightened again.

But this time…

it felt different.

Something inside me was shifting.

Breaking.

Or maybe…

finally waking up.