EPISODE 4

XAVIER's POV

(Six Years Later)

"We lost the baby."

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. A weight drops on my heart, threatening to rip every fibre of muscles in my chest.

"Again?" Father exclaims, shooting up to his feet and rushing towards the doctor. He grabs the doctor by the collar and pushes him to the wall. "Or are you just incompetent?"

The doctor stammers out of fear. "It's not my fault. My team and I did our best to save the Alpha's child."

"But—"

"Father let go of him." I cut in, rising up from my chair as well. A heavy feeling overwhelms me as I leave the doctors office for the sixth time in six years with the same result every single time.

I walk out of the doctor's office and I head straight across to the ward opposite.

Jayda lays weak on the hospital bed, her parents right by her side.

I should console her but I hate the response I'd hear from both Jayda and her parents. They always find a way to place the blame on someone who no one has seen for more than half a decade.

As soon as I turn my back to my wife and her family, I hear Jayda's father snap. "So you're walking away from your wife who just lost a baby?"

The guilt dumping always works every time. I turn to face them again, meeting the sad eyes of my wife.

"It's my sister. She's gotten to Xavier as well. Killing all my babies isn't enough for that evil witch."

I exhale as soon as her words roll out. She never fails to blame Raina for every misfortune that happens.

"Don't be paranoid." I mutter as I watch the nurses pack up the gifts I had brought for my expected new born.

Jayda flares up. "I'm not paranoid! Ever since Raina left, it's just been one thing after another."

"It's been six years. We don't even know if Raina is dead!" I snap, sick and tired of hearing Raina's name come up every ten minutes. I've tried so much to get her out of my head but her memory haunts me.

Where is she? Is she alive? Sold to skin traders? No one knows.

I've searched everywhere but nothing. It's almost as if she vanished into thin air.

"Believe it or not, she's placed a curse on us all." Jayda says firmly and her parents indulge her by nodding along.

If anyone was punishing us, it would be the moon goddess and not Raina. The Raina I know would never curse a soul. She had the purest heart and was kind to a fault sometimes.

"Rest well." I sigh, dropping the topic. "I'll have the castle guards pick you up by evening." Jayda holds my hand as I plant a faint kiss on her forehead. She wants me to stay but I can't afford to hear Raina's name one more time today.

"So you're leaving?" She flares up but I have my back turned to her already. "Is it because of Raina? Raina is—"

I shut the ward's door and exhale in relief. I can't hear Jayda's constant nipping words while my heart is still heavy over losing my child for the sixth time.

My phone rings and I stare down at the caller ID. It's my head Beta.

"Hello."

"Alpha!" He salutes. "I just received news that your special guest has agreed to show up for tonight's party."

My heart lights up at once. This is the first good news I have heard in months. Right after I had heard there was a brilliant foreign doctor who could cure any illness and bring miracle solutions to every physical ailment, I invited the doctor immediately.

My hope is that he helps Jayda conceive again and give birth successfully. I am ready to pay whatever price it costs, however way.

I need an heir. I need someone to take over my pack and my empire.

"Set up the event hall. I'm coming to the pack house right away." I hang up and immediately bolt to the exit door of the hospital.

Cameras flash into my eyes as the press gather around me.

"Did the baby survive? Is Luna Jayda alive? Is it a boy or a girl?"

I'm sick of reporting bad news every time but I have no choice but to explain to my pack that I still have no heir.

As soon as I make the announcement, the crowd outside breaks into a roar. I can see people raising banners with Raina's face crossed in red paint or with "WITCH" written on her name.

I had cautioned Jayda not to publicly accuse her sister for our lack of children but she never listens. Any time she addresses the pack, she corrupts their mind by saying Raina's spirit is haunting the pack and her.

I still can't accept Raina's supposed death. A part of me feels guilty for her disappearance while another part of me is furious that she left the pack, left her family and endangered her life out of jealousy and lack of understanding.

Unwilling to address the crowd about the Raina issue, I slid into the SUV waiting for me.

"Take me to the packhouse." I say to the driver and we pull out of the hospital and through the crowd.

##########

Jayda is back from the hospital and is currently dressed for tonight's event. She's in high spirits after I let her know who's coming tonight.

News of the foreign doctor spread like wildfire and the press fill up the hall in sheer anticipation for our special guest.

I'm not a fan of miracles but even I have my hopes up.

"Where is the doctor?" Jayda tugs at my arm anxiously as she looks around.

"He should be here any minute."

The door swings open and a five man guard team emerges, accompanied by a group of maidens and medical team personnels.

Everyone's eyes are glued on the last person to walk in.

"She's a lady!" People gasp in awe.

I'm not too shocked as I know people from the South do not stick to conventions like we in the West. I've heard of females being Alphas of packs in the South, something that would be considered a taboo in Westmoon.

The doctor is dressed in a cherry red gown with a lace veil over her face.

I can't help the smile arching from my lips as I marvel at the inspiration of her outfit: Daring and bold.

She walks with graceful steps, as though her body is made of feather and iron at the same time. Her shoulders are high and proud, chin tilted up as she walks towards me.

I kiss the back of her gloved hand and we both take a bow.

"Alpha Xavier," I introduce myself although I know everyone in the South knows of the Westmoon Alpha.

She raises her lace veil and I nearly swallow my tongue.

Are my eyes deceiving me or is my ex-wife right in front of me?

"Raina?" Jayda gasps beside me.

The doctor looks baffled and her announcer beside us laughs. "This is Dr. Winter, the best doctor in all of the South. This is no 'Ray-whatever'"

I feel like snapping the neck of the rude announcer who referred to my late Luna as whatever, but I keep my cool.

Tonight has to go as planned.

"My apologies." I say, dropping Dr. Winter's hand. "You have a striking resemblance to..." I was about to say wife but Jayda clears her throat beside me. "... to my wife's late sister."

"Ohh." Doctor winter exclaims calmly and then turns to Jayda. "My condolences."

Jayda waves her hand. "Ohh no need for that. We're all happy she's dead."

Dr Winter's face goes cold for a second and I hope she doesn't hate my wife already for such an insensitive, careless comment.

Just then a young boy runs into the hall with a paper plane in his hands.

"Momma, come see." He beams with excitement. "I made a paper plane."

Dr. Winter's calm demeanor breaks for a moment and I can see the panic in her beautiful doe eyes. "I told you to stay in the car." She says as the boy embraces her.

"I was bored." The boy giggles as she scoops him into her arms.

"Your son?" I ask watching the boy cuddle his mother. He has dark raven hair and bright blue eyes, a look very rare to Westmoon wolves and even more rare in the South. The only wolf I had seen with such strange and striking features was Raina. Even Doctor Winter's grayish-blonde hair was no match for Raina's natural raven hair.

She drops the boy and whispers to one of her guards to escort him out.

Then she turns back to me, her face back to its casual countenance. "Pardon my son. He's too fond of me."

"What about his father?" Jayda asks, trying to start small talk.

Dr. Winter hesitates and again I feel like cursing Jayda for messing up our chances at winning the doctor's favour.

"Dead and irrelevant." She says coldly, her eyes locking into mine.