Chapter 6

Bella POV

The moment Clara stepped into the celebration grounds, it felt like the entire atmosphere shifted in a way that was impossible to ignore, because the warm laughter and cheerful conversations that had been filling the air just moments ago suddenly quieted into soft whispers and curious glances.

I could feel Ethan’s hand still holding mine as we stood on the dance floor, but the movement of the dance slowed slightly when people started noticing her arrival.

Clara looked exactly the same as I remembered her, maybe even more beautiful than before, wearing a long crimson dress that hugged her figure perfectly while her dark hair fell smoothly over her shoulders like something out of a painting.

Beside her stood the small boy everyone had been whispering about for weeks.

The boy with Ethan’s gray eyes.

I tried not to stare, but it was impossible not to notice how similar he looked to Ethan, especially when he tilted his head slightly in curiosity while looking around at the crowd.

For a moment Ethan didn’t say anything, but I felt his body stiffen slightly beside me.

Then he gently released my hand.

“I need to handle something,” he said quietly.

I nodded quickly even though my chest suddenly felt tight again.

“Of course,” I replied.

Without another word, Ethan walked away toward a group of pack members who were waiting near the far side of the celebration area, probably discussing some urgent pack matter that required the Alpha’s attention.

For a few seconds I just stood there alone on the edge of the dance floor, trying to steady my breathing while pretending to watch the lanterns hanging from the trees.

I thought Clara would stay where she was.

But I was wrong.

A few minutes later, I felt someone stop directly in front of me.

When I looked up, Clara was standing there with a faint smile on her lips, and her son was holding onto her hand while staring at me curiously.

“So this is where you’ve been hiding,” she said lightly.

Her tone sounded friendly, but there was something sharp underneath it that made my stomach tighten.

“I wasn’t hiding,” I replied quietly.

Clara tilted her head slightly, studying me in a way that made me uncomfortable.

“You look different tonight,” she said slowly. “More confident than usual.”

I didn’t know what to say to that, so I stayed silent.

Her gaze slowly moved down toward my stomach before returning to my face.

“I heard some interesting rumors around the pack lately,” she continued casually.

My heart skipped a beat.

“I don’t know what you mean,” I said.

Clara smiled faintly.

“Oh please, Bella,” she said softly. “Everyone knows you’re claiming to be pregnant.”

The way she said the word claiming made my chest tighten painfully.

“It’s not a claim,” I replied quietly. “It’s the truth.”

Clara let out a small laugh, like she had just heard something amusing.

“Really?” she said. “What a coincidence.”

Before I could respond, the little boy beside her suddenly pulled his hand away and ran forward excitedly, probably distracted by the music and movement around us.

But he ran straight toward me.

Everything happened too fast.

The child crashed directly into my stomach with enough force to make the air leave my lungs instantly.

A sharp pain exploded through my abdomen, and I instinctively took a step back while gasping softly.

“Ow—”

But before I could even recover, Clara suddenly let out a dramatic cry.

“Ah!”

I looked up in shock just in time to see her stumble backward and fall to the ground like someone had pushed her.

The entire scene was so sudden and confusing that I froze in place.

Clara lay on the ground with a pained expression, one hand pressed against her arm as if she had been injured.

“Bella!” someone gasped nearby.

Within seconds several pack members rushed closer, their expressions filled with shock and concern.

“What happened?”

“Did she just push Clara?”

“No way…”

The whispers started spreading quickly through the crowd.

“I didn’t push her,” I said quickly, my voice shaking as I tried to explain. “Her son ran into me and—”

But my words were suddenly cut off by a familiar voice.

“What’s going on here?”

Ethan had returned.

The moment he stepped through the crowd and saw Clara sitting on the ground, his entire expression changed.

He immediately walked toward her.

“Clara,” he said sharply. “What happened?”

Clara looked up at him with watery eyes, her expression fragile and hurt in a way that made my chest tighten.

“I don’t know,” she said softly. “I was just talking to Bella when she suddenly pushed me.”

My eyes widened in disbelief.

“That’s not true!” I said immediately.

But Ethan didn’t even look at me.

He helped Clara stand up carefully, his hand steady on her arm as if he was worried she might fall again.

“Are you hurt?” he asked gently.

Clara shook her head slightly.

“It’s nothing serious,” she said quietly. “Maybe I said something that upset her.”

My chest felt like it was being crushed.

“I didn’t push her,” I repeated desperately.

Finally Ethan turned toward me.

But the look in his eyes was cold.

“Apologize,” he said.

The word stunned me.

“What?”

“Apologize to Clara,” he repeated sharply.

I stared at him in disbelief.

“But I didn’t do anything!”

“Bella,” Ethan said impatiently, “stop making excuses.”

My hands clenched tightly at my sides.

“I’m not making excuses,” I said firmly. “I didn’t push her.”

The crowd around us had gone completely silent now.

Ethan’s expression darkened.

“Apologize,” he said again.

I shook my head slowly.

“No.”

The word felt heavy in my chest, but I refused to back down.

I would not accept humiliation for something I didn’t do.

Ethan’s jaw tightened.

“You’re really going to embarrass me in front of the entire pack?” he demanded.

“I’m not the one who caused this,” I replied.

The anger in his eyes flared instantly.

“Guards,” he said sharply.

Two pack guards stepped forward immediately.

“Take her away.”

For a second I couldn’t even process what he had just said.

But before I could react, a sudden stabbing pain tore through my abdomen.

The pain was so sharp that my entire body folded forward instinctively.

“Ah—!”

My knees hit the ground as the pain spread through my stomach like fire.

My hands pressed against my abdomen as panic flooded my chest.

Something was wrong.

Something was very wrong.

“Ethan…” I gasped weakly.

My vision blurred as the pain grew worse.

“Please…”

I looked up at him desperately.

“Help me…”

But Ethan wasn’t looking at me.

He had already turned back to Clara, his attention focused entirely on her as he gently held her arm.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” he asked her again.

The last thing I saw before the pain overwhelmed me was him comforting her.

While I curled on the ground alone, begging for help that never came.