Se connecterThe urge to open my eyes fills me strongly, If only so I can ask with my eyes fully open, if what she's saying is true. Is my baby really going to be a girl?My heart pounds heavily in my chest as emotions I can't name run through me. I... I didn't think this was the way I would find out the gender of my child.A part of me is glad to know I'll be having a baby girl...A part of me is in love with her already....There's also another part of me that's worried about what's just been said about my child. Still with my eyes closed I ask, "What do you mean she's decided she wants to come faster?"The woman with suns for eyes steps closer and the space between us hums as she responds, "Your child's witch bloodline is awakening before birth."A chill runs down my spine.All the knowledge I got after my awakening tells me there's no way that could be possible. It can't be.Every descendant of a witch bloodline only has their awakening when they have come of age. Until then, a witch is as nor
My magic rises from deep within me, smoother than it ever has before. Like it has been waiting for me to call it, magic flares from me in controlled amounts.Gold and white light flickers at the edges of my vision as I lift my hands and each wave I release works to follow the things I draw in the air, "Conceal me."Sigils form in the air beneath my fingers."Send prying eyes away."The words leave my lips firmly and magic answers back. It ripples outward, spreading through the trees like a blast of wind."Protect me. Protect my child."This time the magic doesn't just ripple, it surges, blowing out in a wave of gold and white light.The sigils I've drawn ignite faintly in silver before dissolving into the air around me.As I repeat the enchantments to send everyone and everything around me away, my heart calms down slowly.My magic flows all over the space around me and when it gets to the trees, they tremble slightly, my magic informing me that I have now used them as anchors. Golden
I wake the next morning and the first thing I notice is the weight.My stomach feels heavier. Much heavier.My hand flies to it before my eyes are even fully open and by touch alone, I can tell I'm not hallucinating this. The curve beneath my palm feels bigger and tighter, like my skin has stretched overnight.I sit up too quickly and a sharp pull runs through my abdomen. It immediately squeezes a wince from me and I sit, gripping the edge of the bed until the pain fades.A slow breath leaves my lips when it finally dissolves but the suspicion I slept with last night now finds words. I whisper into the empty cabin room, "This isn't normal."I stand, moving straight to the small mirror across the room.This is the first time I'm looking at myself since I left the Silvercrest pack last night and it hasn't been a day since, yet the woman staring back at me already looks different from the one who arrived at the Moonveil borders last night. Overdressed and pregnant.For one, my stomach ha
The Alpha of the Moonveil pack sits behind a wooden desk, his posture relaxed but his eyes sharp on me as I step in through the door.Under the soft light of the lamps at all corners of the room, I get my first real look at the man known famous for leading a pack that keeps to itself, and never interferes in the politics of other packs.The Alpha of the Moonveil pack is older than Coren.Streaks of gray run through his dark hair and he has the calm presence of someone who has ruled for a long time. He reminds me faintly of Coren's father, Simon but I can tell he's not as old.His gaze drops to my stomach, but unlike his warriors he doesn't react outwardly. There's no sharp inhale or visible surprise. He only looks back up at me and lifts one eyebrow as he asks calmly, "You travelled this far alone?"The question is simple but it carries a force that feels heavy, like weight on my chest.A flicker of panic cuts through me but I steady myself quickly, "Yes. I did."He leans back slightl
The warriors exchange looks that flicker with confusion as they wait for a response from me.For a moment I want to tell them who I am, tell them where I'm coming from, but in a bitter twist of fate I realise my scent has already revealed the truth of who I really am now.I'm a rogue. Pregnant and overdressed.I'm no longer Luna of the Silvercrest pack or mate to Alpha Coren Silver. I don't feel sad that I've gotten rid of those titles, but I'm not naive enough to think there aren't people who wouldn't want to capture an Alpha's mate as leverage, even when she's gone rogue or rejected him.I place my hand over my stomach protectively as I respond, "As I mentioned earlier, I'm only passing by and seeking refuge."The frowns on the faces of the warriors deepen but I don't sense any danger from them. The female warrior's gaze drifts to my hand and then rises back to my face before she asks, "What are you doing near Moonveil territory?"Moonveil! Oh thank the goddess, I actually made it.
I run without thinking of all the clothes I'm leaving behind, or all the people I might have wanted to say goodbye to once upon a time.I run because I know if I don't, Jack's tears or Coren's pleas might shackle me to the pack once again.I don't think of anything I might need to take along with me, I just run and keep running, Thea's paws pounding steadily on the soft forest earth even as we pass the Silvercrest borders.Tears roll down my cheeks when I breathe in the air, my body and mind officially outside the pack for the first time since I decided I wanted to leave six years ago.I'm out but that only makes me want to go further. I keep running even when Thea's legs shake.After hours of pushing myself forward, Thea forces me to stop, changing back into human form and letting out exhausted whines in my mind. She's tired, but it's like a hunger has been lit up in me and it won't be sated until I'm as far away from the Silvercrest pack as I can be. I keep moving, walking in the dr







