Silence meets my declaration, and my announcement seems to echo off the walls. I'm pregnant with your child! – I can't believe I blurted it out the way I did.
I take some fierce gratification from seeing the shock on Nalani's face, her smug smirk nowhere in evidence now. My joy is short-lived, however. At first, I read surprise in Evander's gaze, then – dare I think it? – happiness. But that flash of brightness in his eyes is gone before it can take root, quickly replaced by cold, hard regard.
"You are all dismissed," Evander says to the servants, his gaze never leaving mine.
The household helps scurries to get as far away from what is about to happen as possible. The tension in the air is electric, like the eye of a storm, and I fear I'm the one who's about to be struck by lightning.
"Wait, you," Evander says, pointing to the tattletale. "Get me my Beta. Tell Ralfi I want him here now."
"Yes, sir," the servant replies, bowing his way out the door.
Evander waits until the hallway is empty, until the last retreating footstep can no longer be heard.
"Now," he says, turning his full attention on me. "Pregnant? Really? That's how you want to play this, Aurora?"
"Play?" I repeat, confused by the question. "I'm not playing at anything. When I woke up in the hospital, Dr. Oliver told me the good news." I look at him pleadingly, trying my best to smile. "And it is good news. Evander, you're going to be a father."
His lips draw down into a deep frown. "How can you look me in the face and say that? We've tired, and failed, innumerable times to mind link. My wolf can’t sense your wolf’s presence, which means you have no wolf."
The disgust on his face makes me physically ill. "This is desperate, even for you. Your lying never ends. I had no idea you could sink so low."
"What? No! Why would I lie about this?" I take a step toward him, needing him to understand. "Ask Dr. Oliver. I'm sure he'll be happy to show you the test results."
Evander and Nalani share a look, and I do not like the expressions on their faces at all. They know something I don't. This is bad.
"More lies. Reports can be faked. I think you know that better than most, don't you?" He lifts his chin, glaring down his proud nose at me. "Our entire marriage is a lie, isn’t it?”
Terror shakes me to my very core. "I have no idea what you're talking about," I say.
"All your words of love and devotion are just as false as everything else you've told me, aren't they?" If I didn't know better, I'd say Evander looked hurt, and even worse, deeply disappointed.
"I know you weren't born wolfless. You're cursed."
He snarls at me and I flinch away from his sudden fury. "How dare you risk the safety of this pack – my pack – with your never-ending lies? Your curse could have spread, it could have brought misfortune down upon all our heads!"
"What?" I can't keep the shock off my face. "No, Evander, I have no idea what you're talking about." Confusion has me staggered, stuttering. "Please, listen to me. I would never endanger the pack."
"Enough!" he bellows and I can only cower. "Nalani took me to see an elder who understands witchcraft. There are traces of an ancient curse on your belongings. You never told me anything about this before we mated. Even now, as I stand here with proof, you deny it.
“Deceiving the Alpha and endangering the pack violates our cardinal rules. As you well know, the punishment is exile. You will hereby be imprisoned until the rejection ritual is complete.”
He looks me in the eyes, and I don't see the man I love in his gaze anymore. The look he gives me is as cold as any howling, winter night, and his brow is etched with disappointment.
“After you formally hand over the title of Luna to Nalani, you will be expelled from the pack. Don't make the mistake of ever coming back, Aurora. Nobody wants you here."
"Evander, if you would just listen–"
"Enough, traitor!" Nalani screeches just as Ralfi enters. "No one wants to hear any more of your lies!”
"Ralfi," Evander says, ignoring Nalani's outburst. "Take Aurora to the guest bedroom. Make sure the door is locked. She is to remain there until the ceremony." He spares me a single, punishing glare. "If she resists, feel free to employ any means necessary to get her secured."
Employ any means necessary. Evander's words. That is the type of command he gives when sentencing a criminal. That is the kind of command he gives when speaking of the damned. That one phrase and I know without any doubt that he doesn't care if I'm hurt, only that I'm imprisoned.
In his eyes, I am no longer his mate or his wife. In his eyes, I'm a villain. A liar who endangered the pack and deceived him for years. The pain is so immense, so staggering, I'd rip my own heart out if I could – anything to make it stop.
"Evander, please," I try again, because I must. He’s got it all wrong and my child’s life is at stake. "There is no curse. You have to believe me. Don’t you think you would have noticed before now if it was real?”
My voice trails off and I deflate as Evander exits the hallway, clearly refusing to acknowledge me any longer.
"The child I'm carrying is real and it's ours!" I scream after him. But I might as well be yelling at a stone for all the effect it has.
"Come on, Aurora," Ralfi says, gently, but firmly, gripping my arm. "Let's get you to the guest room."
I spare the hallway one last glance before I go. Evander is long gone, but to my surprise, Nalani remains. She leans against the hallway wall, a sadistic little smile playing on her lips. When she catches my eye, her grin widens and she lifts her hand to show me the crown – my crown – now in her possession.
The crown glimmer in the hallway light, and she gives it a twirl on her index finger. She gives me a wink, sarcastic and cruel, then spins on her stiletto heel to follow Evander out of the hallway.
My heart shatters. A wisp of a whimper escapes my throat as I am led away by Evander's Beta.
I keep my head down as Ralfi leads me to the guest room. I can’t bear to see the looks on the servant's faces when I pass them, though I can hear their whispers. Every member of the staff is abuzz with my rejection. The shame keeps my eyes on the ground, following Ralfi's feet through the meandering halls."Here we are," Ralfi says, opening the bedroom door for me. "Go on in, Aurora. This is where you'll spend your last night in the pack house.""Ralfi…""No," he says, holding up a hand to halt my words. "I serve my Alpha, and this is his command. You can go inside yourself, or I can carry you in. That is the only choice you have now."Rejected and dejected, I can only nod and enter the room under my own volition. Ralfi follows me inside, then holds out his hand to me. In the center of his palm rests a single pill. "I met with the Alpha and Luna while you were still in the hospital. Evander asked me to give this to you. Since you don’t have a wolf, the rejection will hurt you more th
The guards surround me, corralling me out of the guest room, down the corridor, then out of the house. I am led into the arena on the edge of the training grounds.Panic has me shaking, struggling to make even the tiniest sound. Nalani's poison is potent though and I remain mute as I'm guided onto the field. My stomach sinks even further when I catch sight of the wooden structure ahead of me – an elevated platform that reminds me all too much of gallows.I look up into the stands at the gathering crowd and find only cold indifference on the faces looking back at me. I have no allies in this pack, no friends, and everyone attending today makes that explicitly clear. There's no sympathy for a wolfless Luna. Only my dear, sweet maid, Sylvie sheds a tear for me.Once I'm on the platform, more guards join the first three, creating a tight circle around me. The crowd chitters, buzzing with excitement over my impending downfall, and all I can do is open and close my mouth, gaping like some k
Prince Mykal? I repeat stupidly to myself, unable to stop gaping at the breathtaking man before me. I knew the name, of course. It always pays to know the name of your enemy.Prince Mykal Boreal, eldest son of the Lycan King, and next in line for the throne.Everything in me stops suddenly. Wait, did he just say I was his mate? I look at him, aghast. How is that possible? He's a Lycan! I'm a Werewolf. We're enemies. And yet…His scent fills my head again and I know that this irrefutably strong response I feel toward him is our mate bond taking hold. I just lost my first mate, and now, instantaneously, I have a new one? How can this be?But even as I try to cast-off the thought as absurd, in my heart of hearts I know this man is my second chance mate.I found my second chance mate! "I thought our business was done, Mykal," Evander says, breaking into my whirlwind of thoughts. "We finished the trade our superiors commanded us to make. What are you still doing in my lands?"If the princ
"Let her go," Evander barks over my head at Prince Mykal."Not a chance," the Lycan sneers back, tightening his grip on my arm. "She's coming home with me. I felt the pain you inflicted upon her." He raises his noble chin, clearly looking down on someone he sees as a barbarian. "I will not allow you to hurt her anymore.""You dare!" Evander bellows, inexplicably enraged. He lets go of my arm, then throws his head back to snarl out a battle cry. He drops down on all fours, immediately shifting to his wolf. His nails dig into the wooden planks as he prepares himself to pounce.The prince shifts as well, and in his Lycan form he remains on two legs while his hands grow into razor-sharp claws. He shoves me aside, probably much harder than he intended, and I fall off the edge of the platform and onto the hard ground.I scramble to my feet, ready to climb back up the stairs, but the sight of the Lycans running onto the field freezes me in place. Petrified, all I can do is watch as they hurl
The blush on my cheeks morphs into anger as I look beyond the men and take in the scene around me. All this bloodshed, and for what? Their pride?"I can't believe the two of you resorted to this," I say, then stop. I spoke! I spoke real words out loud. I'm so relieved. Now I can rip into them properly. "Do you really want to solve your problems through violence? Putting civilians in harm's way? Is that how royalty and Alphas are supposed to behave?"The men have enough grace to look away abashed."Your voice," Prince Mykal says, deftly changing the subject. "It has returned as I knew it would. Lycan blood cures most things. You'll learn all about it and more when you come home with me.""I told you already, she's not going anywhere with you." I hear the snarl in Evander's tone and I know that if I don't do something right now, they will be at each other's throats again soon."Stop it, both of you. I'm not some prize to be fought over and won!" I can't believe how strong I feel. I don
Rejected. Banished. Rogue.The words swim in my head, swirling around, threatening to drag me down. This is a nightmare. My worst nightmare.Everyone is staring at me. Am I supposed to do something? I'm not sure what they want. The prince says something, but his voice is too far away for me to hear.The next thing I know my world goes entirely dark.***My mate, the man I am destined to love, marry, and have a family with, lies motionless on the ground, on the verge of death. I only just met him today. We've barely said hello. I will not let him die.I give my surroundings a quick look, making sure there's no one else around. I can save him, but it's risky. Dangerous. I don't know how, and I don't know why, but there is a way I can bring people back from death itself.My mother warned me never to tell anyone about this. She made it clear – throughout my entire life – that revealing this talent would be disastrous not only for me, but for everyone who knew. She promised, over and over a
Evander’s POVThe pack house was oddly quiet. I listened hard, expecting to find something wrong, but all I heard was the usual sounds of the servants going about their business. The chef cooking up my breakfast, the chambermaids giggling to one another in the halls – all normal, all usual. But something was off.And whatever it was felt like a bramble caught in my fur."Here you are, sir," one of the dining room staff says as she presents me with a heaping plate of food. My gaze immediately, involuntarily, shifts to the right, to look at the empty seat where my Luna should be."Please," Auroa begged, tears in her eyes. "You don't need to be this cruel."Cruel. I am many things, but I never thought myself that."Everything all right, sir?" my server asks, giving me a troubled, tentative smile. The entire house staff has been wary around me ever since the night I declared my intent to reject Aurora.Cruel.Maybe they have a right to be."Why has Nalani not come down yet?" I ask, my Lun
Evander’s POVI give the remnants of my woeful breakfast a disgusted look. I don't have time to have the chef make me something else. Nor do I want them to – not ever again. It seems it's time for me to hire a new kitchen staff.I'll make Ralfi do it.The thought amuses me as I leave the dining room behind. Unfortunately, it does nothing for me today. For now, I'll just have to do my patrol at the border hungry.My personal maid is waiting for me in the foyer, my jacket in her hands. Thank the gods at least Yvaine is consistent in her duties. She helps me on with my coat, then I exit the house.Ralfi is already outside, patiently waiting in the Jeep."Good morning, Evander," my Beta says as I climb into the passenger seat."Morning, Ralfi." I gotta be honest, I'm not feeling the "good" part of that sentiment. "I need a new kitchen staff. Hire a new team immediately."If he finds my request unusual in any way, he doesn't show it. He simply nods, acknowledging the directive.As we sit a