The rest of the night was a blur to me. All I could recall were tiny snippets of Tyler's concerned face, feeling so hot I thought I was going to burst into flame, and having a huge headache that seemed to radiate from the top of my skull down and into my shoulders.When I woke up in the morning, Tyler filled me in on the details. He said that at some point I had fallen into a fitful sleep. I was burning up, but then I started trembling like I was cold at the same time. He didn't know what to do and had been so concerned that he covered me in a blanket and decided that he would wait five more minutes to see if that would help before calling Dr Kelly. Fortunately, a couple of minutes later, the shaking stopped and I seemed to be a little better, although still very hot.He'd had a miserable night, wide awake to check on me for most of it, and I couldn't help but feel guilty about it.Now, in the morning, my temperature seemed to have returned to normal, and I felt fine. None of the ailm
When we headed upstairs, Alpha David was in his office, working away on his laptop. Tyler asked if it was okay if we checked some of the books, mentioning that he had a question from his studies and wanted to show me. Alpha David agreed offhandedly, continuing to type away with an expression of deep concentration.Tyler and I read the spines of the books and when something sounded interesting, we would page through the book to see whether it might possibly contain any valuable information.I noticed that the room had suddenly gone very quiet, realizing that Alpha David had stopped typing. "Katelyn, are you feeling any better today?" He asked with mild concern."I'm okay, thanks," I replied. "I'm not sure what was wrong, but whatever it was, it seems to have passed now, at least.""That's good to hear," Alpha David said with a nod. "By the way, you did a fantastic job with your speech last night. The engagement with the pack was overwhelmingly positive.""Thank you," I said, feeling a
After the second 'vision,' Tyler and I decided I would go to the library the next day to see if I could find anything that might help us with an explanation. Tyler had classes, so he wouldn't be able to join me, but I didn't mind. It gave me an excuse to get out of the house and away from Ryder.In the morning, Tyler dropped me off at the library before heading to his lessons. The library had come to feel like a sort of refuge for me, and I took comfort in the familiarity I felt inside its walls.I spent the entire day poring over books, trying to find any mention of werewolves and visions. The closest I came was an outdated book on werewolf lore, where visions were mentioned as some kind of superpower. But it also mentioned that werewolves only shifted at full moon, which made the whole thing feel like a bunch of crap.By the time Tyler came to pick me up, my eyes were red and tired from reading all day. He looked at me with concern as I got into the car."Any luck?" he asked hopeful
As I walked past him, heading back to my room, he insisted, "Nothing happened with Bailey."I rounded on him furiously. "I don't trust you!" I blurted out, my voice shaking with anger and pain.He began to apologize, to assure me once again that nothing had happened, but I interrupted him. "I'm talking now!" I asserted, my voice hard. "I know why you did it, Ryder. You wanted to hurt me, and congratulations, you succeeded."I could see the shock in his eyes, but I pressed on, unable to stop the words that spewed out of me like a volcanic eruption now. "I never tried to hurt you. You accepted that I had two mates, but then you wanted to pretend that I was only yours. And when that wasn't the case, you turned on me, like I had betrayed you or something. You planned and orchestrated the whole thing with Bailey. It was malicious and vindictive, and your entire aim was to hurt me. How could you do that to me? How am I supposed to believe anything you say now when it's clear that you are so
(Ryder's POV)I was in my studio, editing a track, when the faint sound of urgent knocking rang through the room. I took my headphones off, uncertain as to whether I was maybe imagining things when Katelyn walked in.Her eyes looked wide and panicked and even from across the room I could see that she had been crying."Kate?" I said, my concern for her apparent despite the tumultuous state of our relationship. "Are you okay?"She ignored my question, her red eyes avoiding my gaze. "Listen, I know things between us are a mess," she began, her voice trembling slightly. "and I'm sorry for yelling at you yesterday, but would you be able to give me a ride?"I looked at her, puzzled. Katelyn asking me for a favor was definitely unexpected. I wondered if this wasn't maybe her way of extending an olive branch."Sure," I replied a little apprehensively. "Where do you need to go?"She let out a breath she had been holding and nodded, but ignored my question. "Thank you. I'll meet you at the fron
(Katelyn's POV)The day had started off well enough. I kissed Tyler goodbye as he headed out for his classes, hoping today would be better after a miserable week. My intention was to relax and take it easy, allowing myself a break from all the research and the lingering guilt after blowing up at Ryder the day before.I showered and got dressed for the day when a thought suddenly occurred to me. My period was due. I checked the app on my phone that I used to track my cycle and was horrified to see that I was two days late. I vaguely remembered getting a notification about it, but I had been in the library and shrugged it off, completely preoccupied at the time and then I had subsequently forgotten all about it.Panic gripped me. How could this have happened? I couldn't be pregnant! I was only eighteen! I was basically a kid myself, I couldn't handle the responsibility of being a mother now! Tyler had always used protection... but then it dawned on me. That first time, in the forest. I
As I finished taking the tests, I headed out of the bathroom, carefully setting them all out on the bed as Ryder watched me. I tried not to look at the results just yet, not wanting to get myself into a state when I knew there was a possibility that what they reflected now may not be the actual result. I needed to exercise patience and allow them the necessary time to provide the most accurate results possible, which, under the circumstances, was no easy feat."We have to wait a few minutes," I said, glancing up at Ryder.My heart was pounding so furiously that I worried I might have a heart attack. Ryder watched me with concern as I paced back and forth in the room, my anxiety reaching its peak. This was it. My answers were sitting right there on the bed. All I had to do was wait a few more seconds, then I would allow myself to look and then I could deal with whatever the results were.The alarm I had set on my phone went off, jolting me out of my anxious reverie.I hurried back ove
Ryder and I remained on my bed, both sitting quietly, feeling the awkwardness growing between us. I couldn't stand it anymore, so I got up and began clearing the used pregnancy tests.Ryder watched me, looking like he wanted to say something else, but he never did.When I was done throwing the tests in the trash, I turned to him. "Do you want a cup of coffee or something?" I offered.He hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Coffee sounds good."We headed to the kitchen together, still not saying much to one another. I told him I would make the coffee, so he said thanks and went and took a seat on the other side of the kitchen island, watching me.When the coffee was ready, I went over and handed him his mug, then I leaned against the counter beside him, sipping my own."After the morning I've had, it feels like this coffee needs a little something extra," I joked, attempting to lighten the mood.Ryder chuckled. "I was thinking the same thing."The awkwardness was still there, but we w
(Katelyn's POV)The cab pulled up outside a weathered, ivy-clad building on a quiet street in New Haven, Connecticut. From the outside, it looked like an old academic institute. Just the type of place someone might come to pore over dusty manuscripts or discuss obscure theories with professors who wore tweed jackets. But I knew better.This was The Council’s headquarters, masquerading as the “Institute for Cultural Anthropology” to the human world. I'd heard about it, but I never thought I would actually get to see it in the flesh.My stomach churned as I stepped out onto the sidewalk. The air was crisp, carrying a hint of autumn even though it wasn’t quite the season yet.Behind me, Tyler and Ryder followed closely, their postures tense and alert, flanking me like a pair of protective bodyguards. It was an odd comfort, knowing I wasn’t walking into this alone. But the weight of what lay ahead pressed down on me like a lead blanket.“Looks normal enough,” Ryder muttered, eyeing the st
(Katelyn's POV)"You're okay," Tyler whispered over and over again, but I wasn't sure whether he was talking to me or to himself.“What the fuck was that, Kate?!” Ryder's voice demanded.I shook my head, against Tyler's chest, still trying to come to terms with where I was and what was going on here."I... I just..." I tried to reply, but my voice was weak and hoarse.Tyler kissed the top of my head, his own breathing uneven as he gently stroked my hair, still holding me against him in a death grip. "Sshhh... Sshhh..." he hushed me, shaking his head as he rocked me back and forth."Never again. Never a-fucking-gain. Okay? You're never doing that again, Katelyn," Ryder's voice was sharp and firm, leaving no room for argument or debate. "Never again..." he repeated, sounding more exhausted now.It took a few minutes for me to regain my bearings as Tyler continued to whisper soft reassurances in my ear, rocking me back and forth against his chest like a child.I heard the sound of footst
(Katelyn's POV)The airplane’s engines droned softly as I stared out the window, the world below reduced to quilted patches of green and brown earth divided by winding roads.New Haven, Connecticut... The Council Headquarters. We were still a few hours away, but the gravity of what awaited me felt like a noose around my neck.I adjusted my seatbelt for what felt like the hundredth time and closed my eyes, leaning back into my seat and letting my thoughts drift back over the last two days at home. The two days I’d spent trying, and failing, to harness my telekinesis. The two days that had left me feeling more exhausted, more frustrated, and more anxious than before.I’d wanted so badly to figure it all out before I faced The Council. I’d tried everything I could think of. At first, I tried to recreate the conditions of those emotional surges, thinking maybe I could trick my mind into somehow flipping that internal switch. I thought about arguments. About fear. About sadness. But nothin
(Katelyn's POV)The next day started off like any other, but with the new weight and responsibility of pregnancy pressing down on me. I'd made a call to Dr Connors's offices to try and get a better idea of how far along I was and we managed to gauge that I was about three weeks in. She said they would be able to confirm by checking measurements and all that stuff at my first scan, but for now, I was three weeks in. Three out of forty. It somehow felt like too much and not enough at the same time.Shortly after the call, Alpha David's voice called from upstairs. My blood went cold and the twins and I exchanged worried glances."Jesus, do you think he overheard that?" I asked, feeling like a deer caught in the headlights.Tyler shook his head. "I doubt it..." but still, he looked as concerned as I felt.The fact that David had bothered to call us upstairs personally, rather than sending Tyler a message like he usually did, didn’t escape me. This time, he’d taken the effort to personally
(Katelyn's POV)Ryder's hand lingered on my stomach for a moment, but then he sighed and dropped it."So... What do we do now? I mean, I guess this thing is happening. Do we have to start picking names and shit?" he asked, his eyes filled with fear and uncertainty.I shook my head. "I don't really know. Can't say this has ever happened to me before. I don't even know how far along I am... I kinda freaked out and left the doctor's office before she got to tell me..." I admitted."Well, you should probably find out," Tyler suggested, slipping his hand into mine and giving it a squeeze. "A timeline might be helpful here."I shrugged. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll try get hold of the doctor's office tomorrow to see if she can give me more details. She said something about an OBGYN. I think she gave me a referral or something. Maybe Jen knows more of the details. My brain was all over the place," I explained, feeling a little stupid for not paying more attention to something so fucking
(Katelyn's POV)Ryder fell into silence, not finishing his thought as his jaw tightened and his hands balled into fists.Tyler’s hand rested reassuringly on mine, his presence a steadying force, but Ryder’s tense silence was killing me. He looked like a caged animal, his eyes filled with fear and uncertainty.“I…” Ryder started, but his voice faltered. He took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling as frustration flashed across his face. “How am I supposed to do this?!” he suddenly blurted, his voice sharp and rising with each word. “For fuck’s sake! I’ve just agreed to take on the role of Alpha! Now I need to play dad too?! When is it going to stop?! When is it going to be enough?!”He stood up again and began pacing, his movements erratic and tense. “I can’t! I can’t do all of this at the same time! It’s too much! How the fuck am I supposed to deal with this?!”His words hit me like a slap, leaving me momentarily stunned. The fear and uncertainty I had been feeling all day were
(Katelyn's POV)The drive home had felt too short. Jenna and I had spent lunch talking in circles, and I knew she was just trying to distract me, to lighten the load, but there was no amount of banter or brainstorming that could make this easier.When she’d suggested checking out some stores for the twins’ birthday gifts, I’d briefly considered it, but ultimately, I'd ended up saying no. I was way too distracted to focus and it felt like it would be a total waste of time. So, instead, she called the Uber, and we headed home.The drive was quiet, my thoughts too loud to leave room for conversation. All I could think about the entire way was what I was going to say, rehearsing it in my mind and trying to come up with the right words, but I guess there are only so many ways you can say, 'I'm pregnant', right?When the Uber pulled up outside the house, Jenna gave me a tight hug. “You’ll be fine,” she murmured, her hands gripping my shoulders as she looked me in the eye. “You’re going to t
(Katelyn's POV)"You can tell them the truth, babe," Jenna said with a reassuring smile. "I mean, that's what I'd recommend.""What if... What if I can't do this? What if... What if I don't want this life?" I whispered softly, ashamed to be saying the words out loud.Jenna squeezed my hand. "Well, that's something you need to think about. It's not a decision to make on a whim. But if that's what you decide, I'll be there for you every step of the way. I'll hold your hand in the appointment and tell you that everything is going to be okay. I would never let you do this on your own, okay? Never," she assured me, looking into my eyes with a fierceness that told me she wasn't kidding."Do you want to think it over for a while before you talk to the twins about it?" she suggested, her hand still clutching mine across the table.I shook my head. "No. I can't keep this from them. Even if I wanted to, I know I wouldn't be able to.""Babe, I'm sure they're going to be super supportive," she ins
(Katelyn's POV)The words echoed in my ears, bouncing around my skull but refusing to settle into anything coherent.“No,” I whispered, shaking my head as tears began to well up in my eyes. “I can't... That can't... This wasn’t...” but the words evaporated into thin air as I tried to reason this out.Dr Connors watched me carefully. “I know this might be a lot to take in,” she said, keeping her tone professional but supportive. “But you have options, Katelyn. You don’t need to make any decisions right now. Perhaps you should just take some time to process this.”“Options?” I repeated numbly, the word tasting foreign on my tongue.Her meaning was clear, but I couldn’t focus on it. I couldn’t focus on anything. The tears spilled over, sliding down my cheeks as my chest heaved with quiet sobs.Jenna was at my side instantly, wrapping her arm around my shoulder. “It’s okay, babe,” she murmured. “We’ll figure this out, okay? You’re not alone in this. I'm here with you.”I couldn’t even bri