Chapter 3

The world slowly came back into focus, the blurry edges of my vision giving way to the dim light of the room around me. The sheets beneath me were soft, and the bed smelled faintly of lavender. It was unfamiliar and calm. My body ached with every shift, and a wave of dizziness followed me as I tried to sit up. My head felt like it had been split open, and I started to wonder what had happened to me.

I rubbed my forehead, trying to clear the fog that clouded my mind. What had happened? The last thing I remembered was walking out of my house and into the forest with Theo. Everything had gone black, and now I was in a strange and unfamiliar place.

I swallowed hard, pushing the thought of my parents, the attack, and the betrayal that my pack had plotted against me aside. I needed to focus. I needed to figure out where I was and what was going on.

The door creaked open, and I stiffened, my eyes darting toward it. Theo stepped inside, looking as composed as always, his expression unreadable.

“You're finally awake,” he said, his voice low and steady. His voice wasn’t one that offered comfort or warmth. It was nothing but cold neutrality.

“Where am I?” I asked. My throat was dry, making voice raspy.

“Welcome to Mooncrest Pack,” he replied simply as he scanned me with his eyes. “You’ve been out for a few days. I had to carry you the rest of the way.”

I nodded slowly, absorbing his words. My heart clenched as I thought of everything I had left behind—the pack, the position I had inherited, the life I thought I had known. What would happen to it all now?

“Are you feeling better?” Theo asked, his voice softer than before. His gaze was distant, focused more on his thoughts than me. The distance between us was so thick, so suffocating. I could feel it in the air, hanging heavy, like a weight that refused to lift. It didn’t matter if he was standing right in front of me, I knew just how far apart we were from each other emotionally.

I forced myself to sit up completely, ignoring the way my head spun.

“I’m fine,” I said, refusing to make eye contact with him. I wasn’t sure if I believed it or not, but the words were what I knew I was supposed to say, so I said them.

Theo didn't reply. His silence made the room feel colder. He turned to leave, but I stopped him.

“Theo,” I said, the words slipping out before I could think better of them. “Do you care? About me, I mean.”

He froze at the door, his back to me, his shoulders tensing. “What do you mean by that, Anaya?”

“You barely look at me,” I said, frustration building up in my chest. “I don’t even know why I’m here with you. Yes, my pack might be against me, but it’s my duty to make things get back to normal.”

He turned around to face me, his expression unreadable, but his lips curled into a faint frown.

“I’m sorry, Anaya,” he said, his tone far too detached. “I’ve been busy planning the mating ceremony. There’s a lot to handle right now. Besides, you just woke up. I asked you how you were doing, and you said you were fine. There’s only so much I can do right now.”

Mating ceremony. The words hit me like a slap. I had heard of them, but I hadn't expected everything to move so quickly. It felt like the pieces of my life were being pulled together without my consent, like I was just being dragged along in the wake of someone else's plans.

“I thought you… I thought we were supposed to—”

“I’m sorry. I have a lot to handle right now,” he cut me off, and then he turned and left without another word, closing the door behind him with a soft click.

I stared after him, feeling the emptiness of his absence press into me.

I spent the next few days in a haze of uncertainty. Theo was as distant as ever, always busy, always unavailable. It didn’t matter that I needed answers to questions. The preparations for the mating ceremony took precedence over everything, including me. The pack members I walked past in the halls barely acknowledged me, too absorbed in their own tasks. I couldn’t help but feel like a pawn in some game I didn’t fully understand.

To make matters worse, my body began to betray me. It started slowly—an odd sensation in the pit of my stomach every morning, a queasiness that wouldn’t go away. At first, I thought it was just the stress of everything happening so quickly. The move to Mooncrest, the pressure of the mating ceremony, and the overwhelming uncertainty of my future. But as the days passed, the nausea worsened, and the exhaustion that clung to me was unbearable.

Every time I woke up, the sick feeling took over my body. I couldn’t keep food down, and the weakness that followed made everything seem ten times harder.

One morning, I couldn’t take it anymore. I stumbled out of bed, clutching my stomach, and made my way to the pack’s medical wing. The halls were quiet, and I almost felt like an intruder, walking down the corridors of a place I didn’t belong. The pack doctor’s office was just a few doors down, and by the time I reached it, I was barely able to stand upright.

Dr. Vance, as the wood carved on the door to his office said, was a middle-aged man with silver streaks in his hair and a kind face. When he saw me walk in, his expression shifted from professional to concerned almost immediately.

“You look pale, Anaya,” he said, guiding me gently to the nearest chair. “What brings you in today?”

“I—I’ve been feeling sick,” I reported, swallowing hard. “Every time I wake up, I feel nauseous. I can’t keep food down.”

Dr. Vance’s brow furrowed as he nodded, his expression thoughtful. He made a few quick notes on his notepad before looking back at me.

“Let me take a look at you,” he said, motioning for me to sit on the examination table. “We’ll see what’s going on.”

I did as he asked, though a strange unease settled deep in my stomach. Something told me I wouldn’t like the answers he was about to give me.

Dr. Vance examined me carefully, his movements deliberate and efficient. After a few minutes of checking my vitals and making some notes, he finally sat back in his chair, his eyes narrowing as he looked at me.

“I think I know what’s happening,” he said, his voice steady but serious.

My heart skipped a beat. “What do you mean?”

He hesitated for a moment before meeting my gaze with a kind smile on his face that made me know he was unsure of what to think of everything. It made me frown and shake my head in confusion as I asked him again, “What do you mean, Dr. Vance? What’s happening to me? Is it something that will make me… Am I going to die?”

“Anaya, you’re pregnant.”