ELARIAN Was I ready to do this? I asked myself that question over and over again as I paced the length of the hallway, occasionally stopping in front of the room where Vienna was. She was in there with the woman who assured me she could help me get rid of the pregnancy without complications.My heart pounded so fast it felt like it might rip out of my chest at any moment.Suddenly, the door creaked open, and Vienna poked her head out, "Come on in, she’s ready for you now."She held the door wide open, and I walked in, struggling to keep myself together. When I heard her turn the lock behind me, I spun around sharply."Just for privacy," she reassured me, noticing the concerned and petrified look on my face.An unexpectedly young woman sat on a couch-like bed at the far end of the room. On the small table beside her were six tablets and a sparkling glass of water."The pills should be enough to get the job done, but if the father is an Alpha, you might need more than a few pills to ge
AEROS Three Months Later,Three whole months had passed, and I still had not found her. I had searched every single pack in the neighboring areas and beyond, and there was no sign of her. It was as if she had disappeared into the wind, leaving no traces behind.The rogues had not been able to find her after she escaped from them, and even after I threatened to kill them—after brutally torturing their leader for a month—they still could not provide anything about her whereabouts. In the end, I had to let them go.“This is your fifth bottle this morning. Come on, Aeros, get yourself together,” Jonathan snapped as he grabbed the bottle and yanked it away from me forcefully, just before I could take another swig.“What’s wrong with you? You can’t keep living like this, Aeros. You can’t find her with your head in a bottle. You need to get yourself together and attend to what needs to be done,” he added.I scoffed at his words and burst out laughing in an odd manner.“Haven’t we tried? Thr
AEROS The soft beeping sound of a machine behind me forced me to stir awake as my eyelids fluttered open slowly. My vision was blurry, and my hearing was muffled, as if I were underwater, but I could still catch the voices in the background.“I told him not to drive. I warned him, but he didn’t listen. What if I hadn’t followed behind him directly? What would have happened?” a familiar voice said.“Thank the goddess you were there. He really needs to get over that girl. If he wasn’t so hung up on her, he wouldn’t be drinking in the first place,” another familiar voice added.Silence ensued for the next few seconds until one of them spoke up again.“I’ve been thinking... do you think we should cut off the investigation and find a way to make her look dead to him?” the second voice continued.“I’ve thought of that too, but I can’t come up with anything that will sound believable to him, not after what happened the other time,” came the first voice.“Don’t worry, I have a plan. Anyways,
ELARIAN “What do you mean she didn’t come back last night?” I asked Gabby, Vienna’s mother, in surprise as soon as she broke the news to me that she hadn’t seen Vienna since she went out to pick herbs yesterday.Slowly, I eased myself onto the couch. My stomach was now protruding more with each passing day, and it was gradually becoming so uncomfortable for me. But Gabby and Vienna were doing everything they possibly could to make me comfortable.They were the literal angels the Moon Goddess sent to save me from my misery. Three months ago, I thought all was lost until they stumbled upon me and brought me here, to this pack, the Blood Moon Pack, a place I now considered my home.“Does Alpha Xavier know about this?” I questioned her further, wrapping my hands around my stomach protectively while gently caressing it.“I’m sure she’s fine and will return soon. She’s probably with one of those omega wolves she plays around with. She does that all the time.”“Plus, Alpha Xavier sent a gua
ELARIAN “There’s something I need to tell you,” I said to Gabby as we made our way up the flight of stairs that led into Alpha Xavier’s mansion.She was obviously paranoid about her daughter’s whereabouts and eager to get to the Alpha, practically flying up the stairs, far ahead of me at this point.“What is it?” She didn’t turn around, nor did she stop.“It’s about the baby’s father and the man whose name you hear me call out at night.” We were now at the top of the stairs, and I was heaving heavily, coming to a halt in front of one of the large pillars to catch my breath.It was still a mystery to me why they had built so many stairs, and everyone was subjected to the ordeal of climbing them every single time they visited the Alpha. But Vienna said it was good for me, so she made me do this once every week.My back hurt, and my legs ached, but not as badly as the first time she brought me here. I was now a little more used to it, along with the pain that followed.“Do we really hav
AEROS "Vienna, my pack does not take kindly to thieves. We do not appreciate you coming into our private garden and taking what is not yours," I began softly, not wanting to scare her into retreating into her shell.“I did not steal those herbs,” she snapped back.I was taken aback by how confident and bold she sounded. I had expected her to be a timid and easily scared woman, but she seemed far from that.“Those were general herbs, and if you had any knowledge of them, you’d know they are not supposed to be hoarded in a private garden. They should be shared with the rest of the world,” she added.“Shut your mouth,” a guard growled, shoving her forward roughly. She turned and shot him a glare. Irritated by her defiance, the guard raised his hand to strike her, but Jonathan grabbed his arm and pulled him aside.My lips curved into a thin smile. I was sincerely amused by how she spoke back without fear of the consequences. She sounded nothing like the timid woman I had initially expect
ELARIAN “Why do I feel like Alpha Xavier is mad at me?” I asked Gabby as I paced the length of the waiting room. We were still in the pack house, waiting for Alpha Xavier, who had left the mansion a while ago to bring Vienna back.Gabby didn’t want to dwell on it too much due to her health, so she kept herself occupied with knitting by the window overlooking the large gates, hoping to be the first to see when the Alpha returned.“He’s just upset, that’s all,” she replied without looking up from her task. “You’re carrying the child of an Alpha. That changes everything, Elarian. This could lead to war, especially when that Alpha is someone of high status. You, of all people, should know the consequences of what you’ve done.”“I know… I know… but Aeros has no idea about the pregnancy. He doesn’t even know I’m here, so I don’t see why we should panic. You said so yourself,” I said as I stopped pacing and walked over to her, desperate for reassurance.“That makes it even worse, Elarian. A
AEROS“A car just pulled out of his house a few minutes ago,” Jonathan announced as he walked into my study, still holding a phone to his ear.He was clearly talking to our man stationed at Xavier’s house. I had kept a close eye on Xavier ever since the incident with Blair, using this spy because I became suspicious of him when I lost her. Over time, I had tried to let go, realizing I was just paranoid when I lost her. Xavier had no real reason to want the woman he loved dead.“Who left the house?” I asked, looking up from the report I had been reviewing.I had asked one of the guards to gather any information they could find on Vienna, the young woman currently in my dungeon, hoping to find some sort of connection. But there was nothing. She lived with her mother, who was a healer in Xavier’s pack. Nothing about her stood out, and the more I looked at her details, the more it dawned on me that Xavier could be right.Maybe I was grasping at straws. Maybe Elarian wasn’t there. But the
AEROS“What are you going to do about Blair now?” Jonathan asked as we made our way into the dining hall to get some food for dinner.Guests had been trooping inside the mansion non-stop since Elarian gave birth, and we had been so busy trying to make them comfortable that we barely had any time for ourselves. The servants worked just as much as we did, and even though it was just one child, there was always something to do in the mansion.“Letting her go would probably be a mistake, so I think I should just let nature take its course. Elyse said she would most likely pass if the ritual is not done soon, so maybe…”“You and I know you cannot just turn a blind eye to Blair losing her life. I know you well enough to know that about you, so maybe you could make Elyse look for a way to help her,” he suggested, and I shrugged as I slipped into a seat at the table and the maid dropped a plate in front of me.“I doubt that Elyse would want to do that. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but she
AEROSAs soon as I was alone with her, I squatted down right in front of her and gripped her chin.“When you were gone, there were voices inside my head. I had nightmares a lot and could barely sleep. Everywhere in my head was filled with thoughts of you. The blood was everywhere that day, and I couldn’t get the sight of it out of my head. So, if you were not dead, then why did those things happen to me?"Why fake your own death and make it look so realistic if…if…”“You would have moved on easily if I didn’t do that,” she interrupted me with a smile on her face. “It was all dark magic. I used it to keep you under control and make you feel so guilty for my death.”“And why would you do that, Blair? Why show up now, after everything is over?”“You think everything is over?” she scoffed out loud. “I made this all happen. I made Elarian the way she was because I knew you would run to him for help, regardless of how much you despised dark magic, and you did exactly that.”“What?!”“Kaiden
ELARIAN Jonathan was nervous about going to her. He kept running his hand over his face and acting like, if given the opportunity, he wouldn’t be doing it.“You know you don’t have to do it if you don’t want to,” I said softly to him as I placed a hand on his shoulder. Elyse had excused herself to get some things in order, so we were waiting for her.“It’s not about me wanting to, Elarian. I just… with Blair, there’s this feeling of helplessness, like I can’t fight against her, and I would do anything she wants me to,” he replied with an expression on his face that I couldn’t quite read.“What you feel is what matters the most, so if you don’t want to do this, then all you have to do is…”“I am ready,” Elyse cut me off as she walked up to us and announced that we should all head to our positions.My task was to keep Aeros busy so he wouldn’t walk in on her and Jonathan. It was something I didn’t want to do either. I wasn’t sure I wanted to face him, but I had no choice but to agree w
ELARIAN “I heard what happened,” Jonathan’s voice came from behind me, and I turned around sharply to find him standing there with a glass of water in hand.“I thought you would need something to drink,” he added as he came to stand by my side and handed over the glass to me. I took it from him with a thin smile on my face.Still struggling to catch my breath after what I had just seen, I tried not to make it obvious that my entire world was crumbling inside of me. When I heard him shut the door, I thought he wanted to give me space, and I went after him to tell him that I didn’t want any space, I just wanted him but he was gone before I could catch up to him.For some reason, I had a feeling that he was with Blair, and it took everything inside of me not to crumble to the ground when I saw him like that with her. He had his back to me, but I could see just how much he wanted her. It was obvious in the way he—“Blair and I was a mistake,” Jonathan suddenly spoke up, pulling me out of
AEROSI continuously paced the length of my study, unsure of how I was supposed to face Elarian after what had happened at the breakfast table. It was almost dark, and yet I was still locked up in my study after instructing the guards that I did not want to be disturbed by anyone.I had no idea Blair was going to rope me in like that. I had no idea why I did not open my mouth to say anything. Maybe it was because a part of me knew what she said was true, and that made me feel so… stupid and terrible.A soft knock interrupted my thoughts, and I suddenly stopped pacing. I knew no one else would dare knock after I had told the guards I wanted to be left alone, except for Elyse, who I had sent to check on Elarian.Or was it Elarian? My heart began to race. What was I supposed to say to her? I saw the look in her eyes, she wanted me to say something, to do something, but I didn’t. I just stood there, unable to say anything.The door creaked open, and Elyse walked into the room. I sighed in
ELARIAN I had no idea when I drifted off to sleep, but I knew I had been too weak to do anything else. All I could do was ease into my bed and close my eyes after Elyse left the room. She had returned to drop off my dinner with a maid, and that was the last thing I remembered.When I opened my eyes again, I felt something or someone beside me on the bed. When I tried to move, Aeros' familiar scent overwhelmed my senses. He was lying next to me, his arms wrapped around my waist.When did he even get back? I wondered as I soaked in his relaxing scent and the comforting feel of him beside me. I stayed like that until morning, drifting in and out of sleep. Despite his presence, I found myself waking up countless times, restless for reasons I couldn’t quite place.As the first rays of sunlight began to creep across the horizon, Aeros stirred beside me. The first thing he did was plant a kiss on my cheek.“You’re up early,” he remarked, and I smiled at him softly.Something was bothering m
ELARIAN Blair.That was definitely Blair, though her hair was no longer golden as it had been when I met her in the human world. The wolf who had taken me from the hospital that day had told me she had sold me out to the humans, and I knew it was because of the mark she had seen on my neck.But Blair had been human when I met her in the human world, so why was she here? And how had her hair become a deep shade of black?“Blair? How are you here?” I asked, and Aeros stepped forward.“I told you she suddenly turned up after we lost a prisoner with Jonathan. I have no idea how it happened either, but it just happened,” he explained as my eyes darted from him to Blair.I wasn’t sure he had any clue what he was talking about.“Is this your Blair?” I asked, raising a brow, my face stunned. I could have sworn she was the woman I had met when I first arrived in the human world, so how could she be his Blair?“I thought she was dead too, but when she showed up… the whole thing just became a t
ELARIAN “A lot has happened in your absence, Luna Elarian.” The healer’s words echoed in the back of my mind, and the sadness in her eyes as she said them lingered in my thoughts.“You have to stay in bed. Both you and the baby need as much rest as possible. Plus, Alpha Aeros clearly instructed that we keep you here until he returns,” Elyse’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts and made me aware of my surroundings.“But you just said Jonathan has been… I need to go to him,” I said as I tried to push myself up from the bed. A sharp pain shot through my head, making me scream out loud and collapse back.“Your body is still too weak. It will take time to regain your strength,” Elyse pointed out, stepping forward. “I know you want to be with your husband right now, but for the sake of your baby, Luna Elarian, you need to stay right here,” she added firmly.I sighed heavily and eased back into the bed in defeat. Elyse and the healer excused themselves to check on Aeros after a maid rushed
ELARIAN“Thank the goddess, Elarian. You have no idea how worried I was. You have no idea how scared I was. I thought I had lost you, and when the healer said you were…” His words trailed off as if there was something on the tip of his tongue he couldn’t bring himself to say.“Alpha Aeros, we agreed to let her get enough rest. And please, get something for her to eat. It must have been one hell of an ordeal,” the woman I hadn’t noticed was in the room said. I turned to see a much younger woman standing beside the healer, hovering over me.“Of course,” Aeros mumbled grudgingly as he reluctantly pulled himself away from me and headed outside. For some reason, I was extremely weak, too weak to even speak or move, and the young woman beside me noticed that. She leaned forward and urged me to relax into the bed.“You must be really weak. Please just stay back and wait for him. Within a few hours, you should feel much better,” she said calmly. I stared at her for a few seconds before glanci