Claudia

Braden’s grip on my hand tightened as he took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Claudia. We can try again. The doctors want to keep you here for a few days to run tests, to find out what happened. We lost the baby.”

His words shattered my world. The weight of his apology hung in the air as I sank back into the pillows, the reality of what he was saying settling in. My baby… our baby… was gone. I blinked rapidly, trying to hold back the flood of tears threatening to spill. The hollow ache in my chest seemed to expand with every heartbeat, a vast emptiness I wasn’t sure I could ever fill.

Braden pulled me into his arms, holding me tightly against his chest as I sobbed. The rhythmic beat of his heart beneath my ear was the only sound I could focus on as I let the grief consume me. His arms wrapped around me, offering me the only comfort I could accept at that moment. But even his warmth couldn’t chase away the cold, gnawing sensation that settled deep in my bones.

Minutes—or perhaps hours—passed as we stayed like that, tangled in our grief, until the storm of tears finally subsided. I pulled away from Braden, wiping my damp cheeks with the back of my hand. My throat felt raw, my head throbbed, and my body ached, but the worst pain came from the deep emptiness in my belly. The life that had once been there was gone, snatched away before I had the chance to protect it.

“How did this happen?” I whispered, my voice hoarse. “I don’t understand. Everything was fine. I was careful.”

Braden exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair, his jaw clenched. “The doctors said it was likely the stress from you having a fall” he muttered. “You lost so much blood, Claudia. By the time I got to you…” 

His voice trailed off, and the guilt in his eyes was unmistakable. He blamed himself. A fall ... I don't remember that? 

“It’s not your fault,” I said, trying to sound stronger than I felt. But deep down, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something else was at play, something we didn’t understand. My hand drifted to my belly again, the small bump that should have grown with life now felt like a painful reminder of what was lost.

Braden shifted beside me, his blue eyes filled with an intensity that unsettled me. “Claudia, when I found you… there wasn’t a man. There were no signs of anyone around. You were alone, unconscious.”

I stared at him, confused. The memory of the stranger in the woods—the man with the striking eyes—was vivid in my mind. His face, his voice, the way he had looked at me like I was something precious. How could it have not been real?

“But I saw him, Braden. He was there. He touched me,” I whispered, my voice wavering. “He… he knew me. I’m not crazy.”

Braden’s jaw tightened, his hand gripping mine again. “I believe you,” he said carefully, but there was doubt in his voice. “But the warriors searched the area, and there was no trace of anyone. No scent, no tracks. Whoever—or whatever—you saw, it wasn’t there when I found you.”

A chill ran down my spine as his words sunk in. Could it have been a hallucination brought on by the blood loss and the fear? But the memory felt too real, too vivid. I could still recall the way his breath had brushed against my skin, the way his eyes had looked at me with a mixture of longing and pain.

I shook my head, refusing to accept that it was all in my imagination. “No,” I insisted. “He was real. I remember his face, his voice. He told me he’d been looking for me.”

Braden’s expression darkened, his eyes narrowing slightly. “Claudia, what else did he say?” His tone was tense now, like he was trying to piece together a puzzle. “Did he give you a name? Anything?” He looked at me urgently as i felt a shiver crawl up my spine.

I swallowed hard, replaying the encounter in my mind. The stranger’s words were fuzzy, disjointed in my memory, but one phrase stood out. “He said… he said I didn’t belong here,” I whispered. “And then he tried to get me to leave with him.”

Braden’s eyes flashed with a mixture of anger and concern. He stood abruptly, pacing the small hospital room.  He keeps his back to me before he walks back over to the bed. "Put it out of your mind for now, I'll take care of it, your safe with me. I'm always going to keep you safe." I nod as I shuffle over onto my side sinking into the bed. Of course he will take care of me but ... I know what I saw. That feeling niggles its way into my chest I have never doubted Braden but now I feel as if I am missing something, that he is keeping something from me. 

I feel the bed dip as Braden places a soft, fleeting kiss on my cheek. “Get some rest,” he tells me, patting my head as I lean back into my pillows. My eyes burn as I struggle not to shed the tears for the loss of our child. This is so unexpected—we’re young and wolves; this shouldn’t have happened. I turn facing the window as I watch the world go by, desperate for the tears to fall. “I’ll get you some more water. Is there anything else you need?” he asks softly as I shake my head, pulling the blankets up around me.

It feels like only yesterday we were so happy planning for this for our family. I stroke my tiny bump that warm fuzzy feeling I always got no longer there.