The next three months were a silent, grueling war of attrition fought entirely within the walls of the Bloodfang Pack. Kael had returned to the Alpha Hall, and a week later, he had formally marked Lady Selene Raventhorn in a lavish ceremony witnessed by half the Northern Realm. The pack celebrated; the political world stabilized. But the faint, insistent thrum of the mate bond in my chest, a low, constant ache, told me that Kael was just as wounded as I was. He had secured his power, but at the ultimate cost of his soul.
I retreated deeper into the healer's hut, hiding my pain behind tinctures and poultices. I avoided the Alpha Hall, avoided the sound of his voice, the sight of him next to Selene—anything that would shatter my resolve. Kael, in turn, avoided me in public, though I could always feel his wolf's restless presence, prowling the edge of my awareness every night, unable to rest, unable to truly connect. The air felt thick with unspoken desire and shared grief, a constant pressure building between us.
Then, the physiological changes began. The nausea started, crippling in the mornings. The exhaustion became profound, requiring naps where I had never needed them before. The subtle, new warmth in my core wasn't the bond, but something more terrestrial, more terrifyingly real—a growing life.
That morning, with the simple white stick confirming my deepest, most dangerous fear, the quiet world I had built shattered entirely. Two pink lines. The Alpha's child. Six months after the Red Moon, the Goddess had offered her final, undeniable proof that the bond was real, and fertile.
I was sinking onto the wooden stool, the cold, stark reality of a secret heir crushing my lungs—a half-wolf child with the absolute blood claim to the Dominion throne—when the door slammed open.
"Aria! You're needed at the border!" Mira, the Head Healer, was panting, her face pale and streaked with panic. "Rogues attacked the patrol team! It's bad, several wounded are incoming!"
I shoved the devastating test stick deep under my cloak, the adrenaline instantly overriding the shock. I forced my healer's calm, my mind snapping into professional mode. "Go to the east clearing, Mira. I'll handle the wounded brought directly to the Hall. Gather silver dust and clean wraps."
As I stepped out into the courtyard, the storm that had been brewing in my heart erupted into a painful clarity. The pack was parting, silent and awestruck. Kael was riding back in, his horse lathered and exhausted, his black armor stained with dark rogue blood. He was a terrifying sight: exhaustion, rage, and untamed power radiating from his massive frame like visible heat.
His eyes, wolf-silver and razor-sharp, swept the courtyard, assessing the damage. And then, they landed on me.
The suppressed mate bond roared. It bypassed my control entirely, surging between us like a physical current. My knees weakened, my pulse hammered against my ribs, shouting the secret I had desperately tried to bury.
Kael dismounted quickly, his eyes locking onto my face. His nostrils flared, his Alpha senses working with predator efficiency. He smelled the newness, the subtle hormonal shift, the profound change in my core temperature—the undeniable scent of a life taking root.
And worse—he smelled the faint, new heartbeat clinging to my own, a distinct, fragile warmth.
His silver eyes widened, fixing on the subtle curve beneath my cloak, which had begun to show slightly, even at the six-month mark. The sheer, primal possession that flooded his gaze was not anger, but a profound, absolute claim—a recognition of his own blood and legacy.
"Aria," he breathed, the sound barely audible over the courtyard din, yet it felt like a thunderclap in my soul. "You're…pregnant."
I couldn't speak, couldn't deny. My hand instinctively covered my abdomen. I was trapped, exposed by the truth. Terror and a sliver of delirious hope warred for dominance.
But before Kael could take a single, claiming step toward me, a high, saccharine voice cut through the tension.
"Alpha! You're hurt!" Lady Selene ran down the steps of the Hall, elegant and perfect in a flowing silk dress. "Come inside, let me tend to you immediately. The nobles are waiting to salute your victory."
Kael's entire body was rigid. His gaze never left mine, his wolf fighting the restraint of the woman clinging to his arm. He endured her embrace, but the mate bond screamed his rejection of her touch, his focus entirely on the silent exchange between us.
My heart cracked silently. He knew the truth of our child, yet he did not push her away. Selene was the official Luna, the Queen, and the political cost of rejecting her now—especially in front of the gathered pack—was too high, even for a wolf as powerful as Kael. He was choosing the Dominion's stability over his heart's truth.
With a final, terrible tightening of his jaw, Kael allowed Selene to turn him, leading him into the Hall. His last, burning look was a mixture of pain, possession, and a promise that the secret would not stay buried for long. He was saying, I know, and I will claim you soon.
I stood alone in the cold, the hidden life within me now a beacon of danger. I knew his next move would be to claim us, and that move would incite Selene's wrath. I had to leave. I had to disappear before Kael's desperate need to claim his heir cost us everything, including the baby's life.