The next few days were hell.
Not because of the pregnancy my body felt fine, better than fine actually. But my head was a complete mess.
I kept catching myself touching my stomach. Flat. Nothing there yet. But two lives growing inside me anyway.
His children.
A stranger's children.
No, not a stranger. I knew him. Just not his real name. Not who he actually was.
I pulled out that silver coin for the hundredth time, studying it in the dim light of my room. The crescent moon wrapped around a crown seemed to mock me.
Royal seal. Which meant he was connected to the throne somehow. Maybe even part of the King's inner circle.
The King who'd ordered my parents executed.
"What the hell was I thinking?" I muttered, shoving the coin back under my mattress.
I wasn't thinking. That was the problem. I'd just felt. And now I was paying for it.
A knock on my door made me jump.
"Are you decent?" Rhea's voice came through.
"Yeah."
She walked in carrying a tray with bread, cheese, and some kind of tea that smelled awful.
"Eat," she ordered, setting it down. "You need to keep your strength up."
"That tea smells like ass."
"It's good for the babies. Drink it."
I made a face but took the cup. One sip and I almost gagged. "Oh god, that's horrible."
"Welcome to pregnancy. Everything tastes like shit for a while." She sat on the edge of my bed. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm pregnant with twins from a one night stand with a guy whose real name I don't know. How do you think I'm holding up?"
"Fair point." She watched me force down more tea. "You really gonna do this alone?"
"Don't have much choice. He's gone. I don't even know where to find him if I wanted to."
Which was a lie. That golden thread was still there, pulsing faintly. If I focused on it, I could probably follow it straight to him.
But I wouldn't. Couldn't.
"Twins are hard," Rhea said quietly. "Even with help. Alone? In hiding? That's damn near impossible."
"Then I'll do the impossible." I set down the tea cup. "I've survived this long. I'll figure it out."
She studied me for a long moment. "You're stronger than you look, girl. I'll give you that."
"Had to be. Nobody else was gonna protect me."
"Well, you're not completely alone now. I'll help as much as I can." She stood up. "But we need to be smart about this. That stomach's gonna start showing soon. We need to keep you out of sight as much as possible."
"Why? Lots of women get pregnant."
"Not women who are running from their packs. Not women hiding in rogue villages." Her expression darkened. "And definitely not women carrying twins from an unknown father. People will ask questions."
"Let them ask. I don't have to answer."
"You're naive if you think it's that simple." She headed for the door, then paused. "There's something else. Something I need to tell you about those babies."
My stomach dropped. "What?"
"Not now. Finish your food first. I'll tell you tonight."
She left before I could ask more.
Great. Just great. What now?
---
The weird things started that afternoon.
I was carrying a heavy box of supplies up the stairs, something that would've normally left me winded. But I made it to the top without even breathing hard.
Huh.
Later, I accidentally cut my hand while chopping herbs. Deep cut, should've bled for a while. But when I looked again five minutes later, it was already scabbed over.
That wasn't normal.
And my senses were sharper. I could hear conversations from two houses over. Could smell someone cooking meat from across the village. Could see in the dark way better than before.
"What the hell is happening to me?" I whispered.
The golden thread pulsed.
I felt him on the other end. Not close, but there. Searching. That desperate, frantic feeling bleeding through the connection.
I shoved it down hard. Slammed mental walls up around it.
No. I wasn't dealing with that. Wasn't acknowledging whatever the hell this bond was.
He'd left. Disappeared. That was his choice.
These babies? My choice. My responsibility.
Mine.
The thread pulsed again, harder this time. Almost painful.
"Stop," I hissed at nothing. "Just stop."
It faded back to a dull background hum.
Good.
---
That evening, a stranger showed up.
I was sweeping the clinic floor when I heard the commotion outside. Voices. Someone new asking questions.
My instincts screamed danger.
I moved to the window carefully, peeking out.
A man stood in the village center. Tall, rough-looking, dressed like a rogue but standing like a soldier. His eyes scanned the houses, searching.
"I'm looking for someone," he said loud enough for everyone to hear. "Young woman. Dark hair. Probably has a rejection mark on her neck. She's wanted back in Bloodhowl territory."
My blood went cold.
Kaelen. That bastard was still looking for me.
"Nobody likes that here," one of the village men said. "We don't ask about people's pasts."
"I'm not asking. I'm telling you to look." The scout's eyes were hard. "There's a reward for information. Good money."
Several heads turned, interest sparking.
Shit.
I ducked back from the window and ran upstairs, heart pounding.
Rhea appeared in my doorway. "You need to hide. Now."
"He's from Bloodhowl—"
"I know. I heard. There's a cellar under the clinic. Get down there and don't make a sound."
She led me to a trapdoor I'd never noticed, hidden under a rug. Pull it open to reveal a dark space below.
"Go."
I climbed down. It was cramped and smelled like dirt, but it was hidden.
Rhea closed the trapdoor above me, and I heard her move the rug back into place.
Darkness. Silence. Just my heartbeat thundering in my ears.
I pressed both hands to my stomach.
"Stay quiet," I whispered to the babies who couldn't hear me yet. "Just stay quiet and we'll be okay."
Footsteps above. Voices.
"Mind if I look around?" The scout's voice, muffled.
"This is a healer's clinic. Got nothing to hide." Rhea sounded bored.
More footsteps. Opening doors. Checking rooms.
I held my breath.
After what felt like forever, the footsteps faded. A door closed.
Silence.
I waited. And waited. Counting my heartbeats.
Finally, the trapdoor opened. Rhea's scarred face appeared.
"He's gone. But he'll be back. They always come back."
I climbed out, legs shaking. "How long before they figure out I'm here?"
"Hard to say. But we're running out of time." She grabbed my arm. "Sit down. We need to talk about those babies."
We went to her room. She closed the door and locked it.
"What is it?" I asked.
She sat across from me, expression serious. "When I examined you yesterday, I felt something. Something is wrong."
My stomach dropped. "Wrong how?"
"Not wrong bad. Wrong... different." She leaned forward. "Those babies you're carrying they're not normal."
"What do you mean not normal?"
"I mean they're strong. Way too strong for six weeks. I could feel their life force, their energy. It's powerful." Her eyes locked on mine. "Whatever the father is, he's not just a regular wolf."
I thought about the royal seal. The way Vae had healed from poison. His silver eyes glowing in the dark.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying you're carrying Lycan blood."
The room tilted.
"That's impossible."
"Is it? Think about it. The strength. The healing. Your senses are getting sharper." She gestured at me. "Those are all signs of Lycan influence. The babies are changing you from the inside."
I couldn't breathe. "Lycans don't just sleep with random wolves in caves."
"Apparently one did." She grabbed my hands. "Listen to me carefully. If the wrong people find out you're carrying Lycan blood, they won't just kill you. They'll take those babies. Use them. Lycan heirs are valuable—worth more than gold."
My hands went to my stomach protectively. "No one's taking them."
"Then you need to run. Farther. Deeper into Ashveil where even scouts won't follow."
"I'm tired of running."
"Then you'll die. And those babies will be taken." Her grip tightened. "I'm trying to help you, girl. But you need to face reality. You're carrying the children of someone powerful. Someone connected to the throne. And when he finds out.and he will find out he'll come for them."
The golden thread pulsed. Hard. Desperate.
I felt his presence like a wave crashing over me. Close. Too close.
"He's already looking," I whispered.
Rhea's eyes widened. "What?"
"I can feel him. There's this connection. Like a thread between us. He's been searching since that night."
"A mating bond."
"No. I was already rejected. You can't have two mates."
"You can if the second one's your true mate." She sat back. "Oh hell. This just got a lot more complicated."
"What do I do?"
"You run. Tonight. Before he gets close enough to pinpoint your location."
I looked down at my stomach. Still flat. Still hiding the secret growing inside.
Two babies. Two lives that didn't ask to be born into this mess.
"Where do I go?"
"There's a deeper settlement. Three days east. They don't accept outsiders easily, but mention my name. They'll take you in."
I nodded. My hands wouldn't stop shaking.
"Pack light. Leave before dawn." Rhea stood. "And girl? Whatever you do, don't let him find you. Not until those babies are born and hidden somewhere safe."
"Why?"
She looked at me with something like pity. "Because if he's who I think he is, he won't give you a choice. Lycan royalty doesn't ask. They take. And you'll lose those babies one way or another."