“I’m pregnant.” I finally said.
The room was suffocating. The moment my words left my lips, the entire ballroom turned into a war zone of whispers and gasps. The tension was so thick I could taste it, bitter and electric.
Luther’s expression barely changed at first. He stared at me, his eyes dark and unreadable, like he was waiting for the punchline to a sick joke.
Then I gave it to him.
“It’s Vander’s.”
Silence. A deafening, crushing silence.
And then—chaos.
Catherine sucked in a sharp breath beside Luther, her nails digging into his arm. The murmurs turned into an uproar, voices overlapping, clashing, breaking through the heavy tension like shattered glass.
Luther’s entire body went rigid. His breathing turned ragged, his hands trembling at his sides—not with fear, but with fury.
“What did you just say?” His voice was barely above a whisper, but it carried through the hall like a blade pressed against my throat.
I swallowed hard, my heart hammering so violently it hurt. But I couldn’t back down. This was my only way out.
“I’m carrying Vander’s child,” I repeated, my voice steadier this time. “And that means I have no place here anymore. Our bond is over, Luther.”
The words were a death sentence. Luther lunged.
I barely had time to react before he was on me, his grip vice-like as he yanked me close, his fingers digging into my wrist so hard I thought the bone might snap.
“Liar!” His breath was hot against my skin, his fury vibrating through me. “You think I’ll believe that? You were locked in my basement, rotting in filth. When the hell did you have time to spread your legs for my brother?”
I flinched, but I refused to let him see my fear. “I had time,” I bit out. “Enough time to find someone who actually wanted me.”
Luther’s grip tightened. For a second, I thought he might throw me to the ground right there, humiliate me in front of everyone.
Then Vander stepped in.
His hand landed on Luther’s shoulder, his voice calm but firm. “Let her go.”
Luther snapped his head toward Vander, his lips curling in disgust. “You—” He laughed, sharp and humorless. “You expect me to believe you’d touch her? That you’d claim my mate?”
Vander didn’t even blink. “Believe what you want.” His gaze flickered at me, something unreadable behind his eyes. “But I don’t abandon what’s mine.”
The entire room held its breath.
Luther looked between us, his face contorting with something ugly, something dangerous. “You think you can just take her from me?” His voice dropped to a whisper, but it was more terrifying than his shouting. “You think I’ll let this go?”
I forced my chin up. “You don’t have a choice.”
The veins in his neck bulged. His control was slipping. And I knew he was seconds away from doing something violent.
Catherine tugged on his arm; her voice desperate. “Luther, don’t—”
But he wrenched away from her and turned back to me, his eyes burning with something worse than hatred.
“You think you can cut me out of your life that easily?” His voice was poison, sinking into my skin. “You think I’ll let you walk away after everything?”
My chest tightened, but I refused to look away. “You already walked away first.”
He exhaled sharply, nostrils flaring. “If that’s how you want to play this, fine.” His gaze dropped to my stomach, his lips curling. “But tell me, Cheryl—what do you think will happen when that child is born?”
A chill raced down my spine.
Luther took a step closer, towering over me. “Do you really think you can keep a Skyler from me? Whether that child is yours, mine, or his—” His glare cut to Vander, his voice laced with venom. “That baby is still part of this pack. And you know what that means.”
My stomach churned. I knew exactly what he meant.
Skyler pack heirs weren’t just personal possessions. They were weapons. Pawns. And Luther didn’t let go of what was his.
Fear coiled in my gut, but I shoved it down. “I won’t let you take my child.”
Luther smirked, slow and cruel. “Then you better run, Cheryl.”
The room felt too small, the air too thin. I felt trapped, cornered—because I was. Luther wasn’t letting me go. Not easily. Not ever.
My hands curled into fists. “You don’t own me.”
His smirk widened. “Don’t I?”
Before I could respond, before I could even process what was happening, he turned to the guests, his expression twisting into one of cold authority.
“The Skyler pack does not accept traitors,” he announced, his voice echoing through the hall. “And a Luna who betrays her mate? A woman who carries another Alpha’s child?” He exhaled sharply, shaking his head. “She is no Luna of mine.”
Words should have freed me. Instead, they shackled me further.
Because when he turned back to me, his next words came like a blade to my throat.
“You’re banished from this pack.”
A gasp rippled through the room.
Catherine’s eyes widened, her lips parting, as if she hadn’t expected things to escalate this far.
Vander tensed beside me. “Luther, don’t do this—”
“Get her out of my sight,” Luther cut him off, his voice like ice. “Before I rip that bastard from her myself.”
My blood ran cold. Luther held my gaze for a long, agonizing moment. And then he turned on his heel, striding away, leaving me standing there, shaking, broken—but alive.
I barely registered the guards moving toward me. I barely heard Vander’s voice, arguing, pushing back, trying to stop this.
Because the only thing ringing in my ears was Luther’s final warning.
'YOU BETTER RUN, CHERYL.'
