A long while later, heavy footsteps sounded in the courtyard.
"My lord, you're back. The lady refuses to eat."
"I'll handle it."
I wiped my tears in a rush, but my swollen, red-rimmed eyes gave me away.
Hadeon crouched in front of me and reached up to brush his thumb beneath my eyes, his voice aching with tenderness. "Crying and refusing to eat. Who's been bullying my Perenna?"
"The little one in my belly, of course."
Hadeon went still for a fraction of a second, then broke into what looked like stunned delight. "Really? I'm going to be a father?"
"Really."
My heart was a cold cellar, but for the sake of my pup, I had no choice but to play along. Somewhere beneath my ribs, my wolf lay flat and silent, offering nothing. She had not stirred since I'd heard the truth.
"Hadeon, what if... I'm just saying what if... you don't want this pup. I'll raise it on my own. I won't be a burden to you. Would that be all right?"
Something guarded flickered behind his eyes, but he forced a smile. "What are you talking about? How could I not love a pup you gave me?"
"Come on, stop overthinking. Let's eat."
I looked at the table laden with dishes and turned my head away. His scent was close, black walnut bark and iron filings and that faint sweetness underneath, and my wolf flinched from it like a burned thing.
Hadeon picked up a piece of blanched greens and set it in my bowl, his voice soft. "Just a few bites. The pup needs you to eat."
He looked so devoted. How could any of it be an act?
But I knew. All of it was a lie.
"I really can't..."
His patience snapped. "You won't eat, but the pup has to. Stop acting like a child!"
He seized my jaw, fingers digging in, and tried to force the greens into my mouth.
I wrenched free, but I understood his resolve now.
Despair closed over me like water. I blinked back tears and picked up my chopsticks. "I'll eat."
Once this meal was finished, everything would be over.
In the dead of night, the pain tore through my abdomen. Blood seeped from between my legs, spreading across the sheets in a slow, dark stain. The mating mark at my throat throbbed dully, as though it too was losing something it could not name.
Hadeon called out toward the door, and Soren Ashwick walked in at once, as though he had been waiting just outside.
The agony had blurred my vision, but I still heard Soren's careful, measured words: "My lord, the lady's previous pup loss already damaged her body. If we don't intervene now, she may never carry again."
Silence. Then Hadeon spoke. "It doesn't matter. Do as I told you. When I take a second mate someday and she bears pups, I'll give one to Perenna to raise in her old age."
"Understood, my lord."
So it was true. He thought I was filthy. He had never wanted a pup with me.
The last ember of hope inside me turned to ash. My wolf made no sound. She had gone so still I could not feel her at all, and that absence was worse than pain.
Soren was still working to save me when an attendant from the Alpha Heir's den burst through the door. "My lord, the Alpha Heir's mate has been suffering from stomach pains today. She's requesting Healer Ashwick come examine her."
Hadeon's expression changed instantly, open concern written across every line of his face. Without a moment's hesitation, he grabbed Soren by the arm and pulled him toward the door.
Rowan Birchfall, my Omega attendant, threw herself at Hadeon's legs and clung on. "My lord, if you take Healer Ashwick now, the lady will die!"
"The Alpha Heir's mate only has a stomachache. Any pack healer can see to that. But my lady is hanging by a thread..."
"Please, my lord, have mercy on her..."
"Insolent wretch! The Alpha Heir's mate is of the highest birth. Who are you, a servant, to decide her care?"
Hadeon's mind was already gone from this room. He kicked Rowan aside and tossed an order at the servants without looking back. "Brew some ginseng broth. Keep her alive."
"The moment the Alpha Heir's mate is fine, I'll bring Healer Ashwick back."
Rowan scrambled to follow, but I stopped her. "Rowan, don't. Let him go."
Her eyes were swollen and red. She looked at me, heartbroken. "My lady, wait for me. I'll go find a pack healer."
