Pain.
It started as a dull ache in my stomach, but soon, it spread—sharp and unbearable. I curled up on the cold, damp floor, my breathing ragged.
“Seraphina,” my mother’s voice was soft, but full of worry. She scooted closer, placing a gentle hand on my back.
I gritted my teeth, trying to breathe through the pain. “M-mom… something’s wrong.”
She was silent for a moment before she sighed. “You’re pregnant.”
The words felt like a dagger to my chest. I squeezed my eyes shut, shaking my head. “No… No, that can’t be—”
Tears welled up and spilled over, my body trembling as reality crashed down on me.
I'm pregnant. With Killian’s child.
I let out a choked sob, my arms wrapping protectively around my stomach. “Mom… what am I gonna do?”
“Shh, my child. Don’t cry,” she whispered, stroking my hair. “You have to be strong.”
But I couldn’t be strong. Not now.
I sniffled, guilt clawing at my throat. “I’m sorry.”
My mother frowned. “For what?”
“For everything,” I whispered. “For getting you thrown in here. For not protecting you. For… for falling in love with him.”
Her expression softened. “Don’t be sorry, my love. You loved the wrong man, that’s all. But love isn’t a sin.”
I shook my head. “It feels like one.”
She cupped my cheek, forcing me to look at her. “You don’t know the truth about yourself yet, Seraphina. You have a rare bloodline. A powerful one. Killian was too blind to see it.”
A rare bloodline? I wanted to ask her more, but I was too drained. And what did it matter? Killian had already cast me aside like I was nothing.
Days blurred together in that prison. The cold, the hunger, the whispers of other prisoners—it all became one long nightmare. But the worst part?
The guards talked. They wanted me to hear.
“Tonight’s the night, huh? Alpha Killian and Lady Lilith, mating under the full moon.”
My stomach twisted.
Another guard laughed. “Yeah. Guess the little omega was just a toy after all. Poor thing actually thought she could be his mate.”
I clenched my fists, my heart aching.
Tonight. Killian was going to mate with Lilith.
The man who once held me in his arms, who whispered sweet words in the dark, who swore he loved me—he was going to claim someone else.
Memories flooded my mind, sharp and cruel.
“You’re mine, Seraphina,” Killian had murmured against my skin, his silver eyes dark with desire. “No one else. Just you.”
“Come here,” he’d ordered, pulling me onto his lap in his office. “You look so damn pretty when you obey me.”
I’d laughed, swatting his chest. “Alpha, you’re insatiable.”
he’d smirked, nipping at my jaw. “Only for you.”
And gods, the way he touched me—like I was the most precious thing in the world. Like he would die without me.
I clutched my chest, struggling to breathe.
Had it all been a lie?
Had I really been nothing but a toy to him?
I swallowed back a sob, forcing myself to stand despite the pain. My mother watched me, sadness in her eyes.
“What are you going to do?” she asked.
I wiped my tears away, my voice hollow. “I’m not going to break for him.”
But deep down, I knew—I already had.
Until that night…
Screams. Blood. Chaos.
The rogues came like a storm, tearing through the pack like wild beasts. The guards outside our cell barely had time to react before they were slaughtered, their bodies hitting the ground in sickening thuds.
I pressed a hand over my mouth, trying to keep my breath steady. My heart pounded in my chest. This was it—our chance.
The key.
I scrambled toward the fallen guard, my hands shaking as I pried the key from his belt.
“Hurry, Seraphina,” my mother urged, her voice tight with fear.
I fumbled with the lock, forcing myself to stay calm. The heavy door creaked open, and I rushed to her, unlocking the chains on her wrists. She gasped as they fell away, rubbing the raw skin. “Come on, we have to go.”
We bolted out of the dungeon, running through the bloodstained corridors. The scent of death was thick in the air. Bodies littered the ground—guards, warriors, even some rogues. The pack was falling.
We were so close to the exit when a familiar voice cut through the chaos.
“Well, well. Look who decided to crawl out of their cage.”
I skidded to a stop, my blood turning ice cold. Lilith.
She stood a few feet away, dressed in an extravagant white gown, her golden curls shining even in the dim torchlight. In her hands was a bow, an arrow already nocked and aimed—right at my mother.
“Run, Seraphina,” my mother whispered, stepping in front of me.
I shook my head frantically. “No—”
The arrow whistled through the air.
Thwack.
My mother jerked forward, her breath hitching.
I screamed as she collapsed onto her knees, the arrow buried deep in her back.
“No! Mom!” I dropped beside her, grabbing her shoulders, but she was already so pale. So weak.
Lilith smirked. “Oops. My hand slipped.”
Rage burned through my veins, but before I could do anything, she raised her bow again—this time, at me.
“You should’ve stayed in your cage, omega,” she sneered.
But before she could release the arrow, my mother used the last of her strength to shove me away. “Run.”
I froze, tears blurring my vision. “I can’t—”
“Run, Seraphina! Protect your child!” she choked out.
My breath caught.
My child.
Lilith pulled back the string, her grin widening. I ran.
