Chapter 5
Two months later, Cassy's father brought her before Alpha Lino. She had taken in. Alpha Lino had taken Cassy into his arms and spun her around, howling in delight.
Cassy, despite herself and her waring hormones, she laughed. Alpha Lino had realized what he was doing and he'd dropped her, murmuring an apology, with his face beet-red. And Goddess help her, Cassy found the Alpha oddly handsome when he was flustered.
Cassy's pregnancy had been a surprise to everyone. Most had believed that the Alpha couldn't have a child. Or rather, couldn't father a child. However, she had proved them wrong. If her constant morning sickness and dizzy spells in the castle were any indication.
Eleanor watched Cassy from afar. Watched how the woman grew closer to her mate with each passing day. Watched how Alpha Lino doted on the woman and visited her chambers frequently. She couldn't remember the last time her mate had graced her chambers since the news came.
Every eye that turned her way watched her with pity. Eleanor, the fairest, they had once called her. Now, she was Eleanor, the forgotten.
Cassy's name was upon everyone's lips. They spoke of her with respect, as though, the moment she had conceived the heir, she ceased being a lowly Omega. Some even called her the Goddess of fertility, for she had achieved something no other woman had.
Soon, whispers began to spread of the Alpha's plan to make an Omega his Luna. Eleanor's hatred became palpable, but she said nothing.
She deemed it untrue. She was yet to be crowned Luna, but there was no debate as to what she was to Alpha Lino. Not even the appearance of a child could take that from her.
Still, it didn't halt the thoughts that plagued her mind. The thought of harming Cassy. She didn't want to hurt her mate's child. She knew how much this child meant to the Alpha.
However, it hurt. Every single day, watching her mate change into someone she couldn't recognize, someone she couldn't reach, all because of Cassy. It was hell. Eleanor had never seen her mate smile like that with her. Or laugh with anyone else. She hated Cassy with every bone in her body. And even more than Cassy, she hated the babe in her belly that brought about the change.
Eleanor sashayed through the hallways and stopped short when she noted the maids tidying the Grand Hall. Her eyes narrowed. They only ever arranged like that when the Alpha had a meeting. She knew he was planning something and had tried to get him to speak of it but he barely spoke to her about anything these days. She wondered what the Alpha had planned.
***
The maid pulled a little too hard on the lace of her bodice and Cassy winced.
"Must I wear this? It is rather uncomfortable," Cassy murmured, plucking at the prickly material.
"It is a formal meeting, my Lady. You must look the part. Attending in the Alpha's company requires you to dress the part."
Cassy scowled at that. She was tired and sleepy. Attending this meeting...she didn't know why she had to be there. Had Lino not asked her so nicely, she wouldn't have gotten up from the bed.
As a matter of fact, she was yawning again for the sixth time in the last minute.
"Call me Cassy," she told the maid. She already had people thinking she was out to steal Eleanor's position--which was far from the truth. She didn't need the titles that would serve to anger the woman even further. She had told the maids severally to call her by her name but they never took heed.
A knock on the door made her turn and Lino stood by the door, leaning against its frame. He was dressed formally in a blue threaded jacket, black pants, and knee-high boots. His hair was slicked back against his head but a couple of stubborn strands fell over his full brow.
He smiled faintly and Cassy's heart skipped a beat. He was dashing in formal wear. She stared at him, taking him in with her eyes until his lips tugged up.
Her toes curled when he walked towards her and whispered in her left ear. "You look stunning."
Cassy vaguely registered the maid running out of the room but with his lips so close to her skin, she could barely think of anything else.
"Hmm...even with my bulging belly?" She whispered.
"Especially with it," he said and placed his hand atop her stomach. The baby kicked at Alpha Lino's hand and Cassy winced, even as laughter escaped her lips."He doesn't seem to like you much," she cooed.
"Well, shall I get him more whipped cream?" Lino joked and Cassy laughed, feeling surprisingly light. Alpha Lino had that effect on her. Over the past few months, they had grown close. Friends, they had called each other, even if she sometimes caught herself wanting to kiss him. Even if sometimes, Lino's gaze lingered on her lips and the column of her throat. Even if on some days, the goodnight kiss he pressed against her cheeks turned into something more and he would nip at her jaw and her ear lobes until she moaned.
Thinking about it made heat pool between her legs and Alpha Lino's nostrils flared as he smelt her arousal.
His brows rose in question and mischief danced in his hazel-green eyes.
Cassy turned red. "Ah... it's the baby."
"Oh?" Alpha Lino purred and her toes curled again at the sound.
"Y-yes."
It wasn't entirely a lie. The baby growing in her belly had her feeling things she hadn't felt before in her entire life. It was sometimes frustrating but she found that she had grown attached to the child.
In the times when Alpha Lino couldn't be there to keep her company, she spoke to her child, telling it all about her day and Alpha Lino. She usually got kicks as a response and it brought great joy to her heart. She was yet to give birth but she already loved the child.
It was nearly as great as what she had begun to feel for Alpha Lino. But she's never going to admit that. Not to herself. Or anyone.
Chapter 6 Alpha Lino shot her a knowing smile and placed a hand on the small of her back, urging her forward. "Come." Cassy scowled, even as she walked with him. "Remind me again why I must be in attendance?" "It is important you be there, Cass." Cass. He called her that every time she became annoyingly inquisitive, and every time he was being cryptic. Though they had only known each other for a couple of months, it felt like she knew him like she knew her name. "Tell me something, Lino. Anything." Lino. She was the only one who he allowed to call him that. He preferred to be just himself around her, he'd said. "You'll find out soon, Cass. No more questions!" He chided as they took the left turn to the Grand Hall. Cassy nibbled on her lower lip nervously as the voices of the pack leaders escaped the Hall and teased her ears. Nervous. She was nervous. She'd never been to any such gathering in her life. Over the past months, Lino had taken to introducing h
As Cassy followed Eleanor through the forest, she stole glances at the woman. Her posture was stiff and she didn't so much as spare Cassy a glance. "You don't like me much, do you?" Eleanor smiled. "I'm sure we can set aside our differences for the better of the pack. For the Alpha's child in your womb." Cassy's shoulders caved. "I'm really sorry, about all of this. I really didn't want any of it." Cassy meant it. She felt for Eleanor and she was going to give Lino a piece of her mind when they returned. "It's alright. I understand," Eleanor answered and flashed her another bright smile before inclining her head to a different path. "This way. People rarely come here. Only Lunas can walk here. " Cassy nodded, following her deeper into the forest. The walk was refreshing and the chirping of birds filled the air. She felt the slight change in the aura when they stepped foot into it. The serenity of it. The strength in the air. The way time seemed to sti
The rain poured down relentlessly, beating down on the wolves who tried and failed to pick up on Cassy's scent. "Cassy!" Alpha Lino bellowed and a roar of outrage followed. He'd never been so scared in his entire left. So helpless. He would've picked up on her trail, had the rain not washed it away by the time he noticed she was gone. He had searched everywhere he thought she would be, her hiding spots every time she didn't want to be found gobbling down more food. To keep the baby happy, she'd said. He'd searched the gardens, and her chambers, he'd torn apart the castle in search of her. He'd found nothing. All of her things were accounted for. He'd made sure to ask the maids, just to be sure she hadn't run-- though he'd seen no reason why she would. Yes. He should've spoken to her about naming her Luna before announcing it to the whole world. She had been furious and he would never forget the anger that shone in her eyes when he had made the announcement. But th
The moon goddess watched the woman on the floor, angling her head with the grace only an immortal could attain. The woman was already dead, and the baby in her belly dead long before she did. The goddess would have struck the woman who had dared to spill innocent blood on her sacred grounds without mercy dead but it the woman's life was not hers to claim anymore. Eleanor Badminton's life was Cassy Benson's to claim. The Moon Goddess frowned as she mulled over a thought. The dead woman's last moments surfaced. Blue eyes filled with pain had looked to the skies and to her and the woman had pleaded. For once chance. To live again. To make it right. To avenge the life of the child she had loved so much. The Moon Goddess wasn't prone to violence. She detested it. However, she could see the lines of the future falling into place. She had blessed Cassy with the child, therefore blessing her favored Alpha, Lino. What had occurred was a fluke that needed to be corrected and th
Cassy threaded the halls in her plain white robe. The sentries at the gate had taken one look at her face, her garments, and the ice in her eyes and they let her in, gaping at her in awe. The castle seemed the same. Smelled the same. The maids loitered about, gossiping about things that piqued their interest, the sentries and wolves trained on the grounds, and overly dressed females wandered the halls, hoping to catch the eyes of the unmated males of the pack. It was just like it had been a month before. Before she died. It was the same, but Cassy was not. And they noticed it. The moment they noticed Cassy, a hush fell over them. Then they started to whisper and point at her. She recognized her handmaidens amongst them. They stared at her with surprise but she didn't spare them a second glance as she walked past, that stoic expression glued to her face. "Lady Cassy?" Cassy paused and tilted her head slightly. She noted the maid, Jessica. Jessica
Cassy ignored the Alpha's roar of fury and crossed the hall, gown trailing the ground before her as she neared the council. Someone blocked her path, deeming her a threat to the Alpha and her eyes narrowed at the Beta as he fell into a defensive pose in front of her. His eyes widened with glaring intensity and his nostrils flared as he realized the same thing she'd noted for months. That she no longer bore the scent of a lowly Omega. She had the scent of a Luna. An Alpha in her own right. "Impossible," Beta Kayden breathed, tossing furtive glances toward Eleanor's standing form. "The power didn't shift to her. It chose you." Cassy didn't bother to rid him of his ridiculous theory. Her being alive, the change in her body and her soul, it was all the Moon Goddess's gift. One she planned to use to her advantage and take her revenge on those who brought her pain. She had a life to claim. And she would make Eleanor suffer before she made her claim. She would
Cassy was dreaming. She knew it was a dream but she couldn't escape the claws that slashed at her chest over and over again. She couldn't run from the woman clawing her child out of her womb. She begged, pleaded, for someone, anyone to wake her from the nightmare, but no one came. She was dying again, like she did every night. The vile woman was killing her again and no one came for her. Pain exploded in her chest as the claws dug further in, diving past her ribcage, and further until they circled around her beating heart. And when she looked up, she saw her own face, peering down at her. Cold and merciless. "Do not forget," Her cold counterpart seemed to say. Right before she yanked her heart out of her chest. ******** Cassy lurched out of her bed and ran for the bathroom, emptying the contents of her stomach into the chamberpot. Tears ran down her cheeks as she vomited over and over again until all she could do was gag. She'd
The next day, the castle was crowded and busy. Maidens from far and wide graced the castle walls as the news had spread like wildfire that unmated Alphas from all around would be in attendance to woo the Lady Cassy. The day had only begun and Alpha Lino hated it. Already wanted it to end. This was a bad idea. A very terrible idea. He didn't want any male breathing near Cassy. Or touching her. He'd waited all night for her to come to him, begging him to change his mind, pleading with him to not give her away to some random Alpha. He had thought doing this would break her enough to realize just who she was standing up against. She might be a match for him now, but she wasn't stronger than him. He had the power, the wits, and the influence. She couldn't live or breathe without him. Or at least, he had thought he would make her realize that she couldn't live without him. But Cassy hadn't come to him and he had spent the entire night destroying his study. She was arr