Chapter 102

Hannah’s POV

I felt a sense of emptiness when I woke up the next morning and realized Sebastian was gone. His side of the bed looked so big and empty. It filled me with an inner dread. There was so much I wanted to talk to him about, but I could hardly utter a single word yesterday. I couldn’t believe everything I had found out; or everything that was told to me. It wasn’t making sense, but there was a part of me that believed Henry could possibly be my fated mate.

He remembered a part of my childhood that I had never told anyone. Not even Sebastian knew of my heroic efforts as a little girl when I saved that boy. Nora was sensing that Henry was, in fact, my mate, but she was wary of the fact that she can sense it in the first place. She shouldn’t be able to sense anything because Sebastian had already marked me.

But then something else that Henry mentioned surfaced in my mind and I grew ill thinking about it. Sebastian was just using me and didn’t really love me.

“He does love us,” Nora insisted; she didn’t want to believe anything else other than that.

My stomach had an intense pain coursing through, and I grabbed onto it, holding it as the pain lessened.

“Ouch,” I hissed out loud. “What the fuck was that?”

“Our baby is in distress,” Nora told me, worry in her tone. “Just take some deep breaths and relax. It might be a good idea to go get checked out.”

She was right; I needed to make sure my baby was okay and survive whatever stresses I’m going through. I still hadn’t told Sebastian about the pregnancy, and I wouldn’t be able to face him or myself if I lost this baby.

“Hannah!” Raya said, knocking frantically on the door. She opened the door before I had the chance to invite her in. “Is it true?”

“Is what true?” I asked, trying to wrap my mind around everything going on.

“Are you having an affair with the gardener?” She asked, staring around my face like she was searching for answers.

I almost wanted to laugh; I definitely wasn’t having an affair with Henry. Nora was a bit peeved at the accusation, but I knew there had to be a genuine reason why she was asking.

“Where is this coming from, Raya?”

“It’s all over the news, Hannah,” Raya said quickly.

I stared at her with disbelief.

“What?” I said again, not sure if I heard her correctly. “The news?”

“Somebody took a picture of you and Henry in the hospital,” she said.

She began to pull out her phone and brought up the photo that’s been speculated about all over the media. I gasped again as I grabbed her phone. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was the same photo that Nancy had taken; I thought, at the time, that she sent it to Sebastian. It seemed plausible considering his reaction. But apparently, she didn’t send it to him; she sent it to the media. That’s how Sebastian saw the picture; because it’s all over the internet.

“I’m going to rip that she-wolf’s throat out,” Nora roared with fury coursing through her.

“Someone is going around and saying that you aren’t Sebastian’s fated mate…” Raya said with large and worried eyes. “That you are just using him. They said Henry is your real fated mate.”

My breathing got caught in her throat at her words. How had something like that traveled around the kingdom so quickly? It wasn’t making any sense. Henry was with me last night and this story came out early this morning. There was no way he managed to get to the media this quickly and get a story like this released. Then again, I wasn’t sure what he was capable of.

She continues scrolling through the article and then there was another image appeared. It was a photo of me going into Henry’s home.

“The media has been following me…” I said in a hollow-sounding tone.

Raya glanced at the photo and grimaced as she met my eyes.

“I’m sure these can easily be explained,” she said softly.

I swallowed hard and nodded.

“I’m not having an affair,” I said firmly.

She flipped to the next screen on her phone and brought up the actual news article. I scanned it briefly. I didn’t need to read any more of it; I felt sick to my stomach. They were calling me a “no good, omega she-wolf” that was using Sebastian for his title and fortune. They were saying I wasn’t his fated mate and I had no business being his luna.

“I have to find Sebastian,” I said, standing to my feet.

I ran out of the room with Raya following closely behind me. I ran down the stairs and toward Sebastian’s office. I knocked on the door, but when I heard no response, I opened it to find his office empty. I turned around to see Arnold approaching us. His eyes looked sad, and he met my gaze.

“He went into the town to put these rumors to rest,” he told me.

I sighed in relief; that meant he didn’t believe them.

“He wasn’t happy when he saw the news story; or those pictures,” Arnold added.

There was something indifferent in his tone and it made me nervous. He did, believe me, didn’t he?

“Nothing was going on between me and Henry,” I tried to explain but he didn’t look like he wanted to hear it.

“The truth will come out eventually,” Arnold said, his tone hardening. “And when it does, the right people will pay the price.”

Raya stood beside him, staring up at him with confusion in her eyes.

“I believe her,” she said to him, bringing his attention to her. His gaze softened when he met her eyes. “Hannah would never lie to me; if she says nothing is going on, then there’s nothing going on.”

He sighed as if he was defeated but then he nodded and turned back to me.

“I apologize, Luna Queen,” he said to me, softening his tone. “I’ve worked alongside the Alpha for a long time. He’s become a good friend to me, and I care for him. I would hate to see him hurt. I hope you understand my indifference.”

“He’s lucky to have someone like you to care for him…” I said, trying to sound unbothered and confident. But on the inside, I was screaming. I just wanted to see Sebastian so I could tell him for myself that nothing was going on. I had to tell him everything.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. Raya and Arnold tensed as well and reached for their phones. There must have been a breaking news story.

My heart felt heavy in my chest as I switched on the news app. A live video appeared on my screen; a woman stood at the podium speaking to the media.

“It’s an outrage that this omega posed for so long as the Alpha King’s mate,” she sneered. “She is nothing but a fake and a liar. I knew it from the beginning. That’s exactly why I returned. Because I am the Alpha king’s actual fated mate and I am claiming my throne.”

It was Emily.