Chapter 13
ANSEL POV
Ansel's eyes saucered, and King David sneered. “You really think that I didn’t know you brought Karin back to your manor? I may be sick, but I’m not dead. There isn’t one thing that you can do that I won’t know about.” He shook his head. “You’re delusional if you think anything produced with that hooker will be worthy of our name.”
“She is not a prostitute, hooker or anything else you feel the need to call her,” Ansel said. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply to calm his wolf. “You don’t know her like I do. There’s something…I don’t know…more to the story.”
“Oh, and how can you be so sure?” King David asked.
Ansel hated his father had a small point. The investigation into Karin hadn’t been completed yet, and there was no solid evidence that the things said about her weren’t true. Still, her vulnerability towards him and the way she looked at him made him feel that there was something really wrong.
Clasping his hands in front of him, King David grinned sinisterly. “You know her, huh? If I remember correctly, you thought you knew her before, too, and yet, the little bitch abandoned you while you were sick. She broke your heart and never looked back, but you trust her to have your baby?”
“How could you bring that up?” Ansel asked.
King David stared at him coldly. “Because you need to be brought back to reality. Don’t forget that she REJECTED you mercilessly when you had nothing but a slim chance at surviving. Now you’re strong and making a name for yourself and she suddenly reappears. You don’t find that odd? Who knows how even more blackened her heart is by now?”
Ansel shook his head. “It takes a blackened heart to recognize another. I pray that before you die, you heal your own.” Storming from the room, he slammed the door behind him.
“Well that was eventful,” Edwin said as he leaned against the wall in the hallway.
“I should have known you were listening in.”
“Hey, it’s not my fault that you two decided on a shouting match. I think the entire castle could hear. He’s right, by the way. I never thought you would stoop as low as to get a slut pregnant. I can’t believe dad really thinks you're fit to be Alpha.”
“And I can’t believe you’re so jealous you have to resort to childish insults,” Ansel challenged back coolly. “You’re pathetic. You spend all your time trying to bring me down, but it doesn’t change the fact that the role is mine.” He chuckled harshly. “Tell me, Edwin, how low do you have to be to poison your own pack?”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“You know very well what I’m talking about. You better hope that I find out the rumors about you are just that, and you aren’t accepting bribes to turn a blind eye to the illegal casinos.”
Edwin's eyes widened, and then his face contorted into a snarl. He took a step toward Ansel. “Boy, I advise you to monitor your next words,” he said.
Ansel matched his step. “And I advise you to never address me as boy again. You are my older brother but understand that sickly child you knew is gone.”
“Maybe on the outside, but you’re still the lovesick puppy you’ve always been. That girl obliterated your heart, and you still want to give her power over you. Are you sure, little brother, I’m the pathetic one in this scenario?”
A lethal growl pulled from Ansel’s wolf from inside. Hungrily, it paced as its anger turned to fury. Ansel’s claws bared, and he slammed his hand onto the wall near Edwin’s head. “And you still don’t seem to know how to listen, big brother, so let’s try this again. Mind the business afforded to you. I will be Alpha, and conceive an heir, and during my coronation, I’m going to enjoy nothing more than to watch you bow.” The anger on Edwin’s face caused Ansel’s eyes to shift to a deadly gold. “Is there something you wish to say?” he asked as his wolf came to the surface.
He growled and Edwin’s anger quickly turned to fear. He knew not to push any further. In the past few years, Ansel’s wolf had grown so volatile at times he needed to be restrained by chains to control it. It had a blood lust like no other wolf in Blue Moon, and while he would never harm an innocent person, his oath to protect those who couldn’t protect themselves could drive him over the edge.
Edwin tightened his lips, and Ansel nodded. “That’s what I thought. Glad we finally understand one another.” Pulling away from him, Ansel turned to leave. “If I find out you’re betraying our people, I promise you, Edwin, I will show you no mercy.” He paused, his anger returning. “And one more thing, do not use Karin to provoke me. You may consider yourself a monster, but do it again, and I’ll show you a true beast.”
KARIN POV
Two weeks later
“Karin, can you at least try the new food? The cooks have changed the recipe. You should be able to keep this one down better,” Maggie says. She sees me grimace, and she sighs. “It’s not the food you’re worried about, is it?”
“Is it that obvious?”
“Yes. You pout so much, I’m certain your face is going to get stuck like that. So you’ve gained a little weight. I don’t understand what the big deal is.” She poses in front of me, making me giggle. “Trust me, some men like a little meat on their bones. Just ask my husband.”
Maggie has become such a great friend to me in such little time. Whenever I am down, she always seems to know just what to say. I needed it more than ever, especially since Ansel had all but vanished. I can’t help but think that it’s because I don’t look as I did before. The high-calorie diet required by the medical staff has made me gain weight at a rapid pace. It has only been two weeks, but most of my clothes fit pretty snug.
“Maggie, you’re gorgeous just the way you are, but for me, gaining weight so quickly is painful and I don’t mean just emotionally. When I was learning ballet, I was forced to keep a rigorous diet that kept me looking the way everyone thought a ballerina should. It was unhealthy, but my body got used to it. Now my knees and my back ache. It all feels too much.”
Maggie placed her hand under her chin in thought. “I have heard of petite women whose bodies can only tolerate a certain weight without having complications. Have you mentioned it to the doctor?”
“No. I thought I was being vain and making up issues that didn’t exist, but I’ll mention it the next time.”
“Good,” Maggie says as she pets my shoulder. “Maybe go for a walk to clear your head? No sense in staying cooped up in your room.”
“Okay.” I grab my coat and exit my villa to walk the estate. The air is crisp with leaves that are already showing hints of fall arriving. The cobblestone under my feet makes me stumble a little, and I look around to see if anyone noticed. Ahead, I spot the gardener’s wife. She’s sitting in a chair with her hand over her protruding belly. From what Maggie has told me, she’s about six months pregnant. I gather my courage and approach her. “Hello.”
She gives me a warm smile. “Lady Karin, how are you today?”
“I’m alright.” I shift my weight back and forth and she raises her eyebrow.
“Are you sure about that?”
I can’t hide the frown that soon appears on my face. “Sorry, it’s just…I’m having a hard time. It’s been weeks since I’ve been able to practice my ballet, and I can’t help but think once I’m pregnant, I’ll have to quit all together.”
“Why do you think that?” I look down at her stomach and she laughs. “Oh, I see. Well, yes, I’m not able to do all the things I did before with ease, but that doesn’t mean I’ve given them up all together, and neither should you. There are plenty of pregnant women who dance until their delivery date.”
“Maybe…but I don’t know if I’ll be one of them. The diet I’m on has made me gain weight, and it’s affecting my knees. If it’s a problem now, what’s going to happen when I get pregnant?”
“You’ll adjust,” she replied. “I hate to break it to you, but when you’re bringing a life into this world, it’s no longer all about you. You said that you haven’t danced in a while, perhaps it’s time that you did. You won’t learn how to navigate the changes if you let fear keep you from facing them.”
Her words pour into me in a way that goes beyond just talking about pregnancy. “Thank you,” I say to her, and she smiles at me again.
After the conversation, I went back to my room. I look at my new ballet clothes. They seem to taunt me but I grab hem, anyway.
I need to do this.
Ada grunts in agreement. My villa suddenly feels constricting.
Not in here.
“The ballroom,” Ada says, as if she can hear my thoughts.
“We’re forbidden from going in here.”
“No. We’re forbidden from touching the piano. The room is large and perfect for practicing.”
I know she’s right, but I’m still nervous. Ansel has been distant, and if he spots me near the piano, he’s certain to be angry. Still, I need to do something to get my mind off him and how dreadful I feel.
Making up my mind, I put on my clothes and bustle to the manor.
I peek into the massive room and exhale in relief when I don’t see Ansel.
Entering, I put on my pointers and take my stance.
Here goes nothing.
I tried a pirouette but failed.
I can do this. I need to do this.
I try again, and again I stumble. No matter what position I do, it doesn’t work. My turns are choppy, my legs no longer lift as high as they did, and my additional weight seems to make everything more difficult. It’s like my body has forgotten how to dance. I am clumsy, and my ankles are weak. I grit my teeth in frustration.
“Come on! Please! Don’t take this away from me, too!”
I rise to the ball of my foot, but the snap of my ankle forces me to the ground. I grab onto it and cry softly. “I-It’s gone. I can’t dance anymore…”
The gardener’s wife was wrong. Physically, I am no longer graceful, and mentally I’m unnerved. It’s gone. My dream, the only thing I’ve ever wanted, has been taken like everything else from me. I place my head in my hands and weep, realizing that I may have left my cage, but my future never did.
Tugging at my shoe, I slowly undo the laces but freeze when the sound of melodious notes playing from the piano.
