Chapter 163

Kayla

I scrolled through the comments on the article, my heart breaking over and over with each swipe of my thumb. I knew I shouldn’t look, but I couldn’t help it; the article had been scathing, every detail of my early pregnancy already out within mere hours of the doctor’s visit. Someone must have overheard and blabbed. Maybe even the doctor himself.

“No wolf of her own and she expects to carry an Alpha’s baby?” one comment read. “Nicholas Reynolds should be ashamed.”

“This is what happens when traditions are broken. A Luna’s ONLY duty is to provide an heir. She can’t even do that right since she has no wolf.”

“We all knew she was trouble when he picked her rather than all of the eligible she-wolves in the territories. But he wouldn’t listen to reason. And now she’s going to be the downfall of both Bluemoon and Nightshade. Mark my words.”

“Everyone knows a wolfless woman can’t possibly sustain an Alpha pregnancy. The baby would be too powerful, no matter how many silly hunts Kayla insists on participating in to prove herself. At the end of the day she’s a weakling, plain and simple.”

My fingers trembled as I continued scrolling, each new comment like a knife twisting in my gut. My bedroom felt suddenly smaller, the walls closing in on me. I could hardly even breathe.

But then I scrolled down further, and Anna’s name caught my eye, making my stomach drop even further.

“Remember when we thought Anna was carrying Nicholas’s son? At least she can produce healthy babies. He should divorce Kayla and marry Anna instead, even if that baby isn’t his.”

“Anna would be a much better Luna. She’s a fully-fledged wolf and clearly fertile. They could have a score of healthy Alpha children together. Beautiful ones, too.”

The tears I’d been fighting finally spilled over, burning hot paths down my cheeks.

“Did you know Anna is living on Bluemoon pack territory now? After that whole paternity ‘mix-up’? Please. The baby is obviously Nicholas’s.”

“They practically visit Bluemoon every other weekend. They claim it’s pack business, but we all know he’s seeing his son.”

“She’s probably his fated mate, too. He’s just keeping it a secret because marrying Kayla Sterling is more politically advantageous. Bluemoon is a powerful pack, after all.”

“Maybe she’ll mysteriously die, and he’ll inherit the pack for himself and Anna. I wonder if Nicholas and Anna were planning that from the start.”

I couldn’t take it anymore after reading that last comment. I knew it wasn’t true, none of it was, but it didn’t matter; it still hurt like hell.

With a strangled sob, I threw my phone across the room. It bounced off the plush armchair and clattered to the floor, the screen still glowing. I buried my face in my hands and curled into myself, my shoulders shaking as I finally let the tears come freely.

Everything they said played into my deepest fears. What if they were right? What if I was wrong for Nicholas, wrong for both packs? What if I was destined to fail at the one thing expected of me?

The sound of my sobs must have carried through the walls, because a soft knock came at my door a moment later, followed by Henry’s concerned voice.

“Kayla? Can I come in?”

I couldn’t answer, but the door opened anyway, and Henry stepped in. When he saw me, he immediately rushed over.

“Oh, little one,” he murmured, sitting beside me on the bed. “What happened?”

I could only shake my head, gesturing weakly toward my discarded phone. Henry reached for it, keeping one arm around me as he scanned the screen. Finally, with a huff, he shut it off completely and set it aside.

“You know better than to read comments sections, Kayla.”

“But what if they’re right?” I choked out, pulling back to look at him. “I’m a wolfless weakling. I’ll never be able to provide for my pack.”

Henry’s eyes softened. “Listen to me. Those people know nothing about you, nothing about Nicholas, and certainly nothing about what makes a good Luna. You’ve led Bluemoon through its darkest days. Your mother and father would be proud of you.”

“But a Luna’s duty—”

“Is to serve her pack,” Henry cut me off firmly. “Which you do, every day. With or without a baby. And besides, the pregnancy has barely taken root. There’s no guarantee that you’ll lose it.”

“But no guarantee that I’ll be able to keep it, either,” I said, recalling how the doctor had immediately suggested an abortion. I wiped at my eyes with the sleeve of my sweater. “They’re saying Anna is Nicholas’s true mate and the baby is really his after all. That he visits Bluemoon to see her and the baby, and he should just marry her instead of me.”

Henry actually snorted at that. “Nicholas visits Bluemoon to take care of business. Anna lives in a cottage at the edge of our land because she has nowhere else to go, and only helps Ava take care of the house on occasion. And you—you, Kayla—were the one who insisted we offer her that safety.”

His words helped, but it wasn’t enough. “I just feel so… broken,” I whispered. “Like I’ve failed at the one thing I’m supposed to be able to do.”

“You haven’t failed at anything,” Henry said, squeezing my shoulder. “You might just need a little extra care compared to other mothers, that’s all. Speaking of care…”

I looked up, noticing a shift in his expression.

“There’s something I need to tell you,” Henry went on, his voice dropping to a near-whisper. “I’ve been following your last orders, looking for the antidote for your father’s condition.”

I sat up abruptly. “Have you found something?” I blurted out, momentarily distracted from my own pain.

Henry’s expression darkened. “Not the antidote, not yet. But I did discover something… unexpected.”

“What is it?”

“I was reviewing the surveillance footage from the day your father collapsed, looking for any clues we might have missed.”

“And?”

“And I saw Vanessa entering your father’s home, carrying something in her hand.”

My breath caught in my throat. “Vanessa?”

Henry nodded grimly. “At the time, no one thought twice about it. She was your best friend, and thus she had full access to Bluemoon territory. But after everything that’s happened, I dug deeper.”

The room suddenly felt too cold, goosebumps rising on my arms.

“I found records of her crossing the pack border earlier that day,” Henry went on. “She made a trip to the neighboring town, spent several hours there, then returned directly to Bluemoon and went straight to your father’s house.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying that I think Vanessa may have been the one who poisoned your father. The timing matches. And why else would she go to that specific town? It’s known for its black market in exotic substances.”

My stomach lurched.

Vanessa.

Vanessa, who I’d once trusted completely. Vanessa, who’d sat beside me in the hospital as I cried over my comatose father. Vanessa, who’d held my hand and promised we’d find whoever did this to him.

All the while knowing she was the one who had put him there.

As if sleeping with my fiancee and tearing my wedding dress to shreds wasn’t fucking enough.

My sadness suddenly evaporated, replaced by something hot and dangerous. I felt it burning through my veins, cauterizing the burns left by those hateful online comments. Only one thing mattered to me now, and it had nothing to do with the baby.

I threw the covers off and stood so abruptly that Henry startled.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

With a huff, I grabbed my jacket from the back of my chair and shoved my feet into boots.

“Back to Nightshade,” I said, striding over to the door. “I need to talk to Vanessa.”