Chapter 88

~Grace~

I couldn’t believe it. I was pregnant!

Alex had taken me out on a trip out of the city to celebrate. I had on a flowy dress, my hair pulled up into a bun. The warm breeze felt nice against my skin.

I held Alex’s hand in mine as we walked down the street of the small, cozy town we visited. It was nice to get out. Most of the time, I was cooped up due to work, having to rule over a pack.

But at every corner, Alex showed me that he was not Liam, and it excited me every time.

I tugged on his hand gently as an ice cream stand came into view. I pointed at it, my eyes bright with enthusiasm.

Alex raised a brow at me, a small smirk on his lips.

“Craving something sweet?” He asked, brushing a stray hair out of my eyes.

“It's not often you get to buy ice cream from the street,” I said, tugging at his hand again.

Alex chuckled. “Well, alright, then.”

We made our way over to the ice cream stand, hand in hand. My heart soared. The feeling in my chest felt as warm as the sun on my skin.

I finally got what I wanted, after all this time. Married to a man who treats me with respect, as his equal, and start a family with him.

I placed my hand on my stomach. It was too early to feel a bump, but I knew. And that was enough.

It was still hard to believe that I was actually pregnant, after all of the difficult years crying, trying, and taking medication.

But maybe… All of that struggle was worth it in the end. What would I do if I had a child with Liam right now?

It would make things so much more complicated…

Alex handed me an ice cream cone. I licked it, the sweet, cool sensation filling my mouth. I grinned.

“You like it?” Alex asked, taking a lick of his own.

“Yes, I love it. Thank you,” I told Alex, who merely shrugged.

Alex looked through the buildings, up to a green hill covered in white flowers. He motioned his head toward it.

“Shall we enjoy the view?”

I nodded, and he walked me to the top of the hill. The wind up here was stronger, but the view of the city was breathtaking.

God, I don’t think I’d ever been so happy. It truly felt like I finally received the reward I was fighting for, for so long.

I leaned against Alex’s shoulder, as he wrapped his arm around my waist.

And it was all I ever wanted.

A boom rang through the air, and Alex hissed. Suddenly, Alex had grabbed me and pulled me behind him, and he leaned forward in a battle-ready stance.

Shocked, I looked around, and gasped. Alex was bleeding!

His sleeve had torn on his shoulder, and bright red blood oozed through what looked like a gash.

What happened? I didn’t even see anything!

I opened my mouth to ask, but another boom rang out, and Alex pushed me to the ground. He wrapped his arms around me, protecting me from the fall, but we rolled down the hill a ways before Alex stopped us, his hands full of dirt and grass.

“What's going on?” Nola asked, and I shook my head, indicating I didn’t know, and I didn’t know if I would need her.

We were outside of the werewolf and Lycan territory, and shifting here would be too dangerous.

Was that what this was? Did someone know we were wolves?

Then, I saw it. On the horizon of the hill, two figures appeared.

I sniffed the air, and heard Alex do the same.

Humans!

They held something long in their arms as they reached the peak of the hill, stopping to look down at us.

The sun was behind them, and it was difficult to make out any features or look at them for too long, but one turned to the other, and the sun shone on what they were holding-

A gun!

Fear pierced my heart, and I felt Alex tense, a low growl rumbling from his chest.

We both knew what they were. Human hunters.

I pressed my stomach into the ground, hiding under Alex’s protective stance.

What were they doing here?!

One of the humans raised the gun up to their eye, and Alex grabbed my hand, pulling me to my feet.

We had rolled down most of the hill, and Alex had swooped me off of my feet and darted behind a building as another shot rang out. I heard the sound of brick breaking as the bullet hit the building.

Alex set me to my feet again as he moved us back into the crowd on the street, and I did my best to smooth down my dress and hair, getting all of the grass off of it, as Alex put his hand on my back, quickly leading me through the crowd.

We both looked around with wide eyes. It felt like we were in the middle of a trap, and anyone here could be an enemy.

My eyes darted to each person.

No gun, no gun, no gun-

Was it just those two people? Were they still after us?

“Are you alright?” Alex asked, bending down to whisper in my ear.

I nodded, but my heart was pounding.

Normally, I would be more protective of Alex, but after finding out about my pregnancy, I didn’t want to put myself in harm’s way if I could help it.

We had to get back to the castle, that was the safest place for us. There, we’d be surrounded by other werewolves and we’d be on familiar territory.

Alex opened the door of his car for me and helped me in. He kept looking over his shoulder, and I did, too.

We lost sight of them when we ran between the buildings, and I only hoped that meant they lost sight of us, too, but…

I couldn't be sure.

We drove back to the castle in silence. We were both tense. I was scared. Alex… he looked angry. I was angry, too, but I feared more for the safety of our child than I wanted to get revenge.

Alex’s knuckles were white as he gripped the steering wheel. I could feel his emotions through our fated mate bond, and it only amplified my own worry.

Who were those people? Why did they try to kill us? How did they know what we were?

As Alex pulled into the Black Lycan clan’s driveway, we knew there was trouble. My skin prickled.

More guards than usual were stationed around the wall, all in a defensive formation. What was this? Had something happened while we were gone, or was this normal protocol when Alex left?

I looked at Alex, but his brows were lowered. This was not right.

The gates were locked.

A Lycan standing guard rushed to Alex’s window as he drove up, and looked at Alex, then me, with a grim expression.

“King Black, Queen Black… We have reports of a human army waiting on our border.”