Into the Alpha’s Keep Chapter 109: 109

Accepting death carried with it the lightness of not caring about anything, not even what would happen to me.

"Not enough?"

I nodded.

"I knew that in Dăneşti, the males aren't like the ones here. They’re good at almost everything, and they know it, so they don’t need to humiliate any female to feel superior."

"What?"

"Now I understand," I continued, ignoring his question. "You’re not good, besides the character flaw you obviously carry." I gestured, ignoring the burn on my wrists. "Small cocks or not, you think you're inferior, so you humiliate every female, mistreating each one to feel superior in some way. You use that to feel good at something." I raised my head to look at him. "That's so sad."

The growl that erupted from him was no longer a threat; it was a promise. He stomped towards me, determined to hit me.

My muscles tensed instinctively, my body preparing for the impending impact. I had no time to react when he raised his leg, ready to kick my abdomen.

Something happened.

A wave of heat and power coursed through my body, as if an inner force was awakening inside me.

My wolf.

In the blink of an eye, my legs moved on their own, lifting me and launching me forward toward the male. My fangs extended as I prepared to protect myself... and my belly.

Confused, I struck the male with all my strength, the impact throwing him across the barn.

I leaned into an attack stance, and my wolf growled menacingly, ready to defend the belly or die trying.

"What the hell?" he whispered, confused, blinking repeatedly as if he couldn’t understand what had happened. "Hunter must have hit you too hard."

Without turning his back, he sneaked away, heading toward the barn's exit, locking me inside the filthy, precarious space.

I felt my wolf restless inside me, ready to attack anyone who entered through that door, unable to take my eyes off it.

I placed my hands on my belly, tears blurring my vision.

It was only then that I realized the truth. The truth my wolf already knew, but that I had ignored until then.

It couldn’t be. It was impossible.

"What the hell happened?" I whispered aloud, asking myself.

The people of the Carpathians only had pups if they were with their destined partners, though I never understood why. And Catalina was Fenrir's mate, his other half.

How could I be pregnant?

I went into heat, opened my womb, and he tied me. That alone was a huge sign of a pup on the way. But not with Fenrir.

The strange smells no one else could sense, the way my wolf was on edge. The damn nest!

I felt my legs give way. I dropped to my knees, still with my hands over my belly.

So... I was Fenrir’s destined? Because if I was pregnant with him... My God!

The possibility had crossed my mind before. It wasn’t so easy to find the destined one. Some recognized each other immediately, one soul seeing the other. While others took months to recognize the signs. I knew Hunter wasn’t my partner, because I never felt anything different with him, other than a youthful passion. He was the fiancé my father arranged for me and my future. I just accepted my fate. End of story.

With Fenrir, things were different, no matter how much I hated him at first. It was always more extreme, more intense.

The reactions of my wolf, of his wolf.

We mated the first time we met, even though we didn’t know each other. I didn’t want to, and neither did he, but our beasts didn’t give us a choice.

Because there was no choice. There never was.

I brought my hands to my lips, swallowing my tears.

They knew from the beginning, always. That’s why she felt so offended when he was with Marilyn, even though I didn’t care, because I was too hurt to allow myself to feel anything for him, just as he was, tormented by Catalina’s ghost and blaming himself for marking me.

The tears overflowed, staining my face.

A sob bent my body, and a strangled cry escaped my lips. I spread my hands on the floor and wept heavily, letting the pain pour through me.

We were too stupid to notice the signs, too immature. Broken by life’s circumstances. He tormented himself over the death of the female he thought was his mate, while I was disillusioned and bitter for having had my heart ripped out by a son of a bitch.

And now, Fenrir would never know about the existence of his pup.

He would never discover the truth about us, although his wolf knew. That’s why he kept hunting for me and wanting to feed me all the time. It was just like me, doubting whether he would notice the truth his beast already knew.

No! No! No!

I couldn’t let this happen.

Death was no longer a viable option. It wasn’t even an option now. I needed to survive, I needed to fight for myself, for my pup, and for Fenrir. He had to know the truth, he had to discover all the lies surrounding him, Marilyn's manipulations, and schemes. He deserved the truth.

I had felt his emotions a few times while awake, through the bond that connected us. Anger, sadness, and worry. I imagined he was suffering from Anton's death and feeling angry at me, maybe because of the lies invented for him. Even if he didn’t believe it, I needed to tell him the truth.

I rubbed my fingers over my smooth abdomen, loving with all my strength, from the bottom of my heart, the small life growing inside me.

My lips trembled and parted in a sigh.

Hunter had beaten me, given me a beating until I passed out. The anguish and guilt hit me. If I had known about the pup, I would have never provoked him. I caressed my belly, my heart small, compressed, and anguished. The pup was fine; if not, my wolf wouldn’t have reacted with fury. It had to be okay.

I swallowed my sobs and sat up straight, controlling my breathing.

Every beat of my heart was a promise, a silent vow to protect and care for.

I was pregnant with Fenrir Dăneşti.

My destined mate.

Pregnant and ready to fight tooth and nail,

literally, for the life growing inside me.