On the way back to the castle, I accidentally bumped into someone, but I was too dazed to even offer an apology. My legs carried me forward, but my mind was trapped in the scene I had just witnessed. Griffith who once held me like the most precious treasure was now planning to cut my womb out of my body.
But he knew—he had always known—that my greatest wish was to have a child of my own.
A group of young women by the roadside cast envious glances my way.
“That’s our Luna,” one of them whispered. “The Alpha chose her over his fated mate. I heard that when she fell ill, the Alpha gathered the best healers from across the kingdom to care for her day and night. And when he needed a rare herb to heal her, he climbed a volcano on the verge of eruption without hesitation.”
There was a time when I would have been thrilled to hear such words. But now, my throat felt like it was closing around a hard lump, and shame threatened to bring me to tears.
Before I even stepped inside the castle, I heard Griffith’s furious voice echoing from within.
“You useless fools! She disappeared right under your noses, and none of you noticed? If anything happens to Ellia, I swear, I’ll have every last one of you buried!”
Griffith was usually refined and composed. It was rare to see him lose his temper. The last time he had been this angry was when I burned my arm during the ritual sacrifice. He had nearly canceled Avalora Pack’s most sacred annual festival because of it.
Back then, his fury had made me feel cherished. But now, watching him in this state—so anxious, so distraught—I found no joy in it.
“I’m back, Griffith.”
At the sound of my voice, he turned sharply, and the anger on his face melted into a radiant smile.
He strode over and pulled me into a tight embrace. “Ellia, where have you been? I was worried sick about you.”
I had gone to bring him lunch. Instead, I had stumbled upon the truth—that he wanted to take my womb.
I opened my mouth, the confession trembling on the tip of my tongue, but in the end, I swallowed it down. “I just went to the lake to get some sun.”
His smile remained, warm and gentle, but the worry in his eyes did not fade.
