Daria's POV
The mansion was cold.
Beautiful, yes. Marble floors polished to a mirror shine. Crystal chandeliers that caught the light and scattered it like diamonds. Artwork on every wall, furniture that probably cost more than my entire cottage. But there was no warmth here. No life.
Just like Lucius himself.
I barely saw him.
The first week, I told myself he was busy. Alpha duties. Pack business. Important things that kept him away. But by the second week, the truth became painfully clear that he was avoiding me.
He disappeared into his office for hours, the door always locked. Sometimes he left the estate entirely, gone for days without a word to anyone. And when we did cross paths in the hallways or on the grounds, his gaze slid past me like I was invisible. Like I was furniture. Less than furniture.
My wolf howled for him constantly. A low, keening sound in the back of my mind that never stopped. The cracked bond pulled at me, a fishhook lodged in my chest, always tugging in his direction. It drove me half-mad with longing.
I tried to ignore it and just focus on settling into my new room, learning the mansion's layout, and staying out of the way. But the pull only grew stronger.
Unable to resist any longer, I eventually gave in and began following him.
Through the gardens. Down hallways. Anywhere I caught a glimpse of him. I told myself I just wanted to talk. To understand. To maybe, somehow, convince him we could make this work.
But deep down, I knew the truth. I had become desperate and pathetic. The kind of omega I had always pitied, chasing after a male who didn't want her.
It was a sunny afternoon when everything changed. I had spotted him near the rose gardens, his tall frame moving between the hedges. My heart leapt. Maybe today he would finally look at me.
I hurried after him, my steps quick on the stone path. “Alpha, please. Can we just talk for a moment?”
He kept walking.
“Lucius.” My voice cracked on his name.
He turned the corner, disappearing behind a wall of roses.
But I ran after him. Actually ran, like some lovesick fool.
Just then, the world tilted. My vision blurred at the edges, darkness creeping in. My legs buckled, and I crumpled into a bed of roses.
Thorns pierced my palms as I tried to catch myself, and the scent of crushed petals filled my nose, sickly sweet. Then, everything went black.
When I woke up, I was back in my room.
Mira sat beside my bed, her hand gripping mine. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she was smiling. Actually smiling.
“Thank the Goddess,” she whispered. “You scared me half to death.”
My head was pounding, and my palms stung from the thorn cuts, now bandaged. “What happened?”
“You fainted. A gardener found you and brought you inside.” She squeezed my hand tighter. “Daria, I need to tell you something.”
The way she said it made my stomach drop. “What? What's wrong?”
“Nothing is wrong. But I think…” She took a shaky breath. “I think you're pregnant.”
“What?” I tried to sit up, but dizziness swamped me. “How… how do you know?”
“I have been helping at the healing center for months. I know the signs.” She touched my forehead gently. “The fainting. The way you have been exhausted. You haven't had your cycle since that night, have you?”
I thought back and she was right. Over a month had passed since the full moon. Since he had come to my cottage. Since everything had changed.
“Oh Goddess.” My hand flew to my still-flat stomach.
A baby. Our baby.
Joy exploded in my chest, so fierce and sudden it stole my breath. This changed everything. He would have to accept me now. He would have to love me. We were having a child. His heir.
This was fate giving me another chance. The Moon Goddess hadn't abandoned me after all.
Tears streamed down my face. “I have to tell him.”
“Daria, wait.” Mira caught my arm as I tried to stand. “Maybe you should rest first. Make sure. Let me get one of the healers to confirm.”
“No.” I shook my head, pulling away. “I need to tell him right now.”
I didn't want to wait another second. This was our future. Our family. He had pushed me away, but this would bring us back together. It had to.
I rushed through the mansion, my heart pounding so hard I thought it might burst. Staff members stared as I passed, but I didn't care. Nothing mattered except reaching him.
His office was on the third floor, down a long hallway lined with portraits of past Alphas. I had never been there before. Never had a reason. But now I did.
I was halfway down the hallway when I heard voices. His voice and another. Rylan, his beta.
I slowed, suddenly nervous. Should I knock? Wait until they were done? My hand moved to my stomach, protective and sure. No. This couldn't wait.
Without thinking, I moved closer to the door, ready to knock. But then I heard what they were saying.
“The omega is useful for one thing.” Lucius's voice was cold. “An heir. Once she births the child, I will dispose of her.”
My hand froze inches from the wood.
“And you are certain the child's blood will work?” Rylan asked.
“It has to. The curse demands the blood of my offspring. A direct bloodline.” There was no emotion in his tone. He could have been discussing the weather. “She is nothing more than a vessel. A means to an end.”
Rylan chuckled, the sound making my skin crawl. “So we just have to keep her close until a child is born. Then you will finally be free of the madness.”
“Exactly.”
My hand fell to my stomach.
The world tilted again, but this time it had nothing to do with pregnancy. Everything inside me, every fragile hope I had built up over the past few minutes, shattered like glass.
Not love. Not fate. Not even basic decency. Just use.
I wasn't his mate. I was his breeding tool. An incubator for the cure to his curse. And once my baby was born, once he got what he needed, I would be thrown away like garbage. Disposed of. Those were his exact words.
Quietly, I backed away from the door. Years of being invisible had taught me how to move without being noticed.
I made it back to my room without anyone seeing me. Locked the door. Pressed my back against it and slid to the floor.
Mira appeared from the bathroom, concern written all over her face. “Did you tell him?”
“No.” My voice sounded hollow. “And I'm not going to.”
“What? Why?”
I looked up at her, my best friend, the only person in this entire pack who had ever cared about me. “Because we are leaving.”
“Leaving?”
“Yes.” I placed both hands over my stomach. “My child will never be his pawn.”