Alpha Queen [1]

xxxvii

The black brick castle faded into view as our car ascended up the hill. The sky was crystal clear blue behind it.

A small group consisting of Blake, his younger cousin Conrad and two other wolves waited to greet us. Ares parked the car by the entrance and Blake opened my passenger side door for me.

"Welcome back, Alpha and Luna," Blake bowed.

"Hi, Blake, it's good to see you!" I was happy to see a friendly face again. "How is everything?"

"Everything's great—"

"Where is Soren?" Ares interrupted Blake as soon as he stepped out of the car.

"He's with Florence." Blake looked at us with alarm. "Why, is something wrong?"

"Alex is feeling nauseous."

An hour after driving, I was starting to get really car sick. I had to pull over and let Ares take the rest of the drive. It got so bad that I almost threw up on the side of the highway.

It came out of nowhere.

"I'm okay now," I said quickly, not wanting to worry anyone.

"Alex," Ares said almost as a warning.

"Ares," I repeated his name in the same tone and he just looked at me. "Okay, I'll go after we unpack." Plus I really needed to go to the bathroom.

"We will unpack. You will go and see him."

"Okay, Mr. Bossy," I sighed under my breath.

"I heard that."

"You were meant to."

Blake and the others helped carry our bags inside while I went straight to the nearest bathroom and washed my face a bit. My hair was also a bit of a mess so I tied it into a braid.

Soren summoned me to the healer's den not long after. He invited me in and told me to take a seat.

I always felt calm when visiting Soren. Not only was he wise and all-knowing, but he was very intuitive. He could look at someone and immediately know how they were feeling.

"Alpha told me that you haven't been feeling well, little one," Soren said as he lit some candles on the fireplace.

"Yeah, I was feeling kind of car sick an hour ago but I'm much better now." Now that I was home, I immediately felt healthy again. "I'm fine, really. Ares made it sound worse than it actually is."

"Still, it would not hurt to find out what is going on. Do you normally get car sick?"

"Not really but the ride was kind of windy."

We wanted to avoid traffic so we took the backroads again, which happened to have more hills and steep inclines. It was so bad that I was actually kind of surprised that Ares hadn't gotten sick. Guess he had a stronger stomach than me.

"May I?" He gestured to my face and I nodded. He placed the back of his hand against my forehead. "You feel warmer than normal. Are you having any other symptoms?"

"I was light-headed a few weeks ago but I think it was because I hadn't eaten any breakfast. After I ate a lot of food, I instantly felt better."

Soren paused.

"When was your last moon blood?"

I shrugged. "A few weeks ago."

"Yes, but what day exactly?"

"What day is it today?"

"July twenty-ninth."

I counted back the days and tried to remember when the last time I had it was. I had it right after the Alpha Ball because I remembered thanking the Moon Goddess that I hadn't gotten it during the dance. But that was all the way in June, which meant I hadn't had it all month.

No.

No. It couldn't be.

I'd never not had it ever since it started. It was always on time and came right on the day it was supposed to. I never had to even think about it.

The nausea, fatigue, dizziness, and the fact that I was already getting hungry again despite stopping for breakfast and lunch an hour ago. . . all of the symptoms lined up. It could only be one thing.

I shot up from my seat like it was on fire and bolted out of the room.

Running up the many flights of stairs, I rushed to our bedroom on the top floor and locked the door. My knees collapsed and I sunk to the floor. Tears welled in my eyes but I wiped them away.

There was no way. This was insanity.

Ares and I only did it once. Once. For Moon Goddess's sake, what were the odds?

My hands went to my stomach. It didn't feel any different, though I guess it was too early to tell. How many weeks along was I anyway? More importantly, how had I not noticed before?

Having a baby was supposed to be a happy moment in life but I couldn't feel any more conflicted.

I couldn't do this right now. I wasn't ready.

And Ares. . . how did I even begin to tell him? We both agreed to wait a few more years until we had kids. How was he going to react? He was always the one with a plan but this definitely wasn't in ours. Would he be angry with me?

My emotions were all over the place. I couldn't think straight.

If I couldn't tell him yet, I needed to tell someone else. I needed to call someone who would know what to do. I needed someone who would keep it a secret, at least for now.

I forced my feet in front of the other so that I was standing by the landline. Ares left a list of names and numbers next to the phone in case I needed to call someone.

But the number I needed wasn't there.

I took out my cell phone and opened my contact list. I scrolled through it and stopped when I found the name I was looking for.

Holding my breath, I dialed the number and waited.

It rang once, twice, then three more times.

Just when I was going to give up and end the call, another voice echoed in my ear.

"Hello?"

I wanted to cry with relief when the call went through.

"Iris," my voice was unsteady, "I need your help."