Pregnant And Rejected

Charta 19.3 -Lockdoen

Selene

I’m woken by the sounds of blaring alarms, the sound so shrill and horrible | slam a pillow over my face before I can stop to consider what the sound might mean. It’s not until my bedroom door swings open and a young servant girl pokes her head in, that I lower the plush implement. She pulls me out of bed and helps me into a robe while my head spins.

An alarm. I think hopefully, that’s bad for Blaise.

And what’s bad for Blaise can only be good for us. Luna answers slyly.

“What’s happened?” I ask the girl helping me.

“We‘re going into lockdown, miss.” the young servant an swers, breaking the silence her station usually demands.

“What do you mean, lockdown?” | question, “What’s hap pened?”

“I don’t know, I’ve never heard the alarms go off before, but the Alpha’s orders were unequivocal. The entire above ground is locking down, so it can’t be a fire or flood.” She rea sons, her voice hoarse from lack of use.

“Did you speak to him yourself?” | ask, trying to figure out exactly what’s going on. If it’s just a lockdown and he doesn’t know where I am, I might be able to get away. But if she was specifically sent to retrieve me, I probably can’t escape with out endangering her.

com “No.” She shakes her head, “This is just standard proce

dure. I’m taking you to one of the safe rooms.”

“Wait!” I cry, pulling her to a stop. “What’s your name?”

The girl replies

be called away to help, and I’m always strongest first thing in the morning. This could be my chance to free myself, Bastien and my father at once. Helene’s voice rings in my ears, urging

don’t understand.”

declare, “I don’t want to get you in trouble and I don’t know what you might risk by running, but | want to give you

to escape?”

know what’s going on right now, but I guarantee Blaise and his guards

Clara whimpers, “I

that you give me a head start.” I beg, tak ing her

park, but you can’t go

pair of maternity jeans, a black top and flats. “Please, promise me you won’t tell them where l’ ve gone. You never saw me.” | state firmly, forcing a bit of hypnotic power into

her jaw slackens, and

I praise, dashing out

passageways lining the Pack House for emer gencies, but Blaise hasn’t trusted me enough to tell me about

and I have to think that they’ve all gone to handle whatever disaster spurred the alarms. I’m trying to be as quiet as possible, but I’m also painfully aware that my scent is leaving a trail behind me and anyone seeking to find me will be able to follow it with little difficulty. I have

have to pause at every other corner I reach, waiting for neat rows of march ing sentries to pass by before I continue on. Something seri ous is definitely going down for Blaise’s security forces to be mobilizing this

guards I do encounter. The rising sun blinds me when I fi nally break out into the fresh air, feeling a rush of exhilaration to think I’m finally out of the Alpha’s palace. It almost feels too easy, but I

shifters, and I realize my hopes must be correct. Someone is attacking the Calypso leadership, and I doubt it’s another pack. I feel a brief moment of hesitation as I worry I might be mistaken for one of Blaise’s

huge grabs me from behind, lifting my feet off the ground as I yelp in surprise. Struggling to escape the man holding me, I kick and claw and his beefy arms, so preoccupied with getting

eyes going wide as’l see a line of guards circling myself and my captor. There at their center, is Blaise, watching me with the sort of twisted hunger he always gets when he comes to my

feel sure I’m going to be

But clearly he can.