Chapter 6: Chapter Five

The Beginning

Edgar hadn’t rested so fitfully in a long while. He stretched his hands before opening his eyes. This bed was comfortable but not one he’d slept in before. It took a moment for him to recall where he was…and why he’d come here. He glanced at the empty space beside him. What time had she snuck off? Immediately afterward? Possibly, he thought. She was a dedicated student and wouldn’t let anything get in the way of her studies. Not even him. There was no point in dwelling over Alia or the one night they’d spent together. He’d probably never see her again unless she’d conceived last night. Even then, he’d see more of his baby and less of her.

Edgar reached for his phone hoping for a message or some news on Elena.

Nothing.

He squelched the anger threatening to flare inside him. True wolves never went back on their word. Why had Elena done this? He’d expected her to at least speak to him first before running off and starting a new adventure. Now that her silence had stretched onto the second day, he had no doubt that Elena had simply grown bored of New York and moved on. He might as well start his day.

Edgar showered, dressed quickly, and ordered breakfast. He scrolled through the internet while eating breakfast, searching Elena’s social media for any news of where she might be. He still needed to keep the peace between the packs. He couldn’t let anyone know she’d run off. Alia hadn’t updated any of her social media accounts in days. One less thing to worry about, he thought. The less anyone knew about Elena’s disappearance, the better.

He settled his hotel bill after breakfast and decided to visit Elena’s office. Maybe he’d find some clues to her whereabouts there. Her staff were busier than usual. It was like nobody noticed Elena wasn’t even at work. Edgar didn’t disrupt any one of them. He headed straight for her office wondering how Elena had managed to keep up this façade.

“Ah, I see.” He stared inside her glass office. The woman sitting at the desk talking on the phone looked every bit like Elena. Edgar sniffed the air. It wasn’t Elena. In fact, the woman inside the office didn’t have a scent at all. What was going on? He pushed open the door and stood in front of the desk. The woman looked up. She paused for a second.

“Hello, Edgar. What a lovely surprise.” A smile lit up her face as she stood up and hugged him. She had no pulse. This thing in front of him was definitely not human. It had Elena’s striking blue eyes, waist-length dark hair, and flawless sun-kissed complexion. Its creator had also nailed Elena’s tiny waist, endless legs, and the beauty spot on her left ear. Replicas like this cost a fortune. Did this mean, Elena’s fashion business was doing better than he’d assumed? They’d rarely spoken about their jobs to each other. Then again, they’d rarely spoken to each other in the last year.

Edgar hesitated. This was a robot. He’d seen one like it before. He couldn’t recall where. He hugged the robot and sat across it. Elena’s staff would grow suspicious if he didn’t play along.

“What brings you to the office today?” the humanoid asked him.

“Is it a crime to want to visit my lovely Luna?” he asked, smiling.

The humanoid laughed. “No, it isn’t.”

Would it be possible to get any information out of this humanoid robot? He glanced outside. No, there were too many people around. What if it is short-circuited or something?

“Will you be coming home for dinner tonight?” he asked it and watched its eyes carefully for a reaction.

Humanoid Elena’s eyes flashed like it was scanning its brain for information. “I have to work late at the office tonight. There’s a lot I need to catch up on. I have my first show in Milan next week.” It resumed typing.

Edgar nodded. Elena had gone to great pains to program her replica. Why would she do something like this? She usually just upped and left once she grew bored of something or someone. She’d gone to great pains to cover up her disappearance. “Okay, Honey, I’ll see you soon, I guess.”

“Yeah.”

Whoever had programmed the machine in Elena’s office had done a good job. They hadn’t had enough time to nail her quirks or finer aspects of her behavior. It was enough to fool anyone who didn’t know Elena well enough.

***

Two weeks later…

Alia added the finishing touches to her latest humanoid creation, an order for a wealthy heiress in Los Angeles who didn’t want to attend a Bar Mitzvah. Of course, the university took most of the proceeds from her work. She didn’t mind. At least she didn’t have to spend lonely evenings at home or worry about taking on odd jobs. And if she’d conceived that night, she would buy herself a decent place to live where she wouldn’t mind sending time at home.

She moved to pick up her tweezers off the table to adjust the humanoid’s eyelashes and her chair went flying across the room.

“What the hell?” she gasped. Thankfully she hadn’t knocked into anything or broken anything. She walked across the room and picked the tweezers. She carefully gripped it and attempted to pull off an extra eyelash. The tweezers clamped together and broke.

“What’s happening to me?” she wondered aloud. Waves of dizziness engulfed her. she reached for a bottle of water. The first sip triggered her nausea. She rushed to the bathroom. She had to leave here immediately. Her mind drifted to the one night she’d spent with the Alpha. Could it be? Had she conceived? Would she be able to tell so soon? Maybe pregnancy signs were much more visible with wolves, and she was carrying a wolf cub.

Alia grabbed her bag, locked her laboratory, and rushed home.

She ran into the bathroom as soon as she set foot inside her apartment. Her insides burned, and her body hurt. Instinct assured her she didn’t have a bug. She’d thrown up everything she’d eaten. What could possibly be left inside her? She dragged herself out of the bathroom and into her bedroom. She caught her breath before reaching for her purse. She knew about morning sickness. She dug inside her purse for the pregnancy test kits Celine had given her. She sipped a little water. She’d have to take the test today. Her heart raced. What if she had conceived that night two weeks ago? She shivered. She’d tried not to think about Edgar or their one night together. Thinking of him filled her with a deep, aching emptiness. He’d probably spent the last few days with his Luna. She couldn’t beat herself up over the choice she’d made to sleep with Edgar Callen so she could give him his heir. She’d done it to secure her own future.

Alia shut her eyes as sleep claimed her. She wanted to sleep at least an hour straight without rushing to the bathroom mid-sleep. She awoke hours later, starving. Her stomach rumbled. Dare she eat? She needed food. She grabbed the pregnancy test kit. First, she needed to check if the test was positive.

She rushed to the bathroom and took the test. Alia shut her eyes. Dare she look at the result? She sighed. What choice did she have? She opened her eyes…

and gasped.

Positive.

She’d conceived the Alpha’s heir. She rushed to her bedroom, sank on the bed, and rested her face in her hands. Her appetite vanished. Should she tell Edgar? She didn’t have his number but she could call his office. No, she couldn’t be so forward. She had to let Celine know. She reached for her mobile phone and called Celine.

“Hello,” Celine greeted.

“Hi,” Alia said. She didn’t want to waste time with small talk. “I’m pregnant.”

“Alia, is that you?”

“Yes.”

“Are you absolutely sure you’re pregnant?” Celine asked, excitement evident in her voice.

“I took the test you gave me. What are the chances of it being wrong?” Her eyelids grew heavy with sleep while she spoke.

“Zero. We still need to have you checked by the Alpha’s physician,” Celine said. She whooped with joy. “You’re certainly worth your weight in gold, Alia,” she said. “I’ll let the Alpha know. Then tell you what the next steps are.”

“Okay,” Alia said, too exhausted to talk much longer. Suddenly the thought of being the Alpha’s surrogate drained every ounce of energy she possessed. Her baby wasn’t an ordinary baby. No, it was a werewolf. Would she manage to carry it to term without compromising her health? Her head hurt from trying to make sense of the situation. In the beginning, all she’d thought about was the money. She hadn’t expected to really fall pregnant. Now that she’d fulfilled her end of the deal, it didn’t seem so exciting anymore. The thought of completing her degree didn’t fill her with the usual excitement. It suddenly dawned on her that she’d taken far more than she could handle when she’d agreed to be Edgar’s surrogate. She needed to sleep and not think about Edgar, his baby, robots, or anything or anyone else right now. She drifted off into a dreamless sleep…

***