Chapter 26: The Weight of The Truth

Chapter 26: The Weight of The Truth
Ivy’s POV

That night, sleep came in fragments, fractured and uneasy, like shattered glass.

And when it did come, it dragged me into a dream so vivid, I could feel the air burn in my lungs.

I stood in the middle of the pack house courtyard, surrounded by familiar faces, Lucien, Dorian, Mira, even the warriors who never spoke to me. But their eyes weren’t warm. They were cold. Accusing.

Lucien stood at the front, his face carved from stone.
His voice was hollow.

"You lied to me."

I opened my mouth to explain, to beg, to breathe, but no sound came out.
My hands flew to my stomach, the swell of it exposed like a secret turned weapon.

The whispers grew louder.

Traitor.
Deceiver.
She’s carrying Blackwood’s heir.
She was never one of us.

Lucien stepped closer.
The disappointment in his eyes hurt worse than any blade I’d ever felt.

"You could have told me, Ivy," he said.
"You should have."

I reached for him, desperate.
"I was going to.... I swear...."

But he stepped back, just out of reach.
And that hurt more than anything.

"Leave," he said.

And then I was falling.

Spiraling into darkness, hands clutching my stomach, screaming in silence as everything around me crumbled.

I woke up choking on a sob, my sheets tangled around my legs, sweat clinging to my skin like a second layer.

It wss still dark. The world outside was quiet, the pack house still and sleeping.

I sat up slowly, pressing a hand to my belly. It was still flat, but I could feel the life inside me like a pulse.

I stared into the shadows of my room, haunted by Lucien’s dream, voice.

You could have told me.

I wiped my face with trembling fingers.

No more hiding.

I had faced death.
Wolfsbane.
Hatred.
Betrayal.

But nothing terrified me more than Lucien looking at me like I didn’t belong here.

If I was ever going to stay, truly stay, then I needed to stop carrying this secret like a ticking bomb.

I needed to tell him.

Because the longer I waited, the more it would feel like a betrayal.

And Lucien didn’t forgive betrayal.

No matter who it came from.

Breakfast tasted like nothing that morning.

The warmth of roasted meat, the clink of silverware, the chatter of pack members, it all felt like background noise, muted under the thick silence between Lucien, Dorian, and me.

Lucien sat at the head of the table, sharp eyes locked on a point far beyond the walls. He hadn’t touched his food. Not a bite. He didn’t need to speak for me to feel the storm boiling under his skin.

“She betrayed her Alpha,” he said at last, his voice like cold steel. “She betrayed me.”

No one replied immediately. Even Dorian looked uneasy. The betrayal had obviously cut too deep.

“She was your second most trusted warrior,” I murmured. “I’m sorry.”

He gave a bitter chuckle, void of humor. “You’re sorry? You’re the one she tried to kill.”

He looked at me then

“I don’t forgive betrayal, Ivy. Not even once. Trust is sacred to me. Without it, we’re nothing but beasts.”

His words hit me harder than I expected, and I found myself reaching for my tea just to have something to hold.

Because he didn’t know. Not yet.

But I had been lying to him, too.

And the weight of it was growing unbearable.

After breakfast, I fled to the training grounds, desperate to escape my thoughts. I trained until my legs shook and my arms burned. Strike, parry, kick, reset, over and over until the sun was high in the sky and I had nothing left to give

But tge ache in my chest never faded.

That’s when I heard footsteps behind me.

I turned, expecting Dorian, but it was Mira.

She stood there awkwardly, a little unsure, her arms crossed. For the first time, there was no scowl on her face, no venom in her stare.

“I just wanted to say thank you,” she said. Her voice cracked slightly. “You saved them. My parents. My little brother.”

“I didn't do it alone,” I replied softly.

She nodded. “Still. You did it. And I owe you everything.”

I let the silence sit for a a moment before speaking. “You don’t owe me anything, Mira. We were both just.… trying to survive.”

She looked down, biting her lip. “You’re going to tell him, aren’t you?”

I blinked. “Tell who what?”

“Lucien.” Her eyes met mine knowingly. “About the baby. About your past.”

The air between us thickened.

“How did you....”

“I’m not stupid, Ivy. I’ve been watching you. The way your hand goes to your stomach when no one’s looking. The way you flinch whenever Blackwood is mentioned.” She exhaled. “I thought I hated you. But I think.… I just didn’t understand you.”

"You should tell him Ivy, if the Alpha finds out about it himself, he wouldn't like it" Mira stqted

I didn’t know what to say. My throat tightened, and for a moment, I just nodded.

She smiled faintly, then walked away, leaving me alone again.

The sky had dimmed to dusk by the time I finally left the grounds. My body ached from the day’s exertion, but I barely noticed. My thoughts were miles away, entangled in guilt and fear.

Then I saw him.

Lucien.

He stood beneath the tall, ancient oak near the training field. The same tree he’d stood by after Hadley’s arrest. The stars were just beginning to blink into existence above, soft and scattered across a velvet sky. He gazed up at them like they held secrets he desperately needed to unravel.

There was something hollow in his silhouette. Something…. human.

I hesitated at the edge of the clearing, heart hammering in my chest.

He hadn’t heard me yet.

This was my moment.

My chance to come clean.

I stepped forward slowly, the fallen leaves crunching softly beneath my boots. As I drew closer, he finally noticed me. His shoulders stiffened slightly, but he didn’t turn.

“Ivy,” he said quietly. “You shouldn’t be out here. It’s late.”

“I couldn’t sleep.”

He looked over his shoulder, eyes searching mine for a long beat. “Neither could I.”

We stood together in silence for a while. The wind rustled through the branches overhead, the night air crisp and cool.

“I trusted her,” he said after a long pause. “Hadley. I trusted her with my life.”

His voice was tight. Raw.

“I know.”

“She was family.” He exhaled roughly. “I would’ve bled for her.”

My heart twisted psinfully. “You didn’t deserve what she did.”

He shook his head. “The worst part isn’t that she betrayed me. It’s that she lied. For so long. Right in front of me.”

His eyes flicked to mine.

“I hate liars, Ivy. I hate not knowing what’s real.”

I swallowed, hard.

My hand moved, without thought, to rest protectively over my stomach.

The warmth beneath my palm was barely perceptible, but I knew. Life pulsed there. Quiet. Waiting.

A secret I couldn’t carry much longer.

If I planned to stay here.… to build anything real with Lucien.… he would need to know the truth.

All of it.

My past.

The pregnancy.

That I was carrying the child of the ruthless Alpha of the Blackwood pack.

“I need to tell you something,” I said softly, throat dry.

Lucien turned to face me fully now, his expression unreadable.

“I’m listening.”