Chapter 26 The Luna’s Threat

Chapter 26 The Luna’s Threat
Chapter 26: The Luna’s Threat

I was sitting quietly in my room, my hands resting on my stomach, feeling the gentle curve of life that I had to protect at all costs. The baby was still safe, hidden from everyone, my secret treasure in a world that seemed determined to take everything from me. I had been thinking, planning, trying to find a way to survive in this house, in this pack, but my thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock on the door.

My heart jumped. I wasn’t expecting anyone. Not now. Not her.

“Come in,” I whispered, my voice barely steady.

The door opened slowly, and my worst fear stepped inside—Calyra. The woman whose name alone could send a shiver down my spine. The Luna, the woman who thought she had the right to take everything from me—the Alpha’s attention, his care, his household. And she was smiling. That wicked, sharp smile of hers that made me feel small, scared, and trapped all at once.

I swallowed hard and forced myself to rise slowly. My hands instinctively moved to my stomach, covering it. She didn’t know. She couldn’t know. Not yet.

“Maltida,” she said, her voice smooth, almost cruelly calm. “Can you see now? There is no child in your belly again.”

I froze, my heart hammering in my chest. Her words were meant to strike fear, to make me crumble. She wanted me to feel powerless, to feel like everything I had survived, everything I had fought for, was gone.

I lowered my eyes, keeping my expression soft and meek. I wanted her to believe me. “Yes,” I whispered softly. “There’s… nothing. Nothing at all.”

Calyra’s eyes glinted with triumph. “You dare try me?” she said sharply, stepping closer. “Do you think you can take my place? Do you think you can steal the Alpha’s heart, take what is mine? Ask anyone who has ever dared to come close to him—ask them how I deal with those who try to take my place!”

My chest tightened. I had to keep my composure. I couldn’t panic. I couldn’t let her know that I still carried the child, the life that was my hidden shield. So I kept my voice small, trembling with fear but careful to sound convincing.

“I… I’m sorry,” I whispered, my hands tightening on my stomach. “I… I didn’t mean—”

“Silence!” she snapped, her voice cutting through the room like a blade. “Do not try to explain yourself. You will learn your place. You will wait. You will disappear when we send you away.”

Her words were harsh, cruel, meant to crush me. But I knew better. I knew this was a test. She thought she had destroyed me. She thought she had beaten me, made me powerless. And yet, I was still here. The baby inside me was still alive, still strong, still untouchable.

I forced myself to kneel, lowering my head, showing submission. “Please,” I whispered, voice trembling. “Please… I will do anything. I will obey. I will—”

Calyra’s eyes narrowed. She circled me like a predator, her sharp gaze piercing through my careful disguise. “I am the Luna here,” she said, her voice low, full of authority. “And I will not let you take that away from me. Not my Alpha. Not my house. Not my place. Do you understand?”

I nodded quickly, keeping my face soft and my eyes lowered. My lips trembled, but I kept my secret safe. I couldn’t show her even the smallest sign of confidence. If she knew the truth, if she knew I still carried the child, she would destroy me in a heartbeat.

“I… I understand,” I whispered. “I… I will obey. I will not… I will not interfere.”

Her gaze softened just a little, but it was not kindness. It was calculated, measured, a predator pretending to be merciful. She leaned closer, her voice a whisper now, almost intimate but dripping with menace.

“You will obey,” she said. “Or you will regret every second you dared to think you could stand here, think you could survive in my house, in my Alpha’s presence. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” I whispered, barely audible, my hands clutching my stomach. My heart raced. My mind screamed at me to flee, to run, to escape while I still could. But I had nowhere to go. And even if I ran, she would hunt me down. She would destroy everything I loved.

Calyra straightened, her eyes cold again. “Remember this,” she said, her voice echoing in the small room. “I am the Luna. I am the one who decides who lives and who falls here. And no child, no trick, no deceit will save you if you cross me. Do you hear me?”

“Yes,” I whispered, my throat tight. My hands trembled. But inside, a small spark of defiance flared. She didn’t know the truth. She didn’t know that the life inside me was my strength, my shield, my power. She didn’t know that I had survived more than she could imagine, that I had endured, that I had hidden the most precious thing she could never touch.

She stared at me a moment longer, then finally, with a small curl of her lips, she turned and left the room, closing the door behind her. My knees gave way, and I sank to the floor, my hands clutching my stomach, my body trembling with a mixture of fear and relief.

I breathed in slowly, holding the secret that would protect me, that would protect the child. I whispered softly, almost to myself, “You think you’ve won. But you don’t know. You don’t know what I carry. You don’t know what I am. And I… I will survive this.”

My tears fell freely, but they were not just tears of fear. They were tears of strength, of determination, of hope. I had survived poison, betrayal, fear, and cruelty. And now, I would survive this too.

And as I sat there, clutching the secret life that was mine alone, I realized something: Calyra could threaten me, scare me, try to intimidate me—but she could never touch the truth. The child inside me was safe. And as long as that life lived, I had power she could never take away.