not my child

Eric’s p.o.v

I felt my wold jump for joy as i felt my wolf prance around in my head, something he had not done in the longest of time.

I tried to reach out, trying to see what the occasion for the excitement was, but as usual, i was shut out. I sighed, deciding i was going to fill up my days just as i had always been,

Work, trying my possible best to make the pack fit, one that would be fit for her if she where ever going to return.

‘what is she never does?’ the little voice in my head whispered, but i shook it away, trying to be optimistic

“beautiful day” i said, heavy on sarcasm but got dressed regardless… i could aready see that it was going to be fucking long..

**

I had just finished patrol when I caught the scent. Faint, but unmistakable. My heart lurched as I raced forward, weaving through the trees until I saw the crumpled figure lying just beyond the border. ‘it can’t be’ i thought, approaching the figure skeptically.

The scent, the shape… everything looked like her.. i shook my head, ‘this is just one of those days where i hallucinate’ i told myself over and over. I stood, circling her

She let out a grunt, making it obvious. I could never, in a million years mistake her voice

"Samantha!" I dropped to my knees beside her, brushing the damp hair from her face. Her skin was ice-cold, her breathing shallow. Panic surged through me. "Damn it, Samantha, hold on." i cursed myself over and over, wondering why it took me so long to realise that it was her, wasting precious moments.

I scooped her up, her body limp against mine as I sprinted toward the pack house. The moment I burst through the doors, the pack doctor rushed forward, along with Elias, my beta. Who looked like he was seeing a ghost

"Get her to the infirmary, now!" he, the pack doctor, barked, leading the way.

I laid her on the examination bed, stepping back as the doctor and his assistants worked. My fists clenched as I watched them check her pulse, wipe the dirt from her face, and tend to her wounds. Every second felt like an eternity.

“stupid Caudly” i muttered under my breath “how could he let you hurt yourself like this. He made a big fuss about protecting you with his life” i mumbled, looking at the unconcious woman in front of me while the doctor treated her

For the briefest of moments, the doctor hesitated. His brows furrowed as he pressed his hand to her abdomen. A long, tense silence followed before he finally looked up at me, his expression unreadable.

"Eric..." he said carefully. "She's pregnant."

The words hit me like a punch to the gut. My breath caught, and I stared at Samantha’s unconscious form, my mind racing.

Pregnant?

I swallowed hard, my chest tightening. “are you… are you sure?” i said, not trusting my voice was even understandable.

“yes Alpha, but it is so small and i doubt she barely even noticed she is carrying” he knew our relationship. He knew what she was to me, my mate… that was if she would still have me as hers. “if you would not mind, i can remove it and we can…”

“don’t you dare!!!” i growled, looking at him with annoyance for even trying to suggest such.

The look on his face was one of surprise

"Alpha, there’s something else we need to discuss."

I stiffened. "What is it?"

He glanced at Samantha, then back at me. "Given her condition, the trauma she must have endured, the pregnancy could be dangerous—for both her and the child. There’s a way to handle this quietly, without her ever knowing. We could remove the pregnancy now and tell her it was lost due to her injuries. It would be safer for her." he said, repating the same thing again making me almost lose my cool

A cold rage burned through me. "No."

The doctor sighed. "Alpha, think rationally. She's weak, vulnerable—"

"And she's strong," I snapped. "She fought to survive out there, carrying this child. I won't take that from her." six months ago, i would have agreed without hesitation not because i really care, but because i would not have been able to watch her grow someone elses child but now? I was ready to have whatever it was that she threw at me.

He held my gaze, reading the unwavering determination in my stance. Finally, he nodded, conceding.

"Then we do everything we can to ensure both of them survive. But understand, this won’t be easy."

I exhaled, gripping Samantha’s limp hand in mine. "Nothing worth fighting for ever is."…

**

I paced up and down the outside of her room, waiting. I was getting anxious and the anxiety got stronger with every passing second. The infirmary was silent except for the soft beeping of the monitors and the rhythmic rise and fall of Samantha’s chest. She was still unconscious, pale against the white sheets, her body looking too fragile for the strength I knew was inside her.

She had been out for too long. Too damn long. And with every minute that passed, my panic clawed deeper into me, threatening to break free. My mind raced with questions I had no answers to. What had happened to her out there? How had she ended up barely alive outside our borders? And now, the one thing I had never expected—the child she carried.

A child that wasn’t mine.

My wolf growled inside me, restless, protective, on edge. None of it mattered. Not the bloodline, not the circumstances. Samantha was mine. And if this child was hers, then it was mine too. I wouldn’t let anything happen to either of them. No matter what.

But apparently, not everyone felt the same.

“You sure about this?”

I tensed at the voice behind me. I didn’t turn. I didn’t have to. I already knew who it was.

Elias stepped closer, his presence heavy, his gaze sharp. My beta, my closest friend. He had been with me through everything, but now, he stood watching me with that unreadable look in his eyes. It made my skin crawl.

“You know I’d never question your choices, Eric,” he said carefully, crossing his arms. “But this… this isn’t just about you. It’s about the pack. About her. And if you’re going to do this, you need to be sure.”

I let out a slow breath through my nose, forcing myself to keep calm. “What are you getting at, Elias?”

He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face, like he already knew this conversation wasn’t going to end well. “You’re taking on a hell of a responsibility. That’s not just any child—that’s another man’s blood. You’re really prepared to raise it? To be a father to a child that isn’t yours?”

A sharp growl rumbled from my chest before I could stop it. I shot up from my chair, my body tense with barely contained frustration.

“Watch your mouth,” I warned, voice low. “That’s her child. That’s all that matters.”

Elias didn’t flinch, didn’t back down. He just stared at me with that infuriating calm, the way only he could. “I’m not trying to piss you off, Eric. I just need to know if you’ve actually thought this through. You’re panicking because she won’t wake up, and I get it. But what happens when she does? What happens when she looks at you and realizes she’s carrying a reminder of whatever hell she went through out there?”

The words hit me like a blow, but I didn’t let it show. I clenched my jaw, turning back to Samantha.

“I don’t care where the baby came from,” I said, quieter this time. “I care that she’s alive. That they’re both alive.”

Elias exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. “I know you, Eric. You love her. That’s not the problem. But loving her doesn’t mean this won’t be hard. Are you ready for that? Are you ready to see that child and wonder if she sees the face of another man every time she looks at it?”

I hated that question. I hated it because it had already crossed my mind in the deepest, darkest corners of my thoughts. Would Samantha be able to look at the baby without remembering whatever happened to her? Would I?

I looked at Samantha’s face, peaceful in her unconsciousness, her hand limp in mine. I thought of everything she had been through, everything we had been through. I thought of the fight in her, the strength she always had, even when the world tried to break her.

Was I ready for the weight of this? For the questions, the whispers, the doubt?

The answer was simple.

“I’d rather burn for her than walk away.”

Elias studied me for a long moment before nodding. “Then we’ll stand with you.”

I barely registered his words. My focus was on Samantha, on the steady rhythm of her breathing.

She had to wake up.

She had to come back to me.

And when she did, I’d be right here, waiting. And nothing—no pack politics, no judgment, no fear—was going to change that