Trepidation and anxiety flow in equal asure through my veins as my mother leans forward, tired of waiting for a clear answer. "Can you sense if Ava is pregnant, Sister Miriam?"
The woman's eyes glaze, her gaze becoming distant as if peering into another realm. Her voice deepens, taking on a strong cadence that seems to vibrate the very air around us. "An ancient power lies dormant, awaiting the weakest to awaken it. Her womb shall house the strongest, who will inherit the legacy of the Lycans."
And just like that, she's back, the energy dispersed in re seconds. She blinks at , then toward my mother. "It is uncertain," she answers, still with her eerie smile. "I shall co again before the ceremony. Alpha Renard has chosen well."
"Ah, yes…" My mom's pathetic agreent only cents her disdain toward . "Thank you for coming, Sister Miriam."
"What are friends for, Grace?"
Sister Miriam's gaze ets mine once again. There's a glint in her eyes that makes nervous. "If you ever need , child," she says, her voice low and almost lodic, "simply light a candle and call my na. I'll find you."
I watch Sister Miriam leave, her words lingering in the air like an ominous mist. As the door closes behind her, my mother lets out a shudder, her face twisted. She reaches for a small travel bottle of hand sanitizer on the dresser and rubs the gel over her palms, making sure no amount of skin is untouched, as if trying to scrub away an invisible stain.
"Who is she?" I ask, unable to contain my curiosity despite the strange encounter.
My mother's eyes narrow as she turns to face . "Stop being so nosy, Ava," she snaps, her voice laced with irritation. "That's none of your concern."
She looks over my body in disgust. "It's unfortunate that we still don't know if you're pregnant, but I guess there's little we can do except wait."
I watch my mother closely as she continues fussing with my hair, her movents stiff and agitated. The encounter with Sister Miriam has left her visibly unsettled, a rare crack in her usually composed deanor.
"Is she so sort of prophet?" I ask, unable to contain my curiosity any longer.
Mom's hands freeze mid-motion, her fingers tangled in my hair. She ets my gaze in the mirror, her eyes narrowing. "I told you, it's none of your concern," she snaps, her voice laced with irritation. "Don't ask about things that don't involve you."
I flinch at her sharp tone, but a part of refuses to back down. "But she was saying such odd things." I just want to make sure Mom isn't going to go telling Alpha Renard what was said here.
I'm hoping Mom's thinking of Phoenix more than she's thinking of her own status in the pack. If Alpha Renard hears sothing like that, it doesn't matter what plan Phoenix has in mind—he'll keep trying to get back.
Mom's grip on my hair tightens, and I wince as she tugs at a lock with more force than necessary. "Enough, Ava. You're not to speak of this again, do you understand?" Her voice is low and threatening, a warning I've heard countless tis before.
It's impossible to nod, so I choke out a soft, "Yes," hoping I look properly cowed.
* * *
My mind races with a thousand thoughts and a thousand more worries as I pace back and forth in the cramped space of my bedroom, having skipped dinner with the family. Seeing their faces would make it impossible to choke down any food, wondering if at any mont they'd start talking about Sister Miriam's words.
Her cryptic words echo in my head like a haunting lody. How did she know about the power I can't access? And are her words a vision of the future, or just so cryptic mumbo-jumbo she spewed on the spot?
The sound of the door opening interrupts my circular thoughts and I whirl around to see Phoenix entering the room. His expression is grim, his brow furrowed with concern. He tosses a burner phone onto my bed, the device bouncing slightly on the mattress.
Excitent wars with caution. "What's going on?" I ask, heart pounding.
Phoenix grimaces, running a hand through his tousled hair. "Mom and Dad are freaking out about what Sister Miriam said," he explains, his grim tone ringing warning bells in my head.
My stomach twists, and I want to vomit all the food I've eaten from past to future. "Are they going to tell Alpha Renard?"
Phoenix shakes his head. "No, they won't," he assures , but his tone is laced with uncertainty. "Look, Ava, while Mom and Dad are loyal to Alpha Renard, they never expected that you would truly be able to bear him any kids, considering that he hasn't had any luck in so long. Even with you being an oga, Alpha Renard is barren."
Confusion has frowning. "What do you an? How do you know that?"
Phoenix sighs, his shoulders sagging with the weight of so unseen burden. "Dad and Mom said that his previous kids weren't biologically his."
That can't be true. "How is that possible?"
Phoenix shifts his weight, rolling his shoulders in discomfort. His gaze goes over my head, to my desk, then to the floor off to the side of him. "Mom was his wife's best friend. She helped cover it up. She told Dad everything."
The implications of his words sink in a little at a ti. Alpha Renard, the powerful and feared leader of our pack, has been deceived all this ti, his wife bearing children that were not truly his own. They'd been his pride and joy, even if they were weak for alpha-heirs, all of them dying during what would be considered minor skirmishes with other shifters.
The revelation is almost too much to comprehend.
They died because they weren't alpha heirs at all.
They were weak. Did she mate a delta?
"But why would they do that?" I ask, my voice trembling with a mixture of disbelief and fear.
Phoenix's expression hardens. "Power, Ava. It's always about power in a pack. She didn't want to lose her position as Luna, even if it ant betraying her mate."
I sink onto the edge of my bed, my mind reeling. How many other secrets are buried beneath the surface of our pack?
Mine doesn't seem so bad in comparison. At least no one did anything to cause it. I was just an anomaly from birth.
"That's why Mom and Dad are so worried," he says, his voice a low snarl of frustration. "If Sister Miriam's words are true, and you really do possess so kind of ancient power, they know Alpha Renard will stop at nothing to claim you as his own. No matter how many packs he has to war against to get you."
"So, this?" I lift the burner phone. "I take it we're accelerating the plan?"
He hesitates. "Yes."
The hesitation has my gut clenching. There's sothing wrong. Sothing he isn't saying.
"Phoenix…"
"No more questions, Ava. Just be prepared. I can't tell Mom or Dad anything, because we need them to be able to convince Alpha Renard that our family had nothing to do with your disappearance. Tomorrow night, you leave pack lands."
Leave pack lands.
I notice that he doesn't say anything about where I'm supposed to end up.
The paranoia I've been honing since I ran away the night of the Lunar Gala flares urgently in the back of my head. "What's the phone for?"
"Oh," he says, with a vague wave of his hand. "You'll need to be able to call your alpha lover when you get there, won't you?"
Right.
Because Phoenix has always been so kind and generous.
"Thanks," I say, my mouth dry with the knowledge that I'm not supposed to make it to Washington alive. "I appreciate you, big brother."
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