Chapter 12 #2
Before I can protest, she’s pulling me toward the door, her earlier exhaustion completely forgotten. I stumble after her, laughing at her excitement.
“Astra, maybe you should rest—”
“Rest? Are you kidding?” She looks back at me, eyes sparkling with pooling tears. “I’m about to tell my mate we’re having a child. Nothing else matters right now.”
We rush through the corridors, her grip tight on my hand. Servants press against walls to let us pass, their confused expressions following our wake. But Astra doesn’t slow down, doesn’t care who sees the Queen practically running through the palace.
As we round the corner toward Lucian’s study, I glance out the tall windows overlooking the gardens.
My heart stops.
Zane is there, standing near the rose bushes, perfectly still among the blooms. But it’s not his stillness that freezes my blood—it’s the way he’s positioned. Angled directly toward this window. Toward me.
His dark eyes lock onto mine with the precision of a predator who has been waiting. Who knew exactly where I’d be. And when.
He doesn’t move. Doesn’t blink. Just stares with an intensity that makes my wolf recoil in instinctive terror.
Then, he smiles.
It’s not the warm, charming version he’s been showing me for weeks. This smile is cold. Calculated. The smile of someone who has been playing a game and is now revealing the fact that he’s been winning all along.
His lips move, forming words I can’t hear through the glass. But I can read them clearly.
I see you.
My breath catches in my throat. Ice floods my veins.
He lifts one hand in a slow, deliberate wave. The gesture is casual, friendly even. But paired with that smile, with those eyes that promise something dark and inevitable, it’s a threat. A promise.
I know what you’ve been doing. I know you’re lying to me.
I blink—just once, just for a fraction of a second—and then, he’s gone.
Not walking away. Not disappearing behind hedges. Just…gone. Like he was never there at all. Like I imagined the whole thing.
But the phantom coldness of his stare still burns my skin.
My legs buckle. I catch myself against the wall, my vision swimming, my heart hammering so hard, I can feel it in my throat.
“Selene?” Astra’s hand steadies me, concern flooding her voice. “What’s wrong? You’re white as a sheet.”
I open my mouth to tell her. The words are right there—I just saw Zane, he was watching us, he knows something’s wrong, we’re in danger.
But then, I see her face. That radiant joy, the pure happiness glowing in her eyes like sunlight breaking through clouds. She’s carrying new life. She deserves this moment of perfect, untainted bliss.
I can’t ruin it. Not with my paranoia. Not when I might have imagined it. Not when telling her would mean guards flooding the gardens and Lucian locking her away in fear.
She deserves better than that.
“Nothing.” I force a smile, pushing off the wall even though my hands are shaking. “Just got dizzy for a second. I’m fine.”
Her brow furrows worriedly, but before she can press me, I take her hand and pull her forward. “Come on. Lucian’s waiting.”
We’re off again, but my eyes keep darting to windows, to shadowed corners, to doorways and alcoves—anywhere Zane might appear. Anywhere he might be, watching.
My wolf paces frantically, whining, sensing my fear but unable to pinpoint the source. Every shadow looks wrong. Every reflection in the polished marble could be him.
He was there. He saw me. He knows.
The mate bond with Seth thrums anxiously in my chest, like it knows something’s wrong. Like it’s trying to call him to me. I press my hand over my heart, trying to calm the frantic beating, trying to focus on getting Astra safely to Lucian.
Just a few more steps. Just get her to her mate, where she’ll be protected. Where guards and power and the strength of the King himself will keep her safe.
The study doors loom ahead, and I’ve never been so grateful to see them. But even as we reach them, even as Astra knocks with barely contained excitement, I can feel eyes on my back.
Watching. Waiting.
Knowing.
Astra bursts inside without waiting for permission, dragging me behind her. My heart is still hammering from what I saw—or think I saw—in the gardens, but her excitement is infectious enough to push back the fear momentarily.
Lucian and Seth both look up from where they’re having what appears to be a serious discussion, their expressions grave. The instant their eyes land on us, both men move.
Seth reaches me first, his hands settling on my shoulders with that careful intensity that makes my skin warm. “What’s wrong?” His green eyes scan my face, tracking every detail. “You look pale.”
“I’m fine,” I say automatically, but my voice wavers.
Lucian has already crossed the room to Astra, his hands now framing her face. “What are you doing here? I thought you were resting in your chambers.”
“I had to tell you.” Her grin is incandescent. She grabs his hands, pressing them to her stomach. “Lucian, I’m pregnant.”
The entire study goes completely still. Then, Lucian’s eyes widen, his mouth opening and closing without sound. For a man who commands armies and rules a kingdom, he looks utterly lost.
“You’re—” He stops. Swallows hard. “What?”
“Pregnant,” Astra repeats, grinning madly. “Selene just figured it out. We’re having a baby!”
Seth’s hands tighten on my shoulders. I glance up to find him staring at me with an expression I can’t quite read—pride mixed with something hotter, something that makes heat pool low in my belly despite everything that is going on here and in my head.
“You confirmed it?” Seth’s voice drops, intimate even in the crowded room.
I nod, trying to ignore how close he is, how his scent wraps around me. “I felt the heartbeat.”
Lucian sways slightly, and Astra has to steady him. The sight of the powerful king wobbling on his feet would be alarming if it weren’t so endearing.
“A baby,” he breathes. Then louder, turning toward the door: “Guards! Summon the senior healers. All of them. Now.”
“Lucian, I’m fine—”
“You need to sit down.” He’s already guiding her toward the nearest chair, despite her protests. “No more running through the palace.”
“You’re being dramatic,” Astra laughs, letting him fuss over her.
Seth pulls me to his chest, and I feel his heart thundering. “You did good, little wolf,” he murmurs into my hair.
The approval in his voice shouldn’t affect me this much. It makes my wolf preen.
I watch Lucian fuss over Astra, adjusting cushions behind her back, calling for water, his hands trembling slightly as they hover over her stomach. The love between them is palpable—so pure and uncomplicated that it makes my chest ache.
That’s when the image comes crashing back. Zane in the gardens. Those cold eyes. That calculating smile.
I see you.
Did I see him, though? My hands start to shake. What if I imagined it? What if the stress and fear have finally broken something in my mind?
I pull back from Seth, tugging on his sleeve to get his attention. He looks down immediately, concern crossing his features.
“Can you find out if Zane was in the gardens?” I whisper as I glance at Lucian, keeping my voice low enough that he won’t hear. “Just now, or in the last few minutes?”
Seth’s entire body goes rigid. His hand comes up to grip my chin, turning my face back toward his. “Why?”
I hesitate, the words sticking in my throat. “I think I saw him. When I was coming here with Astra.” My voice drops even lower. “He was looking at me. Just…staring. But then he disappeared and I—I’m not sure if it was real.”
The temperature in the room seems to drop. Seth’s eyes darken, and without a word, he stalks over to the door and yanks it open.
I can hear his low conversation with one of the guards outside—clipped, urgent commands that make my stomach twist with anxiety. When he returns, his expression is carefully controlled, but I can feel his fury radiating through our bond.
“They’re checking now,” he says, his hand finding the small of my back. The touch is possessive, protective. “Don’t worry.”
But I am worried. What if I imagined the whole thing? What if I’m losing my mind?
“What’s going on?” Lucian’s voice cuts through my thoughts. He’s watching us with sharp eyes, his arm still wrapped protectively around Astra as he kneels by her chair.
I take a breath, forcing myself to meet his gaze. “Your Majesty, I think I saw Zane in the rose garden when Astra and I were on our way here.” The words come out less steadily than I want. “He was watching me through the window. But I’m not certain if it was real.”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re sure or not,” Lucian says immediately, his voice taking on the commanding edge of a king. “We’ll verify either way.”
“I’ve already sent guards to investigate,” Seth adds, his hand moving in soothing circles on my lower back. “We’ll know soon enough if he was there.”
Astra’s face goes pale. Her hand instinctively moves to her stomach, protective of the life she just learned about mere minutes ago.
“There’s something else,” I say quickly, needing to get it all out before I lose my nerve. “Something you all should know about my meeting with him yesterday.”
Lucian’s eyes sharpen. “What happened?”
I tell them about Zane’s request—how he asked about my lunches with Astra, how he suggested meeting closer to where she’d be. “He was very interested in my schedule with the Queen. When we meet, how often, where.” My hands twist together. “He wants access to Astra. I’m certain of it.”
“That bastard.” As the words slip from Astra’s lips, Lucian’s expression darkens dangerously.
“I’m banning him from the palace,” he says, his tone flat and final. “Effective immediately.”
“You can’t.” Seth’s reply is calm but firm. “Not without evidence. Not without causing major problems with the Council.”
“I don’t care about the Council—”