The Alpha’s Barren Luna

Elara did not tell Cassian she was pregnant that night.

Every step toward her bedroom made the words rise in her throat, but each time she remembered the way the elders had looked at Seraphina’s stomach, as though the child already belonged to the pack more than it belonged to the woman carrying it.

She needed answers before she gave Cassian another piece of herself.

By the time she reached the corridor, the sounds of the celebration had returned behind her. Warriors were congratulating one another on the Alpha’s safe return while servants hurried between the dining hall and the kitchens, carrying empty plates and fresh wine.

No one came after Elara and that surprised her.

She closed her bedroom door and leaned against it, staring at the pregnancy test in her hand. Four weeks pregnant. Her thumb brushed over the two lines as her mind returned to everything that had happened that evening.

She had spent five years dreaming about this moment.

Yet now that it had arrived, she couldn’t stop wondering whether bringing her child into the open would make things better—or put a target on the baby’s back.

A knock sounded.

Elara quickly slipped the test into the drawer beside her bed before turning toward the door.

“Come in,” she said, smoothing her expression even though her thoughts were still racing.

An elderly maid entered with her head bowed, her hands clasped respectfully in front of her.

“Luna, Alpha Cassian asked that you rest tonight,” the maid said carefully, keeping her eyes lowered.

Elara studied the woman’s face, searching for some indication that she knew more than she was saying.

“Did he say why?” she asked, her brows drawing together.

The maid hesitated before answering, clearly uncomfortable beneath the Luna’s questioning gaze.

“He said there will be changes to the household tomorrow,” she replied, lowering her voice as though the walls might be listening.

“What kind of changes?” Elara asked, straightening from the door as suspicion sharpened her gaze.

“I wasn’t told,” the maid admitted, shaking her head.

Elara’s eyes narrowed, but she could see the woman’s discomfort and didn’t press her further.

“Forgive me, Luna,” the maid murmured, dipping her head.

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Elara replied, her expression softening. “You can go.”

After the woman left, Elara crossed the room and opened the curtains.

The moon hung above the pack grounds, bathing the training fields in pale light. She had always loved the Nightfang Pack. Even when the pack had whispered about her lack of a wolf, she had convinced herself that belonging beside Cassian was enough.

Tonight, she wasn’t so sure.

A faint ache pulled through her abdomen.

Elara placed her palm over it, her expression becoming gentler as she thought of the child growing inside her.

“I won’t let anyone decide your place before you even arrive,” she whispered, her eyes lowering toward her stomach.

She had barely finished speaking when voices sounded outside.

She stepped closer to the door.

“Move the furniture carefully,” Cassian instructed from the corridor, his voice firm with authority.

Elara opened the door.

Two servants stood in the hallway with several pack workers behind them. They were carrying the small wooden crib she had ordered months ago.

Her heart stopped.

“What are you doing?” she asked, staring at the crib in disbelief.

One of the servants froze, his eyes darting nervously toward the floor.

Before anyone could answer, Cassian appeared at the end of the corridor.

His expression changed when he saw her.

“Elara,” he said, slowing his steps as concern briefly crossed his face.

She stepped into the hallway, her gaze fixed on him.

“Why are they taking the crib?” she demanded, pointing toward the nursery with a restrained anger that made her voice tremble.

Cassian approached slowly, his shoulders tense beneath his dark coat.

“Seraphina needs a room closer to the healer’s wing,” he explained, his expression serious.

Elara looked toward the nursery before turning back to him.

“And you chose my nursery?” she asked, disbelief evident in her eyes.

“It is the safest room in this part of the residence,” Cassian explained, his jaw tightening as though he knew she would not accept the answer easily.

Her gaze hardened.

“You could have chosen another room,” she said, folding her arms across her chest.

“I could have,” Cassian admitted, his expression conflicted, “but Seraphina’s condition makes this the safest option.”

Elara looked at the servants again before returning her attention to him.

“What condition?” she asked, her suspicion becoming impossible to hide.

Cassian’s expression grew guarded.

“She experienced severe abdominal pain after we arrived,” he replied, his eyes narrowing slightly as he tried to make her understand the seriousness of his decision.

Seraphina’s pain had interrupted her attempt to tell Cassian about her pregnancy.

Now that same pregnancy was being given the room she had prepared for her own child.

Elara’s lips pressed into a thin line.

“How convenient,” she murmured, the bitterness in her voice impossible to conceal.

Cassian’s brows drew together.

“What does that mean?” he asked, his expression hardening as he studied her.

“It means every time something important is about to be said, Seraphina suddenly needs you,” Elara replied, holding his gaze despite the anger burning behind her eyes.

“Elara, don’t accuse her of pretending to be sick,” Cassian warned, his voice low as his jaw tightened.

“Then don’t give me reasons to question it,” she shot back, her eyes flashing with hurt and frustration.

His expression hardened.

“You’re angry with me, and you have every right to be,” Cassian said, his voice controlled as he fought to keep his temper in check. “But Seraphina is carrying my child. I won’t gamble with the baby’s safety to spare your feelings.”

The words struck her.

Elara looked toward the nursery.

Inside were the things she had chosen herself over the years: a small wooden crib, cream-colored curtains, shelves filled with children’s books, and a stuffed wolf she had bought long before she ever knew she would become a mother.

Her fingers curled at her sides.

“You know how long I waited to prepare that room,” she said, her voice quieter now as she looked at him with wounded disbelief.

Cassian’s expression flickered.

“I know,” he replied, his eyes lingering on the nursery.

“Then you know what you’re taking from me,” Elara said, her voice trembling slightly as she forced herself to meet his gaze.

His eyes remained on her.

“I am not taking your place,” he said, his expression strained.

“No,” Elara replied, holding his gaze as hurt hardened into quiet anger. “You’re taking the future I built inside this house and giving it to another woman.”

Silence settled between them.

Cassian looked away first.

Then footsteps sounded from behind him.

Seraphina appeared.

She wore a loose ivory robe, one hand resting over her stomach. Her face was pale, but the moment she saw Elara standing outside the nursery, her expression changed.

“Elara,” Seraphina said softly, approaching with cautious steps and an apologetic look carefully arranged across her face. “I didn’t ask them to remove your things.”

Elara looked at her, studying the woman she had once considered a trusted member of the pack.

“But you’re accepting the room,” she replied, her expression guarded.

Seraphina’s lips parted as she lowered her eyes.

“I need to be close to the healer,” she said, placing one hand protectively over her stomach.

“You need to be close to Cassian,” Elara answered, her voice quiet but cutting as she watched Seraphina’s reaction.

Seraphina’s eyes lowered further, and Cassian immediately stepped between them.

“Enough,” he said sharply, his expression warning both women to stop.

Elara stared at him.

“Is that what you will say every time I object?” she asked, her brows lifting as frustration flashed across her face.

Cassian’s expression tightened.

“I am asking you to understand the situation,” he replied, his hands falling stiffly to his sides.

“No,” Elara said firmly, turning fully toward him. “You’re asking me to surrender quietly.”

Before Cassian could respond, an unfamiliar voice came from the staircase.

“Perhaps surrender isn’t the right word,” the man said, his calm tone drawing everyone’s attention.

Everyone turned.

Elder Rowan stood there with two members of the council, his expression solemn as he surveyed the tense scene.

“The Luna has a right to understand what is happening,” he said, looking directly at Cassian before turning his attention to Elara.

Cassian’s shoulders stiffened.

“Elder,” he warned, his expression becoming guarded.

Rowan ignored the warning in his voice.

“With two potential heirs now involved, the succession council will need to review the old law,” he explained, his hands folding behind his back.

Elara’s attention sharpened.

“Two heirs?” she asked, her eyes moving between Rowan and Cassian.

The elder nodded.

“The Alpha’s first recognized biological heir traditionally receives priority in succession,” Rowan explained, his expression grave.

Seraphina’s expression brightened slightly.

Elara noticed.

“But I’m still the Luna,” Elara said, lifting her chin as she held herself with renewed confidence.

“You are,” Rowan replied, giving her a solemn nod. “And that distinction matters.”

“Then explain it,” Elara demanded, her gaze remaining fixed on him.

Cassian stepped forward, his expression tense.

“That discussion can wait,” he said, his voice carrying a clear warning.

“No,” Elara said, turning toward him with a firmness that surprised even Cassian. “It cannot.”

Cassian stared at her, his brows drawing together.

She had spent years allowing him to shield her from pack politics.

She wouldn’t do that anymore.

Elder Rowan cleared his throat.

“The law does not automatically make the child of the Luna the heir,” he explained, his tone measured. “The council recognizes blood, legitimacy, and the order in which the Alpha’s children are born. However, the Luna’s position carries certain protections.”

Elara’s eyes narrowed.

“What protections?” she asked, her voice steady despite the unease building inside her.

Rowan hesitated.

“A Luna cannot be stripped of her title simply because another woman bears the Alpha’s child,” he said, his expression solemn.

Elara released a slow breath, some of the tension leaving her shoulders.

That was something.

Then Rowan continued.

“But the child born outside the Luna’s union may still be considered for succession if the Alpha formally recognizes that child,” he added, his gaze shifting toward Cassian.

Elara looked at Cassian.

“You intend to recognize Seraphina’s child,” she said, her voice quiet as she searched his face for an answer.

Cassian didn’t answer immediately.

His silence told her enough.

“Yes,” he finally said, his expression conflicted. “The child is mine.”

Elara’s hand instinctively moved toward her stomach.

Nobody noticed.

Not even Cassian.

She looked at the nursery again.

Suddenly, the crib no longer looked like furniture.

It looked like a warning.

If Seraphina’s child was born first and Cassian formally recognized it, that child could stand ahead of hers in the succession.

And if her own child remained hidden, no one could protect what they didn’t know existed.

Elara’s mind raced.

She had thought keeping the pregnancy secret would give her time.

Now she realized secrecy could cost her child everything.

Cassian moved closer, his expression softening as he tried to draw her attention back to him.

“Elara, we will discuss this privately,” he said, his voice quieter.

She met his eyes.

“No,” she replied, her expression firm.

His brows furrowed.

“No?” he repeated, clearly surprised by her refusal.

“I want to speak with the healer,” Elara said, holding his gaze with a determination he hadn’t seen from her before.

Cassian’s expression changed.

“Why?” he asked, studying her face.

“Because if my child is going to be born into this pack, I need to understand exactly what I’m bringing into the world,” she replied, her voice steady despite the secret she continued to carry.

He stared at her, clearly surprised by the firmness in her voice.

Then Seraphina suddenly winced.

Her hand pressed against her abdomen.

Cassian immediately turned toward her.

“Seraphina?” he asked, his expression filling with concern as he moved toward her.

She breathed through the discomfort, lowering her head.

“I’ll be fine,” she assured him, forcing a faint smile.

Cassian reached for her arm.

“Let’s get you checked,” he said, his concern evident in the way his fingers tightened gently around her arm.

Elara watched them.

This time, she didn’t feel abandoned.

She noticed how quickly Seraphina recovered when Cassian turned away from her.

She noticed the tiny curve at the corner of Seraphina’s mouth.

And she noticed something else.

The pain had disappeared almost as quickly as it had arrived.

Elara’s suspicion deepened.

She stepped into the nursery before the servants could finish removing her belongings.

Her fingers closed around the stuffed wolf sitting on the small bed.

For years, she had kept it there because she had wanted her child to grow up seeing something she had never been allowed to have—a wolf of their own.

She hugged it against her chest, then looked at the empty crib.

Her eyes hardened.

If the pack intended to turn her unborn child into a political battle, she needed to learn the rules before the battle began.

And she knew exactly where she would start.

The healer.

Tomorrow morning, she would find out whether there was something about her pregnancy that Cassian and the elders had failed to consider.

She placed the stuffed wolf carefully inside the crib.

Then she walked out of the nursery without looking back.