Unsettled

GENERAL POV

The night is quiet and chill as Morgana forces herself to lie still beside Eryx in bed.

His arms are wrapped tightly around her, his body pressing close in a way that feels too tender, too careful.

He's clingier than he's ever been, almost as if he's afraid she might slip away if he loosens his grip.

That shift happened right after she told him she'd confirmed with the doctor who came to check on her mother: she is actually pregnant.

She'd said it smoothly, convincingly.

She watched relief wash over his face, watched excitement build up in him. Watched his guard fall for just a second.

But now, in the silence, he holds her like he's chasing something he can't reach. And Morgana's heart is nowhere near calm.

Anxiety coils in her chest like a live wire. Every second that passes feels like a countdown to exposure.

No matter how many angles she turns it over in her mind, she still can't figure out how to find the woman carrying Eryx's real child.

Earlier that day, she'd gone to her parents. She'd told them everything. The mistake. The mix-up. The insemination gone wrong. The child that now existed outside her control. And the reaction was as violent as she expected.

Her father had roared, his voice echoing off the walls of the ancestral chamber. "How could you let this happen? You were supposed to oversee it! You should've destroyed the sample yourself!"

Her mother had just stared, disappointed. Silent. But the silence cut deeper.

They told her she had failed. Recklessly, carelessly. That her negligence might cost them everything they'd spent decades trying to achieve.

The Thornevail Pack had always ranked first, and her pack, Clawingfang, had always followed, second, strong but never supreme. The plan had been their answer. Infiltrate. Take control. Shift the balance. But she is ruining that.

Now, everything was at risk.

As chaos sparked within the council, one half scrambled to find the unknown woman.

They called on seers, trackers, bribed hospital staff. Anyone who might know who the substitute patient was.

The other half offered another solution. If Morgana had failed, then they would move through Theo, the younger brother.

Alphas had the freedom to choose their mates, and Theo had yet to claim one. They would offer him a bride so stunning, so magnetic, he wouldn't resist. She'd be trained, groomed, and sent in to finish what Morgana started.

Her and Morgana would work together to speed up the entire plan.

And if the pregnancy problem remained unsolved? If the child couldn't be found? Morgana would carry a child regardless.

She would select a male from their own ranks, one with high enough blood status to mimic the bond. She would fake the pregnancy timeline and claim the child as Eryx's.

As she lies next to Eryx now, she replays the arguments, the desperation, the anger, the plan. And despite his arms around her, despite the warmth of his chest pressed into her back, none of it brings comfort.

Especially not when she feels his body shift. Again.

His breathing changes every so often. Subtle. But she feels the tension in his muscles, the tightening of his jaw. She's seen it too many times to misread it. His wolf is unsettled. He's trying to relax, but he can't seem to.

Is he sensing it? she wonders, panic bubbling just under her skin.

Eryx, on the other hand, can't understand what's happening inside him.

He hears the heartbeat of his baby. The presence of the child. It's there. Steady, strong. He can feel the pull of the bond, but it's distant, blurred like a sound through thick fog. Morgana is in his arms, close, warm, familiar. But the heartbeat is far. Too far.

It's maddening.

His wolf won't stop pacing, growling at the edges of his mind. Each time his thoughts drift, they veer toward the same face.

Morgana's servant. Earlier when they met .

Why? He doesn't know. He doesn't want to know.

But her face keeps appearing in the quiet. And each time it does, his chest tightens with something that doesn't feel Soo relaxing.

Is it the fact that he ignored that Morgana hurt her? And instead he was sending her to Morgana again? Is it the fact that his brother was upset by his judgment?!

But should that bother him anyway?! Why should Morgana's servant issues bother him?! It was an accident, Morgana is pregnant, she must have gotten mood swings..

But still, he doesn't settle.

He shifts again, slowly untangling himself from Morgana's arms. She doesn't move. He stares at her for a long moment, watching her chest rise and fall. Convinced that she's asleep. Then he slips out of bed.

His steps are silent. The hallway is dim. Cool.

His feet carry him toward Theo's door before he even realizes where he's going.

He knocks.

A long pause. Then the door creaks open.

Theo stands there, half-dressed, his shirt clearly thrown on in a rush. His chest still rising from uneven breaths. His brows are furrowed, and his eyes, usually so calm are sharp, irritated.

"Brother?" Theo asks. "What's wrong? It's late. Why aren't you asleep?"

Eryx blinks, searching for an excuse.

"I was thinking about our last conversation," he says eventually. "You left upset. I wanted to say I'll look into the issue. I'll make sure the issue is handled."

Theo nods, but something in his jaw ticks. "Thanks," he says.

He starts to close the door, but Eryx stops it with his hand.

"What?" Theo asks.

Eryx pauses. "Are you... okay now?"

Theo shrugs. "Yeah. Just tired." He glances down the hallway. "Really tired. I just want to sleep. Goodnight."

And just like that, the door shuts Infront of him with a soft click.

Eryx doesn't move. Something still nags at him. Some instinct he can't name.

But through the door, Theo and Mira hears his voice Asking the guards to get Morgana's servant so that she can get Morgana something to eat.