chapter 11

Kian's POV

I slammed the door to my office harder than intended to do so. However, the annoyance that simmered beneath my skin threatened to boil over, wanting me to make everybody's life hell for the situation that I was living in, though I knew that I could not actually blame them for it. I blamed her.

Aria now, everything about her annoyed me. Her defiance, her hesitation, the refusal to acknowledge the responsibility that came with being Annable's mother. Everything about it just annoyed me. And yet...

I clenched my fists as I paced the length of my room. The picture of her holding the baby earlier played in my head. It was uninvited, but there was something in her eyes. The way that they had softened, the way her voice trembled when she spoke. For a moment, everything felt natural, everything felt real, but I knew that it was far beyond being. So She was nothing but an Omega, and yet I knew that she was the mother of my child. This was not something that I wanted.

Aria was not the woman that my daughter needed as a mother. Annable deserved and needed strength, stability, not a woman who doubted her abilities to be her mother at every turn. The door was knocked, snapping me out of my thoughts. I glared at it as Carter's scent filled my nostrils. Of course my beta is going to have something to say, especially right now.

"Come in," I barked.

Carter walked inside, his expression unreadable. He had a habit of remaining neutral, which often infuriated me. However, today it only added to the agitation that was already coursing through my veins.

"You look like you're about to tear this whole place apart," he said, closing the door behind him.

"I might," I muttered, dropping into the chair behind my desk. This entire situation is a mess. I swear I did not need this mess to deal with, and right now I just need to find a way to fix that. However, I can't. No matter how hard I try, I cannot find myself doing so."

"You mean Aria?" Carter asked, raising an eyebrow at me. I knew that this was a situation that he was finding more or less amusing. Maybe he was not. However, that was the expression that he gave out.

"And the baby," I snapped. "And Vivian leaving. Everything."

Carter folded his arms across his chest, leaning against the doorframe. "You're the one who brought Aria back, Kian. You could have left her where she was. It would have been a lot easier for you."

"She was bleeding out in the street, Carter," I said sharply. "What was I supposed to do?

Let her die?"

"And now she's here," Carter said evenly.

"With your daughter. And you are going to have to deal with the consequences of that, considering the fact that you chose to bring her to the pack rather than take her to the hospital. Which would have had a different aspect, especially considering the fact that you wouldn't have to deal with her today."

"She's not fit to be a mother," I said, shaking my head.

"She survived on her own for months, kept the baby alive and safe," Carter said, his gaze steady. "That doesn't sound like someone unfit to me. Despite everything that she did, she managed to somehow keep that child safe."

"She won't even hold Annable without someone pushing her," I argued. "She's distant, disconnected..."

"She's overwhelmed," Carter interrupted, his voice firm. "You don't think she has a reason to be? Look at what she's been through, Kian. She's had to fight for every scrap of security she's ever had. Now she's here, and you're treating her like she's the enemy. You used to be her friend. That is something that you are forgetting. You need to understand that."

"Her being my friend is out of the question right now. It has been for a very long time." I scowled, leaning back in my chair. "She's not my problem. Annable is."

"And Aria is Annable's mother," Carter pointed out. "Whether you like it or not, they're a package deal. Unless of course, you plan on separating them, which is going to end up harming Annable more than you are going to want to admit."

Before I could respond, there was another knock at the door. A younger pack member stepped inside, his face pale. His heart raced against his ribcage. For a moment, I feared what he was going to say. I feared that something might have happened to my daughter. My daughter. Even mentioning that felt foreign to myself even in my thoughts.

"Alpha, Vivian's father's men are here," he said nervously. "They're taking her things."

"Let them," I said, ignoring the clutch that I felt in my chest. "She made her choice."

The boy nodded quickly and left, leaving

Carter and me in silence.

"She's gone," Carter said after a moment.

"She was gone the moment she found out about Annable," I muttered. "I don't need anyone who can't handle the reality of my life."

Carter gave me a pointed look. "And can you handle it?"

I shot him a glare, but he didn't back down.

Finally, I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "I don't have a choice."

"No," Carter said softly. "You don't. But you can choose how you deal with it. And that would suggest a way that's different than this one..."

The Infirmary was quiet as I walked down the hall. I intended to check on Annable before leaving the Infirmary, heading towards my room. However, Aria's voice stopped my tracks.

"You're so tiny," she was saying softly. Her voice was barely above a whisper, but the tenderness in her tone was unmistakable.

"How am I supposed to take care of you when I can barely take care of myself?"

I walked closer, careful not to make a sound.

The partially open door made me able to see her. The baby was swaddled tightly in her arms, her small face peeking out as she gazed up at her mother, as if listening to every word that she was saying, admiring her as if her voice was the one peace that she had.

"I'm sorry," Aria whispered, tears streaming down her face. "I'm so sorry, Annable. I don't know how to do this, but I promise I will try. I will try for you. I give you my word, I'm going to learn just to keep you safe. I will learn."

My chest ached. And for a moment I considered stepping into the room. For a moment I considered saying something, but the words caught in my throat. And because of that, instead, I turned and walked away. The sound of her quiet sobs followed me down the hall.

"How are you going to be dealing with this, Kian? Just how...?" I'm in a deep shit.