Stealing the Alpha’s Heritage

Chapter 2

"Aria?" Rowena's voice cuts through the darkness.

The electronic lock beeps three times—a master override code only she would know. The door swings wide, fluorescent light from the hallway stabbing into my dilated pupils.

My mother-in-law stands in the doorway, silver hair gleaming in the harsh fluorescent light.

She's the only one in this house who ever looked at me with genuine compassion, the only person who could tell Thorne no and remain standing afterward.

Two guards flank her, their eyes carefully averted.

"Move," she commands them.

"Ma'am, the Alpha gave specific orders…" The younger guard starts, but Rowena's eyes flash dangerously.

"The Alpha seems to have forgotten who held this pack before him." She steps into the room. "Aria, get up. You're leaving."

My legs shake as I stand, hope and terror warring in my chest. "Rowena, he'll—"

"Let him rage." She grips my arm, steadying me with surprising strength. "I've watched my son destroy everything pure he touches. I won't let him destroy you. Not you."

"But the guards—"

"Will do nothing." She turns her steely gaze on them, and they step back instinctively. "Unless they'd like to explain to the pack elders why they prevented the former Luna from exercising her rights."

The guards exchange nervous glances but move aside as Rowena leads me out. Her hand stays firm on my elbow, guiding me through the hallway with purposeful strides.

"Rowena, I need to tell you something." The words tumble out as we reach a quiet alcove. "I'm pregnant. I found out this morning."

She stops abruptly, her fingers tightening on my arm. "What did you say?"

"I'm with child. I was going to tell him when I found him with Serena…" I pull the broken pregnancy test from my pocket. "I think—no, I know—it's twins. I've been having these dreams, visions really. Two children. I know it sounds crazy, but I can feel them both."

Rowena takes the test, studying the two pink lines still visible through the damaged plastic. Her face cycles through emotions—shock, anger, then something fierce and protective.

"Twins," she breathes, her voice barely audible. "The family curse continues."

"Curse?"

"Every third generation of Blackwood Alphas produces twins. It's been that way for centuries." She pockets the test with practiced efficiency. "How far along?"

"Maybe six weeks. The pack doctor would know for sure, but I can't—"

"No. No pack doctor." She pockets the test with a strange expression. "Wait until you're safely away. The pack physicians report everything to Thorne. Does anyone else know?"

"Just you." I search her face, trying to read her intentions. "What will you do?"

"That remains to be seen." Her jaw tightens as she pulls out a leather wallet, pressing it into my hands with urgency. "Garrett will be waiting outside—he'll drive you to the train station."

"The train station?" My fingers clamp around her wrist, confusion slicing through fear. "That's hours from here. Why not just—"

"Because I want you gone."

The words crack like a whip. Rowena's mask shatters.

"I want you so far from this pack that when my son realizes what he's lost, when he comes crawling to me demanding answers, I can look him in the eye and tell him you're beyond his reach."

"What about—"

I try to protest but she doesn't let me finish. Her fingers dig into my shoulders, shaking me.

"You're carrying the future of the Blackwood line. And my son threw you away for a cheap thrill with that blonde whore he calls assistant."

"You're not keeping this secret, are you?" The realization hits. "You're going to tell him."

"What I do with this information is my decision." She cups my face. "But you need to be gone before I make it. Far enough that he can't drag you back by your hair immediately."

"What if he comes after me?"

"Then he'll have to go through me first." She pulls me into a fierce embrace. "I brought that boy into this world. I'll be damned if I let him destroy the mother of my grandchildren."

She pushes me toward the exit and turns to the guards who've followed at a distance.

"Mrs. Blackwood is leaving the pack grounds for her own safety. Anyone who tries to stop her answers to me personally."

I don't wait for their response. My heels click against marble with staccato urgency until I kick them off at the main doors, sprinting barefoot across the grass.

Garrett waits in an old sedan, engine running. He doesn't speak when I throw myself into the backseat, just floors the accelerator.

Through the rear window, I watch the pack house shrink, knowing Rowena still stands there with my broken pregnancy test, deciding the fate of everything.

"You know what your problem is?" Garrett's gravelly voice cuts through the silence twenty minutes into the drive. "You think this is an ending."

"My former mate just locked me in a basement while he fucked another woman." The words taste like acid. "What would you call it?"

"Tuesday in most packs."

He catches my glare in the rearview mirror and his scarred mouth twitches.

"Look, Luna, I've driven this route before. Women running from Alphas who couldn't keep their knots to themselves. You know what separates the ones who make it from the ones who come crawling back?"

"Enlighten me." My fingers dig into the leather seat.

"The ones who make it?" He takes a sharp turn that throws me against the door. "They stop crying about what they lost and start planning what they'll do next."

The truth of his words sets. He's right. I don't have the luxury of looking back.

"The midnight train goes east," Garrett says as the station appears, its harsh lights cutting through the darkness. "Twenty minutes until it arrives."

He pulls into a shadowed corner of the parking lot and turns to face me. "Stay in the car. Lock the doors. I'll be back."

"Where are you going?" Panic edges into my voice.

"You can't board a train barefoot." His scarred face softens slightly. "There's a twenty-four hour store across the street. Keep your head down if anyone passes."

The door slams, leaving me alone in the suffocating silence.

My phone buzzes—a text from Rowena with an address I don't recognize. My fingers shake as I type it into the search bar, the screen's glow harsh in the darkness.

Evander Caldris. I've heard of him. He's the Alpha of Moonveil Pack. Three territories east. The photos show a modern mansion, all glass and steel and sharp angles, nothing like the traditional elegance of Thorne's domain.

Garrett returns carrying a plastic bag, rapping his knuckles against the window. I unlock the door and he tosses the bag at me—plain sneakers, socks, a baseball cap.

"Put them on." He scans the parking lot while I lace the shoes with trembling fingers. "Your train's boarding."

We walk through the station's fluorescent glare, Garrett's hand hovering near my elbow without touching, his body positioned to block me from view. The platform stretches endlessly, other travelers flowing around us like water around stones.

"Platform seven," he says, stopping at the gate.

His phone vibrates against his chest—three sharp buzzes in rapid succession. "What happened?"

"Storm's coming." His jaw tightens as he glances at the screen. "Weather service says blizzard conditions by morning." He pockets the phone without meeting my eyes. "This is where we part."

I want to thank him, but he's already walking away, disappearing into the crowd like smoke.