For the next few days I tried to get Reuben alone, but Vicky was with him at every moment. She even somehow invited herself in on pack business meetings and sat quietly to the side. She watched Reuben as if in awe of his leadership, but was happy to try and comment when he asked for my opinion as the luna.
I wasn’t feeling well. The early stages of pregnancy taking a lot of energy from my body as well as the added stress of Vicky being here and knowing her motives, had me unable to sleep at night.
Noah had demanded to see me every day. He could sense I was stressed about something and the dark circles under my eyes informed him that I wasn’t sleeping well.
I was back in his doctor’s office where he was taking my blood pressure and checking my weight.
“You’ve already lost weight Evelyn, are struggling with morning sickness?” His eyes look at me from over his gold rimmed glasses, he was also tired. Most likely worried about me, which made me feel even worse.
“I’m getting some nausea but I’m also finding I am not very hungry.” I shrug at him. In truth, I couldn’t eat due to the worry of Reuben marking Vicky and then kicking me and his unborn child out of his pack. I was experiencing a lot of nightmares on this topic.
“You need to make a conscious effort to eat more Evelyn. The baby will only take more nutrients from you. You should be gaining weight, not losing it. From now on I want you to drink this every day.”
“What is it?” I look at the green bottle of fluid he has placed on his desk.
“It is a vitamin drink packed with all the nutrients you need in your first trimester. I want you to drink it every day here in front of me, so that I know you have taken it. You will also sit with me for twenty minutes so that I know you haven’t vomited it back up.” He sternly commands of me.
“Why would I vomit it back up?”
“It doesn’t taste the best. Now drink.” He commands.
I do as he says. The drink indeed tastes disgusting and I have to fight my body’s urge to vomit it back up.
“Are you stressed about telling Reuben? Why haven’t you told him yet?” He asks me gently.
“I just haven’t found the right opportunity. Let’s just say he isn’t alone much at present.” I sigh, my mood saddening again.
“Do you remember that time when you almost drowned in the lake back home, and I had to rescue you?” Noah chuckles picking up on my deflated mood.
“I wasn’t drowning, and you didn’t rescue me.” I laugh back at him.
“Could have fooled me.” He smiles, happy with my change of mood, of me remembering our happy childhood years together.
Around twenty minutes later, once Noah knew I had kept my drink down, we exit his office both laughing of our childhood memories. My laughter was actually so joyful that a few heads turned up in the waiting room.
It was short lived though. Reuben and Vicky were walking towards me, Reuben with a frown on his face. Noah had prescribed me with some anti-sickness tablets which I carefully now hid behind my back as they approached.
My wolf growls in my mind as Reuben’s arm is wrapped around Vicky’s waist, almost helping to keep her upright. She was still maintaining her innocent, can’t look after herself character around my husband.
“Who is this?” Vicky suddenly feels strong enough to find out who Noah is.
“This is Doctor Noah.” Reuben responds bluntly, his frown remaining on his face.
“Noah this is Vicky, she requires immediate medical attention. She almost passed out in my office.” Reuben says with a panic for her welfare clear in his eyes.
“I’m sorry to hear that Vicky isn’t feeling well Alpha, but I am Evelyn’s private doctor, not the pack’s doctor.” Noah responds and I don’t miss the smirk on Vicky’s face.
“The pack doctor on call today has had to attend to something off site. You may not be a pack doctor, but you live in my pack and will attend to Vicky’s needs.” Reuben’s alpha aura thickly covers the waiting area. His command stiffening Noah’s back. The beta in Noah is strong against an alpha’s aura but not strong enough. I could see his hands clasping from the pain running all over his body. I look to Reuben who seemed to be enjoying inflicting this pain on my dearest friend.
I step in front of Noah, completely blocking him from Reuben as I try to ease the tension in the room before it got out of hand.
“Noah, would you kindly just check Vicky for me? She is a guest in the alpha mansion…”
“She seems fine.” He whispers to me under his breath.
“Even so.” I sigh back at him, just as quietly.
“Very well, this way!” Noah gestures for Vicky to enter his office. As she enters the room, I see the opportunity to finally talk alone with Reuben. I take a step towards him when she calls out to him from Noah’s office.
“Oh Reuben, won’t you stay? I’m worried it could be something serious.” She starts to pretend to cry with worry.
“Actually Reuben….” I go to ask him to stay with me for a moment when he completely ignores me and responds to her instead.
“Of course, Vicky.” He replies to her, completely cutting me off. He doesn’t even acknowledge me as he walks into Noah’s office and slams the door almost in my face.
…..
I returned to my rooms, distraught at Reuben ignoring me but bending over backwards for Vicky. I’ve not once ever asked anything from him. I’ve never screamed at him, even though I’ve wanted to hundreds of times, for him to love me, to cherish me. Yet she flutters her eyelashes once and he is already treating her like the pack luna.
I couldn’t settle, I was pacing the floor and wearing down the carpet. My wolf was pleading for me to sit down, to let us rest. She was trying to comfort me, telling me in my mind that we are Reuben’s chosen, we just do not wear his mark yet. But when the baby is born and strengthens our connection, he will finally claim us as his.
My wolf was putting pressure on me to tell Reuben, hoping that once I told him the happy news, he wouldn’t consider Vicky anymore and that she would leave us alone. My wolf saw things very black or white, whereas I knew there were grey areas in life. But I couldn’t deflate her positive mood, she was happy we were having a child and one way or the other, I did need to tell Reuben.
I must have drifted off on the bed, my wolf finally winning when she ordered that I stopped pacing. The exhaustion must have taken over me as soon as my head hit the below. A knock on the door wakes me up and it takes me a moment to even realise what time of the day it was. Judging by the darkening room and the sun’s setting glow throw the window, I had missed lunch and slept all afternoon.
“Come in!” I respond as I hear another knock on the door. I thought it might have been Candice or Michelle checking up on me. What I didn’t expect is for Vicky to enter my room.
My mood sours immediately. She takes a moment to look around my bedroom, evening sneering at the picture of me and my parents. Unless Reuben was hiding under my bed, he clearly wasn’t here so why was she in my bedroom?
“Are you feeling better?” I ask, wanting her to stop mentally abusing my room.
“I’m fine, Reuben just worries too much.” She sniggers, but I know that was a dig at me.
“He isn’t in here…”
“No, is he ever?” She retorts as she sits at the end of my bed.
“I came looking for you, I wanted to talk to you about something.” Vicky gets down to business.
“Vicky, whatever it is, I’m not interested. Now if you’ll excuse me, I must run some errands.” I boldly say standing up and heading out of my own bedroom door, leaving her in my own room. Just as I reach for the door she growls, wanting my full attention yet I turned my back on her.
“I know you are pregnant.”
I can feel my own heart beating too fast, the quickened pace resulting in a tightening affect on my chest. Completely in shock I turn to face her, unable to say anything, unable to deny it.
“I saw the vitamin drink that the doctor gave you…I know that is only for pregnant she-wolves.” She sneers at me.
“I don’t want to talk about it Vicky!” I really didn’t and not with her. I wanted to go find Reuben and share the happy news.
“Reuben doesn’t know yet, right?”
“Not yet, I am just about to go tell him now!”
“You can’t expect a child to keep your position as luna, not now I am back.” She laughs, as if possessed by a demon.
“Vicky, Reuben is my husband, and he wouldn’t deny his own child or this pack of the security of having an alpha born offspring.” I turn to her, completely perplexed by her attitude. Surely, she must see that Reuben will not deny his own child’s legacy, that he wouldn’t abandon his own child for her.
I’ve had enough now. I was now determined to tell Reuben and would do it without Vicky in the same room as him. I entered the upstairs landing and was just on top of the stairs when Vicky pulls at my elbow.
“Well, I’m not sure Reuben will meet the child.” She murmurs under her breath before pushing in front of me to head down the stairs first.
“What?” What did she mean by that.
Vicky turns to me as she stands on the next step down and fake screams right in front of me. Perplexed by her odd behaviour I go to take a step back but she grabs hold of my baggy t-shirt at my chest and starts to fall backwards. I watch in horror as she purposely loses her footing on the stairs and pulls me down with her. I am too slow to see it happen in time, to stop it.
She pulls me with her down each step, each crash and bump hitting my head, my back and my stomach. Until we crash out at the bottom.
I hear fast footsteps rushing towards us when Reuben enters the hallway to find us both at the bottom of the stairs.
I am curled up sideways into a ball, as my hands grip my aching stomach. The pain much more excruciating than the bump no doubt appearing on my head and the bruises colouring my ribs and back.
The wind has been knocked out of me. Not just from the fall but the deliberate attempt to injure my innocent child, Reuben’s innocent child. Vicky was malicious, devious and pure evil.
“Evelyn!” Reuben gasps as he sees me in pain on the floor. He rushes over to me but stops when Vicky screams out his name.
“Reuben…Reuben help me!” Her moans were powerful.
He crouches down beside Vicky, his backed turned against me. The pain that was in my stomach is now moving to my heart. Perhaps I will never win!
“Reuben….” I gently call to him, clutching my tummy, trying to cuddle our baby.
“Reuben…the baby…” I whisper but am unheard as darkness takes me and I pass out.
