Koda;

The road to Nagari stretches endlessly ahead of us.

Gravemaw’s mountains have already begun to fade behind the carriage, dissolving slowly into the distance.

The wheels beneath the carriage roll steadily over the stone road, and the guards ride in quiet formation around me.

However, the rhythm of the journey barely registers in my mind.

My attention keeps drifting to the same thing. The letter in my hands.

I unfold it again.

The paper has started to soften due to how many times I have read it.

Still, I read it again.

My dearest Koda...

My chest tightens the moment my eyes touch the words.

Elián’s handwriting is unmistakable. Soft, slightly tilted, as if every word carries a small piece of his heart with it.

I have memorised every line already.

Still, I keep reading.

I’m pregnant, Koda. With our baby.

The words feel unreal every time.

Pregnant!!

My mate is carrying my child.

I close my eyes briefly and press the letter against my chest.

For a moment, I simply sit there, letting the words settle again.

Two months. For two months, he carried our daughter without telling me.

My beast shifts restlessly. Not in anger... Just excited.

Excited and protective.

I understand exactly why Elián did it.

Gravemaw needed me. My people needed me.

Elián would rather suffer in silence than pull me away from my duties.

My fingers tighten slightly around the paper as the mere thought of him carrying our child alone for two months still makes something ache in my ribs.

I fold the letter again carefully and place it inside my coat.

Then my gaze drifts toward the large wooden chest sitting beside me in the carriage.

I open it slowly.

Mother insisted we pack these together, amongst the few other gifts she hurriedly compiled for Ethan.

"You’re not arriving empty-handed," she told me firmly.

"Pregnant omegas deserve spoiling."

I smile as I remember the way she said it.

Inside the chest is a careful collection of things.

Soft fabrics, herbs... Medicinal oil and bundles wrapped in cloth.

I lift one of the folded garments, and a smile splits my face.

It’s a long robe made from pale silver fabric, lighter than anything our people will wear. Mother chose the cloth herself.

"His body will be warmer there," she explained.

"He’ll need breathable fabrics." She added as she carefully folded them.

I run my thumb over the stitching as I imagine Elián wearing it.

I imagine the robe draping loosely over the gentle curve of his stomach.

My breath stutters.

My Elián is really pregnant. How is he holding up??

The image forms in my mind so vividly that my chest tightens.

Elián standing near the window of a room in Nagari... One hand resting absentmindedly on the swell of his belly... our daughter growing safely inside him.

My hand unconsciously drifts to the chest again, and the next thing I pull out of it is one of the small jars Mother packed.

These jars contain medicinal oil and healing herbs. Mother packed them with that impenetrable focus she always has when dealing with anything medical.

"For nausea," she told me, holding up one of the jars

"For back pain."

"For restless nights," she added, as I struggled to remember which was what.

I can already picture Elián wrinkling his nose at the bitter smell of the herbs.

The thought makes my lips twitch, and then, my hand pauses over the smallest bundle in the chest. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

I unwrap the cloth slowly, and my heart swells.

Neatly wrapped is a tiny carved wooden charm.

A bear.

Mother placed it there at the very last moment.

"For the baby. Something from her father’s home." She said as she showed it to me.

My throat tightens as my thumb runs over the intricate details. I wonder when Mother made this, and how long she’s kept it.

It’ll be my first gift to my daughter...

The word still feels strange.

Beautiful, terrifying... Perfect.

I hold the charm between my fingers for a long moment before carefully wrapping it again and placing it back in the chest.

My gaze drifts back toward the road.

Nagari lies only a day’s journey ahead now, and I feel bouncy just imagining what it will feel like when I finally see him again.

I picture Elián standing in the courtyard... His eyes lighting up when he sees me... The soft sound of my name leaving his lips.

Then I imagine something else.

Holding my daughter.

The image hits me suddenly... Her tiny hand wrapped around my finger.

Her hair, her eyes.

Will she have Elián’s eyes or mine?

A quiet laugh escapes me at all the thoughts that’ve been playing in my head.

I really am hopelessly in love with Elián, aren’t I??

My hand drifts to my coat again. To the letter.

I unfold it one more time and read the last line.

Your daughter and I are waiting for you.

My chest swells so much it’s painful.

"I’m coming," I whisper as I look out the window, and just then.

Right in the moment we enter the dean’s forest, I feel something off.

The feeling crawls slowly up my spine.

Subtle... but unmistakable.

My beast straightens.

Alert... Watching.

The peaceful rhythm of the journey suddenly feels like it’s masking something.

I can smell it... I can feel it!

My eyes narrow slightly. realisation dawns.

I’m being watched.

I hold out a white handkerchief, and the carriage’s rider pulls the reins immediately.

The carriage slows to a stop, and I open the door.

I step down onto the dirt road, and Rowan rushes over to me, getting off his horse.

"Alpha Koda?" He calls, but I extend my hand calmly.

"Get me the bow and arrows," I whisper, and he rushes off.

Soon, he’s back, and the weapon is placed in my palm.

I notch an arrow slowly, and my gaze drifts toward the inner forest lines.

The guards around watch silently. But I know Rowan can tell something is wrong.

I shut my eyes and let my beast hunt. He senses something.

A breath... a shift. Movement hidden in the branches.

There!

High in the trees...

I draw the bowstring back without giving time for suspicions, and then I release.

The arrow flies.

A sharp cry breaks the silence, and I pause.

I was right!!

A body drops from the branches in the distance, and the guards rush towards it immediately.

Rowan kneels beside the fallen man, and I wait.

"Alive," he reports, and only then do I walk toward them.

The young man dressed like a spy groans weakly as he clutches his shoulder where the arrow pierced him.

Rowan searches the man’s pockets as the man seems to wake to speak.

Then he freezes. He pulls out a small metal emblem, and when he shows me, my stomach tightens.

Elkhorn!!

This is Balinar’s sigil!!

My jaw tightens, and my mind starts racing.

Balinar... What are his men doing here?

Rowan looks up at me, and sthees The obvious.

"Elkhornen scouts."

I crouch beside the wounded spy as worry begins to eat away at my mind.

Nagari’s borders lie less than a day away. Balinar’s men should not be this close.

.

Not unless...

My mind turns quickly.

Balinar does nothing without a reason. Which means this man wasn’t wandering.

He was watching someone.

Watching... Me.

My eyes narrow.

But why?

The spy gro,ans again mumbling something I can’t hear.

My voice remains calm.

"Why were you watching me?" I demand, but he says nothing.

Of course. Spies rarely do.

I stand slowly, and my gaze drifts toward the forest again.

Balinar’s reach is long.

If his men are this close to Nagari... Then something dangerous is already in motion.

A cold thought forms in my chest.

Elián...

My beast stirs instantly with the need to protect.

My hand tightens slowly as Rowan watches me.

"What do you want done with him, Alpha?" He questions, and I glance down at the spy once more.

"Bind him."

Rowan nods.

"He travels with us," I add, and this time, Rowan’s brows rise slightly.

"You think there are more?" He questions, and I look toward the distant mountains where Nagari waits,

"Yes." I confess flatly.

Balinar never sends just one.

I climb back into the carriage slowly, and my hand finds the letter again.

The words echo in my mind.

Your daughter and I are waiting for you.

My jaw tightens.

Balinar may be watching... But he chose the wrong target.

I look toward the horizon, with my mind now uneasy.

"Ride faster," I tell the rider quietly, and the carriage surges forward again.

I can’t waste any time because every moment between Elián and me now feels too long.

I need to get to him before whatever games are being played.

This is a delicate time. I can’t let our happiness be toyed with. Not now. Not this.

I’ve been away long enough. It’s high time I protect my bride and my daughter.

Nobody plays games with my family.