Chapter 5 Ten days

Talia's POV.

"We can't take her along. She'll slow us down. We have a lot to do. She's weak. I cannot feel her wolf." I heard a voice bite out with disapproval.

"I cannot leave my sister here. Mother would kill me." I heard my brother argue. "I do not trust these people either. Look at what they did to her. I do not for a second believe that these people do not know who she is. Something is off about this village."

"Something is off about every village you have been to, and that's because they're nothing like the city you're used to." The other man snorted. I could guess it was his friend, the other man my brother had come with. "Look, they know who she is now; they would not dare hurt her. No one wants to be your enemy. We have a mission; let's not get carried away."

"It's easy for you to say, Ryker." My brother said quietly.

"Very, considering the fact that I do not know what family means because I have never had one." The other man snorted.

"You know that wasn't what I meant." My brother tried to pacify his friend, but I heard the door slam, signifying the exit of Ryker.

The door opened again, and I thought he had returned, but when the smell of fresh soup hit my nose, I knew it was food that had come.

I faked that I was just waking up and gave an unnecessary yawn.

"How do you feel?" Alpha Rhys asked me.

I stretched my hands and legs, then moved my neck before I answered, "Better." I wanted to say starving, but there was no need since food was already here.

My brother watched me eat; the moment was weird. "Is my mother alive?" I was curious.

"Yes." One-word answer.

Luna Amira. "Wait. Luna Amira?!" The word just made meaning in my head. Oh my fucking goodness. She was old now, but tales of Amira travelled from the north even to the south and beyond. She was a queen. Powerful. A warrior. My mother? "How did she lose me?" How could someone so powerful lose her child?

"She doesn't talk about it." Was all he said. His voice gave no room for questions.

"Will you take me to her?" I asked.

"We can't, not yet."

"You want to leave me here?" I cried. "If you could not save me, you should have let them kill me yesterday. If I remain here, death would be a better option for me." Tears were beginning to well up in my eyes.

"Please. Please, I beg you, don't cry. I have very little experience with crying women." He pleaded.

I should have guessed; the women in my family were strong and brave. I was a wolfless, crying girl. I cleaned my tears. Fast. "Please don't leave me here."

"We have a mission, a dangerous one. Taking you along could mean your death too." My brother sighed. He was obviously in a pickle.

"You might think keeping me here is what's best for me, but it's not." I pleaded. I had stopped eating; the food had lost its savor. I was full too.

A knock on the door kept him from answering me.

Alpha Kael and Jared came in.

I found myself trying to sink deeper into the bed.

"Your Beta told me you would be leaving with Talia soon." Alpha Kael went straight to the point.

I found myself nodding.

"Ryker is my friend, not my beta." Rhys corrected. I wondered what kind of relationship the two men had. Lovers? Well, they were both extremely attractive. "Yes, I'll be leaving with my sister."

"I don't think you should, considering that she's now my woman." It was Jared.

"What?" I said in shock. These people had come up with a plan.

My brother looked at me, and I shook my head.

"You were going to watch them hang your woman." Rhys asked him.

"She had committed treason. I could not be biased." Jared said the words with pseudo-honor.

"Well, from this moment, she's no longer your woman." Rhys replied simply.

"Not when she could be carrying his baby." Alpha Kael spoke up.

For the first time, my brother was at a loss for words. I saw disappointment in his eyes as he stared at me. "Is this true?"

I wanted to die. Maybe we could go back in time and I'd be hung on that tree. "Yes." But I could not tell him the details of it. Shame would not let me.

"Instead of leaving as enemies, we could be family. My son has finally expressed his affection for Talia, and I must say that I had no knowledge of this; else, I might have been a bit forgiving on the subject of her act of treason." Alpha Kael explained.

I shook my head. No. "What if I don't want that?" I asked, but no one seemed to hear me.

Alpha Kael had left when my brother finally turned to me. "You no longer have a say. You made a decision when you let him put a baby in you." He could not hide the irritation in his voice.

"What if I am not pregnant?" I asked.

"That'll be your only saving grace. Let's hope you're not." Rhys hoped. I prayed.

Ryker could not hide his anger any time he saw me. I knew he hated me. Now they could not leave until it was confirmed whether I was pregnant or not.

The physician said ten days; they would wait for ten days to confirm it.

I prayed to every deity that existed.