Chapter 2 Chapter 2 THE UNWANTED GUEST

OLIVIA'S POV

I watched his back leaving, and he didn't glance back even once.

I pressed a hand to my still-flat stomach. Our child. His heir. But the words lodged in my throat like broken glass.

I wanted to tell him, but how should I start when Dominic had just carried Evelyn through those doors like she was the only woman who mattered?

My phone, which had clattered to the floor, buzzed again.

Luna Grace flashed on the screen-Dominic's mother, and the only person who despised me more than my mate did.

"Where are you?" Her voice was a whip-crack. "How long does it take to buy groceries?"

"There was an accident," I managed. "I can't return yet."

Grace's laugh was razor-edged. "Useless. Can't even handle a simple task. Hurry back-I've got more work for you."

The call died. My fingers trembled around the phone, but my gaze dragged back to the ER doors. To them.

Was this the Moon Goddess's idea of a joke? Dangle hope in front of me-a baby, a future-then yank it away the moment Evelyn reappeared?

The taxi ride home was a blur. Cold leather. Colder silence.

"Miss, are you alright?" The driver's kindness almost shattered me.

I forced a smile. "Just an accident."

But the real wreckage was inside me. Five years. For five years, I'd clung to the delusion that time might soften Dominic's hatred. That the prophecy binding us meant something.

Now Evelyn was back, and I was exactly what he'd always called me: an impostor.

Blackwood Packaging Factory loomed ahead-the pack's financial heart, its plain concrete walls a stark contrast to the opulent pack house. The rogues had attacked here five years ago. The night Evelyn vanished. The night my wolf died.

The night Dominic tried to kill me.

"You planned this!" His hands were around my throat, his voice raw with fury. "You murdered her! You jealous, scheming-"

Tears blurred my vision as I desperately shook my head, the bandages James had carefully applied coming loose as I struggled. The wounds reopened, but nothing hurt as much as the look in Dominic's eyes.

I wanted to tell him the truth-that I'd only just gotten my wolf before the attack, that I'd never even had the chance to greet her before the rogues struck. That if not for James, I would have bled to death in the dirt.

But the truth meant nothing to a man who'd already decided I was guilty.

"I won't defy the prophecy," Dominic snarled, his grip tightening. "You'll remain Luna of Blackwood-but I swear, you'll rot in that role alone. You will never have my heart."

The words cut deeper than any blade. I'd always known he hadn't married me for love. But knowing and hearing him say it were two very different things.

The pack had already branded me a murderer. If not for the Phoenix mark on my neck-and Elder Alyosha's intervention-I would have been exiled. Or worse.

For years, we all believed Evelyn was dead.

For years, they hated me for it.

But no one stopped to consider that I might be the one who wanted her back the most.

Because if Evelyn was alive...

Then maybe-just maybe-I could finally prove my innocence.

"What are you standing there for?" snapped a cold voice, jerking me from my thoughts. Luna Grace stood by the staircase, glaring at me with evident disdain.

"Madam, I-"

"Don't call me madam," she sneered. "You aren't fit to be Luna of this pack. An Omega with no wolf, unable even to buy groceries without crashing."

My teeth sank into my lip as I swallowed the truth about my pregnancy once more. Grace had always despised me - if not for the Phoenix mark branding my neck, she wouldn't even tolerate sharing the same roof with me. Her affection had always been reserved for Evelyn, the she-wolf she'd chosen to bear Dominic's heir.

I couldn't risk my child's safety. Not yet.

"What are you gawking at?" Grace flicked a hand toward the west wing. "Clean it. Spotless."

The west wing? That was for the honored guests. For-

My stomach lurched. Evelyn.

Grace's smile was a knife. "Now. Or you'll starve tonight."

My palm pressed to my belly-protect the pup, survive the storm-as I grabbed the mop.

By dusk, my body screamed with exhaustion, but the real agony came later.

Footsteps. Familiar. His.

And he wasn't alone.

Dominic strode into the common room, Evelyn cradled against his chest like something fragile. Precious. Loved. The pack gathered, murmuring.

"Evelyn stays as our honored guest," he announced, voice brooking no argument. Then his eyes-golden, glacial-found mine. "Olivia will tend to her."

Shock widened my eyes, quickly replaced by a glimmer of hope. Evelyn must've told Dominic the truth. Why else would he trust me with her care?

My hesitation was misunderstood.

Evelyn's lips curved in a plea. "Liv. you're my best friend. You'd never refuse me, right?"

Grace snorted. "You should be on your knees thanking her for this mercy."

Dominic's fingers dug into my arm, bone-deep. "If she suffers even once," he growled, "I'll kill you. No matter what the prophecy says."

I stared at his hand-the same hand that had controlled me, despised me for years-then a cramp twisted low in my belly. The baby.

A fierce protectiveness surged through me, hotter than any fear.

"I'll do it," I answered coldly, wrenching free.

"Dominic," Evelyn took his hand intimately, her eyes full of pleading, "Don't be so hard on her. The last thing I want is you two fighting..."

My breath caught. Was that... guilt in her voice? Later, when I brought her a meal, I'd find out.

I turned toward the kitchen. If Evelyn cleared my name, this nightmare might finally end.

My fingers brushed my abdomen.

Hold on, little wolf. Mama will make them see you.