Chapter 2 The Child's Disappearance and Hestia's Conspiracy

Elara's POV

Cold.

The bone-chilling wind sliced through me like a blade, dragging me back from unconsciousness.

I lay in the mud, the silver chains finally removed. But the charred flesh beneath them screamed with every slight movement, pain shooting straight to my core.

Worse was the agony below. The warmth of postpartum hemorrhaging still poured from me, staining the earth crimson.

"My baby..."

Kevin's ruthless silhouette flashed through my mind, followed by the guard carrying away that tiny, weakly crying bundle.

'Verify the bloodline!'

"No..."

I clawed at the rough ground, dragging my lower body inch by agonizing inch toward the Moon Hierophant's Hall. Sharp stones tore into my flesh, but I couldn't feel the pain anymore.

I shoved open the heavy oak door. The altar stood empty.

No infant's cry. Only the stench of blood and the faint trace of wolfsbane in the air.

"Looking for that illegitimate brat?"

A venomous voice cut through the silence.

My head snapped up.

Hestia!

She'd changed into a clean, elegant gown. Gone was any trace of the fragile terror she'd performed for Kevin earlier.

She clicked toward me in pristine heels, looking down with a victor's sneer twisting her lips.

"Where's my child?!" I screamed, struggling to stand only to collapse hard. "What did you do with my baby?!"

She crouched gracefully, laughing softly.

"Oh, sis. Don't sound so pathetic. You really thought I'd let the priest kill him outright?"

Her voice dropped, barely concealing her greed and fervor.

"That illegitimate brat carries the purest White Wolf heartblood—a rarity we haven't seen in decades. Killing him would be such a waste!"

My entire body went rigid.

"What the hell are you planning?!"

"Power, of course. Supreme power." Hestia's laugh was light and carefree. "The Moon Goddess Festival is coming soon. But the lunar crown has a will of its own—it only recognizes those with pure bloodlines worthy of the Moon Goddess. Someone like me? My blood doesn't qualify."

She grabbed my hair viciously, forcing me to look up at her twisted face.

"But with your child's white wolf heart blood as an offering, combined with the High Priest's ritual circle, I can force the lunar crown to choose me! Then I'll be the tribe's rightful, supreme Luna!"

The realization hit.

She wasn't just stealing Kevin—she planned to drain my newborn's heart blood to pave her path to power! And the High Priest was in on it!

"You monster! That's Kevin's child!" My eyes burned with fury, nearly bleeding from the strain. "You think he won't kill you when this comes out?!"

"Kevin?"

Hestia's laughter grew wilder.

"How would he ever know? Right now, he's completely convinced that child belongs to his crippled brother Caleb Cole!"

She leaned close to my ear, delivering the cruelest truth of all:

"Let me spell it out for you. I paid a fortune to rogue werewolves at the border to fake evidence of your affair! Those bloodline records, the scent on your clothes—all fabricated by me! Kevin hates his brother so much, how could he possibly tolerate you bearing Caleb's child? Elara, it was the man you love most who ordered your baby sent to the Moon Hierophant's Hall!"

Finally, I understood.

From beginning to end, this was a death trap designed to steal power and drain my child's heart blood!

"Hestia, I'll kill you!!!"

The white wolf sleeping within me, driven by the despair of losing my child, erupted in a feral roar!

I launched myself from the ground and tackled Hestia!

"Ah! Let go! Let go of me!" Hestia shrieked in terror.

Caught off guard, she crashed to the floor beneath me.

I straddled her, hands locked around her throat!

"Give me back my child! You evil bitch! Give him back!!!"

My nails dug deep into her flesh. Hestia's flushed face turned purple instantly, her hands slapping weakly at my arms. "Help... Kevin... help..."

BANG!

The heavy wooden door of the Moon Hierophant's Hall exploded inward!

"Stop!"

The command detonated through the hall!

A terrifying Alpha pressure crashed down, pinning me with surgical precision!

My hands were forced from Hestia's throat. I felt like I'd been struck by a sledgehammer, my body slamming hard against the floor!

Blood erupted from my nose and mouth again.

I lay crumpled on the ground.

A pair of black leather shoes stopped in front of my eyes.

Kevin.

He strode in without sparing a glance at my dying form in the pool of blood. Instead, his face twisted with concern as he knelt and gathered the violently coughing Hestia into his arms.

"Hestia, are you alright?!"

His voice carried a panic and tenderness I'd never heard before.

"Kevin..." Hestia melted against him, tears streaming instantly. "I just came to check on her... but she went crazy and tried to kill me... I was so scared..."

Kevin held her tighter, then raised his head to fix me with a deadly stare.

"Elara. You're completely insane."

I lay there bleeding, watching them embrace.

"She's faking! Kevin, you've been played! The High Priest is working for her! That bloodline record was forged, the scent was fabricated! She's going to bleed our child for a ritual sacrifice! Just investigate! Check the High Priest's private chamber and the ritual circle, check the scent on her—you'll find the truth!"

My voice cracked, going hoarse.

At the mention of the High Priest being compromised, something flickered in Kevin's eyes.

But in the next second, he noticed several tribal elders and guards gathering at the door, drawn by the commotion.

His expression froze over instantly.

I watched his pupils contract briefly before returning to ice.

In that moment, what I saw in his eyes wasn't anger. It was something far worse.

He was calculating.

He was weighing his options.

He was terrified of admitting he'd been wrong.

If he ordered an investigation now and the truth came out, what would that mean?

It would mean he—the supreme, invincible Alpha leader of Shadow Pack—had been manipulated by a woman and a group of priests!

It would mean Hestia had fooled him, that he'd personally ordered his own biological child taken away, and publicly tortured his faithful fated mate!

For his absolute, unquestionable authority, this would be devastating. A humiliation that could never be erased!

In Kevin's world, the Alpha was always right. Even when wrong, everyone had to believe he was right.

"Losing that illegitimate child has driven you completely mad, hasn't it? To fabricate such ridiculous lies to slander Hestia and the High Priest! Since you love acting crazy so much..."

Kevin barked orders at the guards outside:

"Take this madwoman away. No one gives her food or water without my direct command. I want her to suffer worse than death."

Two brutal werewolves dragged me out of the Moon Hierophant's Hall.

Kevin, for your pathetic need for control, you sent away your own child and protected this demon.

As long as I don't die.

One day, I'll make you both pay in blood!