The Revelation (5 page)

             
“I can be packed in a few hours.”

**

             
Viola paced the tiny interior of the room she'd locked herself into, every muscle trembling in nervousness. Ten times, twenty, fifty she covered the space of the small bathroom before the timer on her phone finally went off and she lunged at the tiny strip of plastic she'd placed at the edge of the bathroom sink. Perhaps humans and her species were different on certain genetic levels, but there were certain apparatus that would yield the same results, no matter the differences.

             
Fumbling slightly, the woman snatched the box from where it lie on the toilet seat, holding it up against the harsh light above the mirror to compare the long tube and the instructions she'd scanned at least a thousand times.

             
She looked from the box to the test, and then back to the box again.

             
Even as her heart leapt, her stomach twisted painfully.

             
She was pregnant.

             
She didn't know how it had happened.

             
Per the Elder's orders she and Liam had always been extremely careful when they made love. It seemed, however, that despite several layers of protection and mountains of Nita's awful herbs, nature had found a way.

             
Still staring at the two small plus signs in the window of the exam, Viola backed against the door of the bathroom to sink slowly into a crouch.

             
What could she do?

             
If she adhered to their laws and did what was required of her, she could secretly go to Nita and obtain a concoction that could swiftly and painlessly rid her of the child. The notion made her heart seize in her chest. For a moment, Viola groped at her chest as she struggled to breathe- until her hand slowly slid to rest on her flat, toned stomach.

             
She couldn't be more than a few weeks. Dimly, she remembered that Yuna had hung over the toilet for the first month of her own pregnancy. Then, of course, Viola has been slightly amused at the younger woman's plight. Now, not so much.

             
She couldn't give up her child.

             
Ever since losing her parents, Viola had wanted children desperately. To be told that she couldn't have them with Liam had dealt her a terrific blow; but she'd stood by the man that she loved. Now, against all odds, she was carrying.

             
Carrying a fragile, tiny human child that she could tear to pieces at any point during the ripening. How could she still want it when she knew that it's birth would almost certainly seal its fate?

             
“It deserves a chance.” Viola found herself murmuring lowly, as she stroked her stomach lightly. “I deserve a chance.”

             
She'd do everything in her power to keep her baby. She'd appeal to the Alpha, beg him to teach her control if need be. She'd longed for nothing in her life so much as the feel of a newborn at her breast.

             
But what was she going to tell Liam?

             
Her mate had always been close to fanatical about following their laws and regulations. He'd almost killed Yuna in his devotion. Would he... could he do such a thing to their child?

             
Growling lowly in frustration, the woman flung the plastic strip across the bathroom, watching as it skittered over the counter to land behind the toilet. They were leaving in a few hours. It wasn't nearly enough time to make any kind of concrete decision.

             
Standing, Viola, ran her hands through her hair, cursing at their slight trembling. For now, she would tell no one. She had the next 24 hours of travel to decide what to do about her plight. It should be more than enough.

             
Looking into the mirror to make sure her expression belayed only her usual cool composure, the crimson haired woman took a deep breath before exhaling slowly.

             
She'd figure things out.

             
She always had.

**

              “Do you have everything you need?” Nodding, Yuna took in the sight of her mate and the entire Douglas plan bustling to pack two gleaming black limousines full of luggage. It was rare that she saw all of them in one place, but it seemed like the absence hadn't made Luther's distant relations' hearts any fonder of her. Nita still eyed the young woman with her customary dislike, and her  mate's expression was no kinder.

             
Luther's younger cousins were barely out of their twenties, and they didn't speak often- to her or anyone else. They sat sullenly in the car as the family bustled around them. Next to Yuna, Viola was leaning against a jet black window, her gaze on a sky that threatened rain. She appeared lost on her own thoughts, and Yuna was reluctant to disturb her.

             
To give herself something to do, the dark-haired girl mentally ran over the list of things she'd packed. Since her own humble bank account was nowhere near as stocked as the Douglas', she had only a single suitcase with a few changes of clothes and her toiletries. Her eyes widened when she realized that she had forgotten, of all things, her prenatal vitamins. Luther's parents had scoffed upon hearing that she was taking them, but Yuna was pretty sure that vitamins could always help a baby's growth, no matter what species.

             
Luckily, she'd asked Viola to stash a spare bottle in a bathroom close to Luther's corner of the manor. “I'll be right back.” With a hurried statement to the woman at her side, Yuna headed back into the huge house. It only took her a few moments to make it up the main staircase- immense and hand carved- and down the lushly carpeted hallway to one of many full baths.

             
She knelt close to the floor to open the cabinet beneath the sink and dig through its contents in search of her treasure. It took her removing a few unmarked bottles and shoving aside some spare rolls of toilet paper, but she finally came up triumphant. Sliding the box into her pocket, she was ready to leave the bathroom when she caught sight of a small object out of the corner of her eye.

             
Something was wedged between the toilet and the wall.

             
Yuna knew that it was none of her business to go digging through the Douglas' belongings, but it occurred to her that, whatever it was, someone had dropped it and she could leave it on the counter awaiting their return. In a movement already made slightly unwieldy by the small swell of her rounded stomach, she bent to tug the object free. When she straightened, her eyes widened.

             
She was holding a pregnancy test.

             
Not only that; the window clearly displayed a positive result.

             
Almost immediately, Yuna's mind went to Viola. So, she'd assumed correctly. The strong-willed, gorgeous, fearsome woman was, in fact, with child; even if the prospect had disturbed the normal calm of Viola's visage the last time she'd seen her.              

             
Though the family was already slightly on edge under the threat of hunters, Yuna hadn't sensed any additional tension that might have accompanied an announcement as momentous as Viola's pregnancy.

             
Of course, Liam’s mate was keeping the information to herself.

             
The young woman could certainly respect that. Viola's conception was almost as much of an anathema as her own.

             
What would Liam say when he found out?

             
Yuna winced at the thought, resolving to keep her mouth shut. If Viola had told no one, she had good reason.

              “Where were you, woman?” Once back outside beneath a rapidly darkening sky, Yuna jumped at Liam's sudden addressal. The secret she was hiding made her even more nervous than usual in his presence.

             
“I was- ah- in the bathroom. Forgot some... things.”

             
“Nothing you can't buy once we're off this continent,” he returned scathingly, his look none too kind. When Yuna shrank back slightly at his words, he eyed her suspiciously. Usually, the young woman prided herself on holding up under Liam's scrutiny. Her sudden timidity, she realized, must be telling. “What's wrong with you?”

             
“Nothing,” Yuna replied a little too quickly for her own tastes. Inwardly reprimanding herself, she tried again. “Nothing.”

             
Liam continued to eye her, distrust in his eyes, even as Yuna slipped past him and over to Luther's side. Her mate was putting a last bag into one of the cars, and despite the severity of their situation, the young woman could still appreciate the strong lines of his body as his muscles worked.

             
“That's everything.” Turning to her, he gestured chivalrously. “In you go.”

             
With a small smile, Yuna stood on her toes to press her mouth briefly to his. It was one of the few shows of affection she allowed herself among his family. His lips were soft and warm on hers for a split second before she ducked into the car-

             
And found herself seated right next to Nita.

             
The ancient woman growled at her– actually growled- before turning away, and Yuna sighed in a long-suffering way. As much apprehension swirled through her gut at the thought of being in the middle of a nest of the moon-ripened, she was a little more anxious about the thought of traveling for over twelve hours in the company of people who were none too fond of her.

             
As the cars pulled out of the cobbled plaza in front of the manor, Yuna watched the huge expanse of the Douglas residence disappear into the distance. Outside, rain that had held off all evening finally broke the skies, splattering plentifully over the windshield. As thunder rumbled somewhere far off, Yuna's stomach cramped slightly and she winced.

             
The memory of being blood-soaked and in agony assaulted her for a split second; but that second alone was enough to take her breath away. Across from her, Marilyn's gaze was instantly wary.

             
“What is it?” The Douglas matriarch missed nothing; especially when it had to do with the next generation of her clan.

             
“Nothing.” Yuna assured her as the memory faded, leaving only a hollow ache in the pit of her stomach. “I'm fine.” She tried a reassuring smile that wasn't returned, and the gesture died on her lips.

They were running from Hunters, perhaps, but the young woman was still in very real danger of getting torn asunder by wolves.

**

             
Mere hours after the Douglas clan's flight, a rag-tag caravan of cars, some decades past their prime, pulled to a stop in front of the locked gate of the manor. Stepping from a jeep that had seen better days at the head of the line, Micah stared up at the dark windows of the gigantic house and over the lushly landscaped grounds.

             
His face twisted into an expression of disgust.

             
There was a time when wolf vermin would have hidden in fear of their lives. In modern day, they lived in mansions like kings. How could the people of this town be so blind as to miss what was right in front of them?

             
It hadn't been too difficult to follow the many documents they'd found in the wolves' underground den back to this place. They'd been woefully open in their communications with the small town. Everything from the invoices of a small psychology practice to grocery bills had been discovered in a small makeshift office.

             
Micah had been fiercely happy as he'd watched plumes of dirt shoot into the air, heralding the collapse of the place. By the light of the burning, ancient building beyond, he'd read over the documents they'd pulled- and frozen when he'd come across a familiar surname.

             
Douglas.

             
The discovery had filled every fiber of his being with an intense, unquenchable hatred. He hadn't felt the emotion so strongly since the day he'd lost... her. It was, however, quite refreshing to be reminded of his reason for living. How lucky he'd been to stumble upon the trove of information that he had. There were addresses, names and bank statements... when had wolves become so callous and vain that the ordered cases of craft whiskey sent to them in the wilderness?             

             
Then again, he'd reminded himself, these wolves were no ordinary monsters.

             
They'd destroyed his family and ripped out the heart of him with barely a backward glance before disappearing without a trace.