Luna Lila's POV
I sat with Tom, pondering over everything Sharlam had said. I couldn't stop thinking about it. I wholeheartedly believed my sons, but there was something strange that I couldn't quite pinpoint.
"Gently, Tom, I'm trying to think here," I told him, my legs resting on his thighs as he massaged my feet.
"You do realize I'm the Alpha, right? I can't be caught doing this," he whispered.
"You should have considered that before yelling at me in front of everyone," I replied, still quite upset.
"I didn't yell at you in front of everyone..." he trailed off when he saw my glare.
"Maybe I did, but it wasn't intentional. I was just upset about what the boys did," he explained.
"Was that why you blamed me entirely? And, as you may have heard, 'my sons' didn't do anything like that," I retorted, emphasizing the words 'my sons' since that's what he had essentially said.
"Come on, Lila, I'm sorry. You know I'm always like this, which is why we complement each other so well. Forgive me. It won't happen again," he pleaded. It was quite a sight to see the most feared Alpha of all begging his wife. My anger subsided.
"Fine, you're forgiven, as long as you promise to give me a massage every day until I tell you to stop, which I doubt I ever will," I said with a smirk.
"Deal," he responded, continuing to massage my feet.
"Honey," I called out after a while of silence. He hummed in response, focusing on my feet.
"Do you believe what Sharlam said? We all know she's never been wrong. Not that I doubt the boys, but something is definitely going on," I expressed my concerns to him.
"You're right. I feel the same way too. Don't you think it's strange how Alex revealed that Hailey was his mate after living together for such a long time? I mean, they should have found out earlier, right?" he asked.
I nodded. "I was surprised when they told us. I never imagined this could happen, but it did. I always thought of Hailey as their sister since they basically grew up together. They might have found it difficult to tell us, or they didn't find out in time. I just feel like there should be some sort of explanation for that," I replied.
"Do you think we and the council might have pressured them into this?" he inquired.
"Did we really do that? I never thought of it from that perspective," I responded.
He sighed. "I thought after handing over to Alex, I could finally have a moment of peace and quiet, but this issue of an heir just had to come up."
"Same here. Alex is really trying his best. I'll try to talk to him later about what happened today. Forgive him for raising his voice at you. I think he's probably exhausted from his demanding job. You know he's not the type to show his emotions; instead, he bottles them up inside. What happened today just shows how he's been feeling," I explained.
"I know how demanding the Alpha's job is, but he's lucky he has his brothers who help him out. Not everyone has that kind of support," he said. The door suddenly opened, and Hailey walked in. She looked at us without saying a word. She looked miserable, and her eyes were puffy. I glanced at Tom.
"Hailey? Is something wrong?" I asked, worried. I still felt guilty about what happened the previous day. I didn't want her to believe that I treated my children differently from her. I raised her from a very young age. They were all my children, and I didn't want to appear biased. Me shutting her up yesterday just because I was annoyed. Also, I noticed something different about Alex. He looked helpless and lost for the first time, which worried me because he never showed his emotions, unlike his brothers.
There was a time when he returned from school with his brothers. They were eight at the time. Julian and Philip were in tears, while Alex had a calm expression on his face. Julian and Philip had gotten into a fight with another student, leaving them badly bruised. At that time, they couldn't heal because they hadn't obtained their wolf yet. Alex was strongly reprimanded by his father and me for not taking better care of his brothers. Little did we know that he had fought with the same student, who was five years older than them. We didn't know he was much more injured.
He became very ill. His wounds got infected because we didn't treat them, and he didn't say a word despite the pain he felt. When we asked him why he did that, he said he deserved it for not being able to protect his younger brothers better. It broke my heart to hear my eight-year-old son utter such words. I blamed myself for my negligence for years, which is why I paid close attention to Alex's expressions, movements, and words. That was the only way I could truly understand him since he rarely expressed himself to us. The same thing happened the previous day. I was so focused on Alex that I forgot about Hailey's feelings.
"Mother-in-law, father-in-law, good afternoon," she greeted politely. I glanced at Tom with a confused expression, and he shrugged. Was this her way of telling us that she was still angry with us?
"Hailey, what are you saying? Are you still upset?" I asked.
"I came to inform you that, based on yesterday's events, I have invited a gynecologist to come over and test me in everyone's presence. She is one of the best gynecologists ever, a true professional, so you don't have to worry about any manipulation," she said with a straight face.
"A gynecologist? For what?" I asked.
"To prove to everyone that I'm not lying, that I am Alexander's mate, and I am perfectly capable of having children of my own," she retorted.
"No, dear, that is not true. Nobody said you couldn't have children of your own," I said.
She scoffed. "Oh, please, spare me the patronage. That was definitely not what you both said yesterday," she replied, rudeness seeping through her tone. I was taken aback by her disrespectful manner.
"Hailey, watch your tone. That is not how you should speak," Tom scolded.
"My apologies, mother, and father-in-law. That was rude of me," she apologized.
"It's okay, Hailey. In fact, I should be the one apologizing," I replied.
"You both should come downstairs. The gynecologist will be here any minute now," she said before leaving.
"She's still upset. She must be hurt by the fact that she didn't have children all these years, and we only added to it," I said, glancing at Tom.
"It was out of our hands, Lila. You know how the council is," he replied.
"I won't let the council dictate the lives of my family anymore. I've had enough of their meddling," I said angrily.
"Calm down, Lila," he responded gently, taking my hand in his.
"We should talk to Hailey about this misunderstanding. I don't want any dispute between our family members. I said before heading outside with him.
As I descended the stairs, I held onto my white dress with one hand. Upon reaching the gathering, I noticed that Julian and Philip were already seated alongside Hailey, but Alex was nowhere to be found.
"Boys, where is your brother?" I inquired.
"He informed us that he had some work to do. I'm sure he'll be here soon," Philip replied. Shortly after, Alex entered the room.
"What's all this for? Some of us have important things to do," he coldly remarked.
"It appears that Hailey has invited a gynecologist to prove the shaman wrong," Julian replied loudly, ensuring everyone heard. Julian's words perplexed me; he seemed intoxicated once again, as he rarely stayed sober. Although my sons were present, they didn't feel like the sons I had always known.
I approached Hailey, who was engrossed in scrolling through her phone, seemingly unaware of the boys' conversation. She was startled when I called out to her.
"Calm down. Is something wrong?" I asked, surprised by her reaction.
"I'm fine. You just startled me. I was thinking about the gynecologist's visit," she replied.
I nodded, understanding her nervousness. Holding her hands gently, I began to speak.
"Your feelings are completely norm—" I paused abruptly as Alex dropped a cup he was holding, causing it to shatter loudly. His expression conveyed complete shock, a sight I had never seen before. I wondered what had triggered this reaction from him. Turning towards the source of his surprise, my eyes widened in astonishment.
"Emma?" I exclaimed, walking towards her in shock, and releasing Hailey's hands. It had been so long since I mentioned that name, and I believed she was dead. How could she be here? The boys' reactions confirmed my suspicions—something was definitely amiss and it all started with her.
