Pregnant With My Father-In-Law’s Baby

Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Amara’s POV

"I'm not going anywhere with you."

The words left my lips with a shaky, defensive sharp edge. I pulled the heavy silk duvet tighter around my shoulders, my fingers clutching the fabric like a shield as I stared up at the giant of a man standing at the foot of the bed.

Raymond didn't flinch. He didn't growl, nor did he flex the crushing Alpha aura that most high-ranking wolves used to beat their subjects into submission. He simply stood there, his hands resting casually in the pockets of his tailored trousers, his piercing silver eyes holding mine with an infuriating, unbothered calm.

"You are in no condition to survive on the streets of Italy alone, Amara," he said smoothly. His voice was a rich, low rumble that seemed to vibrate through the floorboards. "Your pills were destroyed. Your internal bleeding was only stabilized hours ago. If you walk out of those doors, you won't make it three blocks before your body collapses—or before another pair of Silver Moon enforcers tracks your scent."

"I survived three weeks on my own!" I fired back, though the strain in my throat made me cough softly.

"You survived by luck," Raymond countered gently, taking a slow step toward the bed. "And last night, your luck ran out in a filthy alleyway. You are safe here. My private wing in this facility is completely off the grid."

"Safe?" A bitter, breathless laugh escaped me. "I don't even know who you are! You slaughtered two elite warriors like they were nothing. You knew my real name before I even woke up. How do I know I haven't just traded one cage for another?"

Raymond looked down at me for a long, heavy moment. A flicker of something unreadable—something deep, dark, and fiercely protective—flashed across his silver eyes before he masked it behind his cool facade.

"I am not your captor, little bird," he murmured softly. "And I will never lock you in a cage. But I am also not going to stand by and watch you bleed to death out of stubbornness." He paused, stepping back toward the heavy oak doors of the master suite. "If you refuse to come to my estate, then you will stay here until Dr. Vance clears you. Stretch your legs if you must, but do not leave this floor."

Without waiting for my reply, he turned and exited the room, the heavy doors clicking shut behind him.

I sat alone in the silence of the massive room, my heart hammering against my ribs.

He's right, a small, traitorous voice inside me whispered. Naya, my inner wolf, whimpered softly in agreement. We were weak. The surgery to flush out the lingering damage in my womb, combined with the brutal fall down the stairs and the terror in the alley, had left my body feeling like hollow glass.

I swung my legs over the edge of the mattress. My feet hit the polished marble floor, sending a sudden chill up my spine. Testing my strength, I slowly stood up. A faint wave of dizziness rolled through my head, but I leaned against the mahogany bedpost until the room stopped spinning.

I needed answers. I couldn't just sit in a bed, wrapped in silk, waiting for a dangerous stranger to decide my fate.

Carefully sliding on the soft plush robe left over a chair, I pushed the heavy double doors open and stepped out into the hallway.

The private wing of the facility was immaculately clean, quiet, and blindingly modern. High-tech glass panels lined the walls, and the quiet hum of filtered air gave the corridor a sterile, detached atmosphere. There were no guards standing right outside my door, but I could feel the invisible perimeter of high-level security lingering in the air.

I walked down the corridor, trailing my hand along the smooth wall for support. My lungs burned slightly with every step, but the movement helped clear the lingering fog of the sedatives.

As I rounded a carpeted bend near the end of the wing, the modern hospital aesthetic melted away into an elegant, dark-wood lounge. Double-height glass windows looked out over the sparkling blue expanse of the coast, but what caught my eye was the far wall.

It was lined with framed certificates, international seals, and high-level medical accreditations.

I stepped closer, my curiosity pulling me forward.

And then, my blood ran dead cold.

Hanging directly in the center of the dark mahogany wall was a large, polished silver-and-black plaque, framing a striking, high-resolution portrait.

The man in the photograph sat behind a massive black marble desk. He wore a tailored charcoal suit, his broad shoulders commanding the frame, his dark hair touched with silver at the temples. His silver-gray eyes stared directly out of the picture with a look of absolute, terrifying authority.

It was the man who had just left my room.

But it was the heavy metallic lettering engraved beneath the portrait that made the floor beneath my feet feel like it was dropping out into an abyss.

ALPHA RAYMOND

Executive Director & Founder

Apex Global Medical & Defense Syndicate

My hand shot to my mouth to stifle a sharp, gasping scream.

Alpha Raymond.

The name echoed in my brain like a thunderclap, violently shattering the quiet of the corridor.

My knees buckled. I grabbed onto the edge of a marble display table to keep myself from crashing to the floor.

I didn't know him personally, but everyone in the werewolf world knew that name. Alpha Raymond was a living myth—a legendary, feared Alpha whose name was spoken in whispered, reverent tones across every continent. He was the head of the Apex Syndicate, a global power so vast, so wealthy, and so ruthlessly protected that even the highest-ranking pack councils refused to cross his borders. He wasn't just a pack leader; he was an apex predator who operated entirely outside the jurisdiction of standard wolf law.

He was the nightmare that rogue Alphas warned their enforcers about.

And I had slept with him in a hotel bar in Florence.

I had let the most dangerous Alpha on the planet hold me in his lap in the back of an SUV while he wiped blood from my face.

"You shouldn't be out of bed, miss."

A soft, polite voice broke through the deafening roar of panic in my ears. I whipped around to see Dr. Vance standing a few feet away, holding a digital medical tablet under his arm. He wasn't dressed like a traditional pack healer; he wore a crisp white lab coat over a tailored suit, his demeanor calm and professional.

I pointed a trembling, pale finger at the wall plaque, my voice barely a whisper.

"That... that's him," I stuttered, my hazel eyes wide with pure, unadulterated shock. "Mr. X... he's Alpha Raymond."

Dr. Vance offered a slight, respectful bow of his head. "Yes, Luna Amara. You are currently in the private executive wing of Alpha Raymond’s medical facility."

"How..." I swallowed hard, trying to find my voice as a fresh wave of panic gripped my chest. "How powerful is this man?"

Dr. Vance paused. He adjusted his glasses, looking at me with a solemn, deeply reverent expression that made the air in the hallway feel ten degrees colder.

"Alpha Raymond does not answer to the Northern Council," Vance said quietly, his voice echoing softly against the glass walls. "He does not answer to the Syndicate. He owns the lands, the technology, and the military force that keeps international pack borders intact. Supreme Alphas rule packs, Miss Amara. Alpha Raymond rules empires. If a king wanted to wage war on him, the king’s pack would cease to exist before the sun set."

Vance stepped a bit closer, his eyes softening slightly. "There is no hunter, no pack, and no Alpha on this earth who can touch you as long as you are under his protection. Alpha Michael could bring his entire standing army to these shores, and they would not make it past the harbor."

The doctor’s words settled over me like a heavy, suffocating weight.

I wasn't just dealing with a wealthy, dangerous stranger. I was standing in the domain of a legend—a man so powerful that Michael’s arrogant titles meant absolutely nothing in his shadow.

"Amara."

The deep, velvet voice cut through the quiet corridor.

I turned around slowly, my heart beating so fast I could feel it in my throat.

Raymond stood at the end of the hallway. He had discarded his dark jacket, wearing only his white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, exposing the thick, corded muscle and intricate, dark runes tattooed along his skin.

He looked at the portrait on the wall, then brought his silver eyes back to mine. The sheer scale of his presence seemed to fill the entire hallway, commanding the air in the room without him even trying.

"You found out who I am," he said quietly, taking a slow, deliberate step toward me.

"You're Alpha Raymond," I whispered, my back pressing against the marble table as he approached. "The Raymond. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because in that hotel bar, you didn't need an Alpha," Raymond answered softly, stopping just a few feet away from me. The cold, legendary monster Dr. Vance had just described was nowhere to be seen in his eyes—there was only that intense, suffocating warmth reserved entirely for me. "You needed a man. And right now, you need safety."

He held out his hand to me once more. His palm was broad, calloused, and strong—a hand that held the fate of empires, yet had wiped my tears with unbelievable gentleness just hours ago.

"Michael is searching the continent for you," Raymond said, his tone dipping into a dark, low register that sent a shiver straight down my spine. "He thinks you are alone. He thinks you are weak. He has no idea who is standing behind you."

I looked at his outstretched hand. The terror of his reputation warred with the desperate, undeniable safety I felt whenever he was near. He was a monster to the rest of the world, but to me, he was the only shield standing between me and the hell I had run from.

Slowly, hesitantly, I reached out.

My small, pale hand slid into his massive palm. The moment our skin touched, a warm, electric current rushed through my veins, anchoring my shaking frame. Raymond’s fingers closed gently around mine, holding me with absolute, unwavering strength.

He didn't pull me aggressively. He simply held my hand, turning his silver eyes down to look into mine.

"Come home with me," he said softly.