Alpha Mendoza

Chapter 6

Alexander:

The drive back to Blue Moon territory was a blur of snow, headlights, and the quiet sound of Alessia’s breathing beside me.

Her head lolled against the seat, skin pale, lips ghost-white. Her pulse fluttered weakly for a wolf with her strength. Every time it dipped, my chest tightened with something dangerously close to panic.

“She’s crashing again,” one of my Elite said from the back. “She must have gone through more stress than she should have…”

“Push the gas,” I growled, not wanting to hear it. “We’re losing time.”

By the time we reached the hospital wing of the pack compound, she was barely conscious at all.

Her fingers slipped off mine as we transferred her to a stretcher.

I didn’t let anyone touch her without my say-so.

“She is with child.” I said, not bothering to look at the nurse whose eyes widened when she took sight of me.

“She needs rest,” the nurse stammered. “If do anything that is wrong, Alpha, we might risk losing the child.”

“She needs a healer, and she is not losing the baby.”

And then Grace arrived.

Doctor Grace Rowan, older, sharp-eyed, hair twisted into a silver bun, the Beta female who had delivered half my pack and buried the other half. She took one look at Alessia and clicked her tongue.

“Too young for this level of exhaustion,” she muttered. “Too much stress. And the fetus… Goddess, this child is draining her like a starving leech. She is not bleeding is she?”

I stiffened.

“Explain.”

Grace’s eyes flicked up to me, unimpressed by my tone.

“An Alpha fetus is powerful. If the mother is emotionally unstable or physically distressed, the pup will pull everything it can from her. Blood, energy, strength… until she has nothing left.” She said, looking me in the eye. “I will need to check if she is bleeding. Her stomach is bloated, but you brought her in on time, at least she is fighting to keep the child alive.”

My jaw clenched. Hard.

“So she’s dying to protect the baby?”

“Yes.”

Grace touched Alessia’s forehead gently, a kind of touch no one in Red Moon had ever given her. “I will need to give her something to calm her nerves down. She might have collapsed out of anger or a painful experience that she might have had to endure. Though unconscious, her wolf is still restless.”

Something inside me fractured.

But I forced steel back into my voice.

“Save the pup. That’s what matters.”

Grace didn’t even blink.

“And the mother?”

“The mother will… recover enough to carry it to term.”

Grace studied me for a long moment. “Do not insult my intelligence, Alpha. I am not your side chick, nor do I care about who you choose to bring in here.”

I didn’t answer.

Because the truth was sitting like a stone in my throat.

They moved Alessia into a private room, attaching monitors to her wrists and chest. Her breathing hitched. Her eyelashes fluttered.

But she didn’t wake.

I stayed.

Hours passed. Beta reports piled up. Seraphina sent seventeen messages. Council requests came in from the East Ridge border. I ignored all of them.

I sat beside Alessia, arms folded, eyes fixed on the barely perceptible rise and fall of her chest.

My wolf paced inside me, restless, snarling whenever her heartbeat stuttered.

Comfort her, he demanded. She needs us now more than ever!

“No,” I muttered. “I’m not…”

Comfort. Her. She is carrying our pup. She needs our comfort.

I leaned closer, lowering my head beside hers, letting my Alpha scent seep into the pillows and blankets. Wolves responded instinctively to Alpha pheromones, calming, stabilizing, comforting.

Her breathing softened. Her fingers twitched toward me like she was reaching for something in a dream.

I swallowed hard.

“I’m only doing this for the pup,” I whispered to the dark room.

Even I didn’t believe myself.

*********************************

Grace examined blood samples under the bright lab lights. Her brows knitted tighter with each vial.

“This woman,” she murmured, “has been fighting a silent war long before today. Her blood is strong, something is repressed for now… but they have been using it, or her… I can’t explain it. But she has been fighting it, and the baby now is only adding to that pressure.”

I stood by the observation window, watching Alessia sleep. My hand rested against the glass before I realized it. Her wolf stirred beneath her skin, responding faintly to my presence.

Grace approached. “Her body is healing. Slowly. She’ll wake soon. She is going to need to rest, as much as she can. It is going to be a little risky and very difficult for her throughout carrying the baby. I will prescribe what she needs to ensure it is safe for her throughout.”

I nodded. I didn’t trust my voice.

Just then, heels clicked down the hallway like an approaching migraine.

Seraphina.

She swayed toward me in a cloud of perfume and irritation.

“Alexander!” she hissed. “I heard you brought her here. A Red Moon traitor? And you expect me not to ask questions? I have been calling, messaging, and have even tried to approach this place to avail!”

“I don’t expect anything from you. And there is a reason why you were not allowed here, Seraphina.” My eyes never left Alessia.

“What is she doing here? Why is she in a private room? Why are you, Alexander, are you even listening to me?”

“No,” I said plainly. “I’m not.”

Her face flushed red with rage. “So, it is true? She is carrying your child.”

“Prepare a room for her,” I ordered sharply, cutting her off. “Connected to my wing. Closest to mine.”

Seraphina froze. Grace nearly dropped her clipboard. My wolf purred smugly. And I knew that this was going to come as a shock to everyone around.

Seraphina sputtered, “Y-you can’t be serious. You’re bringing that girl into your personal wing? While she’s pregnant? Alexander, the Council will…”

“I said prepare the room,” I repeated, voice cold enough to burn. “Now.”

She stood there trembling, confusion and fury twisting her expression, but she didn’t dare argue.

She stormed away, muttering curses under her breath.

Grace simply raised an eyebrow at me. “Still claiming you only care about the pup? I am not Seraphina, I don’t need to be jealous, and I’ve known you since you were a boy.”

I exhaled slowly. Stared through the window.

Alessia shifted in her sleep, her hand inching toward the empty space beside her. My chest tightened.

“I care about what’s mine,” I said.

Grace smiled knowingly. “That’s what I thought. I’ll have her medicine sent to her room and I will be sure to care for her personally.”

And for the first time since that night in the hotel, I admitted it, if only in the silence of my own mind:

I wasn’t going to let anything take her away from me.

Not Red Moon.

Not Lucien.

Not tradition.

Not her own guilt.

Not even myself.

“Good.” I said, finally daring myself to speak. “Because you are one of the very few that I am going to trust with this…”