The Alpha King's Obsession

“Search every room.” The command shattered through the house so violently that I nearly dropped the baby in my arms. My entire body locked as heavy boots thundered across the wooden floors outside the storage room where I hid, each step sending terror deeper into my chest. The baby stirred against me instantly, her tiny body shifting beneath the blanket wrapped around her, and panic clawed its way up my throat so fast I could barely breathe. “No,” I whispered desperately, tightening my hold on her as I pressed her against my chest. “Please… please don’t cry.” My voice trembled so badly the words barely sounded human. Outside, furniture crashed violently against the floor while doors slammed open one after another. They were tearing the house apart searching for us. I squeezed my eyes shut for a second, trying to steady my breathing, but it was impossible. Fear flooded every part of me. They had found us faster than I expected. Faster than they should have. “She couldn’t have gotten far,” one of the guards growled. “The king wants the child alive.” Alive. The word sent ice through my veins because I knew exactly what that truly meant. The former Alpha King did not want my daughter alive out of mercy. He wanted proof the prophecy was real before he killed her himself. My grip tightened instinctively around her tiny body as tears burned behind my eyes. She was so small. Too small for the kind of fear surrounding her existence. White strands of hair spilled from beneath the blanket, almost glowing beneath the thin moonlight slipping through the cracks in the walls. A curse wrapped in innocence. A child born carrying the very thing kings feared most. The floorboards creaked suddenly just outside the door and my breath caught painfully in my throat. “They are here, Commander,” one of the guards muttered. Silence followed for one terrible moment before the commander answered coldly, “Check again.” My heart slammed violently against my ribs. They weren’t leaving. The baby shifted softly in my arms then, and before I could stop her, a tiny sound escaped her lips. My blood turned to ice. Outside the door, the footsteps stopped instantly. “…Did you hear that?” one of them asked sharply. I stopped breathing completely. Every muscle in my body locked as I held her closer, silently begging the Moon Goddess to spare us. Just once. Just long enough for her to live…I couldn’t let them get to us… get to her. “No,” another guard answered after a long pause. “Probably the wind.” Seconds dragged by so slowly they felt endless before finally the commander spoke again. “Move on.” The footsteps resumed, gradually fading deeper into the house until silence finally returned. I still didn’t move. I couldn’t. My body shook violently beneath the weight of relief and terror mixing together inside me. Minutes passed before I finally dared to exhale. “They are gone,” I whispered weakly, lowering my gaze to the child in my arms. Her blue eyes blinked up at me innocently, completely unaware that death had stood only inches away from her. For one fragile second, hope flickered painfully inside my chest. Maybe we still had time. Maybe we could still escape. Then a floorboard creaked outside the door. My stomach dropped instantly. “Wait,” the commander said sharply, suspicion cutting through his voice. “I heard something.” The hope inside me shattered so completely it hurt. Heavy boots turned back toward the room. The handle rattled violently. I didn’t think after that. Survival took over. I burst through the back door just as the storage room door slammed open behind me. Cold air tore against my skin as I ran blindly into the forest, clutching my daughter tightly against my chest while shouts erupted behind me. “THERE!” one of them roared. “After her!” Branches ripped against my arms and face as I pushed through the darkness, my lungs burning with every breath. I was desperate for the goddess to throw me a life line but it seemed even she had deserted me this night. I could hear them chasing me through the trees, faster and stronger than any human could ever be. Wolves. Hunters bred to kill. “You can’t outrun us!” someone shouted from behind me, but I refused to stop. I ran until my legs felt like they would collapse beneath me. Ran until the forest suddenly disappeared beneath my feet. I stumbled violently to a halt at the edge of a cliff, dark water crashing against jagged rocks far below. Slowly, I turned around. The wolves emerged from the trees one by one, their glowing eyes fixed on me with terrifying certainty. There was nowhere left to run. Tears blurred my vision as I looked down at the child in my arms. “I am sorry,” I whispered brokenly, pressing my forehead against hers. “I thought I could save you.” She made a soft sound, trusting me completely, and that trust destroyed me. I looked toward the cliff again and knew instantly the fall would kill me, but the child… no. I could not condemn her to that death with me. Desperation gave me strength then. I hurried toward a cluster of jagged rocks hidden near the cliffside and gently tucked her between them, wrapping the blanket tightly around her tiny body before kissing her forehead over and over again through my tears. “You have to survive,” I whispered desperately. ”You must live” I said kissing her forhead “You were meant for something greater than this.” Then I loosened part of the blanket in my grasp so they would believe she had fallen with me. The wolves were almost upon me when I finally stepped toward the edge. I never looked back. “I love you,” I whispered one final time before throwing myself into the darkness below.