Alpha Kael

~Jada

Two months later.

I love our new home.

It took some time to be built exactly how Kael and I wanted it, but I’m glad we waited. It’s traditional, yet fits in with what Kael and I both love the most. What I believe makes it so special is it is right in the outdoors, rather than in a stuffy city. Being underneath the shade of trees, a garden right outside to grow things in is like medicine.

Kael and I decided it would be best to leave the Discipline Pack after he gave his title to a friend of his who he has always trusted, Carson. Kael wanted to put distance between him and his old life, and as someone who has always wanted to travel, I couldn’t be happier.

Now we live in no Pack. We live in between the Freedom Pack and the Vengeance Pack. Here, we have the perfect warm climate with plenty of forest to conceal ourselves.

It seems we found the perfect life.

“I can’t decide what I should plant next,” I muse to Kael, who sits beside me, reading his latest favourite novel. Our lives now, between travelling, are dedicated to leisure activities. I’ve come to love gardening a lot, while he has created quite the collection of books he enjoys almost everyday. It keeps us not only occupied, but content.

“I think you should take some rest,” Kael says, glancing at me. He knows every time he says that, I disagree with him. I may have suddenly fallen pregnant five weeks ago, but I’m still early on enough that I don’t need to worry about this rest he speaks of.

I nudge him. “I’ll be fine. The fresh air is good for me, and it’s not like I’m going to be lifting anything heavy.”

He raises an eyebrow at me, skeptical.

“Flowers it is then,” I say, leaning up to kiss him on the cheek. He gives me a half smile, knowing he never had a chance of convincing me out of it. This is our routine, anyway. I garden the early morning away, then Kael and I spend time with each other in whichever way we feel like that day.

It’s a relief to be outside. The touch of the soft breeze on my cheek, the scent of the rain that fell upon the forest last night. My vegetables are thriving in this environment, but what about my flowers? I hope they get enough sun to bloom brightly.

I glance up, seeing something approaching from the distance.Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

Straightening, I wave in that direction. It’s Kara, Kael’s mother. Kael had a house built for her just through the forest. Every now and again she will wander by.

Things between Kael and his mother have been good. Really good, in fact. It’s too the point where I’m almost jealous, watching the way the interact like no time has been wasted between them. I’m happy for them though. Their relationship is blossoming, and she is going to be so happy when we tell her I’m pregnant.

“Your garden is looking lovely, Jada,” Kara says as she approaches. I smile warmly at her, moving over to pick a pear from the tree that borders out house.

She catches it as I toss it to her.

By the time she leaves, that wicker basket that bumps against her hip as she walks will be full, enough in it to last her a week. We supply the local village with produce too, which has made us very well liked. No one there knows who we are, making it much easier for us to fit in, to make friends who don’t just want Kael’s money.

“Why don’t you come inside for a drink. I just made lemonade,” I offer, motioning for her to follow me inside. She does so with a bounce in her step. Once she sees Kael, she greets him with a hug and a kiss. Myself and Kara are the only ones who can make him put his book down.

“Any reason for your visit?” Kael asks.

I like when Kara visits. But it reminds me of my relationship with my mother. It still has not been remedied. I’m on good terms with her now, I suppose, but she still lives in the Discipline Pack, trying to overthrow the current leader. After all her talk of wanting to leave the Pack, she seems to be struggling to do so.

I’m only upset because she never visits, nor calls. It’s almost as if she has forgotten I am her daughter. I will wait though, until she is ready to be in my life again. Maybe one day that will happen…

“Can I not just visit my two favourite people?” Kara asks, placing her basket down on the table will I move into the kitchen to grab the lemonade. I see Kael raise an eyebrow, making Kara sigh. “There are rumours going around about a certain person being pregnant.”

Kael and I exchange glances.

“I’m sorry mother, we were planning on telling you at friday night dinners,” Kael says, deflating. Friday night dinners have become our family tradition. “I promise you would be the first person we were going to tell, but one of Jada’s friends saw her sick-”

“I know, gossip flows fast in a small town. Don’t worry, I’m not offended,” she assures us. Both Kael and I loosen a breath of relief. The last thing either of us want is to make Kara feel like she isn’t important. She has missed out of a lot of Kael’s life, and we want her to be involved in this babies.

Coming back into the living room, I hand glasses of lemonade around, sitting down beside Kael while Kara sits opposite us.

I can’t help but notice, she looks troubled.

“You know this child is still one of the Alpha bloodline. You must raise him to learn he cannot take back the title of Alpha, otherwise it will disturb the peace that is coming back to that Pack,” Kara tells us. She might be happy about this, but she knows the risk, and is a smart woman. She doesn’t want us to put this child in danger.

Kael slips his hand into mine. “This child will know the dangers, of their bloodline as soon as they are ready. For now, they will live a normal life.”

“As long as no one in that Pack knows the child exists. I’ve been around those who call for a rebellion, and they would be happy to take that child off your hands,” Kara reminds us.

I swallow uncomfortably.

Kara seems to notice my expression, her own softening. “You two will be great parents. Your child will live a long, great life, and I’m happy to be it’s grandmother.”

I’m grateful we can trust Kara to help us raise this child. We spend the rest of the day all together. Kara is so excited for the child, she couldn’t stop talking about it. I learnt that she wants a boy, saying it would be a joy to raise. By the time she went home, I was exhausted, but still agreed when Kael offered to take me on a walk through the forest.

“Are you as excited as my mother about this?” Kael asks.

His hand is through mine as we stroll casually through the forest, letting the dappled sunlight brush my face as we walk. Everything seems so much easier with the smell of the forest around me.

“Excited, yes. I want a girl though, but I would be happy with both,” I say, making Kael chuckle. There is something comical about how Kara wants it to be a boy so badly. “But I’m also nervous. I don’t want our child to have to live knowing everyone wants them dead.”

Kael pulls me closer. “I’ll protect both your and this child. It will be out precious little secret.

Right, a secret. As happy as I am, the thought always lingers. How am I going to keep a child a secret for the rest of its life?