Alpha's Secret Bride

The discovery of Brandon’s destroyed device changed the mood in the war chamber. The device lay on the conference table while the kingdom’s best investigators examined the shattered screen, the blackened casing, and the deep marks along its edges.

King Eldric stood at the head of the table, his hands clasped behind his back. "What did you find?"

One of the investigators carefully turned the device over before setting it down again. "The damage wasn’t caused by a single impact, Your Majesty. The casing was already damaged before it was crushed."

Eldric’s eyes narrowed. "So it wasn’t an accident."

"No." The investigator pointed to the broken casing. "Somebody damaged it first, then crushed it afterward."

He ran a finger along one of the damaged edges without touching the device directly. "There’s nothing useful left on it. Whoever destroyed it made sure of that."

The chamber fell quiet.

Eldric turned toward Leo. "Any sign of Brandon near the eastern cliffs?"

Leo shook his head. "We searched the entire area. There were no footprints, no scent, and no sign that Alpha had been there."

Eldric’s gaze returned to the device. "Nothing?"

"Nothing we could trace back to him."

Eldric’s jaw tightened as he looked around the chamber. "Then somebody went to a lot of trouble to make sure we wouldn’t find him."

No one answered.

He turned back to the investigators. "Go over the device again. I want to know where it was damaged, what damaged it, and whether there’s anything left that can tell us who handled it."

The investigators immediately returned to their work.

By noon, royal messengers had traveled in every direction, carrying orders to every pack under Santorini’s rule. Each Alpha was instructed to send warriors, while guards were stationed at the borders and search teams were sent into the villages, forests, mountains, and riverlands.

Brandon Oliver Frostbane wasn’t only the Alpha King. He was Emma’s mate and Bryan Oliver’s father. His disappearance had shaken the entire kingdom, and before long, warriors from every corner of Santorini had joined the search.

Emma stood on the balcony of Nightclaw Estate, watching another group of warriors pass through the gates. Their armor caught the moonlight as they rode down the road and disappeared from view.

She lowered her head and closed her eyes for a moment.

Bring him home.

The balcony door opened behind her. Alexandra stepped outside carrying two cups of tea and held one out to her.

"I thought you might need this."

Emma accepted it with both hands. "Thank you."

For a while, neither of them spoke. They stood side by side, watching the road beyond the estate as more warriors came and went.

Alexandra finally broke the silence. "We’ll find him."

She nodded, her fingers tightening around the warm cup. "I know."

Alexandra turned to look at her. "You sound certain."

She looked toward the road again, and a faint smile touched her lips.

"I know my mate."

She lowered her gaze to the tea in her hands before adding, "He wouldn’t leave us."

Alexandra’s expression softened. "No. He wouldn’t."

"He wouldn’t leave Bryan Oliver."

She shook her head. "He promised Bryan they’d go camping after the next council meeting."

A small laugh escaped Emma.

"He even promised to teach him how to paint."

The smile slowly faded from her face. She looked down at the tea in her hands and ran her thumb along the rim.

"Brandon never breaks his promises."

Alexandra reached over and squeezed her hand. "He’ll come back."

She lifted her eyes toward the horizon, where the last light of moonrise stretched across the sky.

"He will."

Days turned into weeks, but the search continued. Each moonrise brought another round of reports, and each one ended the same way. No one had found Brandon. The search had spread beyond Santorini, with neighboring kingdoms opening their borders to the warriors looking for him. Hunters offered to search remote areas, merchants passed along anything they heard in distant towns, and travelers were questioned at checkpoints and border crossings.

Still, nothing came of it.

Bryan Oliver noticed his father’s absence long before anyone expected him to understand what it meant.

One moonfall, he climbed onto Emma’s lap while she sat with him in the nursery, his favorite stuffed wolf tucked tightly against his chest. He rested his head against her shoulder for a moment before looking up at her.

"Mother?"

She ran her fingers through his hair. "Yes, Your Highness?"

"When is Father coming home?"

Emma’s fingers paused.

"Soon."

Bryan frowned. "You always say soon."

She brushed a strand of hair away from his forehead. "I know."

He looked down at the stuffed wolf in his arms, rubbing one of its ears between his fingers.

"Did I do something bad?"

She blinked and pulled him closer. "What?"

His little shoulders slumped. "Father left after my birth moon celebration."

She wrapped both arms around him. "No, sweetheart. You didn’t do anything wrong."

"Then why did he leave?"

Emma’s lips parted, but no answer came. She looked down at his small face, then pressed a kiss to the top of his head.

"He didn’t leave because of you."

Bryan waited.

"Then why?"

She held him tighter and rested her cheek against his hair. For a while, she said nothing. Bryan eventually stopped asking questions and curled against her, his stuffed wolf caught between them.

Another week passed, but the palace remained busier than ever. Maps covered the walls of the war chamber, crowded with red pins marking places the search teams had already checked and blue pins showing the areas still being investigated. By now, only a handful of blue pins remained.

King Eldric rubbed his tired eyes before looking across the table at Leo. "Start over."

Leo stared at the maps. "We’ve already searched those regions three times."

"Search for a fourth."

Leo hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Teddy entered the chamber carrying another stack of reports. He placed them on the table and looked over the maps.

"I’ll head north tomorrow."

Eldric looked up. "You’ve already spent days searching."

"I know."

"You need to rest."

Teddy gave him a tired smile. "So do you, Your Majesty."

He pushed the reports farther across the table. "If Alpha Brandon is out there somewhere, I’m not going to sit in this palace waiting for another person to find him."

Eldric studied him for a long moment before giving a quiet nod. "I’ll send another unit with you."

At Nightclaw Estate, Emma did her best to keep Bryan Oliver’s days as normal as possible. She smiled when he smiled and read his bedtime stories, even when he asked for the ones Brandon used to read to him. When Bryan brought out the silver crown his father had bought for him, Emma ran her fingers over the small diamonds in the crown and listened as he proudly explained where Brandon had made each mark.

But after Bryan fell asleep, the house seemed to change.

Emma often found herself standing in Brandon’s study, her hand resting on the back of his chair as she looked around the chamber. Nothing had been moved. His favorite pen still lay across the desk, and the jacket he had worn before still hung behind the chair.

Sometimes she reached for it without thinking. She would pull it close and press her face into the fabric, holding it there for a few seconds before slowly letting it fall back against the chair.

One moonrise, Emily arrived with a breakfast tray and found Emma standing by the window.

"You skipped dinner again."

"I’m not hungry."

Emily set the tray on the table. "You said that yesterday."

She turned away from the window. "I’m fine."

Emily folded her arms. "No, you’re not."

She didn’t answer. She lowered herself into the chair beside the window and rested her elbows on the table.

Emily pulled the tray closer. "At least eat a little."

"I’ll eat later."

"You said that yesterday too."

Emma picked up the spoon but set it down again without taking a bite. Her eyes drifted toward the road beyond the estate.

"What if..."

Her voice cracked, and she stopped.

Emily reached across the table and took her hand.

"What if he really isn’t coming back?"

"Don’t say that."

"I don’t believe it." Emma swallowed hard. "But sometimes..." She looked down at their joined hands. "Sometimes I’m scared."

Emily stood and pulled her into a hug. "He’ll come home."

She closed her eyes and held on to her for another moment.

"I hope you’re right."

Emily gave her a reassuring squeeze before letting her go.

The days that followed passed quietly, with everyone settling into the new rhythm of life in the estate.

Another week slipped by.

Emma woke before dawn feeling unusually tired. She sat at the breakfast table but barely touched her food. When Emily placed a plate of eggs in front of her, the smell made her stomach turn.

She quickly pushed the plate away.

Emily frowned. "You love eggs."

"I know."

"You haven’t eaten anything."

She rubbed her temple. "I’m just tired."

Later that day, she sat on the nursery couch reading to Bryan Oliver. She had barely turned the page when a sudden wave of dizziness made the words blur in front of her.

The book slipped from her hands.

Bryan climbed down from the couch. "Mother?"

She pressed a hand to her forehead. "I’m okay."

She tried to stand, but the chamber tilted beneath her. Her hand reached for the back of the couch, and Emily quickly caught her around the waist.

"That’s it." Emily helped her sit down again. "We’re calling the royal physician."

She closed her eyes and leaned back against the cushions.

"It isn’t necessary."

Emily shook her head. "It is."

She opened her eyes and looked at her.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Then Emily glanced toward the untouched breakfast plate still sitting on the nearby table.

An hour later, the royal physician finished his examination and began packing his equipment. A small smile remained on his face as he closed his medical case.

She watched him. "Why are you smiling?"

The older man looked at her and chuckled softly. "Because there’s nothing to worry about."

Emily let out a breath and rested a hand against her chest. "So she’s all right?"

"Oh, she’s more than all right."

Emma’s brows pulled together. "I don’t understand."

The physician turned toward her, his smile widening.

"Congratulations, Queen Luna."

She stared at him.

"You have another pup on the way."

For a moment, no one moved.

Her lips parted, but no words came out. Slowly, she lowered her gaze to her stomach and placed a trembling hand over it.

"Another pup?"

The physician nodded. "Yes. You’re pregnant."

Her fingers pressed gently against her stomach as tears filled her eyes.

Two winters ago, she and Brandon had hoped for another pup. They had waited and hoped, but the winters had passed without the pup they longed for.

And now, when Brandon was gone, she was carrying his pup.

She covered her mouth as a tear slipped down her cheek.

A small, broken smile appeared through her tears.

"Brandon..."

Her hand tightened against her stomach.

"He’s coming back to us."

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