16

CARLA' S POV

I felt so weak I had no idea why I felt so weak, it was as if my legs were made out of jelly, I tried to move but I could not. I tried to open my eyes though my eyelids were so heavy, I opened them and I was met with a bright light that dug deep into my eyes blinding me for a second or two. I closed and re opened them again and waited for my eyes to adjust to the bright light before looking at the room .

The first thing I noticed was that I was on a bed. And not the comfy type either. No this was one had a frame that seemed to be made of iron rather than wood and it made a funny grating noise with every movement I made.

I tried to run my head with my hands and as I moved my right arm, I could feel resists like from a pull so I turned my head while on the bed to look and it turned out to be an IV bag whose contents were being emptied directly into my blood stream via a pipe leading from the translucent bag of clear liquid , in to my the veins located in my wrist.

"Ughhhh" I groaned as the entirety of my body felt like lead.

"It is okay it's al right you are o kay now" said a familiar voice rubbing my forehead in a calm and tenderly way. I turned and followed the direction of the hand and the voice and looked up to see the concerned face of Alpha Dawson looking down at me and beside him was a young be spectacled woman dressed in green hospital scrubs and a stethoscope around her neck,peering down at me also while clutching a pen and clipboard.

Was this a human hospital? I thought to myself panicking. Humans and werewolves did not do so well together which was why we had built our own civilizations and government separate from human interference. We supernatural creatures had learnt very painfully I might add, that humans were very vicious and unaccepting of the 'other' , so we removed ourselves from the human world, veiled our very existence from their eyes over the centuries using various magics unique to us. So I was understandably apprehensive and hesitant about being in a human hospital.

"Where am I"? I asked shooting inquiring looks at both Alpha Dawson and the young woman.

"It is al right you are safe" said Alpha Dawson still stroking my forehead.

"You have me quite a scare yesterday you know"? Alpha Dawson said, "this is Dr Grace she has been the one taking care of you since your incident yesterday". He added.

"And not to worry this establishment was created to cater for supernatural creatures" said the Dr Grace. "I myself am a werewolf of blue moon pack which was why you were brought here".

"You are in very good hands my lady" said Alpha Dawson

"We collected some saliva samples from you while you were unconscious" said Doctor Grace as she methodically checked my pulse and my heart rate before scribbling something down on that clipboard of hers.

"What did you need the samples for" I questioned, surprised at the need for a sample in the first place.

"Oh we need it to run some tests in the lab to correctly ascertain what caused you to black out" she said as she inspected the IV bag.

"Speaking of I will need a urine sample from you before long" Dr Grace said as she patted my arm.

"Do you have any idea what is wrong doc"? said Alpha Dawson

"I do have my suspicions but it is still too early to tell, I will need that urine sample so that the lab can run a comprehensive and complete diagnostic analysis before I can conclusively tell you what the issue us or is not" said Dr Grace with a smile, as she walked out from the room.

I struggled to sit up. "Here let me help you" said Alpha Dawson as he picked up my pillows and fluffed and arranged them to support and brace my back .

"How did you know Dr Grace"? I asked Alpha Dawson.

"She has been a friend to me for a long time now, besides I keep tabs on everybody in the pack no matter how inconsequentia" said Alpha Dawson.

Al that was more than three days ago I was discharged and a messenger had comebu the castle with the test results which I had brought up to me first.

I opened them expecting to see literally anything but what i saw.

The tests came back that I was a week pregnant.

The news knocked the wind out of me. Pregnant! Who could believe it I was pregnant! With Alpha Dawson's baby no less. Oh yes there was not any iota of doubt concerning that. Alpha Dawson was definitely the father as the only person I had slept with in months was him.

If this news got out it would be a cause of great celebration and merriment among the pack. The festivities for the feast would probably be amped up to eleven……. and my life would be over.

I would belong to Alpha Dawson from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet. He would own me totally and completely. There would be no escape from him. Once I had these children---oh yes there were two of them, I was having twins— I could no longer act anymore, I would completely lose my sense of agency and freedom…. whatever of it remained.

No I would keep this a secret for now till the idea I had in my head bore fruit….. I would run away

I had to protect my babies. I could not let them fall into the hands of Alpha Dawson, I just could not. They would not share the sgony of their mother. I would not allow it. I would run….to a place where Alpha Dawson would never find me, to a place where I would have the freedom and choice to raise my children properly,to give them a loving home and family and I could not do that here, alpha Dawson might take them away from me if he knew and use them as some sort of bargaining chip against me . And the thought of my kids being used like that made my blood boil.

I had not yet birthed them but I could already feel the motherly instinct swell inside me. That need to protect and care for my children at all costs no matter the risks.

I had to involve Smith with this he had to know.

"Run away"??was his incredulous reply, "run away to where exactly he said.

"I do not know exactly, that was why I brought you here, I need you to give me some ideas of where I and my children would be safe*.

*Don't you think you are taking all these a bit far, running away seems like an extreme option does it not"? He said looking at me with the results of the test in his hand. "Have you thought all these through?? The ramifications for you if you are caught, how guy would feed them and cater for them, Among other things".

"I know and I am willing to take the risk I am willing to do anything to keep these precious children from their cruel father"I said as I touched my belly. "Will you help me*? I begged with imploring eyes.

"I will but we would have to be careful and we would not have room for mistakes" he said. "You do realize that if we are caught it would surely mean death for us"said Smith gravely

"Are you prepared? There can be no half measures no going back once all has been set in to motion, are you sure you are prepared and ready*? he asked.

I was ready "I am ready" I said. "I understand the risks and perils that come with what I am proposing but I have been left with no other choice" I said. "If my babies are left to be raised here,Aloha Dawson would transform them in to what I did not recognize" I said."And I cannot and will not allow that to happen"

"If you say so" said Smith throwing up his hands in defeat, "it would have to be before the feast of moons ,that would probably be the only time around which it might be possible to escape the castle" he said.

"For now just carry on as usual , while we make our plans"he said after which he stood up from the sturdy wooden chair he sat as he tossed the test results back to me, complete with the Manila envelope.

"Oh yeah" he said as his hand touched the door preparing to walk out of it. "Congratulations on your twin babies" he said smiling as he had walked out.

I just stared after him. Be had not even asked it raised a single fuss about who the father was which I had in all honesty expected him to do, though he had to have had his suspicions, but he surprised me.

He did not bring it up at all,not even once.

And he had offered to help me as soon as I had asked without complaints or fear, he had agreed immediately, his loyalty to me as a friend was something I could not easily replace, I thought.

I followed his advice anyways I pretended like everything was al righ I tried to avoid alpha Dawson at all costs and as best I could but I did bump into him here and there in the most unexpected of places.

He asked me about the test results once or twice and I always told him that it was not ready yet. That I had already sent letters to Dr Grace and peace she had assured me that the test results would soon me ready.

All these made me want to leave sooner. The fact I had to lie and lie so convincingly to the father of my children made me sick but it was unavoidable.

The days sped by extremely quickly as Smith and I plotted my escape from this prison of a castle.

It was decided that I would run away by the time the feast of moons rolled by,that was the only viable option among all the others we had considered.

I would disguise myself in the dead of night and steal away to the south Western gate of the castle with as much belongings as I could carry,a wagon would be waiting for me beyond it that would take me north, towards the mountains.

"Are you not coming with me"? I had asked one day as we both went over the plan again making sure we had both known it by heart.

"Unfortunately I can not " he said with pain in his eyes. "I have to remain here to help you if you need it and to pass you information when they come looking for you and they will come looking for you, you can bet in that". He said ,his face looking very serious.

But the plan all depended on one very crucial step. The guards at the gate needed to be taken care of before I could pass, Smith assured me that he could drug the wine that was usually reserved for them and that was that.

As the feast day approached, I kept an eye out for the signal ; a lone torch lit in the middle of the night.

Until finally I saw it, a day to the feast, the torch flickering brightly against the ink black sky like a paragon.

I wasted no time to get to the gate where I saw the guards slumped against their duty posts fast asleep, snoring loudly, it was a bit comical to be honest.

The wagon I would ride to freedom was also present with a trusted driver Smith had hired , and Smith himself

"You take care of yourself now" he said as we hugged each other.

"I'll miss you" I said

"Aww shucks you're going to bring tears to my eyes now" he said with more than a little pain in his voice and his smile .

"There's no time* he said, get on the wagon he said as he hoisted me up himself and closed the wagon curtains behind me as he went to pay the driver.

I peeked out of the curtain as I stared at my home one last time as the wagon trundled away.