Chapter twenty-six

Xavier's POV

"May!" The siblings yell in terror as my beloved rushed towards them, her heart rate increasing at a frightening pace.

"Bring water!"

They splash water on her face but she doesn't budge.

"May?!" Richard yells, eyes wide in panic and lightly taps on her cheek.

Sarah puts her ear to Maya's chest and sighs in relief. "She's alive."

"Of course she's alive. I can hear her breathing. Don't say such things." Richard snaps at her, making me frown but she only humphs.

"I didn't mean it like that. Come on and lay her down."

He complies and gently carries her to the only couch in the sitting room.

Sarah starts to pace as she twists her hands together, a clear sign of frayed nerves. "She's been in bed since this morning and now this? What if she's ill? Maybe that's the reason she's been in bed all week. She's sick but doesn't want us to know. No wonder she had been upset when I suddenly started assuming…"

"I didn't know all this was happening. When were you planning on letting me know?"

"I didn't think much of it at the time."

"Of course," He scoffs and takes one of Maya's limp hands in his and kisses it. The fear and worry in their eyes are almost palpable.

I can hear Miss Maya's steady heartbeat so I'm sure she is alright. It would be quite worrisome if anything happens to her; we certainly do not need our king in a depressive state, especially not now.

As I walk towards them, I pull out my phone and text the driver to bring the car to the front. In my attempt to search for her heartbeat, I hear something else that makes me halt in my steps and a thousand thoughts race through my mind.

My brows furrow in curiosity and slight confusion; I'm sure it's not a glitch when I hear it again and an imperceptible smile graces my lips.

A second heartbeat is coming from her stomach. It's faint but I am a hundred percent certain that it's there.

I don't blame them for their ignorance; Lycans may have superhuman abilities and enhanced senses but it varies from Lycan to Lycan. That is a lecture for another day.

Lucius is going to be over the moon by this news, which is why I'm not telling him. The thought almost makes me chuckle but I keep my expression clear, lest they think I'm happy at their predicament.

It is quite tempting to call him up right now; his expression would be one for the books but I don't think it's a good idea at the moment.

The mother doesn't even know yet. She should be the one to tell him the news and judging from the way she sought Lucius out, they're both going to be happy parents.

I would later learn that things aren't always what they seem to be at first or even second perusal.

My phone dings. "The car is out front. Let's take her to the hospital." I state matter of factly and thankfully her brother doesn't fight me on it.

We all rush out of the rather small cozy home and into the black limo waiting for us. We all pile in, the unconscious mother on her brother's lap while my beloved snuggles into them, leaving me by myself on the opposite seat.

The ride is quiet and filled with so much tension and worry, I feel like I have to say something to ease it a bit. "She's fine."

They turn to me at the same time; Sarah with a scared and confused expression while Richard looks like he's about to throttle me.

"What?" He growls through gritted teeth.

"I can hear her heartbeat and it seems like she fainted from exhaustion or fatigue. She's alright."

They visibly relax into their seats but his glare doesn't let up. I can understand his need for being so protective of them.

His sisters are a sight for sore eyes to say the least and considering he's the eldest and most probably the only father figure my beloved has had, I can tolerate his disrespect.

I turn away from them to look out the window; seeing her distraught and not being able to do anything significant to help her makes me itch.

I take out my phone so I can focus on something else, only to find a text from the soon-to-be father.

*How is she?*

I shake my head in amusement as I type back a reply.

*I don't know. Why don't you come check yourself?*

He answers immediately.

*Stop being a bitter old ogre and tell me how she's doing*

I can almost feel his annoyance as he furiously types away with a passive expression.

*She's fine and we both know who's the bitter one between the both of us. Bitter and cowardly*

If anyone else said that, they'd probably be gone before they can take their next breath but he won't touch me. More like he can't; no one else can put up with his shit. My eyes snap to the unconscious woman and our soon-to-be queen. She could be an exception.

*I can have you hanged for that*

*You can't. You'd be useless without me*

He doesn't reply.

*Are you not replying because you know it's true or you're admitting defeat?*

*Neither. Take care of my Belladonna*

The conversation ends there and just in time.

The limo slows to a stop and the driver, Joseph, unwinds the window that demarcates our sections. "We're here sir," He says simply and I nod in affirmation.

Before my feet even have a chance to touch the ground, the siblings are already out of the car and making a beeline for the entrance of the Clan's hospital.

I follow after them at a more even pace as I take my phone out and send a quick text to the soon-to-be father.

*You're in for quite a surprise my friend*

"Good day, your honor. It's our greatest pleasure to have you in our midst today," the manager of the hospital greets me as soon as I step foot through the door.

The rest of the staff that are around the foyer have stopped whatever they were doing and are bowing in respect.

The sleek and warm appearance of the facility is all thanks to the overly generous financial support of the king and is second only to the one in the capital. Most probably because the sucker wanted the best for his Queen; not that I would have done any differently.

I wave a hand for them to carry on and turn towards the manager. "So you derive Joy from the fact that I'm in a hospital?" I ask in a droll tone that barely bellies my annoyance.

The oddly skinny man stares up at me with owlish eyes widened in realization. "I... I didn't mean it like that, your grace. What I meant was that your presence here is a blessing to the other patients…"

I've stopped listening at this point and I quicken my pace to catch up with the siblings.

"The three people I came here with?" I ask the stuttering man running after me.

"They're in one of the VIP rooms. Our best specialists are attending to them."

Good. Anything less and Lucius might actually have my head.