CHAPTER 3

"Bilal… Bilal…" were the words of Shana until she passed out.

She had gotten exhausted after running for several hours into the thick bush. She was in pain and feared she'd go into labor when her fears were confirmed.

Crying out loud all alone in agony and pain, she managed to push the baby out of her body as hard as she could as she spread her legs on the floor. She feared the words of Bilal as she thought about his last sentence to her.

How did he know she was pregnant and also it was going to be a girl? She had no answers to those questions but had to fight her dear and look for the answers which were coming right at her.

Soon, the voice of the baby was heard. She smiled as she took the baby in her arms, brushing its hair smoothly. She used her hand to search for a sharp object nearby but found none.

Her hand could only reach for a stick with a sharp edge which she used to cut the umbilical cord to separate herself from the child when her eyes caught the private part of the child.

"It's a girl." She said, She had flashbacks of everything that happened within those months of her pregnancy.

Shana sat gloomy at the back of the hut as she was lost in thoughts. Bilal just came back into the house and called out to her but she didn't reply to him.

"Shana…Shana…" He called out.

"Shana get me some water, I'm thirsty." Bilhal called out to her again but she still didn't reply to him.

"Shana!" He called out loudly as he stood up to check for her inside the hut but she wasn't there. He went to the back of the hut and saw her sitting on a bench deep in thoughts with her hands.

"Shana, what's wrong?" He asked her as he stood her on the shoulder which brought her back to reality.

"Are you okay?" He asked her concerned.

"Yes I'm fine…" She replied.

"Are you sure?" He asked again, not comfortable with her reply as he saw a tear run down her cheeks. He sat next to her and turned her to face him, noticing her dry eyes.

"She must have been crying," he thought.

"What's the problem?" He asked her.

"Bilal, I…I…" She stammered as fresh tears ran down her cheeks, following each other in rolls.

"You what? Speak to me Shana, what happened?" He asked her to get uncomfortable seeing her tears.

"I think you're right." She said as she sniffed.

"About what?" He asked her.

"I'm pregnant Bilal…" She said as tears ran down her cheeks and she burst out crying. Bilal held her close to him in his arms as he listened to her.

"I haven't seen my period for two months…I thought the one of last month was a skip but it happened twice ... .Bilal I'm pregnant…" She cried out as he sensed she was pained about it from her voice and cry and hot tears freely flowed down her cheeks.

"Stop crying…I know you're pregnant." He comforted her as she raised her head to look at him.

"How do you know?" She asked him in utter surprise.

"We slept together that day and you getting pregnant is something I knew would happen." He said, confusing her the more.

"What do you mean?" She asked him, completely thrown in confusion.

"Never mind. You'll get to know about it later but stop crying." Hr comforted her.

"I've stopped, now tell me what you mean." She said, wiping off her tears.

"I'll tell you first if you tell me why you're crying. You still haven't told me so you are." He reminded her.

"You're a jerk! You don't know me and yet you knew you'd get me pregnant?" She asked, raising her voice which made him smile.

"Oh, is that funny to you?" She asked him as she saw he was making fun of her.

"No, no. It's not. Tell me about you." He asked her.

"You know my name already." She answered him without any interest in saying much.

"No I don't. I only know you're Shana of Warleigh kingdom, the bravest and smartest, fearless and courageous young beautiful woman who took me in." He said, teasing her. They laughed for some time as he stared at her beauty before she began talking.

"My name is Shana, Shana Rafan. I'm the only surviving daughter of my parents who were all killed by the curse placed on our kingdom a very long time ago after the visits of the wolves.

I know you don't understand what I mean by that but it was said that anyone who comes in contact with a wolf or looks into its eyes will all die, if it's a man, his entire family will also die.

My father happened to be a warrior during his time as he fought against the wolves with some other men who all died and including their families too." She narrated her story.

"Sorry to interrupt but why did your dad join the warriors when he knew the consequence of his inactions?" Bilal asked her.

"My parents were poor and we starved for days without any food. My father was pushed to steak and feed his family and when caught, he was forced to join the warriors or he'll be killed.

He believed to be a brave man and joined the warriors not only because of that but also because the king promised to be feeding us for free while my dad trained with other warriors who happened to be in a situation as his or likely.

Everyone dropped dead except me, my two sisters and three brothers all died as a result of fire that caught our house. I went to my relatives to seek shelter but none of them accepted me.

People didn't want to come near me either and believed that I was cursed, that's why I was the only one who survived the incident.

They wanted to kill me as well before I bring harm to the kingdom but everyone was scared of coming closer to me let alone kill me so they decided to stone me to death.

A man came to my rescue and stopped them from hitting me. He explained to them that I had done nothing wrong and didn't deserve death. He pleaded for them to spare my life. They accepted but on one condition, he had to marry me.

We got married but I was never able to have children for him which made them believe I was really cursed. We tried everything we could for me to conceive but it was futile.

My husband decided to try another woman and she conceived and gave him a male child. He then left me for her after which they got married.

I became shattered and depressed. I lost all hopes of living and wanted to take away my own life but I just couldn't.

My husband had believed that I was indeed cursed and never came to see me again. I was rejected and had only a few friends but they also weren't that close to me. I was cursed and the only way the curse could be broken was if I met with the alpha wolf.

I lost the people I loved and lived in a world of rejection. The day I saw you, I decided to help you because you were also rejected. I wanted to save you from a lie of misery that the people of Warleigh would have brought upon you.

When you went to bed with me, I felt different. I felt loved in your arms and cared for, it was a feeling that I never wanted to let go of." She explained calmly, as tears streamed down her face.

"I'm sorry about that…I didn't mean to make old wounds bleed but I don't understand one thing, your pregnancy…" He asked her.

"What happened to it?" She asked him back as she sniffed and wiped her tear stained face.

"Was the curse broken?" He asked her.

"Yes, that's if I was really cursed." She replied.

"Okay…sorry about that, I'm here for you now okay? Don't ever feel rejected even when others reject you. Always accept yourself and the fact that you're a blessing to this world.

Remember that a rejected stone becomes the pillar of the building?" He asked her as he used words to soothe her. She nods sheepishly, using her knuckles to support her chin.

"The blessing may not be directly from you but may come from your offspring. The people that rejected you will one day be saved by your child or grandchild. Never give up on them no matter what others say." Bilal encouraged her.

"Thanks for your kind words. I'm grateful for that night, for bringing you in." She showed her appreciation and they both smiled.

"What about you? What's your story like?" She asked him.

"Well, there's nothing much about me, only a few. I'm Bilal Kaddar, I come from royalty. The kingdom that rules the sky and the Earth is ruled by my father, who is the alpha king." He began his story.

"I came to Warleigh on a mission to break the curse that was imposed on the people but I was never welcomed." Bilal simply explained.

"What do you mean? You're confusing me." Shana asked him for more clarification.

"I'm the curse breaker and no curse can be broken unless they come through me. I'm the one your people seek but they'll never find me anymore." He explained.

"I still don't get…why won't they find you and how's it possible that you're the curse breaker?" She asked him, getting more confused.

"You were cursed and the curse was lifted, that's why you're able to get her pregnant. I slept with you for a purpose, you having body contact with me took away the curse." He cleared it out.

"Are you serious? You're the son of the alpha wolf?" She asked him but he ignored the question.

"You'll find the answers to your questions yourself when the time comes." He answered her back.

"Okay then, but why did you say they'll never find you when you're here? What if I tell them you're the curse breaker and probe it to them with my pregnancy?" She asked him excitedly, getting interested in knowing him more.

"No, don't do that. They'll never find me because they rejected me on the spot of their blessing. The curse was about to be lifted but they all left and you were the only one around, that's why I found interest in knowing who you were more. They'll only be able to find another curse breaker and not me. Any child that comes after me will be the next curse breaker." He explained, giving out his reasons.

"Wow…wait….does that mean?" Shana asked, pointing to her belly as she looked at Bilal sock with her mouth wide open which he nodded, getting her question without hearing it from her.

After five months of the pregnancy, everyone found out that Shana was pregnant.

"How's that possible? Her husband left her for close to two years now, how did she get pregnant? She was cursed so how's this possible? Could it be that she met a curse breaker? No, it's not possible.

She must be a witch, only witches can resist a strong curse like that. Gosh she's so shameless, was she even responsible for her pregnancy? Who slept with her?

No man had known her, only her ex husband who ended up also leaving her and testified that she was really cursed." Those were the words of the people who gossiped about her as she went to the market and heard everything.

Bilal was never seen with her and so no one knew him. Besides, he was still in his disguise but was believed to have passed away after the search in her house.