The Alpha’s Fated Outcast: Rise Of The Moonsinger

Lyla

"Make your stand clear with Circe," Nanny interrupted, her voice filled with frustration. "Or she will continue to bully Lyla."

We both turned to see Nanny standing at the doorway. I arched my brow at her.

"I thought you were following me behind," she said with a pout, glaring at Ramsey. "You need to rest. Today has been a lot."

"Circe is not like Cassidy, I'm sure there must have been a reason…" Ramsey tried saying

"I'm sick of the games," Nanny said, cutting him short again.

Ramsey scoffed. "What games?"

She jabbed a finger at him. "You either make your stand clear with Circe, or she will keep up her petty childish act like she did at breakfast today. Every day, we wake up to a random woman staking a claim over you. Maybe it's a good thing you're not married to Lyla yet. You have too many unresolved relationships. What are you going to do about that?"

"Nanny!" I cried out in shock; she didn't need to go that far.

Ramsey stared at her for a few seconds before he sighed and looked away. "I do not have any unresolved relationships with anyone. I'm sorry for the way Circe acted, but she's not like Cassidy, believe me."

"It's good you're finally admitting that your mistresses had caused nothing but pain to my child, Lycan Leader." Nanny's tone was cold. "Get your acts right, I wouldn't want to kill someone to teach you how to treat your mate better. Tell Circe to stay away from my child."

Ramsey exhaled deeply and nodded. "I will take care of it."

"See that you do," Nanny replied, taking my arm. "Come, Lyla. Let's get some fresh air."

I allowed her to lead me away, relieved to escape the tension of the dining room. Nanny insisted that walking outside would do me good, so hand in hand we strolled toward the back of the pack house, near the forests where pack members usually went for runs.

We walked in silence for several minutes. I realised with a pang that this was the first time in ages I'd had such quiet time with Nanny—with my mother. So much had happened, so many secrets revealed, yet we'd barely had a chance to talk.

"Do you remember when you taught me to climb trees?" I asked suddenly, pointing to a tall oak we were passing. "You said it would help me learn balance."

Nanny smiled, the lines around her eyes crinkling. "You were fearless. Most children would cry after falling, but you just got right back up and tried again."

"I was stubborn."

"Were?" Nanny arched an eyebrow. "You still are."

I laughed, feeling some of the morning's tension fade. "When I first found out I was pregnant, I was so sure I didn't want the babies," I admitted quietly. "I don't even know when I changed my mind. I can't remember if it was yesterday or the day before yesterday that I woke up and realised I wanted them."

"That happens," Nanny said gently. "How we feel in the moment of discovery isn't always how we truly feel."

"How did you feel when you realised you were pregnant with me?"

Nanny laughed. "I freaked out a bit, but the idea of having a baby thrilled me more than it terrified me. I told Mother Liora myself that I was pregnant. I didn't wait for the women at the temple to find out—they wouldn't have anyway. None of them know anything. They were too busy seeing visions in soup bowls."

We both laughed at that. Growing up, I'd thought Mother Liora was Nanny's birth mother. She'd always talked about her with such love and longing in her eyes, and her friend, Terra.noveldrama

We came across a large boulder and decided to rest, settling on its smooth surface.

"What was being pregnant like?" I asked, suddenly curious about how she felt when she carried me in her womb. It was hard to believe that she actually had me.

"Hard, especially the first few months," Nanny admitted. "Managing morning sickness in the temple and hiding it from the other priestesses who didn't know was challenging. But as you formed and grew inside me, I realised I would do anything to protect you."

She looked out toward the distant mountains. "Being a mother comes without a manual. One moment, I wanted to become High Priestess so badly, to shut Jemima's mouth, and the next, I was ready to throw it all away for a tiny human being I'd only known for nine months."

"Yet you gave me to Luna Vanessa to raise, you made me think she was my mother. I grew up, wondering why I was different." I said, unable to keep the edge from my voice.

"It was the only way, Lyla. Vanessa was kind enough to let me stay, and since I came when you were a baby, she had to pass you up as hers. I nursed you, but you were her baby. She's a perfect Luna, and perfect Lunas would do anything to protect their homes. It would have been a scandal if people had known Logan had a child outside, and with me. In a way, she wanted to protect me, too."

I nodded. "But, did you always know? Did you know that I was going to be a Moonsinger?" I asked quietly.

She shook her head. "Not until your wolf manifested and killed Vanessa's baby. It was a mistake, and I tried to shield you from the prophecy. From my past, from anything. It was me who asked your father to send you away. I thought…" She paused as tears filled her eyes.

"I thought distance would stop it. Maybe your fate would change if you grew up without being with werewolves."

"But it didn't."

"No," she agreed sadly. "Some destinies can't be avoided, only delayed."

"Well, isn't this a strange reunion?" a voice interrupted.

We looked up to see Circe standing before us, her copper hair gleaming in the morning light.

"I am dying to know how a High Priestess has a daughter and remains one? Is that how you werewolves do it? Did things change?"

Nanny immediately stood. "Let's go, Lyla."

I tugged at her arm, keeping her beside me. Turning to Circe, I asked directly, "Why do you hate me?"

Circle blinked, caught off guard.

"Are you stalking me now? Do you want to argue that I am not Ramsey's Luna again? e've barely known each other for forty-eight hours, and you're already hostile toward me. You act like I personally ruined your life."

Circe sighed, her shoulders dropping slightly. I'm sorry for what happened at breakfast. I was angry."

"Why?"

"Because I'm jealous. Still am," she said, shrugging before looking away briefly. "I don't think I've ever seen Ramsey as in love as he is with you."

My throat tightened. Her expression had softened, and it seemed genuine.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Let's go, Lyla," Nanny tugged at me again, but I ignored her.

"Go ahead," I nodded to Circe.

"Why haven't you told him about the baby?"