Free Web NovelChapter 5: Chapter 5
"Say it properly, Luna." freewēbnoveℓ.com
Christian’s voice was soft, almost lazy, but the cold smirk curling across his lips carried a threat sharp enough to cut skin.
Odette’s throat tightened painfully.
"N-no..." she whispered, the word barely escaping her trembling lips.
"That’s right," Christian murmured, his piercing blue eyes fixed on her face. "And that is the only answer I ever want to hear from you."
A tense silence settled over the room.
Then, Sylvia spoke. "Then whose child is it?"
The question slipped from her mouth with deliberate cruelty before she quickly masked it behind feigned shock. Her hand flew to her chest as she shook her head. "I—I didn’t mean to say that..."
But the damage was already done. Something dark ignited behind Christian’s eyes.
In an instant, he crossed the distance between them and seized Odette’s face in a bruising grip, forcing her to look up at him. His fingers pressed painfully into her cheeks, and she winced as fear surged through her body.
"If I ever discover," he whispered coldly, each word dripping venom, "that you’re carrying another man’s child..."
His thumb dug harder into her skin. "I’ll kill you."
Odette stopped breathing.
"And I won’t hesitate to get rid of that bastard child with you."
The world seemed to tilt beneath her feet.
Her hands instinctively curled protectively over her stomach, but she lowered them quickly before he noticed.
No matter what she said, Christian would never believe her. Not when jealousy had already poisoned his mind.
So she remained silent.
Christian stared at her for another long moment, disgust and fury flickering across his face before he abruptly released her. She stumbled backward slightly, her heart hammering painfully against her ribs.
As though suddenly tired of looking at her, he turned away. He grabbed his suit jacket and briefcase without another word.
A few moments later, the bedroom door slammed shut behind him.
Odette’s knees nearly gave out with relief. But it lasted only seconds. Because the fear never truly disappeared.
It lingered in her chest like poison, suffocating her with the knowledge that sooner or later, Christian would learn the truth.
And when that happened... She didn’t know if she or her baby would survive his wrath.
***
By evening, exhaustion clung heavily to Odette’s body.
She moved slowly around the kitchen, preparing dinner while trying to ignore the constant nausea twisting through her stomach. Her pregnancy was becoming harder to hide with each passing day.
Sylvia entered the kitchen gracefully, her heels clicking against the marble floor. A faint sneer touched her lips as she watched Odette struggle through her chores.
She already knew.
Earlier that morning, Sylvia had discovered the discarded pregnancy test hidden deep inside the bathroom trash.
The sight of those two pink lines had filled her with silent rage.
Still, she maintained her sweet façade perfectly.
"Odette, dear," Sylvia said gently, leaning against the counter. "We’re all leaving soon for tonight’s party. I hate the thought of leaving you here alone, but you know how Christian gets if people ignore his orders."
Odette lowered her eyes quietly.
Sylvia sighed dramatically before continuing, "And do you know why this party is so important?"
A bitter glint flashed through her eyes. "It’s for Carrie."
Odette froze.
"Christian’s precious Carrie has finally returned after three years abroad," Sylvia added smoothly. "Apparently, her acting and modeling career didn’t work out as well as expected."
The knife in Odette’s chest twisted deeper.
Carrie Channing. The woman Christian had once loved openly. The woman assigned by the Moon Goddess to be his mate. The mate Christian had to reject because of his grandfather.
Sylvia stepped closer and squeezed Odette’s hand with false sympathy.
"Take care of yourself, dear."
Then, she left.
The moment the kitchen fell silent again, Odette’s appetite vanished completely.
The thought of Christian celebrating another woman’s return made something inside her crumble quietly.
After leaving dinner prepared for the servants, she retreated upstairs to her room, desperate to escape the suffocating ache in her chest.
She had barely settled onto the bed when her phone vibrated.
A notification.
With trembling fingers, she opened the article... And instantly wished she hadn’t.
A photograph filled the screen.
Christian and Carrie stood wrapped in each other’s arms beneath flashing camera lights, locked in a passionate kiss.
They looked perfect together. Beautiful. Effortless. Like the kind of couple the world expected to see beside a man like Christian Wayne.
Not someone like her.
Odette’s vision blurred with tears. Her hand drifted instinctively to her stomach.
The fragile hope she had clung to all these months shattered completely. Christian would never choose her. Never choose their child. Not when Carrie had returned.
A broken laugh escaped her lips as tears slid silently down her cheeks. How foolish she had been to believe a baby could make him love her.
Suddenly, the lights went out. The entire mansion plunged into darkness.
Odette sat upright immediately, startled by the sudden silence. Only the pale glow of her phone illuminated the room now, casting eerie shadows across the walls.
Her pulse quickened.
"Hello?" she called softly as she stepped into the hallway.
No answer.
She tried calling for the servants. The guards.
But... Nothing.
Then she heard it.
Footsteps. Claws against the marble.
Heavy. Fast. Unfamiliar.
A chill raced down her spine.
Odette lifted her phone cautiously toward the staircase... And froze.
Several masked men dressed in black were moving through the mansion below, armed with knives and guns. A few wolves followed right after.
Terror exploded inside her chest.
She killed the phone light instantly and stumbled backward into the darkness, covering her mouth to silence her breathing.
The intruders spread throughout the mansion methodically.
Searching... Hunting.
"Come out, little bitch," one of them called mockingly. "We know you’re here."
Odette’s body trembled violently.
Then another voice hissed urgently: "We need to find her now. If we fail, the Alpha will kill us."
Alpha.
The word struck her like lightning. Her blood turned to ice. Christian was behind this.
A sob nearly escaped her throat. Her own husband wanted her dead.
The realization shattered the last fragile piece of her heart. But then her hand moved instinctively to her stomach again.
And suddenly, fear transformed into determination. She was no longer fighting only for herself.
Silently, Odette slipped into one of the lower kitchen cabinets and curled into the cramped darkness, forcing herself to stay still while the intruders tore through the mansion. There was a hidden vile of the scent disguise reserved for dangers like this one, and Odette did not waste her time.
Just a few drops over her neck, and it was as if she did not even exist. Her scent was gone.
Minutes passed. Or perhaps hours. She couldn’t tell anymore.
Eventually, the voices drifted farther away.
Odette waited several more seconds before cautiously climbing out of hiding.
The mansion remained pitch black.
Using her memory to guide her, she moved carefully through the hallways toward the front entrance.
When she finally stepped outside into the cold night air, realization hit her with brutal clarity.
Everything had been planned perfectly. The servants and guards had all mysteriously disappeared tonight.
Christian had ordered everyone away. He had left her alone deliberately.
Tears streamed down her face, but this time she wiped them away quickly.
No more crying. No more begging for love from a man who wanted her dead.
For the first time since marrying Christian Wayne, survival mattered more than her feelings for him.
She left the mansion without looking back.
***
By dawn, Odette had sold her wedding ring—the symbol of a marriage that had destroyed her piece by piece.
The diamond alone was worth millions. It was enough to disappear completely. Enough to protect her child.
Using the money, she bought a plane ticket to France under a false name.
It was time to start a new life. Far away from Christian. Far away from the pack. Far away from the Wayne empire.
As she sat alone in the airport terminal, waiting for boarding, her trembling fingers brushed over her stomach lovingly.
"Don’t worry, baby," she whispered softly through tears. "Even if your father doesn’t want us... I will always protect you."
Pain still lingered inside her chest––betrayal... heartbreak... Grief for the man she had loved with everything she had.
But beneath all of it, something stronger was beginning to grow.
Resolve.
When boarding was finally announced, Odette rose slowly and walked toward the gate.
Just before stepping onto the plane, she glanced back one last time at the city she was leaving behind. freewebnovel.cσ๓
"Goodbye, Christian Wayne," she whispered brokenly. "You’re finally free now."
