- 16.
Today was supposed to be a special day. Nicholas had turned eleven, and I had spent the entire morning preparing for his birthday party. I had baked his favorite cake, decorated the living room with balloons and streamers. But as I was putting the finishing touches on the cake, I heard the door open, and Nathan rushed inside, his face pale. The moment I saw him, I knew something was wrong.
“Nathan?” I asked, my voice trembling with an unexpected sense of dread.
He didn’t answer right away. His eyes were filled with worry, and I could tell that whatever had happened was bad.
“It’s Nicholas,” he said, his voice tight. “He’s had an accident.”
My heart stopped. The cake I was holding slipped from my hands, crashing to the floor as my legs gave way beneath me.
“What? What happened to him?” I asked, my breath coming in short gasps.
“He’s at the hospital. We need to go, now.”
C
I didn’t wait for any more explanation. I didn’t need to. I ran out the door with Nathan right behind me, and we drove to the hospital in a blur, my mind racing with fear and panic.
When we arrived, Nathan led me through the hallways, and all I could think about was Nicholas. My little boy, the one I had fought so hard to protect, the one I loved more than anything in this world.
We reached the ward, and my legs nearly gave out when I saw him. Nicholas was lying unconscious in the bed,
his small body hooked up to various machines.
I rushed to his side, my heart breaking as I grasped his hand. “Nicholas,” I whispered, my voice cracking. “Baby,
9:39 AM.
1 Kapt the Apha’s Secret Hipe
please wake up. Please be okay.
Tears streamed down my face as I watched him, helpless. That’s when I saw him–Dean.
He stood in the corner of the room, looking genuinely remorseful, his face a mask of regret. But I didn’t care
about his remorse.
I stood up quickly, my anger flaring. Before I knew what I was doing, I slapped him hard across the face. The sound of the slap echoed through the room, and I felt a sick satisfaction in the sting of my palm.
“This is your fault,” I hissed, my voice shaking with rage. “You did this to him. You’ve been in his life for a few
weeks, and now look at him. You made him suffer.”
Dean’s eyes widened in shock, but he didn’t back away. He didn’t even flinch. Instead, he met my gaze with an intensity that made my blood run cold.
“He slipped at the park,” Dean said quietly, his voice low and steady. “But he’s going to be fine. I donated blood to him. He’s going to be okay.”
I froze. The words he spoke cut through me like a knife. Blood. My mind raced as I tried to process what that
meant. He had donated blood to Nicholas.
“That’s not all, is it?” Dean said, his voice growing sharper. “How is it that my blood matches his? You said he was Nathan’s son. This doesn’t make sense, Hannah. Something is wrong here.”
I could feel my chest tightening, panic rising in my throat. How had I let this happen? How had I let this lie. continue for so long?
Dean’s eyes bored into mine, demanding answers. “I want the truth, Hannah. This kid… he’s mine, isn’t he? Tell me, is Nicholas my son?”
I couldn’t stop myself. The words spilled out of me, sharp and bitter. “Yes. He’s your son. But I don’t want you to be his father. You’re cruel, Dean. You’re dangerous, and this is a proof. You’re not safe for him. You never were.”
Dean’s face darkened. His jaw tightened as fury surged through him. “You don’t have the right to keep him from me. He’s my son, and I will not let you hide him from me any longer.”
His voice was low and cold, and I could feel the threat in every word. “I will file a case against you, Hannah. For keeping him away from me, for lying to me all these years. Nicholas deserves to know the truth. He deserves to know who his real father is.”
I took a step back, my breath shallow, my heart racing. I couldn’t let him have Nicholas. I couldn’t lose my son, not to him. Not after everything. But how could I fight him? How could I stand against a man who was legally his father?
“I’ll fight you, Dean,” I said, my voice breaking but determined. “I’m his mother, and I will do whatever it takes to keep him with me. You won’t take him away from me. I won’t let you.”
The tension in the room was unbearable. Dean’s expression was unreadable, his eyes cold. But I knew that this fight was just beginning, and it terrified me.
Nathan sat next to me, his hand on mine, offering silent comfort. I didn’t know how to feel. I didn’t know what to do. I only knew one thing–this wasn’t over. I wouldn’t let it be.
As if things weren’t bad enough, the door to the ward opened, and Cecelia stepped inside, holding a small wrapped gift. She walked over to Nicholas’s bed, her smile forced and thin. “Happy birthday, Nicholas,” she said in a voice that dripped with false sweetness.
I stood up immediately, my fury boiling over. “You! What are you doing here?”
Before she could even react, I pushed her hard against the wall, pinning her there with all the anger and
frustration I had been holding back. “If you’re involved in what happened to my son, I swear to God, I’ll make sure you pay!”
D
9:39 AM
1 Kept the Alpha’s Secret Heir
second, I feared he wouldn’t wake up the same. But when his bright eyes finally opened, when he smiled weakly at
me and called me Mom, I knew we had to leave.
Nicholas had suffered a concussion after slipping at the park, hitting his head hard. He was lucky–no permanent damage, just a loss of blood. But what terrified me more was how he had survived. Dean’s blood had
saved him.
