Chapter 233
Janetâs eyes were slits of rage.
âMy child is not a bastard child!â she hissed.
âIt is a bastard in my kingdom!â Westin snarled, âI will not let youâmy mate, MY QUEENâgive birth to that lowborn werewolfâs child-â!
âI didnât even want to be your queen! If I had a choice, I didnât even want you as my mate!!!â Janet cried,
Tears streamed down her cheeks.
Now that he had discovered her secret, she had nothing to be afraid of.
What did she have to lose?
Her only option was to defend her child with her own life.
Westinâs chest heaved. He looked furious.
He waved his arm abruptly and swept everything on the operation desk off the table and onto the floor with a huge clattering sound..
âThat was another lie, wasnât it?â
He glared at her with bloodshot eyes, âWhen you said that you were willing to try. and fall in love with me againâ¦That was a FUCKING LIE! I canât believe thatâ¦I let you fool me again!â
More tears gushed from her eyes.
Janet looked at him in silence.
She didnât deny it.
He raked his hair with his fingers and paced back and forth by her bedside anxiously.
âI should have never trusted youâ¦I should claim you as mine when we first met in the Grace Ruin!â he gritted. âI have given you too many optionsâ¦That was a mistake. Your only option should be me and me alone-â
He looked enragedâ¦frantic with fury.
Janet sat up slightly on her bed and protected her belly with both hands, looking at him with alertness.
âI am not going to let you touch my child,â she said warningly.
He let out a cold sneer, âLike you have a choice. Look at you. You are tied to an operation bed with a whole bunch of doctors and nurses waiting outside, ready to put you down and operate on you-â
âIf you do that, I will kill myself right away!â she growled, shaking her shackles, âYou can have my dead body if you like⦠But that is the only thing you will ever get from me!â
His lips trembled.
An expression of terrible anguish came into his face.
It almost looked like that sorrow and anger were about to crush him.
ââ¦Looks like we have reached an impasse, my love.â
He grinned bleakly.
âI will never let you go nor allow that child to survive. But I also canât watch you harm yourselfâ¦So what should we do?â
He walked to her bedside, reaching out a hand to stroke her face.
His iceâcold fingertips sent a chill down her spine.
âMaybe I should chain you to my bedâ¦all day long and all night longâ¦â he
murmured in a crazy sort of way, âThat way you wonât be able to kill yourselfâ¦and I get to see you and hold you whenever I wantâ¦Isnât that perfect?â
She winced at his words.
Like she was his sex slave or pet?
Noâ¦No! She couldnât let that happen.
Sheâd rather die if she had to spend the rest of her life like that.
âOrâ¦Alternatively.â
She gulped, her heart racing in her chest, âI have a better solution.â
He sneered, âI am not interested in an alternative solution. I am perfectly happy with the one I have in mind.â
âWestin please-â
âYou have fooled me enough times!â he snarled, his voice strained. âThat never happened to me beforeâ¦I am not a gullible person! I only let you do that to me because I love you too much! But that stops NOW!â
He turned to leave.
He was going to summon the doctors and nurses and carry on the operation. She was about to lose her child-
ââ¦It can be your child!â she blurted out urgently.
His hand froze on the doorknob.
Then slowly, he wheeled around to stare at her.
âWhat?â he gritted.
She took in a deep breath to ease the sick feeling that her racing heart brought her and repeated herself once again:
âThe child in my bellyâ¦It can be your child, Westin.â
He looked at her with a vacant expression.
After a long pause, he let out a short laugh, probably finding what she said way too ridiculous:
âHave youâ¦Have you lost your mind, Janet? Or do you think that I am stupid or anything? That is Daranâs kid for fuckâs sake-â
âI know. But the rest of the people in your kingdom donât, right? And you are desperately in need of an heirâ¦My child can be your heir, Westin.â
She had thought about this before⦠What would she do if Westin discovered that she was pregnant with Daranâs child?
And this was the only way to keep both her and her child safe.
She would have to offer her kid to Westin.
She knew that he was facing a lot of pressure from the elders, who were pressing him for an heir.
The child in her belly was right here, ready to solve his crisis.
It was a crazy ideaâ¦a désperate move.
But it might work.
âFUCK NO!â Westin growled, âWhy would I want Daranâs kid? And why would I hand over my crown to the son of the man whom I hate the most?! You and I will have our own child
âWe wonât!â Janet cried, âIf you want to kill my child, you will have to do it over my dead body!â
âDo not fucking threaten me with your life Janet-â
âJust think about this, Westin! With this child, you can finally have a break from the elders. Havenât you had it enough? The elderâs babbles and yammers?â
His face contorted and he was shaking with rage, âI do not give a fuck about what the elders think-â
âAnd I will recognize our mate bond,â she said, raising the chips.
He froze on his spot, looking at her in disbelief.
You will?â he asked hoarsely.
Janet let out a bitter laugh, âYes I will. And I will stay here and be your queenâ¦if you agree to recognize my child as your heir and treat the child as your own.â
He closed in upon her, âI have heard of something similar from you before and how do I know if this is not another lie of yours-
âOnce I recognize the mate bond, it is settled. No turning back. And you will have my kid as hostage. Where else can I go?â
She was basically pushing herself into a dead corner.
But if she didnât do this, Westin would not believe her.
He grabbed her wrist and tightened his grip. The iron shackle pressed into her flesh. â¦You are asking me to raise Daranâs child,â he said in a shaky voice, with pain in his eyes. âMe, a Lycan King, to raise somebody elseâs child-â
She looked right into his eyes, âYou donât need to do it. Just let me go or let me die with my child.â
âNO!â he snarled.
Breathing heavily, he glared at her, âSwear to me-
âI swear that I really meant it this time-â
âNo. Not that!â he leaned in closer to her face, gritting his teeth. âI want you to swear to me that this child will be forever mine. You cannot tell another living soul. who the father of this child really is, not to Daran, and definitely not to the child itself. You will take this secret into your grave!â
There was a quaver in her throat.
She parted her lips but couldnât utter a single word.
He let out a cold sneer, âI am not stupid, Janet. I am not taking the risk of you. returning to Daranâs side with this child in the future. If you want me to be the father, I will forever be this childâs father!â
His grip hurt her.
She tried pulling her hand back.
But he wouldnât let go.
ââ¦Fine,â she gritted, breathing very fast.
What other options did she have?
She had to guarantee the safety of her child. If a simple swear could do the trick, so
be it.
He indicated her to make the swear with his cold eyes.
So she began in a trembling voice, âI swear that I will never-â
âMake the solemn swear!â Westin snapped, âSwear to me in the name of your late parents, your unborn child, and the Moon Goddess!â
She was forced to raise her voice, âI swear in the name of the Moon Goddess that I will never disclose this secret to another living soul! You will be my childâs only father and nothing can change that. Let the Moon Goddess watch over me. If I ever break this oath, punish me at the Moon Goddessâs will!
That was it.
She said it. Couldnât take it back anymore.
There must be consequences if she broke that swear later. She didnât know what that
consequence was, but she bet it must be severe.
So sorry Daranâ¦
But she really didnât know what else to doâ¦
âGood.â
at face.
Westin looked down at her with a dark, nonchalant
âNow recognize the mate bond,â he said forcefully.
âNow?â she breathed.
âYes, now. I am cashing in on your promise right here and right now in case you regret it again laterâ¦I will begin.
He took her hand to his lips, with his eyes glued to her.
âI, Westin Lockhart, ruler of the Lycanâs Kingdom, hereby recognize Janet Manning as my mate, to cherish and to hold, till death do us part.â
He planted a hot kiss on her fingertips.
âNow. It is your turn, my love,â said him in a threatening voice.