Chandler POV

Carson, who managed to patch Pearl, starts swearing as his eyes glaze. He has run after us from the packhouse where he left still alive but badly wounded Kathy.

"What?" Terry spills, still holding his daughter's head on his lap. Carson has stopped the bleeding; she breathes even though faintly, but he claims she will be alright.

"There is a big group of rogues who have entered the main territory, and as you know, we have no warriors here right now since they all had been relocated. I'm sure that's that idiot Sam's precautions; he invited them here in case Tonya's forced marking wouldn't go according to the plan."

"So what now?" I ask, not stopping patting Pearl's fur.

"James is wounded, but he manages to observe them. My aunt Gamma Roseanne is coming here from the second territory, but we don't know how quickly she can be. Rogues will manage to get to James, and the rest of the omegas in the forest, plus Tonya is calm, but we don't know for sure if she is stable."

I don't wait; I take the walkie-talkie and inform Anne instantly about the situation. Since Tonya wasn't lured into the original location anyway, my people can leave their posts on the trees. My ribs are killing me, but nevertheless, there is a job to be done.

My heart is heavy because I have to leave her alone under Carson's supervision, but I go into the forest with Terry, hoping that maybe we will be able to end this quickly. But my hopes die very soon when I notice how big a group it is, although it's backing now.

The squad led by Anne has already opened fire when I reach them. I spot wounded James in his wolf form next to her; he seems to be in significant pain, and Rosie, in her human form, is also present.

"They managed to push them back away a bit, but only because they were surprised," Anne says in a dead tone. "They will manage to circle us very quickly, and we won't be able to withhold them for long."

"The rest of the omegas are about 100 meters from here. Noah has an idea, and we hope it works. When we summon the rest of the omegas, they will surround us; I need you to push the rogues on the south, at least 300 meters from here. Can you do it?" Rosie says, looking at me.

Looking at her and James's eyes, I'm sure they are mindlinking all the time; I nod. The situation is dire; it's not like I have any other option. It's not like I have any better idea. So my people and I act and open the heavy fire and move in the direction of the rogues, forcing them to back a bit. I hear them there quickly howling in anger and pain, but they won't charge as long as we keep shooting; they just back away as I count in my head the distance we are passing slowly.

Suddenly, Rosie says stop, and a thunderous roar pierces through the air; I know that voice. It's Tonya. We stop firing, and the omegas come from the woods to surround my people. Rosie shifts and runs in the direction of the rogues.

We can't see them; the forest is too dense, but we hear everything. Their howls, snarls, whimpering of pain, and screams of agony. I've heard enough in my life to recognize the sounds of slaughter, and I'm sure it's what is happening now, barely hundreds of meters from me.

James shifts, and one of my men gives him his jacket; he looks pale and has big claw marks on his chest, but at least they don't bleed anymore, and his right leg is crushed.

"So, what was the plan?" Terry asks.

"Noah was sure that he managed to reach Tonya, that she understood him. Both he and Rosie have been convinced they could show Tonya the target and "manage" her attack. Omegas are here to ensure that she won't attack us when she finishes; they will block our scent, and if they don't run, there is a chance she won't be interested in them."

We stay in complete silence as rogues are screaming in the distance in horror and pain. Soon, the scent of their blood is reaching us, and even I have no problems with smelling it. And then suddenly comes the silence. That silence is even more frightening than the previous sounds. I grab my gun, expecting to see Tonya attacking us, and yet it doesn't happen; nothing happens for the next hour when Rosie finally mindlinks James that Tonya has lost consciousness and her body is starting to go back to normal. 

The effect of silver has finally started to back off.

I sit in the pack's Infirmary in the evening, looking at sleeping Pearl. She shifted into her human form and regained consciousness for a moment before losing it again. Carson states that her life is no longer in any danger, and yet it was a close call. Honestly, I want nothing more than to yell at her; she sneaked away, making everybody believe she was evacuated and came back here. True, she did save my life, but a mere thought about how a close call that was makes me feel nauseous.

Terry is sleeping on the chair next to her bed. Just like me, he refuses to leave her alone. The door opens, and Hayden Blackwood enters, making Terry wake up.

"How is your son?" he asks.

"In pain, but he will be alright," Hayden answers." We only have around 30 dead rogues. The rest have run as fast as possible. Kathy will probably have a big scar for some time and will spend a week or two in bed, but she will live. The omega Tonya attacked in the forest will also be alright."

"And how is Tonya?"

"She and Noah are still unconscious, so we let them sleep. Carson is sure they are only exhausted."

"Can you explain what happened in a way I could understand?" Terry asks in a dead tone, and honestly, I'm also very interested in answering that question myself.

"Basically, Sam was behind all these recent rogue incidents before Tonya subdued to silver. She managed to mindlink that much to Kathy. He was apparently in love with Tonya and wanted to eliminate Noah by making us believe he was collaborating with rogues. But then Tonya and Noah mated, and he decided to put silver into Tonya to make her vulnerable and mark her. But my niece is special, and silver doesn't weaken her."

"Quiet the opposite," I say a bit bitterly, and Hayden looks at me sadly." Whatever is going on with Tonya, were you aware of it?" I ask Terry, and he nods, saying that, for now, this knowledge isn't essential for the course of our investigation and alliance, and I sigh. I may not like it, but he is right, for now at least.

"Coming back to the topic, I think Sam invited here rogues, maybe as a distraction if he needed to run, we are not sure. But they noticed that we withdrew all the patrol and probably thought it was a good opportunity to attack. Noah, who managed to get somehow through to Tonya because of their bond, kept her more in control of her actions when she was fighting these rogues. According to Rosie, she smelt Noah and Tonya, and for some time, they were like one mind, so she had no doubts that her sister would be able to control herself thanks to Noah and their bond."

I gulp, but one thing is not giving me piece:

"Can you check Sam more? I think it's strange actually that so suddenly he managed to find such a big and strong group of rogues to attack us any moment. I fear that there is something more in it."

Terry nods, but before Hayden has a chance to answer, Pearl stirs and slowly opens her eyes, looking a bit frantically around. Her father pushes me away and is next to her instantly, holding her hand.

"How are you feeling, sweetheart?" he asks gently and helps her sit.

She moves slowly. I'm sure she is in much pain because of her wounds, and yet I don't miss the gesture when she puts her hand on her stomach.

"Pearl in pain, but if the baby safe?" she whispers, looking around a bit scared.

She stops her eyes on mine, and the realization hits me. I gulp and want to say something, but I don't have a chance because Terry punches me in the jaw with all his strength, screaming what a son-of-bitch I am. I fall but don't get another punch because Hayden grabs Terry, successfully blocking his movements.

The door bursts open, and Anne, the Trio, and Carson enter. Terry screams about unresponsible bastards, and that I wanted to reject her, so I had no right to take advantage of her. Pearl whimpers, apologizing that it was her fault, that she lied and has never rejected me. She is so pale I'm scared that she will lose her consciousness soon.

Astonished with the news about the baby, Carson quickly proceeds to check her up, and I stand up as Terry pants hard; fury on his face is evident. I feel like my head is about to explode as minutes go by, and soon Carson confirms that Pearl is over a month pregnant and the baby is okay even though she lost so much blood.

Anne starts arguing with Terry, who starts screaming again, and I feel my patience is gone.

"Out at once, all of you!" I shout, "She is my mate, and that is my baby; get the hell out of here now!"

Terry protests, but to my surprise, Hayden and Carson drag him outside, saying they need to talk calmly. The rest follow, and soon, Pearl and I are left alone.

Silence, the silence is heavy between us. She grips her quilt so strongly that her knuckles go white. I'm sure she is scared of me because she doesn't dare to look at me. I have no idea what to say for the first time in my life. Everything that happened today crashes at me, and suddenly, I feel so tired.

"How come you haven't rejected me?" I ask slowly, and she huddles a bit.

"I used the wrong name. Pearl don't want rejection. Thought that way, okay. You didn't force to be with me because you don't want me but I still feel you, feel bond, could still be close to Chandler that way." She whispers; I'm sure she is on the verge of crying.

"Have you done this on purpose, to get pregnant?"

"No, wanted to make love to Chandler, didn't think about consequences. Pearl wanted Chandler, wanted Chandler inside."

Well, I certainly can't blame her for that; I should have thought about it; I should have been responsible in that situation. I shouldn't have been so selfish in the first place.

"Chandler angry? Do you want the baby not to be born?" she asks.

Is that why she is so scared right now? Does she think I will force her to get rid of the baby?

"I'm confused and not very happy, Pearl, but I promise we will figure it out," I say, wrapping my arms around her." Nobody will hurt you or the baby. Nobody will force you to reject me if that's what you want."

She dares to glance at me, and there is a faint smile on her face.

"I know what you all think, Pearl, stupid, she doesn't know what is love, doesn't understand... bond gone no more feelings, but Pearl... but I care, Chandler in my heart cause he is Chandler, not because he is mate."

I let her snuggle into me and rest her head on my chest. I hold her close to my chest, listening to her heartbeat and calm breath; I sit with her till she falls asleep again and then go to see Alistair, whose condition hasn't changed. I pass Anne in the corridor and ignore her questions, promising to answer them soon. I'm not surprised to see Terry waiting from the porch of the packhouse. His sister and Hayden Blackwood are with him, probably to bear witness if something unfortunate happens. 

 The former hunter is highly pissed off, and honestly, I understand him. I promised not to hurt her; I said many times that I didn't intend to keep any relationship with her, and here I am, the man who knocked her up.

He asks me in a cold voice what my intentions are.

"Don't know yet; we will wait for her to get better before we make any decisions. Yes, the fault is mine; I was an irresponsible one. But that's not your business; she is an adult."

"Adult or not, she isn't like everybody around. I thought I could trust you to take it seriously!"

"I took that seriously," I hiss at him. "Believe it or not, I didn't force her into anything. Stop patronizing her as if she didn't have her own mind!"

He charges at me, but despite my aching body, I still react and manage to press him into the wall. Neither Hayden nor Celia move, only watching us carefully.

"Carson told me it will be good for both of them if I am close for at least the next 24 hours, so I'm coming back there. Don't try to chase me out. Accept that she is mine... accept that, or we will have a real problem." I spit through my clenched teeth, and something flashes in his eyes, but I'm not sure it's anger.