Chapter 273

273 Protecting Each Other Secretly

Other than Lucrethia Woodland who was placed in a special cell with maximum protection, all the others from the Woodland family had to share neighboring cells.

Why? Because the Werewolf Council never had to detain so many people at once.

Kieran Locksworth was alone in his cell when a guard came in with Lillian Woodland in a tow. When he saw the woman through the barred window, his eyes grew round.

“Lillian!”

Lillian Woodland broke into tears when she saw Kieran.

“Kieran...!!! Oh Goddess, are you alright?!”

When the guard let Lillian in, locked the door right up, and left, Kieran almost lost it.

“HEY!” He shouted. “ARE YOU INSANE??? WHY ARE YOU PUTTING A PREGNANT WOMAN IN PRISON???”

“Kieran, shhh... I asked for it,” Lillian put a hand across Kieran’s lips.

.....

The man groaned.

“Why are you so stupid? Don’t tell me that... Did you tell Ronan Silverback that it is not his baby?”

Lillian chuckled.

“Come on. Do you think he will never find out?”

Kieran pulled at Lillian’s wrist.

“Don’t stand. Come and sit. You need to pay attention to your body right now. You are in a delicate condition.”

Lillian pressed a hand against her belly as she took a seat next to Kieran on the bed. The mattress was as hard as a wooden board and the cell smelled like piss and blood.

Lillian wrinkled her nose in disgust.

“How can they keep people in this kind of place? How degrading.”

“Well, this is why they call it a prison cell and not a hotel suite, Princess.”

Kieran’s eyes were drawn to Lillian’s belly.

“The last time I saw you, your belly was barely showing,” he remarked. “He is growing fast and strong.”

“Mm...”

Lillian pressed her lips together. She looked restless.

“I asked Dane Silverback to spare you,” Kieran said. “Who knew that the Silverback family is so ruthless? In the end, the Ironclad Claws pack members have to help each other. Lillian, listen to me.”

Kieran grabbed Lillian’s hands.

“You have to get out of here. Find the father of your baby and stay with him. You kept telling me that you didn’t know who it was, but I know you. You are just trying to protect him, for whatever reason. Now that your family is in dire straits, he should really...”

“Kieran, you are the father,” Lillian blurted out.

“...help you out, what irresponsible man... Excuse me?”

“You are the father of my baby,” Lillian repeated.

“...”

For some time, they only stared at each other in silence. Kieran opened and shut his mouth a few times, not knowing how to say what he wanted to say.

In the end, he only managed to stutter out some unintelligible phrases, “But you said... Another man after me... You met him a few more times... You said that he was the love of your life...”

Lillian grabbed Kieran’s face and cupped it with his hands.

“It’s you. You are the love of my life. It had never been anyone else. You were the only person I slept with. There was no one else!”

A wheezing sound escaped Kieran’s lips. His legs gave out under him and he slumped to the ground.

Only after his knees hit the concrete floor did he snap back due to the pain.

“Hsss!”

“Kieran! Are you alright???”

Kieran held a hand up.

“No. I mean, yes. I am fine. Lillian, you...”

Trembling from anxiety, Kieran reached out and put both hands on Lillian’s belly.

“Am I really? Are you playing with my feelings? Is this really...?”

Lillian was a bundle of tears by then. She nodded fervently while putting her hands on top of Kieran’s.

“I swear by the Moon Goddess. The baby is yours and no one else’s.”

Kieran looked as if he was about to cry and laugh at the same time. He was going to be a father, but this news came out in the most terrible circumstances!

The new Alpha of the Ironclad Claws pack then withdrew his hands and pressed them against his head.

“Oh, Goddess. How terrible. I can’t believe what I have done.”

Pain flashed across Lillian’s eyes. She retreated a few steps while inhaling a deep breath.

“Do you regret it?” She asked. Her heart was laid bare in front of Kieran’s eyes. There was no pretense. Only love laced with pain.

“Do you not want the baby?”

Opposite her, the man’s mouth dropped open.

“That’s not what I meant! Lillian, of course I want the baby! No, I don’t regret having sex with you that day! What I regret is...”

Kieran sighed. He rose to his feet and pulled Lillian into his arms, careful not to press against her belly.

“I was the one who suggested that Madam Lucrethia Woodland send you over to the Infinite Eclipse Pack under the pretense that you are carrying Alpha Ronan’s child.”

Lillian widened her eyes in shock. She shoved Kieran away from her and asked, “Wh... Why?”

Kieran lowered his eyes in regret.

“Your grandmother planned to torture you until either you or the baby died. If I had not come up with the idea, either you die or you will forever be scarred.”

Kieran grabbed Lillian’s shoulders.

“I did it for your sake. If I had known that it was my baby, I... I would have taken you and run away together with you and our baby!”

Lillian shook her head.

“Grandmother would find us. We would not be able to escape...”

“I am so sorry for everything, Lil... I neglected you and our child. It was all my fault.”

“No. No, don’t say that. You wanted to protect me. And I... I wanted to protect you. That’s why I lied to you. I didn’t want Grandmother to throw you into the torture chamber as well. I won’t be able to take it...”

“Oh, sweetheart...”

Kieran bumped their foreheads together.

“I feel so stupid now...”

“Me too...”

Their breaths mingled with each other, and they slowly drew closer.

“I love you,” Kieran whispered.

“I love you too,” Lillian sobbed.

After being separated for months, the two lovers finally found each other again. As their lips met, so did their hearts.