I screamed, yanking myself free with so much force that I slammed hard onto the floor.
However, Raine did not show a shred of concern. Instead, he stepped right over my wrist without hesitation. His voice was cold and sharp.
“Now. You are coming with me to Central Medical Center, and you are going to apologize to Lisa!”
He grabbed my arm and dragged me toward the door without mercy.
My knuckles scraped along the floor, leaving a trail of blood behind me, but he did not even blink.
Our son stood at the doorway, keeping his head down. His eyes were distant and unfamiliar.
“Mom, why do you always have to go against everyone?
“If you don’t say sorry to Aunt Lisa today, Dad and I… we won’t forgive you.”
My inner wolf was collapsing, faster and faster. Pain raged through my mind like wildfire. I could not hear anything clearly anymore.
Raine dumped me at the doors of Central Medical Center.
“You stay right here. You are not going in until Lisa wakes up, and you apologize.”
My consciousness finally gave out. The world went black as I collapsed onto the pavement.
All Raine did was frown. His eyes were full of disgust and irritation.
I did not know how much time had passed.
When I finally woke, the first thing I saw was a kind and familiar face.
It was Sophie, my closest friend.
Her eyes were red and swollen, filled with nothing but concern as she looked at me.
“Sophie…”
My voice was barely a whisper.
Tears rolled off her cheeks and splashed onto the sheets.
“Hannah, when did you get sick? Why didn’t you tell me?”
I reached up and touched her face gently. “I thought you didn’t want anything to do with me.”
Back when Raine and I realized we were bonded wolves, she had been the only one who objected.
She told me Raine was cold, arrogant, incapable of love, and completely unfit to be anyone’s mate.
Yet, I did not listen. I threw myself into that pit anyway.
“It is not that I did not care. I was just mad at you for insisting on marrying someone like him. Look at you now…”
She looked away and let out a sigh. The look on her face was helpless.
“Hannah, if they find a high-match wolf soul, you still have a chance. You can recover.”
I shook my head gently. “It’s too late.”
I knew my condition all too well.
When Raine slammed me into the ground, the pain tore through my wolf form like it was being ripped apart.
There was no way I would survive long enough to wait for another match.
Sophie turned away to wipe her tears. A moment later, she forced a small smile.
“When you are feeling a little better, let’s go down south, to the beach, just the two of us. Sounds good?”
I nodded faintly, quietly promised her.
When I stayed at Central Medical Center, Raine and our son never came to visit.
Just when I thought things might finally calm down, Sophie showed up again.
This time, she wore sunglasses and a face mask, moving quickly and a little strangely.
I was confused. When I was about to ask, she spoke first. “I am having allergies. My skin’s been acting up.”
She was behaving so unnaturally. There was something off about her.
A strange feeling began to stir in my chest.
While she was not looking, I reached out and yanked off her sunglasses.
Her cheek was red and swollen, a patch of fur missing from the back of her head, and several half-healed scars marked her wrist.
In that instant, it felt like my chest was set ablaze with fury.
“Sophie, who did this?”
