Tabitha's POVDerek quickly came to my side and wrapped me in his arms. "Are you okay?""Yeah, I'm fine. I just couldn't stand by while someone was being bullied. I just helped out a bit."After explaining, I turned to Lisa. "I can provide evidence of purchasing the dress, including photos of it hanging in my wardrobe at home. Miss Booth, what evidence do you have?"Seeing my earnestness, Lisa could only bluff, "My agent borrowed this dress for me. All the documentation is with her.""Then call your agent over and ask her which atelier she borrowed it from to clear yourself.""She has just left. How am I supposed to find her now?""So you have no evidence, and you're falsely accusing others and inflating prices. It wouldn't be too far off to call it extortion, would it?"Lisa became nervous. "Extortion? Don't make wild accusations. Come on. You have a lot of influence, and I can't afford to cross you. I guess I'm just unlucky."Lisa, of course, wouldn't dare to confront Derek directly
Third person's POVBefore Lisa ventured into showbiz, she was notorious as a troublemaker, always bullying others and never being bullied herself.Although she was a minor figure in the entertainment industry, she was quite adept at seizing opportunities and associating with numerous men.Her focus was solely on making money. Whether she could act or not was not important to her. As long as it could bring in money, she didn't care about the means.However, she hadn't anticip
Derek's POVAlvin looked a bit anxious.After taking a deep breath, he piped up, "If we don't handle it properly, we're gonna be in trouble. Professional hitmen would usually visit the site in advance, carefully planning how to take the target out and deal with the body. They'll never easily expose themselves or leave fingerprints behind."Rolf, on the other hand, is careless, which is why he ended up being the scapegoat."Alpha Derek, that bastard wore gloves, so he left no
Tabitha's POV It was late at night. Just as I was about to fall asleep, my phone buzzed with a notification. After clicking on it, I was shocked to see Lisa's death photo with mosaic applied. In the photo, she was lying in the snow, her face blurred. She was still wearing that dress, which she used as an excuse to make a scene earlier. But the
Derek's POVIt took Tabitha a long time to fall asleep, and I was there soothing her the whole time.Even though she seemed fine lately and showed no side effects, I still felt worried.From the reports on the test subjects, everyone experienced some level of backlash, but Tabitha hadn't shown any signs.That wasn't exactly good news; it just meant she hadn't hit that breaking point yet.Once
Tabitha's POVI fixed my eyes on Derek, who seemed to be lost in thought.After a moment, he cleared his throat and replied, trying to downplay the seriousness, "There's a bit of a problem indeed. It's about Rolf. Lisa's death has caused quite a stir online, and I don't want all this nonsense stressing you out.""Is it very tricky?" I asked with a frown."Not so much. The reason I haven't let PR handle it yet is because we're still gathering evidence. Some shady folks are tr
Tabitha's POV"Tabitha, don't you find it strange that although you've been Luna of the Black Thorn Pack for years, you've never met Alpha Derek's parents?" asked Zola.I nodded, feeling puzzled.She continued, "The root of all the mess is that Alpha Derek's mother, Andrea, isn't Ambrose's fated mate. Word is, Ambrose found his true mate later on but couldn't just reject his Luna. Meanwhile, Andrea resorted to shady means to bear his pup."She thought she could win Ambrose b
Tabitha's POVI felt a bit of pity in my heart. I didn't expect Derek to have suffered so much during his childhood. And the story of his parents was far more than complicated."What about the members of the Greenwood family? How are they doing now?""After Luna Erin passed away, Alpha Elliott suffered a great blow. He's old and has dementia. So, he moved abroad for treatment. He no longer takes care of the affairs of the pack and the family. Alpha Derek is in charge of the pack."
It wasn't until the bamboo flute's melody faded completely that Misha collapsed to the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut.She felt as though she'd lost half her life force, every ounce of strength drained from her body.Initially planning to leave the next day, Misha fell ill that very night.Delirious and raving, she was swallowed by confusion.Back at their quarters, Rolf returned with a face flushed with excitement, eager to recount yesterday's events to Alvin in vivid detail.Gesturing wildly, he said, "You should've seen it—spectacular! Those snakes came pouring in from every direction, like something out of a horror movie. It gave me the creeps just watching."Alvin listened, his brow furrowing with each passing word.Recalling Alma's parting words— "See that you behave" —a nagging sense of unease settled in his stomach. Misha's illness felt anything but coincidental."What're you thinking?" Rolf asked, noti
Rolf was so focused on escaping that he barely had time to marvel at the spectacle unfolding before him."If this isn't a nightmare, I don't know what is", he thought, sprinting for his life.He knew if he fell, he'd be bitten to death by the venomous snakes.Never in his life had Rolf run so fast. He sprinted in the direction of the sound, desperation lending him strength.Up ahead, perched in a peach tree like a guardian angel, sat Hedwig.Her tiny fingers danced over a bamboo flute, its melody ringing in the charged air.To Rolf and Misha, however, the "ding-dong" notes felt like a death knell tolling ever closer.Snakes swarmed from all directions like a rising tide. Rolf knew if this kept up, they'd both end up as snake fodder.Panic clawed at his throat. Without a word to Misha, he unceremoniously dumped her onto the ground.Misha was still disoriented when she was roughly thrown to the ground. Before she could rea
"Agreed," Alvin replied. The memory of Hedwig's earlier glare at Misha sent a shiver down his spine.He had a foreboding that Misha might already be in Hedwig's crosshairs.Given that this was Hedwig's home turf, Alvin worried their group might not stand a chance in a confrontation.This added a layer of anxiety to an already tense situation.Meanwhile, Tabitha remained fast asleep, a serene smile playing on her lips.After a short play with the fawn, a pigeon flew in from outside the cave and landed on Hedwig's shoulder, cooing softly. Hedwig paused at the sound, glancing at Tabitha still lost in slumber.With a moment of hesitation, she quietly rose and tiptoed away, not wanting to disturb Tabitha's rest.Misha, who had always sailed through life with ease, had encountered her greatest challenge in the form of unrequited love.Ever since Derek had rescued her, she had vowed to marry him when she grew up.Throughout her
Hedwig nodded understandingly, her face lighting up with innocent joy.She carefully lowered herself onto the lawn and gently pressed a sweet kiss to Tabitha's cheek, her movements as delicate as a butterfly's wings.Her movements were incredibly gentle, for fear of disturbing Tabitha.Then, she sat quietly by the pool, watching butterflies dance around them—a scene so serene it could have been plucked from a masterpiece painting.Tabitha's exhaustion overwhelmed her, her eyelids growing heavier by the second until she drifted into a deep sleep by the pool's edge.Her long, silk-like hair cascaded down, and without her mask, her porcelain skin glowed.Compared to before, she seemed even more beautiful now, like a sleeping fairy, radiating an enchanting charm.Hedwig stayed by her side without disturbing Tabitha, quietly gathering herbs nearby with focused and skillful movements.The forest creatures adored her—a faw
Misha watched Tabitha and Alma walk away, her anger flaring up again.She glared at the back of Tabitha's head and instinctively touched her red cheek.Growing up, she had never been treated like this. The humiliation filled her heart with resentment."Once Derek's poison is neutralized, I'll make them pay", she vowed silently.Alban, seeing the hatred in Misha's eyes, felt a chill.He knew Misha's background—her family's influence was no secret. He'd brought her here out of concern for Derek's blood type.Having watched Misha and Derek grow up, he was well aware of their temperaments.Given Misha's current state, he feared she would cause more trouble.So, he tried to persuade her again, "Look, things are under control here. It's not proper for a young lady like you to stay. I'll have someone escort you out.""I'm not leaving, Dr. Weaver. I'm staying to take care of Derek!" Misha said stubbornly, turning her head
Misha's eyes welled up the moment she saw Derek awake. She lunged toward him, crying, "I've been so worried!"Derek sidestepped her embrace instinctively and said coolly, "I'm fine. I've delayed you long enough. I need to stay for treatment; you should head back."Misha's jaw dropped in shock.Misha had traveled so far and gone through so much, only to hear Derek tell her to leave as soon as he woke up."I need to care for you—your eyesight's impaired. I've already taken leave," she pleaded."You'll be fine. Rolf and Alvin are here. It's not convenient for you, a young woman, to stay," Derek insisted.Misha stamped her foot in frustration. "What's inconvenient about it? You're not married, and neither am I. Remember when we were on missions together? We took care of each other then, didn't we?"Alma happened to pass by and overhear the conversation, finally realizing that Misha had been the one making advances all along.
Derek jolted awake after an hour of sleep.In a daze, sensing someone beside him, he instinctively pulled them into his arms, exclaiming, "Tabitha, you came for me."Alvin sighed, "Alpha Derek, it's me."Derek fumbled blindly in the air, urgency lacing his voice, "Where's Tabitha? Where did she go?""You were dreaming again," Alvin explained patiently."A dream?" Derek frowned, confusion washing over him.But why did the dream feel so real? So real that he could almost feel the give of Tabitha's skin, recall the touch of her body, and even remember the warmth of her flesh. Her voice still seemed to linger in his ears."Tabitha's probably miles away. She couldn't be here," Alvin added.Derek's heart sank, the joy from moments ago replaced by emptiness. It felt as though he'd found his most precious treasure, only to realize it was just a dream.He bowed his head, a bitter smile tugging at his lips. "Right, how could I rea
At Derek's words, Tabitha was suddenly reminded of his words from years ago, when he had said the person in his dreams was her.She couldn't help but wonder what exactly this scoundrel had done to her in his dreams."Tabitha, hold me," Derek pleaded like a petulant child.Tabitha recalled the early days of their marriage. Back then, Derek was reticent and self-absorbed in bed, rarely showing any emotion or expressing his feelings.She often doubted whether he even liked her, if not for the fact that his actions left her bedridden the next day.Derek had locked all his emotions in an airtight box, allowing no one to peek inside.But over the years, their dynamics had done a complete turnaround.Now, Tabitha buried her feelings deep within, becoming cold and distant, while Derek had transformed into someone unrecognizably vulnerable and open.At this moment, Derek was like an overly affectionate, enthusiastic dog, intimately fami
Tabitha was deeply focused on listening to Derek's heartbeat. Irritated by his question, she simply hushed him with a "Shh" and said, "Don't talk." Her attention was entirely on his heart rate. She had no intention of being distracted by others.After finishing with his heartbeat, Tabitha gently pried open Derek's eyelids for a closer look.His pupils were dull and lifeless, making it impossible to assess the internal damage with the naked eye.It seemed that only after administering the antidote and conducting a professional examination outside could they determine the extent of the eye damage.Tabitha silently resolved that if they could just detoxify him, there would be hope for the gradual recovery of his other organs.At Tabitha's "Shh," Derek obediently fell silent.Despite feeling as though he were in a dream, he cherished this fleeting moment, thinking that even an extra minute with Tabitha would give him more memories to hold onto i