Jane

Jane's POV 

I stood in front of Alpha Liam’s door, my hand hovering over the handle. Should I go in? Would he want to see me after chasing me out like a dog? Was I ready to face him? 

To be honest, I was mad at him for yelling at me. One minute, he is normal, the next, he is abnormal. He acts like someone with bipolar issues. 

I turned the handle and stepped inside, bracing myself for whatever happens. He was already sitting on the edge of the bed, shirt half-buttoned, hair still damp from a shower. 

His eyes were on me the second I entered. Surprisingly, it was not cold or dark. It was like he was waiting for me to come.

“I'm here to sleep with you,” I said without thinking.

He patted the space beside him. “Sit.”

Now he wants me to sit beside him. What is going on with this man? Did carrying the weight of a pack cause him to have a twisted brain?

I hesitated for just a moment, then crossed the room and sat beside him, not too close, but close enough to feel the heat radiating from his skin.

For a moment, he said nothing. Then his question came. “Who are you, Jane?”

The question made my heart stop. I wasn't expecting him to ask with such calmness. It was like he wanted to know me, the real me.

 “I… I don’t know.”

His head turned slightly, studying me. “That’s not an answer.”

“It’s the only one I have,” I whispered.

“Think deeper, Jane. Who are your parents?” 

“I don't know them,” I answered. “I don't remember anything about them.”

“What happened to you? How did you lose your memory?”

“I’ve tried to remember Alpha Liam. I really have. But every time I reach for something, it’s like the memory slips through my fingers.”

“What about the coffee?” he asked. “Where did you learn the recipe?”

I don’t know where I learned to make that coffee.” I answered frankly. 

“And the book? You felt something earlier, something that wasn't ordinary,” he asked. 

“I don’t know how I knew that book but it felt… familiar.”

He didn’t respond right away. Just stared at the window, his expression unreadable. He was tired of the answers I gave him. 

“I grew up in an orphanage. I was there until elder Thorne took him to his pack. He said he liked the coffee I made for him.”

“Elder Thorne?” he asked as if the name rang a bell. 

“Yes. He is Theo's father. He is in charge of the pack even if Theo is the alpha,” I explained. 

“Have you noticed anything special about yourself?” Alpha Liam asked.

“If being wolfless is a special thing, yes. But if it isn't, no. There's nothing special about me,” I answered, feeling a little sad for myself.

“I've tried to call out my wolf. I tried to connect with it but all my efforts were futile. It’s like there’s a hole in my mind,” I said. “And every day I live around it, not knowing what’s inside.”

His voice came low, almost thoughtful. “What if what’s inside is dangerous?”

I turned my head to look at him. “Then I’d rather know the danger than live in ignorance.”

A long silence passed between us. I thought I had said too much. Maybe my answers got on his nerves again. 

“While you are here, you have two jobs. Be by side every night and find out your past. I don't want to see you wasting time in my house.”

“Can I check out the book?” I asked without thinking.

“Don't you dare. If I didn't give you my permission, don't enter my office. Don't even think of disobeying me, Jane.”

I nodded but deep inside of me, I knew I would find that mysterious book. I don't care what he would do to me if he finds out. I must find that book and get my answers. 

I'm sorry alpha Liam, you are not the only one looking for answers. 

“I wouldn't need your service tonight. You can go,” he said. 

“Are you sure?” I asked, my eye scanning his face for any clue.

“Get out Jane. I hate when you ask me questions,” he snapped. 

I rushed out of his room. I walked back to my room in silence, the air thick with questions I couldn’t answer.

As I slowly undressed, letting the day fall from my shoulders, I thought about the questions he asked me. I reached for the white dress I always wore to bed and wore it. It dropped to just above my thighs, brushing gently against my skin.

I climbed into the bed, curling into the sheets as my thoughts became a jumble of mess. As usual , my thoughts wandered to Alpha Liam, to the strange pull I felt toward him, and to the fact that I felt attached to him in a weird way. 

The fact that he asked me to find out about my past raises suspicions. Who was I before the orphanage? Why did that book feel like it was part of me? Why did everything around Liam feel too familiar?

For the first time in a long time, I want to know who I really was. Who are you, Jane? The question echoed until my breathing slowed and my eyelids grew heavy. And like that, I drifted into sleep.

*****

I was running in the same forest again. The whole place was thick with smoke. Every time I find myself here, I ask myself the same question: what is this place? Why am I here? But I never got answers. 

In the distance, I could see a city engulfed in fire. The buildings were crumbling. Their screams filled the air but yet, I saw no one. 

Not until I saw the boy again. The same boy I saw last time. Instead of wasting time, I shouted, “Hey! Wait!”

He stopped. And for the first time, it was different from the usual one.

I hastened my pace, and my breath caught in my throat as I approached him. The smoke swirled around us, but I could see him clearly now. 

My heart nearly stopped as I saw who it was. 

Liam. The younger version of him. 

How is it possible? What was he doing in the forest? 

“Why are you standing, looking?” he asked, voice low, distant, as if carried on wind. “Let's leave now.”

“To where? Why are we even here?” I asked, stepping closer.

“You don't know?” he asked me, his voice laced with confusion.

“I don't know. Tell me,” I said. 

His lips moved but before words could come out, he cried in pain, gripping his chest tightly. 

Before I could help him, the fire roared louder, and the dream shattered like glass.