Chapter 4

I heard a knock on the door but didn’t respond at all.

Alpha Mike entered with a gloomy face, walked to the bed, and looked down at me—lying still as a corpse.

“Anna, why are you being so reckless today? Do you know your sister blames herself deeply for your running away? Can’t you be a bit more mature and stop making everyone worry about you…”

But I didn’t react. My eyes were hollow like a barren desert, lifeless and bleak.

Seeing me unresponsive, Alpha Mike seemed to lose interest.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

The usual me who bent over backwards to please him was now silent like a mute. Even if he was inattentive, he had to realize something was seriously wrong.

He suddenly pulled back the blanket, and the bright red stain on the white sheets came into view, a sharp contrast against my pale, bloodless skin.

“Anna, you’re sick? Why didn’t you tell us?” Panic flooded his usually calm eyes. At that moment, he finally believed what the witch Jery said—that I was suffering from severe psychological trauma.

He gently gathered me into his arms, hands trembling. “I’m sorry. I failed you as your Alpha.”

He offered me a sincere apology.

—

In the bedroom.

Pack doctor gave me a full examination. Though mindful of Alpha Mike’s absolute authority, as a doctor, he still gave him a professional warning.

“Alpha, Luna recently underwent a liver transplant. Now the wound is infected again. Even a strong Alpha werewolf would struggle to survive this, let alone…”

Let alone me—a failed, bottom-rank Omega.

Alpha Mike’s face darkened. “Understood.”

After treatment, my body temperature slowly returned to normal.

My lifeless gaze gradually began to focus. But the moment I saw Alpha Mike by the bedside, I shrank back instinctively, as if I were looking at a monster.

“Why are you here?” I stared at him warily, like he was something terrifying.

Alpha Mike rubbed his sleepy eyes, confused by my sudden rejection. His icy blue eyes instantly chilled.

“I’m your Alpha. You’re sick. If I’m not by your side, where do you expect me to be?”

I didn’t reply, only reached quietly for a syringe on the nightstand—obvious self-defense.

Alpha Mike noticed my grip tightening around the syringe. His face darkened.

“You really don’t recognize me?”

I nodded hard.

Alpha Mike leaned in, his flawless, handsome face right before mine. “Then look at me carefully. Burn my face into your memory. Because from now on, we’ll be living together every day. I don’t want you looking at me like I’m a stranger every time.”

I asked timidly, “You say you’re my mate? Do you have proof?”

Alpha Mike was speechless for a moment. Then he pulled out his phone and showed me wedding photos and videos. “Open your eyes and look carefully. We were bonded under the witness of the Moon Goddess.”

I quietly scooted away from him, obviously rejecting his presence.

“Videos can be faked too.”

Alpha Mike rubbed his temples, clearly exasperated. “Then how do you want me to prove it?”

He probably never imagined that, as the powerful ruler of his pack, he’d one day be stuck proving himself.

“If we’re really mates, then there are plenty of ways to prove it. Like… a child? Or a ring? Maybe some intimate photos?”

Alpha Mike fell silent.

Because, to his embarrassment, he realized he hadn’t given me any of those things, nothing that could prove we were mates. Not then, and not now.

“I’m sorry, Anna. I’ll make it up to you—all of it.”

I snapped, “I knew it. You’re not my mate. My mate would never treat me like I didn’t matter…”

Just then, Lina and my Alpha father entered.

Lina sat in a wheelchair, pushed by my father. As soon as he came in, he started scolding me.

“Anna, how could you be so irresponsible? You’re sick; you should be resting! Why sneak out? You made Alpha Mike worry sick, and now your wound’s infected. Do you know how much trouble you’ve caused?”

I stared at him in confusion. His reprimand triggered something deep inside me, rousing a rebellious fire.

“And who exactly are you to lecture me? Even the parents who gave birth to me never scolded me. Who the hell are you to act like you have the right?”

The aging male werewolf froze.

Apparently, my words struck hard. Not surprisingly, he was my biological father, but he’d never raised me. What right did he have to discipline me?

“Mike, what’s going on with her?” my father asked, puzzled.

“She lost her memory,” Alpha Mike answered stiffly.

My father looked stunned. “So… she doesn’t recognize me as her father because of amnesia?”

Alpha Mike’s gaze grew sharp. “She went to the witch Jery and asked her to erase all memories related to you.”

My father stood still in shock.

Perhaps he finally felt some shame. His expression twisted as he cast me a bitter glance and muttered, “Anna, why would you do that? We’re your family…”

He must’ve thought things were still the same—that I’d feel guilty and apologize if he softened his tone a little.

But I was no longer the same as Anna. I pointed to the door and gave a cold order. “All of you, leave. I want to rest—alone.”

My father, clearly offended by the lack of respect, exploded with anger.

“Anna, is that how you speak to your father? I came here to see you out of kindness, and you’re throwing me out? Is this how a Luna is supposed to behave?!”

I wasn’t about to let him get the last word.

“If you really are my father, then if I lack manners, it’s your fault for raising me poorly. Now, get out. Out. Out!”

Alpha Mike stood up and addressed them calmly. “You should leave. She doesn’t want to see us right now.”

My father’s face turned purple with rage.

Lina wheeled herself over to the bed. Her voice was soft, pleading.

“Sister, I know… Mike asking you to donate your liver to me must’ve made you unhappy.”

At the word “liver,” I became agitated. “What?! A liver donation? Why did I have to donate my liver to you? What about me?”

Alpha Mike looked at me in shock, realizing at last that the liver donation wasn’t as simple as he’d assumed. My resistance, my coldness—it all made sense now.

He warned Lina, “Don’t bring that up in front of Anna again.”

As if that would fix everything.

Lina quickly changed tactics. “Sister, I have a request. Mike and I are truly in love. Please… give him back to me. I can’t go on without him. Please, reject him. Let us be together.”

After she said this, Alpha Mike fell silent.

He looked at me quietly, waiting for my answer.