Chapter 4

Ashley’s P.O.V.

I drifted in and out of consciousness, unable to make sense of the voices around me. It was like someone was screaming at the top of his lungs to keep me awake. But the warmth of darkness lured me into sleeping, embracing my wounded existence.

“The patient is weak, malnourished, and traumatized. How is she alive?”

These incoherent murmurs resounded in my ears as I woke up to softness slowly. The smell of medicines and bleach in the air immediately made me aware of my surroundings. I was in the hospital. But how?

The medical facilities were nonexistent in rogue packs; injuries were the sign of weakness there. So, after years of cold and rot, how could I be in a proper hospital?

My eyelids fluttered, heavy as stone, but the fluorescent light over my face stabbed into my skull like a blade. I jerked up, trying to sit and check my surroundings. But the pain tearing through my bones was sharp enough to make me gasp. My head spun as the pieces of memories came crashing to my mind in bits.

The assault, punishment, attack and ... Vincenzo?

He was back!

The truth of his return bloomed in my chest like poison, overwhelming me. I looked around as the horrifying facts related to his name flipped my heart. But a female in a doctor’s gown placed her hand on my shoulder, gently pushing me down.

“Relax. Don’t move.”

That lady doctor in her late thirties smiled professionally, although her eyes were as cold as steel.

“You are safe here.”

Her assurance made me chuckle, I spoke bitterly.

“Someone like me is never safe!”

The doctor didn’t say anything and checked my vitals with a nurse, busy in her work. So, I asked her for more elaboration.

“Can you please tell me where I am?”

She raised her head and replied sharply. “It’s an emergency room!”

Obviously, it was a hospital ward. But where?

My heart thundered in my ears as the voice in the back of my mind screamed suspicion, alarming me for an unexpected danger. The doctor’s response was the last nail in the coffin and as she spoke.

“You are in the Eastern Gardens Pack’s general hospital. Alpha brought you here!”

What?

The cleanliness, facilities, and a female doctor, I should have guessed it earlier that I was at a proper pack, not some temporary camp for slaves. No one would spend such money for free labor.

However, the mention of the Eastern Garden pack dried the blood coursing through my body, rendering me speechless. My brain was unable to resolve the mystery of why Vincenzo took me here. Wasn’t he the one who banished me from my homeland, disregarding the fact that I was his soulmate, fated to share an eternity with him?

It seemed that the doctor read the queries dancing in my mind and answered them, sparing me from unnecessary trouble.

“Rogue King is dead, so Alpha freed all the branded slaves from the rogue pack. From now on, all of them will live in our Enchanted Gardens pack.”

She made it crystal clear that I wasn’t a special case, and if it wasn’t for other pitiful slaves’ suffering, he would never let me step on his land. Well, I was also not interested in staying in the pack of my ex-mate. Anywhere else would be better than his charity.

Thinking about him, my heart stuttered, pounding against my rib cage. As Ivory also woke up, I could feel Vincenzo’s presence, like an old wound aching badly. It was a new addition to my agony, worsening it with every passing second.

But after years of misery, one thing was confirmed: I wanted nothing to do with Vincenzo any longer. He was the only man I swore to loathe!

Removing the quilt from my body, I pulled the IVs from my hands to leave. But that doctor stopped me.

“Wait! The doctors’ panel is here with your test results.”

A team of experienced professionals arrived and greeted the lady doctor. They discussed my case like I wasn’t in the room.

“A twenty-three-year-old female was brought to the ER for a brand wound on her back and several silver burns. She is anemic ...”

Dr. Thomas described my condition using complex medical terms, running me out of patience. I cut him off.

“I am aware of what’s wrong with me. Thank you so much.”

Judging from the doctors’ cold behavior, it dawned on me that nothing had changed in this pack in five years. They still hated the traitor who betrayed the pack.

So, there was no need to stay here and create more problems for them. They weren’t obliged to heal criminals.

I sat up and swung my legs down the bed to stand up, ignoring the pain in my body. But Dr. Thomas’s voice froze me to my spot.

“You need to hear my recent diagnosis. It’s related to your rejection half a decade ago.”

He threw my world into chaos with his statement. “You have been suffering from a rare disease tied to the severed bond, Ashley. We have only read about it in the history books, but you are the first case I am seeing in my career.

In simple words, what you have is a weakening at the cellular level. Your body cells are decaying with no considerable amount of new cell’s production.”

Ivory lost her ability to shift after the rejection, becoming a dormant wolf. And life in the rogue pack was so tough that I couldn’t pay attention to anything besides survival. The agony was another name of my life there.

My blood ran cold as he explained the reason for my illness and reached the treatment plan,

“Normally, a bond is ended after or before completing the marking ritual, severing the red threads of destiny. But your case is unique.

Only Alpha marked you and then rejection happened, defying the laws of nature. So, this odd disease has turned your wolf into a kitten.

You need to return to your Alpha mate and stay with him to complete the bond; otherwise ...”

“What?”

An startled scream escaped my mouth as I shouted panicking. “What kind of remedy is this? Aren’t you a doctor?

You know what, leave it!

I will continue to live like before.”

Five years had passed in pain, and I was alive, so this disease didn’t sound as deadly to me. But Dr. Thomas’ serious response took me by surprise.

“If you don’t go back to your mate, I am afraid you have only six months to live, Ashley."

The news of my approaching death sent shivers down my spine, turning my mouth sour. Shaking my head, I cursed my dark fate.

“So, I would die without Vincenzo? Perfect!”

The bond which had thrown my world into chaos was back to smack me hard on my face. No one would be unluckier than me in this entire world. Instead of getting a chance to start my new life, I was yanked to my painful past, sprinkling pepper on the lacerations deep on my soul. It was impossible for me to even imagine living in Vincenzo’s pack after everything.

No!

I had to do something before it was too late!

Taking a deep breath, I calmed my racing heart and faced the doctors. My teary voice sounded shakier than I intended it to be, as I requested.

“Please do me a favor and don’t inform your Alpha about it. I can’t ...”

But before I could plead for their mercy, the door was flung open, assaulting my senses with the mouthwatering scent of pinewood. My heart stumbled over its rhythm as Vincenzo’s mighty figure appeared before my sight.

His burning glare was fixed on me as he commanded.

“What are you trying to hide from me?”