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Chapter 4

Autor: Hyacinth
Ivy underwent treatment for three full months. At the beginning of winter, the pack healer finally confirmed that her wolf had awakened again. Her readings had nearly returned to normal, and from then on she would need only a monthly examination.

I went with her to the Regional Pack Clinic on the day she received the news. Ivy had lost weight, but the color had returned to her face. Adrian left to collect the next stage of her treatment plan while she and I waited in the corridor.

"Wren." Ivy took my hand. "Did something happen between you and Adrian?"

I stared at her.

"His temper has been awful lately," she said. "Even the Beta checks every report three times before going into his office. Everyone is afraid one wrong sentence will set him off."

I said nothing.

Ivy tightened her fingers around mine. "I know he told you to move to the West District. I already confronted him about it. Blackwood adopted you, which means this will always be your home. Once I'm Luna, I won't let anyone drive you away."

I covered her hand with my own. "Ivy, I'm twenty-two. I need a life of my own. Besides, I'm preparing to go to Southern Pack. The project begins next spring. I'll leave then."

Her eyes widened. "Southern Pack? Where exactly? For how long?"

"I'll join an interpack trade team near the southern border and handle accounts and cargo settlements. It may be three years. It may be five."

Her eyes immediately filled. "That's so far away."

"I know."

"Promise me you'll take care of yourself. If anything happens, you tell me. Leaving Blackwood doesn't mean you have to carry everything alone. Do you understand?"

"I do."

She wiped her eyes and suddenly brightened. "Then let me introduce you to someone. My cousin on my mother's side is studying at Northern Pack Academy. He's kind, and he has no questionable relationships."

I shook my head. "No, thank you."

"Why not? If you're going that far, you should have someone reliable beside you."

After a brief hesitation, I told her the truth. "I already have someone traveling with me."

"What? When did that happen?"

"We met while preparing for the southern project. He works on the trade team too. We'll go together next spring."

Ivy's face lit up. "That's wonderful. I have to tell Adrian. We should meet him first, just to make sure he isn't taking advantage of you."

"That isn't necessary."

Before I could stop her, she rose. "There he is."

Adrian approached with the treatment plan in one hand. His eyes moved first to Ivy's face, checking for any sign of discomfort. Then they settled on our joined hands and darkened slightly.

"What are you discussing?" He put an arm around Ivy's shoulders. "You look excited."

Ivy looked up at him. "I offered to introduce Wren to someone. Guess what she said."

Adrian glanced at me with complete certainty. "She refused."

"She did refuse."

"Of course." His tone was indifferent. "Since Blackwood adopted her, she's followed me everywhere. She wouldn't even live in the school dormitory. What makes you think she would leave with another man?"

Ivy laughed and shook her head.

"You guessed wrong this time. Wren already has someone traveling with her. Next spring, they're leaving for Southern Pack together."
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  • I Returned You to the Woman You Loved   Chapter 10

    Adrian arrived in Southern Pack four days after my name disappeared from Blackwood's roster.I was leaving a meeting at the port when his scent reached me through salt, fuel, and rain. My wolf recognized him at once. She did not run forward. She merely lifted her head, alert to an Alpha who no longer had authority over us.He stood beyond the security gate in a dark coat creased from travel. He looked exactly like the man I remembered, except for the exhaustion carved around his eyes."Wren."I asked the guard to let him through, then led him to an empty conference room. The walls were glass. Employees passed outside, and cargo ships moved slowly beyond the harbor windows.Adrian remained standing. "You joined Southern Pack.""Yes.""Permanently.""That is what membership means."His jaw tightened. "I thought the project was temporary. Three years, perhaps five. You said you would come back.""I said I might be away for three or five years. I never promised to return.""You told Ivy th

  • I Returned You to the Woman You Loved   Chapter 9

    In winter, Elliot returned north with a shipment of dried seafood and longan products. Before leaving, he asked whether I wanted him to take anything to Blackwood.I hesitated. "A box of dried lychees for Ivy."He selected a fresh package from storage and wrapped it carefully. "Only this?""Yes."He nodded and put it with his luggage. A few steps away, he turned back."If the Blackwood Alpha asks about you, what should I say?""Tell him I'm well."Elliot smiled. "Understood."He returned two weeks later carrying Ivy's letter and a black jewelry case. Dark metal protected the corners, and pale gold velvet lined the inside. A pair of white jade bracelets rested there, almost translucent beneath the light. Two words had been engraved inside each one.Be safe.Ivy explained in her letter.Adrian took hours to choose them. He sat in a jewelry store in the northern district and made the staff show him everything they thought would suit you. I told him you never wear bracelets. He said it did

  • I Returned You to the Woman You Loved   Chapter 8

    In early autumn, Southern Pack was struck by an unusually violent storm. Wind broke a heavy branch from the longan tree. Pale wood showed at the wound, sap seeping through before the rain washed it away.I crouched beneath the covered walk and dragged fallen branches out of the courtyard. Water poured from the roof in a solid curtain and struck the stones with a hard, constant roar.Without warning, my heart seized. It felt as though an invisible fist had closed around my chest.That night, I dreamed of my previous life again.Winter had covered Blackwood in snow. I stood outside the pack house wearing only a thin sweater and damaged shoes. One old canvas bag held everything I owned.Adrian stood above me on the steps. His face was pale, and his lips trembled, but his golden eyes contained only hatred."Leave Blackwood.""I didn't plan that night.""You disgust me, Wren."Pack guards pushed me from the steps. I landed in the snow, and the bag spilled open. Letters I had never sent scat

  • I Returned You to the Woman You Loved   Chapter 7

    Spring arrived early in Southern Pack. The Trade Alliance occupied a three-story building near the western port. Its front floors contained offices and meeting rooms for merchants from different packs. Apartments for visiting employees stood behind them.Elliot helped me secure a room overlooking the shared courtyard. A tall longan tree grew at its center, its glossy crown shading half the stones below.Within two weeks, I understood the Alliance's ledgers and primary routes. My days settled into a rhythm. I reconciled accounts in the morning, inspected cargo at the port in the afternoon, and studied advanced business courses at night.Southern Pack was warm, damp, and full of insects. I hung a bundle of repellent herbs from a local healer beside my window and fell asleep each night to the faint scent of leaves.Two freight coordinators lived in nearby apartments. Mason and Luis had been born in Southern Pack and spoke with accents so thick I initially understood only half their jokes.

  • I Returned You to the Woman You Loved   Chapter 6

    On December seventeenth, I moved into the West District apartment. Everything I owned fit into four boxes: two of clothes, one of books, and one of ordinary necessities.Since burning the old letters and keepsakes, possessions had lost much of their power over me. I left behind anything I did not need. I carried only what would serve the life ahead.While packing the last box, my hand struck the corner of an old workbook. Adrian had used it when he taught me bookkeeping. The cover had faded, and the edges curled. Inside were the crooked columns I had written at fourteen and his corrections in red ink.I turned two pages, closed it, and placed it with my books.Adrian stood outside the pack house as the movers loaded the truck. He wore a black wool coat and his usual unreadable expression. Ivy stood beside him in deep red, still pale after treatment, both hands wrapped around a warm cup."Come back for dinner when you can," she said."I will."Before climbing into the truck, I turned an

  • I Returned You to the Woman You Loved   Chapter 5

    Adrian's fingers tightened around the treatment plan.He said nothing at first. He only looked down at Ivy.She was still smiling. She patted his arm lightly. "Wren is grown now. She's leaving Blackwood with someone else. As her brother, don't you have anything to say?""Yes." His voice sounded calm. "That's good."His gaze passed over Ivy's shoulder and came to rest on me. I kept my eyes lowered. From the beginning of the conversation to the end, I did not look at him once."I'll take you home," he told Ivy, folding the treatment plan and putting it away. "The healer said not to let you tire yourself."Ivy agreed, then turned to wave at me. "Dinner with us tonight, Wren.""All right."The elevator doors slid shut. My reflection vanished from the polished metal, and Adrian did not speak again.That night, after Ivy fell asleep, he sat alone in his study. Pack reports had been open on his desk for nearly an hour, but he had not absorbed a single line.Wren already had someone traveling

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