Chapter 2

The next morning, dark circles under my eyes, I brought Mira Bennett, the local medical liaison, back to the clinic.

Seeing me at the door, Ava's lip curled in displeasure. "Why are you here again?"

I didn't bother with her and walked straight inside. My patients were what mattered right now.

To my shock, there wasn't a single patient left in my clinic.

The smell of disinfectant had all but vanished, replaced by something richer and more complex.

Scented candles, warm milk, some kind of expensive wood furniture polish. It all hung thick in the air.

Four strangers occupied the emergency ward. A middle-aged couple didn't even look up when I walked in.

Judging by their features, they had to be Ava's parents.

The other two wore white coats and bustled around organizing luggage. They were clearly guards hired by Ava's family.

It wasn't just the emergency ward. The observation rooms and the on-call suite had all been converted into a private maternity wing.

Ava's still-dripping laundry was draped across the examination equipment I'd spent over three hundred thousand dollars on.

The medications and folding cots I'd prepared for neutral-status patients had been shoved into a storage closet.

Further down the hall, someone had even taped a sign to the on-call room door reading "Private Security Station."

My personal belongings were dumped in a careless pile. Muddy footprints stamped across patient files. My medical field kit had been repurposed as a coffee table, covered in coffee rings and grease stains.

I thought I'd lose my mind. "Who gave you permission to touch my clinic?! Where are my patients?"

Ava's mother, Carmen Castillo, was in the middle of draping the Castillo family crest over mine on the wall.

The shouting finally got her attention. "The patients have been sent away. My daughter is about to give birth. You expect her to share a ward with all sorts of strangers? What if something went wrong?

"I have to think about my daughter's safety."

As she spoke, she reached up and took down the plaque from my clinic wall, the one that read "Werewolf Council Neutral Clinic."

Panic shot through me as I thought of my patients.

Mira stepped forward. "Ma'am, this clinic's mandate covers cross-pack and unaffiliated werewolves. It can't be commandeered by a single family."

Ava's father, Marco Castillo, rose from his seat with an unhurried air and lifted the folder in his hand.

I snatched it from him. Inside was a purchase invoice for medical equipment and supplies.

The date was yesterday. The name on the order was Ronan's.

Something about this invoice looked off. It was different from the ones I usually filed.

Before I could think it through, Marco spoke up.

"Ronan is the Alpha of the North District. This clinic has always been his. From now on, we'll only be treating patients from packs we approve."

"What gives him the right to take over? This is my clinic!"

Marco smiled. "Little lady, have some self-respect. Carrying on like this over a man who doesn't want you? No man is going to like that.

"You say this clinic is yours, but Ronan's badge has a Council registration number on it."

He tilted his head, jerking his chin toward the stairway.

Ronan was coming down the stairs, and pinned to his chest was the Council-issued Cross-Pack Physician badge that belonged to me. The silver insignia gleamed in the sunlight.

He turned the badge over slightly, showing the registration number on the back to Marco, Carmen, and Mira. "The Council has transferred the clinic to me. I'm the one in charge here now."

I'd polished that badge more times than I could count. The number engraved on its back was MD-NA-0742, issued by the Council the year I graduated from medical school.

That was where my dream began. The thing I'd devoted my entire life to.

My fingertips went numb. I pointed at Ronan, my eyes burning red.

"Take it off. Now."