The Child He Questioned

“That child better be mine.”

The words settled into the room like poison.

Cold.

Sharp.

Unforgiving.

For a moment, no one spoke.

Not Mira.

Not the doctor.

Not even me.

I just stared at Alpha Kael, my hand still resting protectively over my stomach, my heart pounding wildly in my chest.

Pregnant.

The word still echoed in my mind like a distant bell.

Pregnant… with his child?

I didn’t remember loving him.

Didn’t remember touching him.

I didn't remember anything at all.

And yet… my body reacted instinctively when he questioned the child.

Something fierce and protective rose inside my chest.

“How could you say that?” Mira snapped suddenly, her voice shaking with anger.

Kael didn’t even look at her.

His cold gaze remained fixed on me.

Unmoving.

Unsoftened.

“I’m asking a reasonable question,” he replied flatly.

Reasonable?

My fingers tightened over the blanket.

His words stung… even though I didn’t understand why.

“I…” My voice trembled. “Why would you think that?”

Kael’s jaw tightened slightly.

His expression hardened.

“Because,” he said slowly, “you have given me plenty of reasons not to trust you.”

The accusation hung heavily in the air.

I felt my chest tighten painfully.

Trust me?

What had I done?

What kind of person had I been… before losing my memory?

I turned weakly toward Mira.

Her face twisted with frustration and disbelief.

“Don’t listen to him,” she muttered bitterly. “You never betrayed him. Not once.”

Kael’s eyes darkened instantly.

“Careful, Mira,” he warned coldly.

But she didn’t back down.

“Someone has to say it,” she shot back. “You’ve treated her like dirt for years, and now you stand here accusing her while she’s lying in a hospital bed?”

Silence followed.

Heavy.

Dangerous.

I held my breath, unsure what would happen next.

Kael finally shifted his gaze toward Mira.

Slow.

Sharp.

Intimidating.

“You forget your place,” he said quietly.

Mira flinched slightly—but didn’t move.

And for the first time… something inside me stirred.

Not fear.

Not sadness.

Anger.

A quiet, unfamiliar anger.

“Stop…” I whispered weakly.

Both of them turned toward me instantly.

The room felt too tense.

Too heavy.

“I don’t understand anything,” I continued softly. “You’re arguing… talking about trust… betrayal… but I don’t remember any of it.”

My voice shook slightly.

Fear crept into my chest again.

“Please,” I whispered. “Just tell me the truth.”

Silence followed.

Long and suffocating.

Kael stared at me as if searching for something hidden beneath my skin.

Lies.

Deceit.

Weakness.

But all he found was confusion.

Finally, the doctor cleared his throat.

“I suggest we give the patient some rest,” he said carefully. “Stress is dangerous during early pregnancy.”

Pregnancy.

The word made my stomach twist again.

Kael’s gaze dropped briefly to my stomach.

His expression tightened.

Unreadable.

“Fine,” he said shortly.

He turned toward the door.

Relief washed over me instantly.

But before he stepped out, he paused.

Without turning back, he spoke again.

“You will return to the packhouse once you’re discharged.”

Not a question.

An order.

My chest tightened slightly.

Return… to him?

To that cold voice?

To that strange life I didn’t remember?

Fear prickled beneath my skin.

And then—

He left.

The door shut behind him with a quiet click.

The tension in the room dissolved instantly.

Mira let out a shaky breath.

“I swear, one day I’m going to throw something at his head,” she muttered under her breath.

A small, weak laugh escaped my lips before I could stop it.

The sound surprised both of us.

Even me.

Because for the first time since waking up…

Something felt almost normal.

Almost human.

“You’ve always said that,” Mira added softly, smiling faintly.

I blinked slowly.

“Have I?”

Her smile faltered slightly.

“Yes,” she whispered.

Sadness flickered across her face.

“You used to laugh more,” she added quietly.

Used to.

That word hurt.

Because I didn’t remember that girl.

The one who laughed.

The one who loved.

The one who lived.

I felt like a stranger inside my own body.

“Tell me…” I whispered.

Mira leaned closer immediately.

“What?”

“What was I like… before?”

The question lingered between us.

Heavy.

Fragile.

Mira hesitated.

As if choosing her words carefully.

“You were kind,” she said finally.

My chest tightened slightly.

“You always put others first,” she continued. “Even when they didn’t deserve it.”

Her eyes glistened faintly.

“You loved your pack… even when they didn’t love you back.”

Something twisted painfully in my chest.

Loved… but not loved back?

Why?

“What about him?” I asked quietly.

Mira stiffened slightly.

Her jaw tightened.

“You loved him the most,” she admitted bitterly.

My stomach dropped.

Loved… him?

Alpha Kael?

The man who questioned my child without hesitation?

Who looked at me like I was a burden?

That didn’t make sense.

Why would I love someone like that?

A strange heaviness settled deep inside my chest.

As if my heart remembered something my mind refused to.

Suddenly—

A sharp pressure formed in my head.

I gasped softly.

My fingers clutched the edge of the bed.

“Aria?” Mira asked urgently.

The pressure grew stronger.

Hotter.

Like something pushing from inside my skull.

And then—

A sudden flash.

Dark forest.

Moonlight shining through tall trees.

Cold air brushing against my skin.

Running.

Fast.

Free.

A low growl echoed somewhere nearby.

Deep.

Powerful.

Not frightening.

Familiar.

My breath caught in my throat.

Another flash.

Silver eyes glowing in the darkness.

Watching.

Waiting.

Protecting.

Then—

Pain shot through my head like lightning.

I cried out softly, clutching my temples.

“Aria!” Mira shouted. “Doctor!”

The images vanished instantly.

Gone.

Like smoke slipping through my fingers.

I gasped for air, chest heaving violently.

“What… what was that?” I whispered shakily.

Fear crawled along my spine.

Mira stared at me with wide eyes.

Her face was pale.

“You saw something?” she asked quietly.

I nodded weakly.

“A forest…” I whispered. “And… eyes.”

Silver eyes.

Watching me.

Waiting.

Something deep inside my chest stirred again.

That same faint warmth.

Soft.

Protective.

Alive.

The doctor rushed back into the room moments later.

“What happened?” he asked urgently.

“She had a vision,” Mira said quickly.

The doctor frowned slightly.

“Vision?”

I swallowed nervously.

“I saw… a wolf,” I whispered.

Silence filled the room.

Heavy.

Uncomfortable.

Mira’s expression shifted slowly.

From fear…

To confusion.

Then—

To shock.

“That’s impossible,” she whispered faintly.

My heart pounded faster.

“Why?” I asked weakly.

Her lips parted slowly.

As if she didn’t want to say the words.

But I couldn't stop them.

“Because…” she whispered carefully.

“You never had a wolf.”

Silence fell.

Heavy.

Unbelievable.

Impossible.

My fingers trembled slightly against the blanket.

No wolf?

But I saw one.

Felt one.

Heard one.

Then—

Deep inside my chest…

Something moved.

Soft.

Slow.

Alive.

Like a sleeping creature turning in its rest.

My breath caught sharply.

Di

d I imagine that?

Or…

Was something inside me… waking up?

And for the first time—

Fear wasn’t the only thing growing inside me.

Something else stirred.

Something ancient.

Something powerful.

Something that refused to stay silent any longer.