CHAPTER 6: The Curse

ARIA’S POV

I’d never been in a room this beautiful.

The medical wing of Kael’s mansion looked more like a luxury spa than a hospital. Soft lighting, comfortable furniture, walls painted in soothing cream tones. Even the examination table was padded with something that felt like clouds.

So different from the pack clinic at Crescent Moon, where I’d been treated like an inconvenience every time I needed medical care.

Dr. Sarah Chen moved around me with quiet efficiency, her dark eyes sharp and assessing. She was older than I’d first thought—maybe early fifties—with the kind of competence that came from decades of experience.

“Deep breath,” she instructed, pressing a stethoscope to my back.

I obeyed, trying not to wince. Everything still hurt from the fall down the ravine. My ribs were taped, my wrist wrapped, bruises mottling my skin in shades of purple and yellow.

But I was alive.

That was more than I’d expected three days ago.

Kael stood near the window, arms crossed, watching every movement Dr. Chen made. He hadn’t left my side except when absolutely necessary. Even slept in a chair next to my bed the past two nights, refusing Marcus’s suggestions to rest properly.

The mate bond hummed between us—warm, constant, growing stronger each day. I could feel his worry like it was my own.

“How’s your appetite?” Dr. Chen asked, making notes on a tablet.

“Better,” I admitted. “I actually feel hungry, which hasn’t happened in… months.”

She nodded. “The starvation diet Crescent Moon subjected you to was criminal. We’re fixing that. You’ll eat four meals a day minimum until we get your weight stabilized.”

I tensed. “My weight?”

“Not to lose it,” she clarified quickly, seeming to sense my anxiety. “To get you healthy. Your body is malnourished. That’s different from being overweight.”

The distinction felt important, though I didn’t fully understand why.

Dr. Chen pulled out what looked like a scanner—silver and glowing with faint blue light. “This might feel strange. It’s a magical resonance detector. I’m checking for… irregularities.”

“What kind of irregularities?” I asked.

She didn’t answer, just ran the scanner slowly over my body from head to toe. The blue light pulsed, then suddenly flared bright red over my chest.

Dr. Chen’s expression went very still.

“What?” I sat up straighter, ignoring the pull of sore muscles. “What is it?”

She didn’t respond. Just kept scanning, her face growing paler with each pass. The red light appeared everywhere—my chest, my stomach, my head, even my hands.

Finally, she lowered the scanner and looked at Kael.

“You need to see this.”

Kael crossed the room in two strides. Dr. Chen showed him the scanner’s display screen. I couldn’t see it from my angle, but I watched Kael’s face go from concerned to furious in seconds.

“No,” he said, voice rough. “That’s not possible.”

“I’m afraid it is.” Dr. Chen’s voice was gentle but firm. “The signature is unmistakable.”

“What signature?” I demanded. “Someone tell me what’s happening!”