Chapter 3

Rose Murdock's POV

By the time I came back to my senses and quickly hung up the phone, I had already heard more than enough.

There was a sheet of paper lying on the carpet. I picked it up—it was a medical report. The diagnosis read end-stage heart failure. In the patient column, the name written there was Adrian Sanders, the same one I had just heard on the phone.

That was when I remembered the recent news regarding the leader of the pack's most powerful mercenary corps, Orion. He had suddenly announced that he would hand over his authority to his deputy.

So this was the reason—his body was already failing him.

I put the report back in the drawer together with the bottles of pills.

Time passed slowly. Outside, heavy rain began pouring down, and still, he hadn't returned. Had he really gone off to die?

I threw on a coat and ran out into the storm. His car was still parked in the front yard, so he couldn't have gone far. I headed directly to the mall nearby.

The weather was freezing. I searched three floors of the mall, but didn't see him anywhere.

Suddenly, a voice I knew all too well came from behind me.

"Are you following me?" he asked with suppressed anger.

I turned to see Raymond standing not far away. He was glaring daggers at me.

Beside him was Jenna, the daughter of the Shadow Pack Chamber's president—the same man Raymond had recently struck a deal with. Rumor had it that Raymond had even taken Jenna as his foster sister. That president never stopped praising him for being loyal and righteous.

In the end, he simply didn't want to acknowledge me as his real sister.

I held the umbrella tightly. The sting of humiliation rose like a tide in my chest, but I tried my best not to let it show.

"I wasn't following you. I came here for something else."

The anger in his eyes only became more obvious. He snorted. "You've never set foot in this place before. Do you expect me to believe that?"

Before I could answer, I caught sight of a familiar figure behind him.

Adrian was staring at me in silence.

Raymond saw me ignoring him, and his voice grew impatient. "I'm talking to you! Stop following me. That's against the law. And I'm not your family, do you hear me?"

My gaze shifted to the bag in Adrian's hand. Inside was freshly butchered beef, already cleaned and packed.

So he really had gone to buy beef? For some reason, I couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

Raymond's expression shifted, as if he had seen a ghost. The moment his gaze landed on Adrian, his expression changed drastically.

"What the hell is this werewolf doing here?"

I finally pulled my gaze away from Adrian and looked at Raymond.

"I'm here to find my brother," I said calmly.

Raymond was still staring at Adrian suspiciously. His voice snapped with fury as he barked at me. "How many times have I told you? I'm not your brother! Stop calling me that!"

I ignored him. After walking past him, I stopped in front of Adrian.

Glancing down, I saw his boots were dusted with the distinct mud from the riverbank.

He had wanted to die, but hadn't gone through with it. Instead, he had turned around and gone to the market to buy the beef he promised me.

I reached out and gently took the bag from his hand.

"Let's go," I said softly.

Adrian shivered a little. He hadn't even spoken yet when Raymond suddenly burst forward in rage.

"You're going home with him? Rose, are you out of your mind?"

I looked back at him, my voice faint and confused. "This is my brother. Of course I'm going home with him. Didn't you already know that?"

Raymond's expression darkened. His words were stuck in his throat, and for a long moment, not a single word came out.

I held onto Adrian's arm and started moving forward, but Raymond rushed ahead to block our way.

His whole body trembled with fury as he shouted, "You've been away from the villa all afternoon! Don't tell me you really plan on leaving with this stranger. Are you insane? You don't even have a wolf, and you dare go with a stranger? Do you want to end up dead?"