I clutched the sheet beneath me until my knuckles turned white.
My nails dug into my palms.
I didn’t cry. I just stared at the ceiling.
Footsteps sounded outside. The Chief Healer hurried in, wiping sweat from his forehead.
“Stop! All of you, stop!”
He barked at the Senior Pack Healer preparing for the emergency procedure.
“Alpha Adrian hasn’t broken his Alpha Seal! Who gave you permission to operate?”
“If you defy the Alpha and disrupt Blackthorn Pack’s territorial order, who’s going to answer for it?”
“Put the emergency cart away! We wait for Alpha Adrian’s approval!”
They wheeled the cart into a corner.
My face turned white.
Breathing grew harder.
The relentless cramps had already taken away my last strength to struggle. I felt my wolf’s presence dim, inch by inch, as though she might not survive the night either.
Derek watched coldly.
He took out his phone and filmed ten seconds of me on the bed.
Then he sent the clip to Adrian.
Beneath it, he typed: [Alpha Adrian, the Luna is safe in her treatment room. Focus on your meeting. I’ve got everything under control.]
Less than half a minute later, Derek’s phone rang.
He played the voice message aloud.
Adrian’s voice filled the room.
At first, he was speaking to the healers in Frostvale Territory in the Old Wolf Tongue.
“Give Serena the best Moonstone Pain Ward you have. She’s never fully recovered from the injuries she suffered saving my life. I won’t let her endure a moment of pain. Spare no expense.”
His voice overflowed with tenderness.
Then he switched to the Common Tongue everyone spoke, and every trace of warmth vanished.
“I saw the video. She’s still alive. That’s all that matters.”
“Tell the healers to stop making such a fuss over her. Delivering hurts. She needs to deal with it.”
“I can’t leave. Tell her to grow up.”
My condition was still deteriorating.
The contrast was almost obscene.
The Senior Pack Healer who’d been assigned to deliver my child couldn’t bear it anymore.
He dropped to his knees before Derek and seized his pant leg.
“I’m begging you! The Luna may not survive! Let us invoke the Emergency Override! She’s the Luna of Blackthorn Pack! Are you really going to stand by while her condition gets worse?”
“Get off me!”
Derek shoved the healer aside.
“Are you trying to defy your Alpha? These are the rules!”
The room fell completely silent.
The emergency monitors continued flashing as my strength faded.
My eyelids grew heavy. Deep within my mind, the proud silver wolf who’d once stood tall now lay curled in darkness, too weak to rise. Her breaths became so faint I was afraid she would slip into sleep forever.
Only then did Derek look at my barely responsive body and realize something was wrong.
He reached out to check whether I was breathing.
But footsteps thundered down the hall.
Bang!
The door flew open under a powerful kick.
An elderly man appeared in the backlight, leaning on a cane.
His trembling hand reached toward the bed. His eyes were red.
“Elena, don’t be afraid. Grandpa’s here.”