Chapter 6: The Truth Beneath the Blood

When I opened my eyes, Kane was sitting by the bed, his own eyes bloodshot.

The moment he saw me wake, he took my hand.

“Evelyn, where else does it hurt?”

I pulled my hand back and pushed myself out of bed.

I only wanted to find the pieces of my pendant.

Kane caught me from behind, forcing me back onto the mattress.

“You lost too much blood. The healer said you need to rest.”

“Let me go.”

My voice was so cold that even Kane froze.

I looked down at my stomach.

There was no trace of the pup’s scent anymore.

The emptiness inside me was worse than the pain.

Kane noticed where I was looking, and guilt flashed across his face.

“Evelyn…”

“Is my pup dead?”

He went silent.

That silence was enough.

I closed my eyes and turned my face away from him.

For years, I had dreamed of having a child with Kane.

When I finally became pregnant, I had hidden the news because I wanted to leave quietly.

But even after I decided to give up the child, I had still imagined that someday, somewhere, my pup might have a chance at a better life.

Now that choice had been taken from me.

Kane’s fingers tightened around the edge of the bed.

“The healer said there was nothing she could do.”

“The bleeding started after you were pushed down. She tried to save the pup, but…”

“Stop.”

I opened my eyes.

“You don’t have to explain.”

Kane stared at me, his face pale.

“Evelyn, I didn’t know you were pregnant.”

I gave him a bitter smile.

“Would it have changed anything?”

His lips parted, but no answer came.

Of course it wouldn’t.

If knowing about my pregnancy could have changed his heart, I would never have needed to leave in the first place.

The door opened, and a healer stepped inside carrying a small wooden box.

She hesitated when she saw Kane.

“Alpha, there’s something you need to know.”

Kane turned toward her.

“What is it?”

The healer glanced at me before lowering her voice.

“The blood test we performed before the procedure showed something unusual.”

Kane frowned.

“What do you mean?”

“Ms. Hart’s blood carries a dormant Wren lineage marker.”

My eyes snapped open.

The broken pendant.

My mother’s final warning.

The secret she had taken to her grave.

The healer continued carefully.

“It’s not enough to identify her parents yet, but the marker is extremely rare. It appears in only a small number of descendants connected to the old Wren bloodline.”

Kane’s expression changed.

“The Wren bloodline?”

“Yes.”

For the first time since I woke, Kane looked genuinely shaken.

I watched him silently.

Vera had claimed that pendant belonged to her.

She had claimed she was Elder Elias Wren’s daughter.

But if I carried the same bloodline marker, then something about her story was wrong.

Kane looked at me.

“Evelyn, what did your mother ever tell you about your birth?”

I stared at him.

“Why?”

“Because the pendant may not have been stolen.”

His voice dropped.

“It may have belonged to you all along.”

A cold silence filled the room.

For years, I had believed I was an orphan who had been taken in by a kind woman with no connection to the powerful families of Greenridge.

Now, the only clue to my birth had been smashed in front of me by the woman who claimed to be a Wren.

Kane stepped closer.

“Evelyn, let me investigate this.”

I laughed quietly.

“You want to investigate my family now?”

“After you helped her destroy the only thing my mother left me?”

His face tightened.

“I didn’t know.”

“You never knew.”

I looked him directly in the eyes.

“That has always been your excuse.”

Kane flinched.

Before he could answer, his phone rang.

He glanced at the screen.

Vera.

He immediately declined the call.

A second later, another message appeared.

Kane read it, and all the color drained from his face.

“What happened?” I asked.

He didn't answer.

I reached for the phone, but Kane pulled it away.

“It’s nothing.”

I looked at him coldly.

“Then why are you shaking?”

Kane stared at the message again.

Vera had written only one sentence.

“Kane, the council found my bloodline records. They say I’m not Elder Elias Wren’s daughter.”