Shunned By An Alpha, Cherised By A Lycan

Chapter 247:

“Safe?” His voice dropped to a deadly whisper. “You think she’s safe? We have a pact. That child was mine to claim, mine to protect. And you just handed her over to fate?”

His face twisted in anguish and fury, the weight of betrayal sinking deep into his features. He turned, his eyes wild. “Take me to her. Now.” But the words that followed pierced the dream like a dagger to my heart.

“She’s gone,” my mother choked out. “She was… kidnapped. Taken from the orphanage.”

The Viper Alpha’s face went blank, the rage fading into something more terrifying—utter, hollow devastation. His voice broke. “Then she’s lost.”

The world spun again, colors bleeding into darkness. I felt like I was falling, everything unraveling around me.

I tried to scream, to wake up, to fight the dream’s hold on me. But it was a weight I couldn’t escape. It wrapped around me, binding me to the truth I hadn’t known until now. I wasn’t Jasmine, the child of Luna Anna.

I was someone else. Someone stolen, betrayed, and lied to.

The truth settled into my bones like ice, cold and unforgiving. But then, through the fog of pain and confusion, a voice whispered my name. “Jasmine…”

It was soft, broken, and achingly familiar.

“Jasmine, please, come back to me.”

The darkness trembled, cracked, and I felt warmth seep into my cold, dream-bound body. I followed that voice, that whisper of hope, and the world began to shift.

My eyes fluttered open, the blurred outlines of reality slowly coming into focus. A tear slipped down my cheek as I whispered the only name that tethered me to this world. “Ryder…”

Jasmine’s POV

The world felt distant, blurred at the edges, like waking from a long, fevered sleep. My limbs were heavy, weighed down by an exhaustion that seemed to reach my very soul. The faint scent of pine and the warmth of soft bedding beneath me grounded me, reminding me I was safe—for now.

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I took a shaky breath, my throat dry, and opened my eyes. The dim light of the room sharpened, and there he was.

Ryder. My mate. The man who stole my heart.

He was slumped in the chair beside my bed, his head bowed, strands of his dark hair falling over his face. His jaw was tight, his shoulders rigid, like he was bracing himself against a storm only he could feel. Even in his stillness, I could sense the turmoil raging inside him. His hand was wrapped around mine, his thumb absently tracing gentle circles on my skin. That small, steady touch was the only thing anchoring me to reality.noveldrama

“Ryder…” I whispered, my voice barely audible.

His head snapped up, his eyes wide with shock and relief. For a second, he didn’t move, as though afraid that I might slip away again if he did. Then he leaned forward, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. “You’re awake.” His voice cracked. He squeezed my hand gently, his fingers trembling. “You came back to me.”

I nodded weakly, but the movement sent a sharp pain through my head. His gaze darted over me, worry etched into every line of his face. “Don’t move too much,” he murmured. “Dr. Lee said you needed rest. You’ve been out for days.”

Days. The word hung heavily in the air, but the weight of the dream I’d had pressed down on me even more. The memories clawed at the edges of my mind—my mother, the Viper Alpha, Luna Anna. The betrayal, the lies, the truth I had spent my entire life unaware of. It was all too much, too raw, like an open wound that refused to heal.

Tears welled up in my eyes, blurring Ryder’s face.

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