CHAPTER 13

*First Person's Perspective*

~Lucas~

My fists clenched by my side as I paced back and forth in my office. Slade had crossed the line. I didn't care anymore about whatever twisted reason he had for what he was doing. If he wanted war, then he would get it. I had no intention of backing down now. Not when he hurt one of my own. Maybe I would have let shooting me slide, but this, I can never forgive this. I would make him pay dearly for it

 My pack had already been put through enough, and I wasn't going to let him use Dr Denise whom he was so interested in for whatever reason, I won't let him use her as an excuse to destroy my pack. To disrupt the peace I had fought so hard to maintain

 "I'm going to kill him," I muttered to myself, voice laced with venom.

 Marcus, who had been standing by the window, narrowed his eyes at me. "Slade's a problem, but I think you've got a bigger one right under your nose."

 Samson, sitting quietly across the room, simply grunted in agreement. I shot a glance at them, not bothering to hide my frustration. "What do you mean?"

 "Dr Denise," Marcus said, his tone low but firm. "She's been acting strange. Every time I try to ask her where she's going, she gives some lame excuse or says she's 'too busy.' You need to check up on her. There's definitely more to her than meets the eye" I rolled my eyes at that. Here I was thinking he had something relevant to say

 I scoffed, running a hand through my hair. "You two are being paranoid. She's not hiding anything. She's just not the type to spill everything about her personal life in case you haven't noticed. You're just... making something out of nothing."

 Marcus shot back, crossing his arms. "You sure about that?"

 I didn't answer him. I had more pressing issues at hand that needed solving than to be dealing with him and his shenanigans

"You should think about it, Lucas, two people warning you about something, then there's definitely some truth to it" Samson chirped in. I ignored that too. They soon realized that I was done talking and just walked out of my study, murmuring something under their breaths

A soft knock came on the door, I thought it was Denise, but then it creaked open and she poked her head in. "May I?" She asked and I nodded immediately. "Of course, Anna" I answered with a small smile.

It was very surprising to see her here, ever since Enise was chased out of the pack and put in that asylum, she never showed her face here again. She never even talked to me. She hated me. So seeing here over here was a surprise that I couldn't hide

"I saw Enise" she went straight to the point, no greetings, no formalities. I couldn't blame her though, I deserved everything she was doing to me

"I tried to talk to her, but she denied her identity. She says she's a doctor who you hired to look after Miracle" she explained and I nodded

"Yeah, we also thought same. I particularly thought she was lying to me, but she really isn't Enise, they're two different people with different styles and personalities. It is just a coincidence that they look so much alike" I answered, trying to make her understand that this was just a misunderstanding and coincidence. She stared at me for a while and shook her head

"Are you this gullible? This stupid?" She began and I raised a finger. "Hey, watch your tongue. I am still your Alpha, remember?" I didn't mean that as a threat, I just didn't appreciate when people try to say insulting words to me

"Nope. You ceased to be the day you betrayed my best friend" she sbot and I sighed. "Anna, look...." She raised her palm, signaling that I stopped talking

"Don't utter my name from that stinking mouth of yours" my brows furrowed and she shrugged. "What? You're going to put me in an asylum too? What are you waiting for? Do it. Exile me,.kill me, since that's what you know how to do best" She said and all I did was sigh and said nothing. I didn't know what to say as I knew that not matter what I said, it would not ease the wound in her heart. When she was done talking, she stormed out of the study. I followed from behind. I wanted to take a walk down the street with the hope of clearing my head

 I walked down the hallway, my footsteps echoing in the silence of the house.

As I passed by the living room, I froze. There, sitting on the couch, was Dr Denise,

 She was bent over the table, helping Miracle with her homework, her soft voice guiding the little girl through a problem I couldn't hear.

 The scene before me was normal, even sweet, and yet I felt an eerie disconnect. Something wasn't right. Maybe Anna was right. Maybe I am gullible and stupid to believe this was all just a coincidence.

I stood there for a moment, my eyes fixed on her. The way she smiled at Miracle, the way she acted so natural and at ease, only reinforced my suspicion that something was off.

 There was no hesitation in her movements, no hint of the unease I'd seen when she was with me. She didn't act like someone hiding something - at least, not at that moment. She looked genuinely happy. What if she was really Enise and just put on this guise to come closer to Miracle, what If she was scared that I might hurt her again should I find out her real identity. A lot of questions and possibilities ran through my head that I almost started to believe that she was Enise, posing as someone else

But when she looked up and caught my gaze, she gave me that smile - the same smile I'd seen so many times before

"Hey," she said, her voice soft, but her eyes never left mine. "Didn't think you'll be out by this time"

 I hesitated for a moment, caught off guard by her words. She acted like nothing was wrong. But Anna's questions still lingered in my head.

 She had claimed to be Denise. And that name - Denise - was too conveniently similar to Enise. But then again. Wouldn't she try harder if she didn't want to be traced? She wouldn't want to make it so obvious right?

 I walked into the living room, my gaze flickering from Miracle to Denise

"Are you alright?" she asked, shifting in her seat as if sensing the tension in the air. "You seem a little distant."

I forced a smile, trying to mask my growing unease. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about some things." I stared at her, trying to observe, was there any flaws? Was this acting?

 But There was no hesitation, no flicker of recognition when she saw Anna earlier. I had watched her closely from the cameras. All she did was tell Anna now frustrated she was at every one thinking she was a different person

 

"Lucas," Enise said, standing up from the table. "Everything okay?"

 I paused, my heart pounding. "Yeah, everything's fine. Just... take care of Miracle. I'll be in my office."

 

She nodded, her smile still in place