Chapter 2

I woke up to the smell of the hospital.

I twitched my fingers. Every inch of my bones ached.

Stone lunged forward, tears brimming in his eyes. His voice trembled.

"Master, you're finally awake! You scared us to death!"

"Does anything else hurt?"

Rowan reached out to grab my hand.

He always used those hands to hold me whenever I got hurt.

But I understood now. He never wanted to protect me.

My chest throbbed. I dodged his touch.

"Why were you late?"

They exchanged a glance. They seamlessly slipped on a mask of absolute guilt.

Rowan lowered his head, acting completely remorseful.

"Master, we're too stupid. We recognized the wrong person again."

"By the time we rushed back... thank god they didn't succeed."

I was sick of that excuse.

I spent the last three years soaking in bathtubs until my skin peeled.

I fought through allergic reactions, trying endless layers of makeup.

All just so they could spot me in a crowd at a single glance.

I thought I wasn't trying hard enough.

The truth was, they simply didn't want to.

Stone looked at me cautiously.

"Punish us, Master. We deserve it."

I stared at them for two seconds.

I might have been fooled if I didn't know their language.

I cast my eyes down and pressed my wrist twice.

Two muffled groans echoed in the room a second later.

They doubled over in agony, dropping to their knees and curling into balls on the floor.

"You do deserve it."

I looked down at them with dead eyes. "Any objections?"

They shook their heads, panting heavily.

Stone clenched his fists between gasps. He forced out a broken sentence in the beast language.

"She really is vicious."

"If Hadley was our master, she would never put us through this kind of pain."

Rowan stayed silent, but the aura around him turned colder.

My nails dug into my palms until they almost bled.

This was a punishment designed specifically for contracted beastmen.

Once activated, it felt like thousands of needles stabbing into their bones.

I couldn't bear to press it once in the past three years.

Hadley pushed the door open right at that moment.

"Wren, are you okay?"

She faked a look of absolute concern. She covered her mouth, her eyelashes fluttering.

"Don't worry. All those men have been caught."

Her gaze shifted to the gasping beastmen on the floor. A frown instantly appeared on her face.

"Wren, they're your contracted servants. How could you be so cruel to them?"

"They didn't mean to be late. Beastmen have feelings too!"

"Get out."

My eyes were like shards of ice.

"Mind your own business."

Hadley's eyes instantly welled up with tears.

Rowan and Stone jerked their heads up at the exact same time.

They dragged their shaking bodies half a step toward her.

The sight sent a dull ache through my chest.

I was lying in a hospital bed covered in wounds.

Yet Hadley only needed to squeeze out a single tear, and they would rush to her without a second thought.

A bitter smile touched my lips. I tasted copper in the back of my throat.

"What? Are you going to say you can't recognize your master when I'm lying right here in bed?"

The color drained from their faces. They quickly lowered their heads.

"No, Master. We wouldn't dare."

"Don't make things difficult for them, Wren."

Hadley sniffled. She pulled an invitation card from her bag and held it out.

"I'm the one making you upset. I'll leave you alone."

"I just hope you can make it to my birthday party in three days."

I looked away, my heart swelling with pain.

We shared the exact same birthday.

But the family only ever celebrated hers.

I only contracted these two beastmen because they told me they wanted to stay by my side and build a home with me.

But handing over my heart got me nothing but lies in return.

A chill settled in my eyes. I reached out to take the invitation.

Stone suddenly pushed himself off the floor and blocked Hadley.

"She can't go!"