Alpha Bladen POV
The knock came before the words.
Sharp. Controlled. Not urgent enough to panic but not relaxed either.
That was how I knew it was not ordinary.
“Come in.”
The door opened slowly.
A healer stepped inside, hesitating just enough to show uncertainty. Behind him stood a guard from the infirmary rotation. His posture was straight, but his eyes weren’t.
Something had happened.
Something he wasn’t sure to say.
“Alpha,” he said, lowering his head slightly.
I didn’t respond immediately.
He cleared his throat and continued speaking.
“It’s one of the recovered wolves,” he said.
That was enough to shift the air in the room.
“He said he remembers something. From before the sickness took hold of him.”
“They all remember something,” I said flatly.
“This one is different,”
