OWNED BY THE BIKER KING

Chapter 20

Ryder carefully laid Elena’s limp frame onto the center of the expansive mattress. She remained unconscious—her face pale, her breathing shallow, looking heartbreakingly fragile against the dark silk sheets. For the first time in a very long while, a cold, unfamiliar sensation gripped Ryder’s chest. Something completely beyond his ironclad control.

Worry. Raw, suffocating worry.

Without even realizing it, his large hand reached out and gently enveloped her cold, trembling fingers.

The master suite quickly filled as the rest of the family trailed inside. Ryder’s mother stood closest to the edge of the bed, her elegant features twisted in deep maternal anxiety. Beside her stood Marcus, his sharp eyes fixed intently on the unconscious girl. Near the doorway, Luca and Drayton stood in absolute, uncharacteristic silence.

Nobody mentioned work. Nobody brought up corporate deals or street territories. At that moment, none of the empire they had built seemed to matter.

Ryder’s mother had already summoned their trusted family doctor, and the air in the room grew heavier with every agonizing minute. They simply watched Elena, holding their breath.

Ten minutes later, a soft knock echoed from the heavy mahogany door.

“The doctor has arrived, Madam,” a maid announced quietly, stepping aside to let a young, sharply dressed man enter.

He carried a black medical kit, his expression composed. But the split-second his eyes landed on the pale girl lying on Ryder Kane's bed, his entire body froze.

It was a micro-expression—a fraction of a second where his pupils dilated in sheer shock. Then, with terrifying speed, his professional mask snapped back into place. No one noticed the brief lapse.

Except him.

Elena. His mind screamed the name. What on earth is she doing inside this fortress?

Ryder’s mother immediately stepped forward, breathlessly explaining the chaotic chain of events that had led to the collapse. The young doctor listened intently, nodding slowly before stepping up to the bed to begin his examination.

After several minutes of checking her vitals and pulse, the doctor finally stepped back, adjusting his stethoscope.

“Physically, she is fine. Her vitals are stabilizing,” he announced.

A collective wave of relief washed over the family.

However, the doctor’s expression remained deeply guarded. “But... I firmly believe something triggered her emotionally. A psychological shock.”

The room became dead quiet again.

“What exactly do you mean, Doctor?” Marcus Kane asked, his deep voice cutting through the silence.

The young doctor glanced down at Elena’s peaceful face. “Sometimes, when a human being experiences an immense, unspeakable trauma, the mind constructs walls to protect itself. A defense mechanism. Certain core memories become deeply buried.”

Ryder’s brow furrowed, his grip tightening on Elena's hand. “And when those buried memories are violently triggered?”

The doctor let out a heavy sigh. “It causes severe emotional and neurological stress. The brain essentially short-circuits to force a shutdown. For now, avoid putting any psychological pressure on her.”

Ryder’s mother nodded, her heart aching. “Will she be okay?”

“She needs absolute rest,” the doctor offered, forcing a polite smile. “Let her brain recover and piece things together at her own pace.”

After answering a few specific queries from Luca, the doctor gathered his equipment.

As they reached the massive double doors of the mansion, Marcus Kane suddenly stopped, his eyes narrowing slightly at the young practitioner. “Where is your father, Dr. Julian? I expected him to answer the emergency call personally.”

The young doctor offered a seamless smile, bowing his head politely. “My father had an unexpected crisis at the central hospital today, sir. He asked me to take over the house call on his behalf.”

“Ah, I see,” Ryder’s mother murmured kindly.

After offering his final goodbyes, Dr. Julian turned and walked down the marble steps into the fresh afternoon air.

The moment he slammed his car door shut and locked himself inside the cabin, the polite smile vanished completely. He became deathly quiet. One hand gripped the steering wheel tightly while the other tapped a frantic rhythm against the dashboard.

Reaching into his jacket pocket, he grabbed his encrypted smartphone and dialed a familiar number.

“Hello?” a deep, gravelly voice answered on the other end.

“You are absolutely not going to believe who I just saw,” Julian whispered, his voice tense and urgent.

“What? Julian, stop playing riddles.”

The doctor let out a shaky breath, staring at the imposing gates of the Kane estate in his rearview mirror. “Elena.”

Silence. A heavy, suffocating silence stretched over the line.

Then—

“What did you just say?” His brother’s voice was suddenly cold, dangerously sharp, and completely awake.

“I’m deadly serious,” Julian hissed, hitting the gas as the security gates rolled open. “At first, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. But after examining her face up close... it was definitely her. It was Elena.”

Another agonizing pause followed on the line.

“Where exactly did you see her, Julian?”

“Inside the master bedroom of Ryder Kane’s heavily fortified mansion.”

The silence that followed was even longer, thick with rising rage.

“You’re f*****g joking.”

“I wish to God I was,” Julian muttered, his expression darkening into a mask of grim reality. “And brother... she just collapsed from a severe psychological memory trigger. The Kanes are protecting her.”

Meanwhile, back inside the silent estate, hours bled into late evening.

Only Ryder remained in the bedroom.

He sat motionless on the leather chair pulled flush against the side of Elena’s bed. His intense gaze drifted toward the heavy photo album resting on the nightstand.

Slowly, deliberately, he reached out and pulled the album into his lap.

The old photograph stared back at him under the dim bedside light. Three young, fiercely protective boys. And standing right beside them, laughing beneath a long-forgotten summer sun, was a little girl.

Nana.

Ryder’s eyes slowly shifted away from the glossy paper, landing squarely on Elena’s pale face resting on his pillow. The striking, unyielding resemblance was entirely impossible to ignore.

The bedroom door clicked open silently. Luca appeared, his tie loosened, looking exhausted.

"You should get some rest, Ryder," Luca stated quietly. "Dad and I can take the next watch."

Ryder didn't look away from Elena’s face. "I'm fine."

Luca let out a slow sigh. "You've been sitting in that exact chair for nearly seven hours straight."

Silence stretched between them before Ryder asked in a low voice, "Do you think it's really her, Luca? Do you think the universe is that twisted?"

"I don't know," Luca answered honestly, his expression grim.

But deep down in the darkest, most fiercely guarded corner of his soul... Ryder desperately wanted it to be true. He wanted her to be his long-lost star.

Luca slipped back out, closing the door softly.

Then suddenly—

Elena’s slender fingers twitched slightly against the dark fabric.

Ryder’s posture immediately straightened, his entire body locking into absolute attention. Her fingers twitched again, a soft, pained whimper escaping her parted lips.

A few seconds later, her eyelashes fluttered before her eyes groggily opened. For a disoriented moment, confusion filled her hazy vision as she stared at the high ceiling.

“Elena,” Ryder called out, his deep voice uncharacteristically soft.

Her gaze snapped sideways, locking onto his obsidian eyes. Ryder quickly reached for the crystal pitcher on the nightstand, pouring a fresh glass of water before carefully sliding his large arm behind her back, helping her sit up against the pillows.

“Slowly,” he murmured, holding the glass to her lips.

Elena took small sips of the cool liquid, her hands visibly trembling.

“How are you feeling?” Ryder asked, setting the empty glass aside.

She lowered her gaze. “My head... it feels like it's about to split open.”

Ryder nodded grimly. “The doctor said it would. You experienced a severe psychological shock.”

For a long moment, a heavy silence linger between them. Then, quietly, his voice a low, gravelly demand, Ryder asked the ultimate question.

“Do you remember anything, Elena? From the photograph?”

Elena froze completely.

Her breath hitched in her throat as a wave of profound, devastating realization crashed over her features. Large, silent tears slowly welled up in her eyes, spilling over her pale cheeks.

A single, shaking name slipped from her trembling lips in a broken whisper.

“...Nana.”

Ryder’s intense obsidian eyes widened in pure, unadulterated shock.

Because the agonizing, raw way she uttered that single name... wasn't a question asked in confusion.

It was an admission of absolute, heartbreaking recognition.

To Be Continued