Chapter 144: Is the Daughter Theodore’s?
Chapter 144: Is the Daughter Theodore’s?
(Matthew’s POV)
Olivia flinched in my arms. Only then did I realize what I had done.
My face moved away from her cheek. The kiss had been instinctive, natural. But I could see the shock in her eyes.
In less than half an hour, we arrived at the Infirmary. A team of more than a dozen psychological experts had already
assembled for consultation.
The most senior healer spoke privately with me afterward. His expression was grave but hopeful.
“Simply avoiding triggers is a temporary solution for your mate’s condition,” he explained. “The best approach is to gradually face the traumatic memory, reduce avoidance behavior, and alleviate hypervigilance.”
He paused, studying his notes. “In our conversation, your mate deliberately avoided mentioning her father and ex–mate.
These two are very likely the triggers.”
My jaw tightened. I had suspected as much.
“If her ex–mate Theodore cannot be completely removed from her life, it’s best to help her confront the trauma through
appropriate communication,” he continued. “This allows her to transition from seeing herself as a victim to finally letting
go of that identity.”
He handed me a prescription for moonlight herb anxiety medication. “Regular therapy sessions are crucial. Her case will
remain confidential.”
When I entered the infirmary room, I found Olivia sitting by the window. She gazed into the boundless night, her pale face
resembling a small white flower blooming on a cliff’s edge–stubborn yet fragile.
She turned at the sound of my approach. “It’s nothing serious,” I said softly, taking her delicate hand. “You’ll get better
with the moonlight herb treatment.”
(Olivia’s POV)
The experts he had summoned were all leading authorities in supernatural psychological healing. I had planned to see a
healer in a few days and had researched some of them myself.
But the rapid succession of events had caused my condition to worsen suddenly. I was touched by how prepared he was,
how deeply he cared for me.
I gently squeezed his hand, feeling its dry warmth as he led me out of the infirmary.
In the main lobby, Seraphina intercepted us. Her face was streaked with tears, desperation clear in her voice.
“Brother, Theodore’s condition is critical! Help me get two expert healers for him,” she pleaded.
Matthew’s response was ice–cold. “Theodore has the resources to find his own help.”
Just then, Captain Ryker brought a crying Leo over. The boy broke free and ran to me, hugging me tightly.
“Mom, the healer said Dad might not wake up. Will you come see him with me?” he sobbed.
Being held by my son felt like being shackled. A suffocating, drowning sensation overwhelmed me.
But I knew, with stark clarity, that my emotional turmoil stemmed from this father and son. I decided I would no longer
run.
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Looking down at Leo, I said with chilling finality, “I will not go see him. You and he are not to look for me again.”
Beta Tristan gently pulled the weeping boy away. I turned to Seraphina, my voice steady and cold.
“When he was injured by wolfsbane, your family arranged the best care for him. If he had followed the healer’s orders instead of discharging himself, his wound would have healed by now.”
I paused, letting my words sink in. “His current state is his own doing. He left the infirmary for me, was taken to the holding cells because of me, and went to the Sovereign’s Club tonight because of me. That was all his one–sided wishful thinking.”
My gaze remained unwavering. “Tell him, no matter what he does for me, I will never forgive him. Tell him not to appear before me again.”
I turned to Matthew, my coldness melting into tenderness. “Let’s go home.”
We walked away, leaving Leo’s desperate cries of “Mom…” echoing behind us.
(God’s POV)
Beta Tristan stopped Seraphina. “Miss Kane, tell me which expert healers you need, and I will arrange it. But the condition is that you never mention Alpha Theodore in front of the Queen again.”
Though her heart sank, Seraphina quickly agreed and gave him the names.
Unseen by them, a figure in a wheelchair watched from the shadows of the long corridor. It was Theodore.
Healer Elias approached him and handed him a file. “Alpha Theodore, they’ve also diagnosed your mate with
post–traumatic stress disorder. The healers Matthew summoned are top in their field and have already laid out a treatment plan.”
Theodore flipped to the last page, his eyes fixed on the recommendation: Contact with the trigger source, confront the traumatic memory, correct the traumatic memory.
The trigger was explicitly identified: Ex–mate.
He knew Matthew would prevent that. “When is the next therapy session?” he asked.
“Tomorrow,” the healer replied, “but it’s unlikely you’ll see her. The Alpha King will be with her.”
Theodore didn’t respond, his fingers tracing the words on the file. He murmured with dark, obsessive longing, “Only I can
heal her.”
His thoughts then turned sharp. “How did Cynthia Mooncrest know my mate has a daughter?”
Healer Elias insisted there was no leak, as Matthew had already destroyed the infirmary’s records.
“Then the information must have come from somewhere else,” Theodore concluded. A cunning face flashed in his mind.
“It was that Declan Shaw…”
It was three in the morning when Matthew arrived back at the Kane Estate. Matthew’s parents, Simon Kane and Victoria Kane, were waiting for us in the courtyard.
The Kane family was notoriously strict, and news from the gathering had clearly reached them.
“Matthew,” Victoria began, her voice fraught with concern, “do you and Olivia really have a daughter?”
Matthew’s reply was direct. “Yes. She’s two.”
His parents exchanged a heavy glance. The timeline was suspicious.
Olivia had been away for three years, yet had a two–year–old pup.
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Victoria launched into a speech. “It’s fine even if she is Theodore’s. Our Kane family can afford to raise any number of
pups. You two can have your own after you’re mated. After a werewolf breaks the bond with their mate, finding a second
chance mate is normal. We are not a close–minded family.”
After a barrage of reassurances, she finally got to the heart of her anxiety. Her voice dropped as she asked the one
question that mattered: “Is pup Theodore’s?”
