Chapter 165 – Seems like my Alpha likes her
Voren couldn’t even explain why he offered to drive her, but the second he saw the relief spread across Seraphine’s face, something in him settled like he had made the right call without needing to overthink it.
On top of that, he had never once seen her handle city traffic, and knowing how chaotic things could get out there, the idea of her rushing off alone didn’t sit right with him at all.
Seraphine, on the other hand, wasn’t thinking about anything except the urgency in Leon’s voice.
If he was calling her before her shift even started, then whatever was happening at the hospital had to be serious, not the kind of thing you could stall or pass off. "Okay," she said quickly, already sliding into the passenger seat without hesitation, her mind miles ahead of her body.
Voren moved just as fast, rounding the car and dropping into the driver’s seat before starting the engine. The car pulled off almost immediately, tires rolling out of sight before anyone else could process what had just happened.
A moment later, Corvine stepped outside with Kael, his eyes scanning the area like something was off. "Where is Sera?" he asked, his tone edged with confusion.
Kael looked just as lost, glancing around before asking, "Where is Alpha?"
Corvine didn’t waste time. He pulled out his phone and dialed Seraphine’s number, and she picked up almost instantly.
"Corvine, there’s an emergency at the hospital, so Voren took me," she said quickly, her voice steady but rushed. "You can pick me up at the normal time."
He let out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding, tension easing from his shoulders, though something still didn’t quite add up in his mind.
Voren stepping in like that wasn’t exactly something he could explain away easily. "Your boss took her to the hospital. There’s an emergency," Corvine told Kael after ending the call.
Kael frowned slightly, his brows pulling together. "Something’s wrong with her?"
Corvine shot him an annoyed look. "She’s a doctor."
Kael blinked, then lifted a brow with a quiet chuckle. "Alright, that’s on me, I didn’t know that. Still..." His expression turned more thoughtful, almost amused. "Seems like my Alpha likes her."
Corvine froze for a second, the words hitting harder than he expected. Voren himself had made it clear there was no interest there, nothing personal about how he dealt with Seraphine. "I don’t think so," Corvine said after a pause, shaking his head. "She needed help, and he offered it. That’s all."
Kael’s lips curved into a faint, knowing smile, like he was seeing something Corvine wasn’t. "I know my boss," he said quietly. "He doesn’t let any woman get close, except—"
He stopped abruptly, his mouth snapping shut like he had almost crossed a line he wasn’t allowed to.
Corvine narrowed his eyes. "Except what?"
Kael shook his head immediately. "Nothing."
That was the thing about Voren. Whatever secrets he carried stayed locked down tight unless he decided otherwise, and no one, not even the people closest to him got access without permission.
Still, Kael added, "I just know he likes her."
Corvine exhaled, shaking his head again, brushing it off even though the thought lingered longer than he wanted. Kael didn’t understand the full picture, didn’t know what Voren was actually preparing Seraphine for, and that made all the difference. "Alright," Corvine said finally. "I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ve got things to handle before I pick Sera up."
"Yeah, see you," Kael replied before heading toward his car.
✦༶✦༶✦
At the hospital parking lot, the moment the car slowed to a stop, Seraphine reached for the door handle, already halfway out before the engine had fully settled. She was about to step out when Voren’s voice stopped her.
"I hope you’ll make it tomorrow," he said, his tone quieter than usual but firm enough to hold her attention.
She turned back, nodding without hesitation, her expression serious despite the rush she was in. "It’s really important to me. I’ll be there."
For a split second, something passed through his eyes. Relief, quick and almost impossible to catch unless you were looking directly at him but it disappeared just as fast, leaving her unsure if she had imagined it.
She didn’t question it. There wasn’t time.
✦༶✦༶✦
Inside the hospital, the tension was obvious the second Seraphine stepped in. Leon and the other doctors looked like they had been holding everything together by a thread, and the moment they saw her, the relief on their faces was immediate.
Leon walked up to her quickly. "We’ve been trying to reach the patient’s family," he said, his voice tight. "It’s one of Santiago’s cases again."
The name hit like a spark against dry air.
Seraphine went still for a fraction of a second, irritation tightening beneath her calm exterior. Santiago was becoming more than just a problem, he was turning into something that needed to be dealt with before things spiraled further.
When she finally saw the patient, her steps slowed just slightly.
He looked familiar.
Not just vaguely familiar, but enough to make her pause and search her memory, even though she couldn’t immediately place where she had seen him before. Still, she didn’t let that distract her for long. She already knew what he was the moment she got close enough.
A werewolf.
That alone explained why Leon had insisted on calling her in. There were limits to what human doctors could handle, especially with cases like this, and even without access to their wolf form in the city, strong werewolves carried an aura that made the air feel heavier, almost suffocating if you weren’t used to it.
Leon quickly briefed her on the condition, outlining the extent of the injuries and what needed to be done.
Seraphine listened, then nodded once, her confidence steady and unshaken. "I’ll handle it."
The man on the operating table was middle-aged, his condition severe enough that it would take more than one procedure to fully stabilize him, but that didn’t shake her focus.
Once she stepped into surgery, everything else fell away.
Time blurred into precision, every movement controlled, every decision calculated as she worked through the procedures one after the other. It wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t quick, but in the end, it was successful.
When Seraphine finally stepped out of the surgical ward, pulling off her mask as she walked toward the front for the necessary formalities, one of the staff approached her.
"The patient’s relative has been here for about an hour," they informed her.
Seraphine slowed, her brows knitting slightly. "The patient’s relative?" she repeated, her voice thoughtful as she lowered the mask completely.
"I am."
The voice came from nearby, familiar enough to make something in her chest tighten before she even turned.
The moment their eyes met, the man’s face drained of color.
"Lu..."