Chapter 4

Aurora I laid on the cold hospital bed, counting the seconds till the doctor would arrive. I couldn't control my tears as I thought about what I had agreed to do. It was a horrible thing but I was ready to do anything to save my mother's life. “I'm sorry, Mom. I'm so sorry but I can't just let you die,” I sobbed into my palms and my cheeks were still damp by the time the doctor came into the room. He didn't look twice at me, concentrating on the syringe he was filling with a strange fluid. When he caught me watching him curiously, he came to my bedside, the syringe in hand. “Don't look so scared. This is to make you fall asleep while I conduct the artificial insemination.” “Artificial insemination?” I didn't know those words and suddenly became unsure of what I had agreed to do. “Is that what you explained to me earlier?” “Yes, yes,” he replied impatiently, checking my arm for a vein. “Now go to sleep and let me get this done.” I winced softly when he injected me and within minutes, I was knocked out cold. I didn't know how long I was unconscious but I woke up with nothing more than a faint headache. When I raised a hand to my head to massage it, my nose picked up a strange bit pleasant scent. The scent was like fresh forest wood and my eyes blinked open in curiosity. Sitting beside my bed and staring at me with cold eyes as dark as the abyss was a man I had never seen before. He was handsome and his raven dark hair was glossy but his square chin was so hard that it looked like it could cut glass. Who was he and why was he looking at me like he could see through my clothes? I pulled up the hospital sheet up to my chest self-consciously and his eyes traced the movement, a chill running down my spine. It wasn't until I heard someone clear his throat that I realized that Doctor Wayne was in the room too. “You are finally awake,” he said, coming to stand beside the man who was still seated. “Alpha Xavier, please meet your surrogate, Aurora Gonzalo.” Alpha Xavier? Was he the one seated there? Oh, Goddess! I suddenly felt the need to throw up, sitting up too fast and my eyes spinned. No wonder he was looking at me, maybe trying to know if I was strong enough to carry his baby. “Why is she shaking like that? Is she ill?” Alpha Xavier spoke for the first time but he was asking the doctor about me as if I wasn't there. His voice was so deep that I had to concentrate on the words before I could hear what he was saying. He sounded genuinely concerned about me and my guilt doubled. How did the doctor expect me to kill someone who was three times bigger than I was? “No, she isn't. You are probably just making her uncomfortable. Don't be mad at your soon-to-be husband, Aurora. I know he frowns a lot and it can be scary sometimes,” Doctor Wayne joked, winking at me with a smile attached. I nodded stiffly, not understanding the joke but not knowing what else to do. Regardless, Alpha Xavier sat very still, his lips pressed together in a hard line. Goddess, does he ever smile? How was I supposed to live with him for five years if he was that cold and detached? I forgot my dizziness, fear replacing the rest of my emotions as I watched him cautiously. “How do you feel?” I heard the question come from the Alpha's lips but it took me a few seconds to understand that he was asking me. “I'm good,” I replied hastily and wanted to slap myself at how lame I sounded. “I mean. . .I'm alright. . .not dizzy at all. . .and I am. . .um. . .” Gosh, what was I saying? He would probably think I was crazy or something now. I turned to the doctor, my face red in shame and he shook his head at me. I looked down at my hands and bit down on my tongue, wanting to vanish into thin air. “Good. I will send my gamma to come get you later.” He spoke like a robot, without showing any emotions but that made it easier for me to hear him clearly. “He will bring you to the packhouse to rest after you are discharged. His name is Louis and make sure you do whatever he tells you. When you are strong enough, I will fix a date to present you to the pack as my mate. Understood?” His mate. . .I was really doing this! I was really going to his surrogate Luna! Well, as long as he kept to his side of the deal and provided the money for my mother's surgery without me having to sleep with him, I was good with the plan. “Y-yes, I unders-stand,” I stammered, nodding as well in case he didn't hear me. He stood up almost immediately, moving with that smooth grace that professional ballet dancers had. He had a bulky body but by the tightness of his leather jacket, it was more of muscles than fat. “Good. I will be leaving then. Let's finish our discussion some other time, Wayne.” “As you wish, Alpha.” Doctor Wayne stepped out to see him off and I got a few minutes of privacy. I checked my body for any signs that it had been tampered with but apart from a dull ache from where the doctor had injected me, I felt nothing. Was it supposed to be that easy? The door opened again and I pushed my knees up to my chest to defend myself. It was Doctor Wayne and he was no longer smiling. The anger I saw in his eyes made my fear return and I pressed myself against the wall to hide. “When you get to the packhouse, you better keep your mouth shut and do whatever you are told for the sake of your mother's life. If you blow my cover, I will end your already miserable life for good,” he pointed at me with his index finger, his voice cold and frightening. I nodded my head multiple times nervously, swallowing any incoming tears. “W-what about my mom? Did the... artificial insemination work?” I pronounced the big words slowly because I was not yet familiar with them. “It was successful,” the doctor admitted and I almost collapsed with relief. Thank you, Goddess! “So, when will her surgery be sche—” “I'm here,” a young man barged into the room without knocking, his broad shoulders filling the door entrance. Was that supposed to be— “Alpha Xavier sent me to pick up his mate,” he announced, walking confidently into the room. When his eyes met with mine, he smiled, the first genuine smile I had seen all day. “Hello, I'm Louis. Are you ready to go?”