SOPHIA’S POV

I panicked when I saw my family.

Luckily, Bianca got them to leave. She told them to let meI sat frozen on the hospital bed long after Marco and Patricia left the room.

The silence around me felt heavy. Even the sound of the heart monitor beside my bed seemed louder than usual tonight.

My body hurt everywhere. Every bruise ached painfully and even breathing too deeply made my ribs ache sharply.

Bianca stood near the door with her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Her eyes were still red from crying earlier. She kept glancing at me anxiously like she was afraid I would suddenly disappear if she looked away for too long.

“You should sleep,” she said softly.

I sighed. “I can’t.”

That answer alone made Bianca’s expression grow more heartbroken.

The moment she left the room, there was silence again.

I leaned back against the bed and closed my eyes tiredly. The moment I did, painful memories flooded my mind.

I remembered Helen slapping me repeatedly while screaming insults, Declan standing there coldly watching as Jessie hit me while I lay helpless on the floor.

My wolf whimpered weakly inside me.

Suddenly, the hospital room door opened quietly. At first, I thought Bianca had returned.

But then the scent hit me immediately.

Zade.

My eyes snapped open instantly. My heart pounded with fear.

Oh no.

The room remained dark except for the small hallway light behind him. Zade stepped inside silently before closing the door behind him.

He reached toward the wall and the room instantly filled with soft light.

And the moment Zade saw me properly.....he froze completely.

I watched the exact second his expression shattered. His eyes slowly moved across my bruised arms.

He took in my swollen face, the dark marks around my neck, the cuts near my forehead.

The moment he saw everything clearly, the color drained completely from his face.

His wolf exploded violently inside him. I felt it.

I could literally feel the fury radiating from him.

I swallowed hard.

“Who did this?” he asked quietly.

The calmness in his voice frightened me more than shouting would have.

I looked away from him. “Leave.”

He didn’t move.

“Sophia.”

“Leave,” I repeated weakly.

Instead, he walked toward the bed.

The closer he came, the more terrifying his expression became. His eyes looked bloodshot now. They were filled with a mixture of rage, heartbreak, and disbelief. His hands were shaking at his sides like he was struggling to control himself.

My wolf stirred weakly inside me. Even in this condition, she still reacted strongly to him.

Zade stopped beside the bed and stared down at me silently for several long seconds. His breathing looked uneven now, like he was trying very hard not to lose control completely.

Then finally, he spoke again.

“Who touched you?” he asked.

I forced myself to stay cold.

“It’s none of your business.”

His jaw tightened instantly.

“None of my business?” he repeated quietly.

“Zade, please go.”

Instead of listening, he suddenly grabbed the chair beside the bed and sat down. His eyes never left my injuries for even one second.

“You disappeared,” he said quietly. “I went to your apartment and found hospital papers. Then I came here and found out you nearly died.”

I said nothing.

Zade laughed bitterly “And now I walk in here and see this? Sophia...what the hell happened to you?”

I looked away again because his expression hurt too much to look at directly.

For the first time in days...someone actually looked angry for me. That realization nearly broke the remaining control I had left.

I still forced myself to stay distant.

“You shouldn’t be here,” I whispered weakly.

“Stop saying that,” he snapped.

I flinched.

The moment he noticed my reaction, guilt instantly crossed his face.

Zade lowered his voice again. “I’m sorry.”

He reached toward my wrist carefully. The moment his fingers touched my bruised skin, his entire body stiffened.

I saw pure rage flash through his eyes.

His voice became dangerously quiet.

“They beat you.” He said.

It wasn’t a question anymore.

Tears immediately burned my eyes again.

I tried looking away, but suddenly my emotions completely collapsed.

Everything I had been holding inside for days finally broke apart.

“They blamed me,” I whispered shakily.

Zade’s expression darkened instantly.

My breathing became uneven now.

“Helen came first,” I whispered weakly. “She said I killed the Stone family’s child. She slapped me over and over again. It hurt so much. It still hurts”

Zade’s hands clenched tightly into fists. His wolf was practically snarling now.

I continued speaking weakly.

“Then she got a phone call and left.” Tears slowly rolled down my cheeks now. “After that...Declan came.”

The moment I said Declan’s name, the room temperature seemed to drop instantly.

Zade’s eyes became terrifyingly cold.

“He blamed me for Dahlia getting exposed during surgery.” I swallowed painfully. “Then he brought someone with him.”

Zade frowned. “Who?”

“Jessie”

The exact second I said the name, I saw the recognition in Zade’s face.

“Jessie?” he repeated coldly.

I nodded weakly.

Zade laughed softly again, but this time the sound was genuinely frightening.

“I know him.” he said.

My chest tightened.

“He’s the man you humiliated before,” I whispered weakly.

Zade’s jaw tightened.

Of course, he remembered.

Jessie used this chance to take revenge on me because he couldn’t Zade directly.

Tears rolled down my cheeks harder now.

“He kicked me while I was lying down,” I whispered shakily. “I couldn’t even fight back. He punched me over and over again. He beat me up badly.”

Zade’s entire body became rigid with rage.

My wolf whimpered painfully again.

“I was so scared,” I admitted softly “I still am”

As soon as I said those words, Zade suddenly sat beside me on the bed and pulled me into his arms.

I froze instantly.

But then...the warmth broke me completely.

I started crying harder immediately. This time, it was real crying. It was the kind that made my chest hurt.

Zade held me carefully against him like I might break apart completely if he touched me too roughly. One of his hands gently stroked the back of my hair while the other carefully supported my injured body.

His shirt quickly became soaked with my tears.

“I was scared,” I whispered again weakly.

Zade shut his eyes tightly.

My wolf slowly curled weakly toward his warmth despite everything.

For several long minutes, neither of us spoke.

The only sounds in the room were my quiet sobs and Zade’s uneven breathing.

Then finally, he spoke quietly near my ear.

“I’m going to kill them.” He said.

The coldness in his voice immediately made me freeze.

“Zade...”

“I mean it.”

I pulled back slightly to look at him. His eyes terrified me. There was absolutely no softness left inside them now. There was only rage.

“No,” I whispered quickly.

“They touched you.” His voice sounded deadly calm now.

“They beat you while you were recovering from a miscarriage.” His jaw tightened harder. “They nearly killed you.”

Tears continued sliding down my face silently.

Zade wiped them away with his thumb. Then he looked directly into my eyes again.

“I swear to you,” he said quietly. “Nobody who touched you will walk away from this. I will avenge you”

My wolf stirred weakly again, not from fear this time. But from the sincerity inside his voice.

And for the first time since this nightmare began... I realized someone was finally willing to stand beside me completely.