---- Chapter 9 Becky's POV Alpha Michael's silver eyes met mine, and for a heartbeat, my world tilted. Did he... speak just now? I leaned in instinctively, my Beta instincts prickling. "Alpha Michael?" I murmured. "Did you say something?" But in the blink of an eye, the spark vanished. He let out a soft gurgle, clapping his hands and splashing water, his attention drifting like mist in the moonlight. His gaze had dulled again, clouded and distant, like the mind within had retreated once more into shadow. Asigh slipped from me before I could stop it. Maybe I was hoping too hard. ---- Maybe the damage from the rogues' ambush had reached too deep into his young wolf's mind. Or maybe it was my own desperation crafting illusions where none existed. "Never mind," I whispered, brushing away the surge of longing with a forced smile. He cackled, soap bubbles clinging to his cheeks like foam frost, and flung another handful of water at me. I groaned. "You're turning this into a flood, pup." He just giggled louder. His tiny hand reached out and brushed against my wrist, right over the silvery scar left fromDorian's arrow. His fingers were warm. Too warm. Not physically, but... a familiar heat. Like a buried connection. For a fleeting instant, his brow knitted, anda strange light shimmered behind his eyes- ---- something primal and knowing. Then it vanished. He returned to his watery game, humming nonsense as though nothing had happened. Had I imagined it? The glimmer of recognition... of memory? I shook off the chill crawling up my spine. " Alright, that's enough. Let's get you dried." A quick rinse under the shower cleared the ink from my skin and loosened the tension that had coiled through my shoulders all day. After dressing, I helped Alpha Michael into his clothes. He was still as a ragdoll in my hands but let me move him with no resistance. Once dressed, I pushed his chair out of the bathroom, stepping into the long hallway bathed in late-afternoon light. The family butler was already waiting-his stance too stiff, his gaze too