Chapter 222 Almost knocked over

Chapter 222: Chapter 222 Almost knocked over

_Rowena’s POV_

Inside the VIP recovery suite, the atmosphere was filled with awkward silence. The high ranking pack elders who had spent the last three weeks doubting me were now standing near the door, shuffling their feet and looking everywhere except at my face.

Kristy was resting against her raised hospital pillows, her hands trembling slightly as she clutched the edge of her blanket.

Her eyes were fixed on her new right leg, the perfectly integrated limb that had completely restored her nerve flow without a single lag or inflammation.

She swallowed hard, her throat bobbing as she slowly turned her head to look at me. The arrogant, cold woman who had spent months sneering at my lack of noble blood was gone.

In her place was a pale, humiliated old woman who had just realized she had nearly let a fraud ruin her body.

"Rowena..." Kristy began, her voice hoarse, and completely devoid of its usual booming authority. "I... I must speak with you."

I stayed right where I was, leaning casually against the edge of the window frame with my arms folded over my chest. I didn’t walk closer, and I didn’t offer her a warm, comforting smile. I simply raised an eyebrow, letting a faint, smug smirk curl the corner of my lips.

"I am listening, Lady Kristy," I replied, my tone smooth, unbothered, and completely cool.

She flushed a deep, embarrassed red at my distant tone, but she didn’t dare raise her voice. "I... I owe you a formal apology. I was terribly blind. I allowed Brielle’s family background and her smooth words to cloud my judgment. I called you a thief, I questioned your integrity, and I treated you with deep disrespect... yet you still saved my life today."

She reached out a trembling hand toward me, her eyes filled with desperate, shamelessly eager regret. "Can you ever find it in your heart to forgive an old woman’s pride? From this day forward, no one in this territory will ever question your rightful place beside Alaric."

I looked at her outstretched hand, then looked back up at her anxious face. My smirk widened just a fraction. I didn’t rush to take her hand, nor did I utter the sweet, forgiving words she was so obviously desperate to hear.

"Your apology is noted, Lady Kristy," I said calmly, letting my voice ring clearly across the room so every elder could hear it. "Though I didn’t save your leg for your forgiveness. I did it because my engineering work speaks for itself, and I refuse to let an amateur ruin the reputation of proper biomechanics. As for my place beside Alaric... I never needed your permission for that in the first place."

Several pack elders gasped softly at my blunt response, but Kristy didn’t dare argue. She simply pulled her hand back, nodding meekly with her cheeks burning in utter humiliation.

Beside me, Alaric let out a low chuckle. He reached out and gently rested his hand over the small of my back, his thumb brushing against my waist through my jacket. The look in his dark eyes was pure admiration. He loved that I didn’t bow down to his aunt’s fake, sudden warmth, and he loved that I kept my head held ridiculously high.

"I am going to step out for a short while," I whispered to Alaric, leaning closer to his ear so the rest of the room couldn’t hear us. "I haven’t eaten a single bite since early this morning, and my stomach is officially throwing a tantrum."

Alaric frowned slightly, his worry flaring up. "I will have Gabriel bring food straight to the private lounge for you. You don’t need to leave the hospital grounds."

"Hospital food tastes like wet cardboard, Alaric," I teased softly, tapping his chest. "I saw a nice local bistro right across the main street when we drove in this morning. I just want ten minutes of fresh air, peace, and a hot plate of actual food. I will be back before the doctors finish her final mobility scans."

Alaric hesitated for a second, looking into my eyes before letting out a defeated, affectionate sigh. "Fine. But take two guards with you."

"I am just crossing the street, Alpha King," I laughed, stepping away from his grip. "I promise I won’t get lost."

I smoothed down my jacket, turned away from the awkward family reunion inside the recovery suite, and walked out of the VIP wing. I took the private elevator down to the ground floor, stepping out into the bright afternoon.

The air outside was cool, the hospital sat on a busy avenue in the upper district, surrounded by tall glass skyscrapers, stone walkways, and paved roads. Just across the four-lane main street stood a cozy, high end Italian bistro with red outdoor umbrellas and the rich, mouth watering scent of garlic and toasted bread wafting across the road.

I walked down the hospital steps, heading toward the pedestrian crosswalk. My mind was already spinning with new ideas for my next engineering project. Now that Kristy’s leg was fully operational, I could use the remaining custom parts and the eighty thousand dollars I had extracted from Brielle to fund a brand new, low cost prosthetic line specifically for the injured pack army in the lower district.

The noble elders had their shiny toys, but the ordinary wolves in the slums were the ones who truly needed functional limbs to earn a living.

A smile touched my lips as I stood at the edge of the curb, waiting for the pedestrian signal light to turn green. The traffic on the avenue was light, with only a few luxury sedans passing along the asphalt.

The walk signal chirped loudly, turning into a bright white walking figure.

I stepped off the curb, taking three relaxed strides onto the zebra crossing.

Suddenly, a loud, deafening roar of an engine shattered the quiet atmosphere.

My head snapped to the right.

A black SUV with dark tinted windows had suddenly swerved out of its lane fifty yards away. Instead of slowing down for the red light, the driver slammed their foot straight onto the accelerator.

The tires shrieked violently against the hot pavement, burning rubber as the vehicle surged forward like a runaway missile, heading dead straight for me at a terrifying, lethal speed.

My instincts screamed at me to jump, but the suddenness of the oncoming beast locked my feet to the ground for a split second.

The blinding glare of the car’s headlights flashed right into my eyes, the car coming closer and closer in a terrifying speed.

Before the steel bumper could slam into my body, a strong, powerful pair of arms suddenly wrapped tightly around my waist from behind.

With incredible, explosive force, the stranger yanked me backward off my feet.

We tumbled violently across the hard floor together, rolling across the stone pavement just as the black SUV drove past the crosswalk, missing my legs by a mere fraction of an inch.

The vehicle didn’t even brake, it sped wildly down the avenue, running through two more red lights before disappearing around the corner.

Chest heaving, heart hammering violently against my ribs, I lay sprawled on the pavement, gasping for air.

The powerful arms around my waist slowly loosened their grip. I scrambled back slightly, raising my head to look at the person who had just pulled me out of death’s jaw.