Chapter 1

I was attacked by rogues while gathering herbs in the Whispering Forest.

When I opened my eyes in the Healer's clinic, Alpha James Anderson was standing by my bed in a tailored suit, scowling at me.

Before I could speak, Olivia Parker, standing right beside him, broke the silence.

"Emma, you're finally awake! You scared us half to death."

I didn't answer. My eyes drifted down to their hands, fingers tightly intertwined.

The second they noticed me looking, their hands sprang apart like they’d been electrocuted.

I let out a soft laugh.

"So, while I was knocked out, you two started dating?"

"And see? I told you guys I shouldn't have gone into the Whispering Forest alone. Luckily, I'm fine."

"Wait... you two didn't get so caught up in your romance that you forgot to prep for my First Shift ceremony, did you?"

James looked like he couldn't take another second of this. He leaned down, his voice vibrating with rage.

"Emma Miller! You're twenty-six years old! What coming-of-age ceremony are you even talking about?!"

I froze.

Because in my memory, I had literally just turned eighteen, waiting for my very first shift.

The room fell so quiet I could hear the thudding of my own heart.

Only then did I truly take in the two people standing before me.

James didn't look like the boy I remembered before I passed out.

He was older, broader, looking strikingly like his father. In a suit, he no longer looked like a kid playing dress-up.

And Olivia, quietly beside him, was no longer the broke pack student who lived in faded jeans and thrift-store tees.

My gaze settled on the Tiffany brooch pinned to her chest.

I used to have one just like it—an eighteenth-birthday gift from my mother.

Back when Olivia gave her first speech as a Pack representative, I offered to lend it to her.

She had blushed, ducking her head, her dimples framed with nervousness.

She had said, *"Emma, it's way too expensive. I can't walk onto a stage wearing something worth years of my living expenses."*

Now, she wore an identical luxury brooch, carried a designer bag worth thousands, wore flawless makeup, and smelled of expensive perfume.

Noticing my stare, Olivia parted her lips to explain.

I just smiled faintly. "Looks like you finally got the life you always wanted, Olivia. Congratulations."

"Enough!" James snapped, his brows knotting in disgust. "Emma Miller, how long are you going to keep playing dumb? You think pretending like this will make me fall for you again? Dream on!"

I looked at him in total confusion. "Why would I want you to fall for me?"

"Aren't you with Olivia?"

Olivia finally found her voice, her eyes welling with tears. "Emma, please listen. James and I... it's not what you think. We... we haven't..."

The door swung open, and the lead Healer walked in.

"Ms. Miller, are you feeling any pain or dizziness?"

I shook my head gently, my hair rustling against the pillow.

"Healer... why are they telling me I'm twenty-six?"

"Isn't this the year of my first shift?"

"Why are they playing this kind of sick joke on a patient?"

The Healer’s expression darkened.

James and Olivia were ushered out into the hall.

After that, a steady stream of Healers and apprentices examined me.

By the time the sun dipped below the horizon, they delivered their final verdict.

"Ms. Miller, you have severe retrograde amnesia."

"You have lost all memories between your rogue attack at age eighteen and falling down the stairs one month ago."

I stared at their moving lips, but all sound seemed to fade into white noise.

So...

I really was twenty-six?