Sean suddenly thought of what he had said to Gloria today. He told her that she let him down, and he blamed her for changing. Now that he thought about it, he regretted it so much. He wasn't the one who had been suffering.
Sean continued, "When I went to see her before, she wasn't in a serious condition. I don't know why she fainted again, but I suggest that you take her to the hospital now. She has gone through so much, including drowning, having a fever, and blacking out. Even healthy werewolves couldn't deal with those, let alone her. Werewolf herbs can relieve werewolves' symptoms, but it is our strong resilience that does most of the trick. Gloria does not have her wolf now. She may be more vulnerable than humans."
"Alright. I'll drive her to the hospital now."
"OK. I'll see you there."
Then Patrick and Sean cut off the call simultaneously.
Patrick stood by the bed and looked at the woman on the bed. Sean's words still echoed in his mind, "Don't you know that your attitude toward Gloria and the willingness you show have determined her fate for the past three years?"
He thought, 'Is he right?
Yes. I know very well that he is right.
I just have no idea that seeing such a hideous scar on her will make me want to kill someone.'
He could not sort out his mixed feelings. He bent down to help Gloria straighten up her shirt. Then, he took out a big tweed coat from the closet and wrapped it around her tightly.
Only then did Patrick suddenly realize that Gloria, who tended to look a bit bloated, had actually become so skinny.
He bent down and held her in his arms. When she was awake, he always carried her on his shoulders.
The elevator reached the first floor. Patrick held Gloria in his arms and walked through the low-key, yet luxurious lobby of the club under people's gazes. Some of them were peeking, and their eyes were filled with jealousy. He stepped out of the door.
At the bedside, Patrick looked at Gloria on the bed. Sean had just given her a checkup.
"Not too bad," Sean said. "But you've got to stop torturing her. It's been a long day for her. She drowned, had a fever, and fainted. And the worst part is fainting again because of you right after she woke up.
"Patrick, I didn't know you were this good at torturing people," Sean said.
He was being sarcastic.
To Sean's surprise, Patrick wasn't angry at all.
Sean thought, 'He is so easygoing today.'
"Tell me, what did you do to her after I left?"
Just as Sean finished speaking, Patrick glanced coldly at Sean.
Patrick's glance almost made Sean shiver. He continued, "It's fine if you don't want to talk about it."
Sean's mockery made Patrick, who was beside the bed, look even colder. He turned to look at Sean and said, "Sean, you can go now."
"I'm just a come-and-go person who is always at your commands, aren't I? You drive me away as soon as I'm no use to you. Patrick, you are the most heartless man I have ever seen."
Patrick let out a breath and said, "Sean, go back and rest. Someone from the pack will come to you tomorrow. You won't have enough time to rest."
People outside the pack only knew that Patrick was domineering and arrogant. However, the members of the pack knew how gentle Patrick was. It was just that his gentleness might be imperceptible sometimes.
Sean suddenly looked at Gloria, who was lying on the bed, and he had a strange idea.
He turned to look at Patrick with suspicion. He couldn't believe his guess. Was Gloria the reason why Patrick was so gentle now?
Sean hesitated.
"What's wrong?" Patrick asked.
"Stop picking on her," Sean said. He didn't say his idea out loud. Instead, he kept it to himself.
Sean thought, 'I know Patrick too well. Patrick is a proud man. I know what's going to happen if I say to him that he has feelings for Gloria and that no matter how he denies it, he can't reject his mate arranged by the Moon Goddess.
If I do say these to him, Gloria is bound to suffer more.
Besides, if Patrick realizes that he is in love with Gloria and that she has been tossed into such a hellhole by him for three years, can he live with that?
No.
I know him. Yet I hope I'm only overthinking. After all, Patrick says he has rejected Gloria already. Also, she no longer has a wolf.
The Black Thorn Pack will never accept a Luna who doesn't have her wolf.'
"Stop hurting her. I mean, if she goes through these a few more times, don't bother going to the hospital again. Even the Moon Goddess can't help her. If you hate her so much that you have to torture her, at least you should keep her alive and healthy, right?"
Sean felt that he had said enough. More words would backfire. He waved his hand and said, "Well, I'm leaving."
After Sean left, the ward suddenly became quiet. Without Sean's voice, the hospital at night had an eerie silence.
Such a kind of silence was completely different from the feeling of being alone at home late at night.
Patrick took a chair and sat beside the bed.
His gaze fell on Gloria's forehead.
Though her wound was covered by her bangs, he still saw it.
He thought, 'Sean says it's a new wound from the last few days, and she has been hurt in the same spot before. The wound is actually from a long time ago.
Whenever and wherever I see her at Fittro Club, she always covered this side of her forehead with her bangs.
Why she digs such an ugly hairstyle always baffles me. I thought maybe it's a must for prisoners in the werewolf prison, and Gloria has gotten used to it.'
His slender fingers moved her hair to the side, revealing the entire wound.
In Sean, the doctor's words, "How on earth could any woman put up with such an ugly scar on her face?"
He did not touch the wound on her forehead. Instead, he stroked her face slowly and carefully, not missing every inch of her skin.
Her skin felt rough under his fingertips. She was only in her twenties, but every part of her body showed what time had put her through.