Aria’s POV

The moment we stepped inside Duckspire First Hospital, my wolf grew alert. Hospitals always carried too many emotional imprints.

Amelia walked straight toward the surveillance department like she’d been there a hundred times.

I blinked. "You’ve done this before, haven’t you?"

She didn’t answer. She just smiled.

Inside the surveillance room, several staff members looked up warily.

"Hello," Amelia said pleasantly. "Can we access surveillance footage from over ten years ago?"

One staff member’s hand immediately hovered over the phone. "Who are you? You can’t just come in here."

"Relax," Amelia said calmly. "We’re just asking."

"Ten-year-old footage is stored in the archives," a woman said firmly but not unkindly. "It’s on tapes. Please leave."

Another employee scowled. "If you don’t leave now, we’ll call security!"

I ignored him, focusing instead on the woman who’d spoken first.

Her scent was steady. I could tell she had a level of authority and she looked like she had worked in the hospital for a long time.

"June 7th," I said quietly, meeting her eyes. "twelve years ago. Maternity ward surveillance." Those were around the time period Clarence was presumed dead. It has been over 10 years and exactly twelve years.

The woman stiffened slightly.

"Hospital footage cannot be released without authorization," she said. "It risks patient privacy."

I understood. I truly did. Originally, I’d planned to sneak in, Chloe had taught me how. I hadn’t expected Amelia to walk in openly like this.

I turned to her and she calmly pulled out an ID.

She raised it.

"How about now?"

The room went dead silent.

Every scent changed. They were mixed with shock, fear and disbelief.

Elaine’s face went pale. "You two are..."

My wolf straightened.

Finally. We were done knocking on doors. Even though we were from a different country, our countries had affiliation with each other and there was a binding rule in the constitution that permits high ranking individuals in the legal system to operate with full corporation from the country’s law abiding citizens.

"Can we proceed now?"

As Amelia slid her credentials back into her bag, the shock drained from the lead woman’s face. Her posture straightened, the softness disappearing as professionalism snapped into place.

"Technically, we still need approval from our superiors," she said carefully. "Do you have time? I’ll make a quick report. They’ll almost certainly approve it."

Amelia and I exchanged a look. I gave a small nod.

"Go ahead."

Her heels clicked sharply against the tiled floor as she walked away, the sound echoing through the corridor. My wolf stirred under my skin, restless in this place saturated with antiseptic and fear.

She returned quickly, a much more elderly woman following close behind her, moving with short but determined steps.

"Hello," the woman said respectfully. "This is our current director, Martina Maxwell. After I explained the situation, she insisted on meeting you in person."

I studied Martina carefully. Her back was bent with age, but her eyes were sharp, and piercing.

"Ladies," she said, her gaze flicking between Amelia and me, "may I ask what brings you here today?"

"We can’t disclose that right now," Amelia replied smoothly. "But you’ve seen my identification. We’d appreciate your cooperation."

"I see..."

Martina didn’t press. Instead, she turned on her heel. "Come with me. The archives are restricted. Elaine, you stay in the surveillance room until we return."

Elaine that was the other woman’s name. She nodded immediately. The deference was telling.

We followed Martina down a narrow corridor until she unlocked a heavy door. The moment it opened, a musty, stagnant smell rolled out, thick with dust and time. My wolf recoiled instinctively...this place hadn’t been disturbed in years.

Shelves lined the room, packed with sealed files and labeled boxes. Martina moved with surprising familiarity, navigating straight to a specific section.

"Here," she said, pulling out a box. "Surveillance footage for June of that year. The entire month."

"Thank you," I said sincerely.

She waved it off, but sweat glistened at her temple. She looked a bit nervous. My wolf noted it instantly.

I glanced at Amelia. She caught my look and gave me a quick wink, silently telling me to stay calm.

Back in the surveillance room, Elaine set up a computer exclusively for us. The hum of the machine filled the silence as the footage loaded.

Then, there they were.

"Yes," Amelia breathed. "That’s the room."

My attention locked onto the screen. The footage was grainy, colors washed out by time, but my eyes, sharpened by my wolf, picked up every detail.

The room was a three-person maternity ward.

My gaze went straight to the woman in the corner bed.

Talia Willis. She was Tyler’s wife.

We had studied her photo before coming. Even through the blur, I recognized her instantly. She looked thinner than she should have been, her face was pale, her shoulders slumped as she stared out the window like she was waiting for something that would never come.

The other two women had family bustling around them...husbands, mothers, laughter, murmured reassurances. But Talia was alone.

A familiar tightness spread through my chest.

"Mrs. Willis," a doctor said in the video, clipboard in hand. "When will your family be able to come?"

Talia stiffened, then slowly shook her head. "Doctor... my husband isn’t here."

The doctor frowned. "No other relatives? Your hospital fees are overdue by a week. If payment isn’t made soon, we’ll have to discharge you."

My claws itched beneath my skin. Even now, watching this, anger rippled through me.

Talia clenched the bedsheets, her head bowing. "Please... don’t throw me out. My husband is trying to figure something out."

The doctor’s gaze drifted to her stomach. Even through the screen, I could see how malnourished and weak she looked. My wolf growled low. A pregnancy like that was dangerous even for wolves.

The doctor’s expression softened slightly. "Rest for now," he said at last. "We will wait for the child’s father."

As soon as he left, Talia collapsed back against the pillow, like all the strength had drained from her body. Her eyes went dull and hollow. A long moment passed before a single tear slid down her cheek.

I felt something twist painfully in my chest.

She lifted a trembling hand to her belly, her fingers lingering there as if she were apologizing. Then, biting her lip, she reached for her phone.

"Tyler," she whispered into it, voice breaking. "The hospital is pressuring me... when can you come back?"