Aurelian Vale;
I sense him before he knocks. Before he shows himself. Before he makes a sound.
I flip the page of the novel in my hand and stare at the words I am no longer paying attention to.
Just then, he knocks, and before I can bother to give a response, he opens the door.
Of course.
Father never waits for permission to enter spaces he believes belong to him.
I can smell his cologne and that automated leak of pheromones that he always carries about with him. His presence announces itself the way rot does in an enclosed room.
Yet, I do not turn my head.
Alpha Devon Vale walks in as if he owns the air, the floor, the bed beneath me, and somehow, me as well.
He stops near the foot of the bed. I can feel his gaze moving over me. It's clinical and detached.
Nothing but assessment.
I look up at him as I flip another page, and I find his eyes wandering.
He looks at the IV drip, the bandages, and the untouched hospital food beside me.
Then he clicks his tongue softly.
