The soft knock on my hospital room door came just as I was struggling to make sense of the pregnancy pamphlets Dr. Martinez had left behind. The words swam on the page—prenatal vitamins, folic acid, morning sickness—all foreign concepts for a woman who couldn't remember her own life.

"Come in," I called, grateful for any distraction from the medical jargon that felt like reading instructions for someone else's existence.

A petite woman with warm brown eyes and shoulder-length auburn hair peeked around the door. She wore scrubs decorated with tiny cartoon wolves, and her face lit up with a mixture of relief and concern when she saw me.

"Ivy! Thank goddess you're awake." She rushed to my bedside, her eyes immediately filling with tears. "I've been so worried. When I heard about the accident..."

I studied her face, searching for any flicker of recognition. Nothing. Just another stranger who seemed to know me intimately.

"I'm sorry," I said softly. "I don't... the doctors said I have amnesia. I don't remember anything."

Her face crumpled. "Oh, honey. It's me. Mila. Your best friend since high school." She pulled a chair close to my bed, her voice gentle but determined. "I'm going to help you remember who you are."

Mila. The name stirred something faint, like an echo in an empty room, but I couldn't grasp it.

"Tell me about myself," I said. "Who was I before the accident?"

Mila's expression grew complicated, a mixture of love and pity that made my stomach clench. "You were... you were sweet, Ivy. Too sweet for your own good. Always putting others first, always believing the best in people even when they didn't deserve it."

She reached for my hand, her touch warm and familiar in a way that made my chest ache. "Especially when it came to Ryker."

At the mention of his name, that presence in my mind stirred, but remained silent.

"What happened between us?" I asked. "I can feel him in my head sometimes, but he seems... angry."

Mila's jaw tightened. "He should be ashamed, not angry." Her voice carried a protective edge I hadn't expected. "Ivy, you need to know the truth about what kind of man your mate really is."

She took a deep breath, as if steeling herself for what came next. "You found out you were pregnant eight weeks ago. You went to tell him at Eclipse—that's the pack's VIP club. But when you got there..."

Mila's voice trailed off, her eyes filled with the kind of pain that comes from witnessing a friend's heartbreak.

"What did I find?" I pressed, though part of me dreaded the answer.

"He was with Vanessa. His ex-girlfriend. She'd just come back from Paris, and there they were, all over each other like you meant nothing." Mila's hands clenched into fists. "You tried to tell him about the pregnancy, but he humiliated you in front of the entire pack. Called what you had 'temporary.' Said you were 'forgettable.'"

The words hit me like physical blows. Forgettable. Even without my memories, I could feel the devastation that word must have caused.

"He rejected you publicly, Ivy. Made you look pathetic in front of everyone. And you were carrying his twins." Mila's voice cracked. "You left that club heartbroken, and then..."

"The accident," I finished quietly.

"The accident." She nodded. "And now he has the audacity to act like the victim? To be angry with you?"

I stared down at my hands, trying to process this revelation. The man whose voice echoed in my mind had publicly humiliated me while I was pregnant with his children. The father of my babies had chosen another woman.

"Tell me about Vanessa," I said, my voice steadier than I felt.

Mila's expression turned venomous. "Vanessa Sterling. Alpha's daughter from the neighboring Crescent Moon pack. Model, socialite, everything you're not." She paused, seeming to realize how harsh that sounded. "I mean, everything the old you thought you weren't."

"What do you mean?"

"You always saw yourself as plain, ordinary. Just an omega who got lucky enough to catch an Alpha's attention. But Ivy..." Mila leaned forward, her eyes intense. "You were never the problem. He was."

As if summoned by our conversation, I felt Ryker's presence strengthen in my mind. *Ivy, we need to talk.*

I ignored him, focusing on Mila instead. "Where is she now? Vanessa?"

"Still around, unfortunately. Acting like she's already Luna of the pack." Mila's lip curled with disgust. "Prancing around town like she owns the place."

Something cold and sharp crystallized in my chest. This woman—this Vanessa—had stolen my mate while I carried his children. Had watched him humiliate me and done nothing but gloat.

The old Ivy might have accepted that. Might have believed she deserved it.

But I wasn't the old Ivy. I was someone new, someone forged in the white-hot crucible of forgotten pain and present clarity.

"I want to see her," I said suddenly.

Mila blinked in surprise. "What?"

"I want to see this woman who thinks she can take what's mine." The words came out harder than I intended, carrying a strength I didn't know I possessed.

*Ivy, what are you planning?* Ryker's mental voice carried a note of concern.

I smiled, and even I could feel how different it was from whatever expression the old Ivy might have worn. This smile had teeth.

"I'm planning to introduce myself," I said aloud, knowing Ryker could hear me. "The real me."

Mila stared at me with something approaching awe. "Who are you right now?"

"I'm the woman I should have been all along." I pushed myself up straighter in the hospital bed, ignoring the protests from my healing body. "Mila, I need you to help me get out of here."

"The doctors said you need at least another week—"

"The doctors can say whatever they want." My voice carried an authority I'd never heard from myself before. "But I have twins to protect and a conversation to have with the woman who thinks she can chase other women's husbands."

Mila's grin was fierce and proud. "Now that sounds like a plan I can get behind."

*Ivy, don't do anything rash,* Ryker's voice pleaded in my mind.

I closed my eyes and spoke directly to that mental connection, my thoughts sharp as broken glass. "I want to see you, Ryker. Face to face. It's time we had a real conversation about our future."

The silence that followed was deafening.

When I opened my eyes, Mila was watching me with something like reverence. "I don't know who you are now, Ivy, but I like her a hell of a lot better than who you used to be."

So did I. And it was time everyone else met her too.

The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime, revealing the gleaming marble lobby of Mills Industries. Forty-three floors of glass and steel stretched above me, but I only had eyes for the penthouse suite where Ryker conducted his business empire.

Mila had insisted on coming with me, but I'd refused. This conversation needed to happen between mates, without witnesses to what might be our final words.

My reflection in the elevator's polished walls showed a woman I barely recognized. The hospital gown had been replaced by a simple black dress Mila had brought—something the old Ivy apparently owned but never wore. It hugged curves I didn't remember having, and my hair fell in dark waves around my shoulders instead of the ponytail I'd apparently favored before.

The amnesia had taken my memories, but it had also stripped away whatever insecurities had made me small. I stood straighter now, moved with purpose, spoke with authority I'd never known I possessed.

*You're coming here,* Ryker's voice had been a constant presence in my mind since I'd left the hospital against medical advice. *Ivy, we need to discuss this rationally.*

*Rationally?* I'd responded, letting my mental voice carry all the ice I felt. *Like how you rationally humiliated me in front of the pack while I carried your children?*

His silence had been answer enough.

The elevator climbed steadily, each floor bringing me closer to a confrontation that felt inevitable. Through our mate bond, I could sense Ryker's growing agitation, his Alpha instincts warring with something that might have been guilt.

Floor forty-three arrived with another soft chime.

Ryker's secretary, a nervous-looking beta male, looked up from his desk as I approached. His eyes widened in recognition, then quickly darted away as if I were something dangerous.

"Ms. Chen," he stammered. "Alpha Mills is in a meeting, but I can—"

"He's expecting me," I said simply, not breaking stride as I walked past his desk toward the mahogany doors marked with Ryker's name.

I didn't knock.

Ryker stood behind his massive desk, phone pressed to his ear, but his eyes locked on mine the moment I entered. He was exactly as Mila had described—tall, broad-shouldered, with the kind of commanding presence that made other wolves submit without question. Dark hair, steel-gray eyes, a jawline that could cut glass.

He should have been devastating to look at. Instead, all I felt was cold calculation.

"I'll call you back," he said into the phone, never breaking eye contact with me. The device clicked as he set it down, his movements careful and controlled.

"Ivy." His voice was rough, uncertain. "You shouldn't have left the hospital."

"Shouldn't I?" I closed the door behind me with deliberate precision, the soft click echoing in the spacious office. "Tell me, Ryker, what exactly should I be doing right now?"

He moved around the desk, his Alpha presence filling the room like a physical force. But where it might have made the old Ivy submit, it only sharpened my resolve.

"You're hurt. You need rest. The babies—"

"Don't." The word cracked like a whip. "Don't you dare mention my children as if you care about them."

Something flickered across his face—pain, maybe, or regret. "They're my children too."

"Are they?" I tilted my head, studying him like a particularly interesting specimen. "Because from what I've been told, you made your priorities quite clear the night I tried to tell you about them."

Ryker's jaw tightened. "You don't remember that night."

"No, I don't. But I remember what you told me in the hospital. About being forgettable. About being temporary." I took a step closer, and he actually retreated slightly. "Those words came from somewhere, didn't they?"

The silence stretched between us, heavy with unspoken truths. Through our bond, I could feel his internal struggle, the war between his Alpha pride and something that might have been shame.

"I was angry," he said finally.

"At me? For existing? For carrying your children?" My voice remained level, conversational. "Or were you angry because I interrupted your reunion with Vanessa?"

His eyes flashed. "This isn't about Vanessa."

"Isn't it?" I smiled, and even I could feel how sharp it was. "Tell me, Ryker, where is your precious Vanessa now? Is she waiting for you at home, playing house while your actual mate recovers from a car accident?"

"Ivy—"

"I want a divorce."

The words dropped into the silence like stones into still water. Ryker went completely still, his Alpha presence wavering for the first time since I'd entered.

"What did you say?"

"You heard me." I moved to the window, looking out at the Seattle skyline without really seeing it. "I want to sever our mate bond. Permanently."

"That's... that's not possible. The bond can't be broken, especially not with children involved."

I turned back to face him, and whatever he saw in my expression made him take another step back.

"Can't it? I seem to recall there are ancient rituals. Painful ones, but effective." I studied his face, watching the color drain from his features. "Unless, of course, you can give me a reason not to."

"The children—"

"Will be better off without a father who sees their mother as disposable."

Ryker's control finally cracked. "Damn it, Ivy! Why are you doing this?"

"Why?" I laughed, and the sound was nothing like whatever laugh the old Ivy might have had. "Because you need a breeding tool, Ryker. Someone to give you heirs and fade into the background while you play with your real love. And I'm not interested."

The words hit him like physical blows. I could see it in the way his shoulders tensed, the way his hands clenched at his sides.

"That's not... I never said..."

"You didn't have to say it. Your actions spoke loud enough."

Before he could respond, a soft knock interrupted us. The door opened without invitation, and a man stepped inside—tall, distinguished, with silver hair and the kind of presence that commanded immediate attention.

But it was his eyes that made my breath catch. They were the same unusual violet shade I saw in my own reflection.

"Forgive the interruption," the stranger said, his voice carrying a slight accent I couldn't place. His gaze moved between Ryker and me, then settled on my face with an intensity that made my skin crawl.

"Sterling," Ryker said, his voice tight with barely controlled aggression. "This is a private conversation."

But Sterling Ashford—because somehow I knew that's who he was—ignored Ryker entirely. He moved closer to me, his violet eyes searching my face with an expression of dawning wonder.

"Extraordinary," he murmured. "You look exactly like Grace... who disappeared twenty-three years ago."

The name hit me like a lightning bolt, sending sharp pain through my skull. Grace. Why did that name feel important? Why did it make my heart race and my hands shake?

"I don't know what you're talking about," I managed, but my voice sounded weak even to my own ears.

Sterling's smile was cold and calculating. "Don't you, my dear? Because I think you know exactly who Grace was. And more importantly..." His eyes glittered with something that might have been triumph. "I think you know exactly who you really are."

The name Grace echoed in my mind like a stone dropped into still water, sending ripples of recognition I couldn't quite grasp. Sterling Ashford stood before me with those impossible violet eyes—the same shade I saw in my own reflection every morning—and I felt the world tilt on its axis.

"Grace," I repeated, my voice barely above a whisper. "Who was Grace?"

Sterling's expression softened with something that looked like grief mixed with hope. "Grace was my wife. My beautiful, brilliant wife who disappeared twenty-three years ago along with our six-month-old daughter."

The room seemed to shrink around us. I was vaguely aware of Ryker moving closer, his Alpha presence flaring protectively, but all my attention was focused on the man whose eyes mirrored my own.

"That's impossible," I said, but even as the words left my mouth, they felt hollow. "I grew up with my parents. The Chens. They—"

"Did they ever tell you that you were adopted?" Sterling's voice was gentle but insistent. "Did they ever explain why you looked nothing like them? Why your eyes are this unusual color?"

Memories I couldn't quite reach danced at the edges of my consciousness. Fragments of conversations, hushed whispers when they thought I wasn't listening. The way my mother—Mrs. Chen—would sometimes look at me with sadness in her eyes.

"This is ridiculous," Ryker interjected, his voice sharp with authority. "Sterling, whatever game you're playing—"

"This isn't a game," Sterling cut him off, never taking his eyes from my face. "My daughter would be twenty-three now. The same age as Ivy. She would have these eyes, this bone structure." His voice cracked slightly. "She would be beautiful, just like her mother."

I pressed my hands to my temples, trying to ward off the headache that was building behind my eyes. "Why are you telling me this? What do you want?"

"I want the truth," Sterling said simply. "And I think you do too. There's a simple way to find out for certain."

"A DNA test," I said, the words falling from my lips before I could stop them.

Sterling nodded. "One test. One answer to a question that's haunted me for over two decades."

Before I could respond, the office door burst open. Vanessa Sterling—because of course she would be a Sterling—swept into the room like a force of nature. She was everything Mila had described: tall, elegant, with platinum blonde hair and the kind of effortless beauty that graced magazine covers.

But it was the panic in her green eyes that caught my attention.

"Daddy, what are you doing here?" Her voice was higher than it should have been, strained with barely concealed fear. "I thought you were in meetings all afternoon."

"Vanessa." Sterling's tone cooled noticeably. "I was just having a fascinating conversation with Ivy."

Vanessa's gaze darted between her father and me, and I could practically see the calculations running behind her eyes. "About what?"

"About family," Sterling said quietly. "About lost daughters and impossible coincidences."

The color drained from Vanessa's face. "Daddy, you can't be serious. This is... this is that omega who's been stalking Ryker. She's nobody."

"Is she?" Sterling's voice carried a dangerous edge. "Because she has Grace's eyes. Grace's bone structure. Grace's way of holding her head when she's thinking."

"Lots of people have similar features," Vanessa said quickly, moving to place herself between her father and me. "It doesn't mean anything."

But her panic was palpable now, filling the room like smoke. Through my mate bond, I could feel Ryker's confusion and growing alarm. Something was very wrong here, and we all knew it.

"Then you won't mind if we do a simple DNA test," Sterling said calmly. "Just to put the matter to rest."

Vanessa's laugh was too bright, too forced. "Of course not. It's just... unnecessary. A waste of time and money."

"I'll pay for it," Sterling said, pulling out his phone. "I know a lab that can have results back in twenty-four hours."

"No!" The word exploded from Vanessa with such force that we all stared at her. She seemed to realize her mistake immediately, forcing her expression back to something resembling calm. "I mean, why rush? If you're so certain, what's the harm in waiting a few days?"

But Sterling was already dialing. "Dr. Morrison? It's Sterling Ashford. I need an emergency DNA test... Yes, I'll bring both samples within the hour."

Vanessa looked like she might be sick. Her hands were shaking, and she kept glancing toward the door as if calculating her escape route.

"This is insane," she whispered. "Daddy, please. Think about what you're doing."

"I'm thinking about what I should have done twenty-three years ago," Sterling replied, his voice hard as granite. "I'm thinking about all the leads I didn't follow, all the stones I left unturned."

He turned back to me, and the hope in his eyes was almost painful to witness. "Will you do this, Ivy? Will you help me find out if my daughter is finally coming home?"

I looked around the room—at Sterling with his desperate hope, at Vanessa with her barely concealed terror, at Ryker whose confusion was bleeding through our bond like an open wound.

Twenty-four hours. In twenty-four hours, I might discover that everything I thought I knew about my identity was a lie. That the parents who raised me weren't my parents at all. That I was the missing daughter of one of the most powerful men in the supernatural world.

And judging by Vanessa's reaction, she already knew the answer.

"Yes," I said quietly. "Let's find out the truth."

The next twenty-four hours passed in a blur of anxious waiting and careful avoidance. Sterling had insisted on having the test done at the most reputable lab in the city, with multiple technicians to ensure accuracy. Vanessa had disappeared shortly after we left for the lab, claiming she had urgent business to attend to.

Ryker had stayed close, his protective instincts in overdrive despite the tension between us. Through our bond, I could feel his worry—not just for me, but for what this revelation might mean for our already complicated situation.

When Sterling's call came, we were all gathered in his private study. The afternoon light filtered through tall windows, casting long shadows across antique furniture and family portraits that suddenly seemed to take on new significance.

"Dr. Morrison," Sterling answered, his voice steady despite the tension radiating from his frame. "Yes, I'm here with her now."

The silence stretched as he listened to the results. His face went through a series of expressions—shock, joy, and something that looked like vindication.

"Are you certain?" he asked quietly. "Ninety-nine point nine nine percent... I see. Thank you, Doctor."

He set the phone down with careful precision, his hands trembling slightly. When he looked up at me, his eyes were bright with unshed tears.

"Ivy," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "My dear girl. You're my daughter. After twenty-three years... you're finally home."

The words hit me like a physical blow. Ninety-nine point nine nine percent. There was no room for doubt, no margin for error.

I wasn't Ivy Chen, the forgettable omega who'd spent her life believing she wasn't good enough.

I was Ivy Ashford. Daughter of one of the most powerful supernatural families in the country. And judging by the way Vanessa had reacted, she'd known all along.

Which meant someone had been lying to me for my entire life.