Chapter 224

Chapter 224
Chapter 224
Dominic’s POV
Elena's condition had me on edge in ways I couldn't have anticipated. Watching her struggle with fragmented memories was like watching pieces of her slip away, and every protective instinct I possessed roared to life. I'd put all my pack business on hold for the past two days, canceling meetings and reassigning patrols just to stay close to her.
She needs me here. The thought came with an unfamiliar certainty that went beyond duty or contract terms.
On the first day, she'd tried to make coffee with orange juice, her brow furrowed in genuine confusion when the smell hit her. "This doesn't seem right," she'd murmured, staring at the mess in the coffee maker like it had personally betrayed her.
"Elena," I'd said gently, taking the carafe from her hands. "You used juice instead of water."
She'd looked up at me with those wide, uncertain eyes. "I did? But I could have sworn..." Her voice trailed off, and she'd pressed her fingers to her temples. "Everything feels jumbled."
I'd made her real coffee after that, watching as she sipped it slowly, relief washing over her features when the familiar taste registered. Small victories.
The second day brought more concerning episodes. She'd stood in my living room for ten minutes, turning in slow circles.
"Elena? What's wrong?"
"I can't remember where the bathroom is," she'd admitted, cheeks flushing with embarrassment. "I know I've been here before, but it's like the layout keeps shifting in my head."
I'd guided her down the hall, my hand resting protectively on her lower back. The wolf in me was restless, pacing with anxiety I couldn't fully suppress. 
By the third day, Elena seemed markedly better. Her movements were more assured, and when she'd successfully navigated my kitchen to make breakfast without incident, I'd felt a knot of tension I hadn't realized I was carrying finally loosen.
"The fog is lifting," she'd said over scrambled eggs, offering me a tentative smile. "Whatever was happening, I think the worst is over."
For now. But I'd kept that thought to myself, not wanting to dim the relief in her eyes.
It was just past noon when my phone buzzed with an encrypted message. The tracking team had finally located the safe house where our three suspected traitors had been hiding. After weeks of careful surveillance following their escape during the trial exposures, we had them cornered again.
Time to move.
But as I reached for my keys, my phone rang again.
"Dom, we have a problem." Felix's voice was tight with urgency. "It's Elena."
"What happened?"
"She's at the pack house, but she's... confused again. Badly confused. She walked into the wrong building looking for her office, started asking pack members about work projects that don't exist. When I tried to redirect her, she couldn't remember where she was supposed to be for several minutes."
I gripped the phone harder. "Where is she now?"
"Safe, but Dom - multiple pack members witnessed the episode. They're asking questions about why she would be acting so erratically. Some of the younger wolves are already spreading theories."
Damn. I could already see how this would play out. Pack members noticing Elena's strange behavior, putting together pieces about her memory issues and my sudden protectiveness. In a world where werewolf bloodlines were everything, a human showing signs of supernatural mental interference would raise red flags that could get her killed.
"They think she might be compromised," Felix continued. "Some are wondering if she could be under magical influence or worse - that she might be connected to the traitors who escaped. You know how paranoid everyone gets about humans who have access to pack territory after we've had security breaches."
My free hand clenched into a fist. The escape of Marcus, David, and Jackson had left the entire pack on edge about internal security. Elena's bizarre behavior would inevitably be connected to recent betrayals in some pack members' minds.
"I need you to handle the tracking team," I said, the words tasting like ash. "The traitors are cornered, but we have maybe an hour before they realize we're onto them and scatter again."
"Dom, you're the only one with the authority to authorize a capture operation. After what happened during the trials, the team won't move without direct Alpha orders-"
"You can and you will." My voice carried the full weight of my Alpha authority. "Use emergency protocols. I'll take responsibility."
"And Elena?"
I was already grabbing my jacket, my wolf pacing frantically beneath my skin. Every instinct told me that Elena was in immediate danger - not just from her memory issues, but from my own pack members who might decide she was too much of a risk to leave alive.
"I'm going to her."
"Dom, if we lose these traitors again, we might not get another chance for months. Marcus, David, and Jackson have been building networks, recruiting rogues. The damage they could do with more time-"
"I know." The words came out as a growl. I knew exactly what choosing Elena over pack security meant. Those three traitors had access to patrol schedules, safe house locations, and intelligence about our territory boundaries. If they escaped again and sold that information to the Blood Moon pack or the Iron Claw clan, it could compromise our entire defensive network.
But the image of Elena, confused and vulnerable, surrounded by suspicious pack members who saw her as nothing more than a potential threat connected to our recent betrayals, made the choice crystal clear.
"Felix, you have your orders. Take Axton and Rafe. If you can corner them before they run, do it. If not..." I exhaled slowly. "We'll deal with the consequences."
"You're sure about this?"
No. I wasn't sure about anything except that Elena needed me more than hunting down escaped traitors did right now. Marcus and his conspirators were a known threat that we could eventually track down again. Elena's situation was immediate and potentially fatal if handled wrong.
"Handle the traitors," I repeated. "I'll clean up the mess with Elena and the pack."
I ended the call and headed for the door, my mind already working through damage control scenarios. 
The last thing we needed was paranoid pack members deciding she was either too dangerous or too valuable to remain under my protection.
My phone buzzed with another text from Felix: "Traitors are mobilizing. Looks like they know we're coming."
I stared at the message, jaw clenched. This was exactly what I'd feared - by the time I dealt with Elena's crisis and returned to pack business, our window of opportunity would be gone. Those three wolves would disappear deeper into whatever network of safe houses and rogue connections they'd built during their time on the run.
But Elena comes first.
The realization hit me with unexpected force. Not the pack, not territory security, not even my responsibilities as Alpha. Elena. The woman whose memory was fracturing, who was probably sitting in some pack common area terrified and confused, not understanding why her own mind was betraying her or why pack members were looking at her with suspicion.
I gunned the engine and pulled out of the driveway, heading toward the pack house. Whatever consequences came from letting the escaped traitors slip away again, I'd handle them later. Right now, Elena needed me, and that was the only priority that mattered.
The fifteen-minute drive to the pack's compound felt like hours. By the time I reached the main building, I was already running through all the possible explanations for Elena's behavior. How could I convince the pack to trust her, given how hostile they had been from the start?