Chapter 211: Erased memories

Alyssa slowly opened her eyes, blinking to clear her vision. The voices that had been whispering in her head gradually faded, leaving her feeling disoriented and hollow.

She was in the bedroom, lying flat on her back. When she tried to move, pain lanced through her entire body. She felt as though she had been run over by a bulldozer.

On top of that, her throat felt raw. Swallowing hurt like hell, and every slight movement was like a thousand needles prickling beneath her skin.

She turned her head toward the window. The curtains were drawn to shut out the light, but through the thin ribbons of sunlight filtering past the edges, she could tell it was daylight.

She glanced at the bedside clock, realizing it was just a few minutes past noon. How long had she been asleep?

Moving carefully and gritting her teeth against the pain, she pushed herself up. Her bones ached, and her joints popped as she leaned back against the pillows. The room was empty.

Where’s Dorian?

She looked down at her clothes. The black dress was gone, replaced with one of her soft pink nighties. He must have undressed her.

She tried to retrace the events of the previous night, but her mind hit a solid brick wall. The last thing she could recall was taking off the talisman. After that, total blackness, followed by a sharp spike of pain whenever she tried to force the memory.

She slowly swung her legs over the side of the bed. The moment her bare feet touched the floor, she frowned. Her toes were caked in dried dirt and dead leaves. She distinctly remembered wearing shoes the night before, so how...?

Shaking her head to clear the fog, she pushed off the bed and headed for the bathroom. Her steps were wobbly, forcing her to brace one hand against the wall to keep her balance.

When she stepped in front of the full-length mirror, her breath caught. She looked different.

The change was subtle, yet undeniable. She looked older. More vibrant. Livelier. Her skin carried an unfamiliar, luminous glow. And her hair?

She gasped, lifting a thick, wavy curl into her line of sight. The red shade had intensified, aggressively overtaking the black. Her blue eyes were brighter, sharper than they had ever been.

Still thoroughly confused, she shook her head and turned away. She would get her answers from Dorian later; right now, she just wanted to wash away the dirt and the residue of last night.

She whipped her hair back into a loose bun and leaned against the sink to brush her teeth. As she stripped off her nightie to step into the shower, she caught another glance of her reflection in the mirror and froze.

The scars on her body were gone. Every single mark from her stepmother’s beatings–both the ones that had faded to a dull grey over the years and the angry pink ones that still marred her skin–had completely vanished.

Strange, she thought quietly before stepping into the shower stall.

After a long, hot bath, she walked back into the bedroom with a towel wrapped around her chest.

She had just finished slipping into a peach-colored sundress and was running a brush through her hair when the door opened.

Dorian stepped into the room, looking exhausted yet as breathtaking as ever. He paused in the doorway the moment his eyes locked onto hers.

She smiled, her hands dropping to her sides as she turned to face him. "Where have you been?"

He shut the door sharply, crossed the room in three long strides, and pulled her straight into his arms. One hand tangled into her hair and fisted tightly, while the other locked around her waist, anchoring her against him.

Alyssa let out a soft sigh, melting into his embrace. This was where she needed to be, held tightly like she was the only thing that mattered in his world. And she was.

For Dorian, seeing her finally awake was the only thing that finally quieted the raging beast beneath his skin. Last night had been the longest of his life, and not just because of the Solstice.

He had spent hours sitting beside the bed, gripping her hand and praying her fever would break. She had been the first person Nina had rushed to attend.

Now, seeing her standing on her own two feet, he felt weak with relief.

?He pulled back slightly and captured her lips, moving slowly, letting her feel every drop of emotion he lacked the words to explain.

He backed her against the vanity, trapping her between his solid frame and the edge of the desk. His other hand left her waist to join the one buried in her hair, deepening the kiss with a desperate intensity.

When he finally pulled back, his lashes were damp with tears. Alyssa held his face, her brows knitting with concern.

"Dorian, what’s wrong?" she asked softly. "Are you hurt?"

He shook his head, burying his face in the curve of her neck. He drew in a shaky breath, his arms tightening around her.

?"I’m just glad you’re awake," he whispered.

She let out a soft chuckle and pressed a kiss to his neck. Pulling back gently, she framed his face with her hands, using her thumb to wipe away the moisture clinging to his lashes.

"My sweet Dorian," she smiled. "I’m alright, okay? You don’t need to worry anymore."

"I know that," Dorian murmured, leaning forward to rest his forehead against hers. "Last night was just... a lot. And not just because of the Solstice."

He shut his eyes for a moment, drinking in the warmth of her body, before straightening up. "Are you hungry?"

"No," she shook her head. "Really, I’m not. But I have questions. About last night."

She noticed the way he tensed up, as if he had been dreading this exact conversation.

Still, he nodded and led her toward the edge of the bed. "Well, let’s start with this. What exactly do you remember from last night?"

"Not much," she admitted. "The last thing I remember is taking off the talisman. Everything else after that is completely blank."

Dorian nodded slowly, looking as though he had expected nothing less.

"What happened, Dorian?" she asked, her voice dropping to an anxious whisper. "Tell me everything."

"Your powers unleashed," he said bluntly.

Alyssa reared back, shock nailing her to the bed. "What?"

"Yes," he nodded. "I figured it’s better if you hear it straight from me. The Solstice must have forced it awake when you removed the talisman. You completely lost control. You wiped out the entire rogue army."

Alyssa sat frozen, listening in stunned silence as Dorian narrated everything she had done. When he finished, she couldn’t find her voice. She was stunned into silence.

"With the help of the guards, the Lycans who survived the massacre were taken to the hospital. I knew Doctor Dylan would need answers. I’ve been there with him."

"What did you tell him?" Alyssa asked quickly, leaning in. "Did he suspect anything?"

Dorian shook his head. "He didn’t. Which is the strange part. With the storm you conjured last night, I expected every shifter in the territory to be talking of nothing else. But it’s as if it was wiped right out of their minds."

"What?"

"And not just that. The Lycans who were knocked unconscious by the blast have zero memories of the night before. All they remember is fighting the rogues, and then blacking out."

Alyssa frowned deeply, confusion warring with dread. "How is that possible? Why don’t they remember?"

"I think it has something to do with you," Dorian replied. "Think about it. Nearly three hundred Lycans all woke up with blank memories regarding the storm and everything that followed. The last thing they have in their heads is the fight. The only logical explanation is that their memories of you were stripped away by that blast."

"So I..." Alyssa whispered, her voice trembling. "I erased their memories?"

Dorian stared straight into her eyes and nodded. "I believe so. We still don’t know the extent of your power, so anything is possible."

"What about Pandora and Henna?" Alyssa rushed on, her heart hammering against her ribs. "Anthony and Alec? Did I erase their memories too?"

Dorian’s expression hardened suddenly. He let out a slow breath and shook his head. "No. Their memories are completely intact. They remember every single thing from last night."

"So... so they know? They know what I am?"

Dorian nodded grimly. "They do. I’m sorry, baby. But I couldn’t keep it buried anymore. With what they witnessed out there, I had to come clean and tell them you were a Hybrid."

Terror gripped Alyssa. She had heard enough dark stories of how the Lycans viewed Hybrids and the Onyx as mindless, slaughtering monsters.

Now that they knew the truth, would they hate her? Would they look at her and see a monster?

"How did they take the news?" she asked in a small voice.

Dorian closed his eyes, exhaling deeply as he shook his head. "Bad, my love. Very bad."