ZANE'S POV
I tightened my grip on Reina's hand, and she squeezed her eyes shut as the pain overwhelmed her body.
“I told you to take it easy.” A soft reprimand escaped my lips, and when she whipped her head around to glare at me, I twisted her arm, and a painful groan escaped her lips as she threw her head backwards.
“Be gentle, please.” Her eyes glistened with tears as she looked at her left hand.
“When you're with me, you can cry, you know.” I smiled, and she scowled.
“I don't want to. You're a bully and a jerk, even to your mate.” Reina rolled her eyes.
“About that–”
The door to the kitchen was pushed open, and my small mate appeared, looking all pale and vulnerable. Her cheeks had a hint of red to them, but her face was still as white as snow.
Even though she looked like she was on the brink of death, my body was still reacting to the sight of her.
Feelings thoughts I'd been buried f

TALIA'S POV
My heart was beating fast, like a drum. Years of experience and countless beatings to the back had taught me never to let my guard down in situations like this.
It always came with beating, beating with irremovable scars.
My body shivered with apprehension. Is he one of them? Did they get their hands on him too? 
It's not like it'll be strange for a wealthy man to be a part of that association; their network was that vast, and they penetrated everywhere.
But why had I been so stupid to put my guard down with people that I'd never met in my life, people I was sure had no reason to save me from drowning unless they were one of them? Unless those people never let me go, unless they were in the corner watching my every move,
My breath seized, and he came back to the dining room.
“Is this a trap?” I asked softly, worried that if I raised my voice, he would snap, like they all do.


TALIA'S POV
The insistent sound of a beeping machine rang in my ear. No matter how hard I tried to shut it out, it wouldn't budge.
Argh! For the love of all things sweet, I want to go back to sleep. I groaned inwardly.
Wait!
Sleep!
Am I dead? Of course, I am.
Is this heaven? Maybe hell, since I took my own life—well, not technically.
But what is that beeping sound?
My eyes shot open and closed immediately at the intensity of the white light.
“Ah fuck!” I groaned, but even though that came out as a whisper, my throat was dry and scratchy.
“She's awake!” I heard a soft feminine voice and light footsteps approaching me.
My eyes flickered behind my eyelids, and I opened my eyes slowly, blinking continuously until I could tolerate the bright light.
I glanced to my left, where the beeping was coming from, and saw different wires hooked from a machine to my body.
Am I in a hospital?
But this room looks too fancy to be a hospital.
And who brought me here?
“Hi,” A fair, oval, smooth face, framed with green hair and green eyes, blocked my view of the insanely white and gold ceiling.
I pushed my head backwards, trying to move away because she was all in my face.
“Are you trying to sink into her?” A monotonous voice, low and deep, vibrated through my body, and my eyes darted around the room looking for the owner of the voice.
“She looks so adorable with her red lips and long lashes. Her hair is so auburn, I've never seen anything like it.” The woman smiled again playfully as her fingers played with the end of a lock of my hair. Her green eyes are glinting with what I presume to be happiness.
I tried to remember if I ever met her, but nothing came to mind.
In fact, I was sure that I would remember if I had, even if it's just a glimpse, because her beauty was the kind one would do a double take for.
“Boundaries Reina.” The voice came again, and this time, I so badly wanted to punch this Reina in the face, even though I had no strength in me any longer.
“Oh, sorry.” She moved away, and I finally came face-to-face with the man whose audio was making my body sing.
In the two minutes I had heard his voice, my brain had conjured a face to match it, but that didn't do justice to the actual physique of the man.
His shoulder-length packed in a man born was the color of midnight with streaks of blue highlight that glistened in the day light.
His eyes were a shade of misty green. His chiseled jawline and trimmed beard gave him a dangerous masculine beauty.
The intensity of his gaze had a predatory aura to it.
His flimsy white shirt clung to his skin, showing off his biceps. I ran my tongue over my lips and watched as his eyes trailed the movement. He felt familiar.
Why will he feel familiar?
“It looks like your little mate has taken a liking to you, Zane.”
I snapped my eyes at Reina, forgetting for a moment that she was there.
"Look, she's blushing. I wonder what took you so long to finally bring her here.” Reina smacked his arm, but his eyes were glued to my face.
Why is he staring at me like that?
I raised my hand to touch my face, but it felt too heavy to raise.
I felt my cheeks heat up. "Please, can I get water?” My voice was too low, and I was about to respond when Reina smiled and walked away, coming back two seconds later with a cup of water and a glass jar.
“Here you go.” She handed me the cup, and I gulped everything down within seconds, stretching my hand out for more.
After my fifth cup, I cleared my throat and thanked her; my voice is now clear.
“For someone who drowned, you sure are very thirsty.” Zane folded his arms, and my eyes were drawn to the way his muscles flexed.
“Don't be such a pussycat, Zane. I pulled all forms of water from her body; I'm surprised she didn't drink the whole jar.” Reina chuckled, and I suddenly remembered what happened to me.
“Did you rescue me last night?” I asked, staring at Reina.
"No, I didn't.” She shook her head.
“I did.” Zane walked closer to the bed, our eyes locking as he spoke, and yet I still couldn't shake the feeling that I'd seen him somewhere. “And it's been a week since you decided to jump without a plan.”
My eyes flickered between the two of them. “A week?”
“Yes.” Reina's eyes furrowed with confusion. “Is something wrong?”
“I can't be gone for a week. My boss will kill me!” I yelled as I tried to get out of bed, but Reina held my arms and pushed me back.
“You're not going anywhere. You just woke up from a life-threatening accident.” She glared at me.
“It wasn't an accident; she wanted to die.” Zane rolled his eyes.
“Shut up, Zane!” Reina and I yelled at him, and he growled at me. I quickly shrank back but didn't stop talking.
“I never wanted to take my own life. I was only admiring the city, but I slipped and fell.”
“Ignore him. That's right, we don't know your name.”
“Talia. I'm Talia Wilson.”
"Well, I am.”
“Reina and Zane. I know.” I cut her off.
“Of course. Now trust us, your boss won't fire you. Just take your time to rest, and you can go back to your job in no time.” She smiled and ran her fingers through my hair.
My eyelids became heavy. “Wh-what are you doing?” My head fell back to the pillow, and I was out like a light.
When I woke up again, it was already nighttime, and the exposed window was showing a dark cloud.
My eyes slowly roamed around the room, and I finally had the chance to take in the beauty of the bedroom I was in.
It has white walls and intricate designs similar to the ceiling; it was lined with gold and white, and it had a small shiny chandelier made with blow glass.
Never in my life did I think I would ever end up in a place like this. Judging from their appearances earlier, it was clear that Zane and Reina were not ordinary people. The way they spoke, the way they carried themselves, it screamed 'wealth'.
And with that, reality dawned on me. If I had truly been here for a week, my boss was going to have my hide.
Missing a day at work incurred the wrath of the beast of a boss. I had not imagined what would happen to me now that I'd missed a week.
It took a while for me to get up from the bed, and when I did, I had to grab onto the wall to strengthen my wobbly feet.
I made my way out of the room, and then I heard voices coming from downstairs.
I held on to the railings and made my way in the direction of the voices, but as I got closer, I heard...moans?

ZANE'S POV
I tightened my grip on Reina's hand, and she squeezed her eyes shut as the pain overwhelmed her body.
“I told you to take it easy.” A soft reprimand escaped my lips, and when she whipped her head around to glare at me, I twisted her arm, and a painful groan escaped her lips as she threw her head backwards.
“Be gentle, please.” Her eyes glistened with tears as she looked at her left hand.
“When you're with me, you can cry, you know.” I smiled, and she scowled.
“I don't want to. You're a bully and a jerk, even to your mate.” Reina rolled her eyes.
“About that–”
The door to the kitchen was pushed open, and my small mate appeared, looking all pale and vulnerable. Her cheeks had a hint of red to them, but her face was still as white as snow.
Even though she looked like she was on the brink of death, my body was still reacting to the sight of her.
Feelings thoughts I'd been buried five years ago and sprouted with a vengeance stronger than before.
“What are you doing out 

CHAPTER 5: CURIOUS MOUSE.