Crowned Wolf (Original)(Completed)

Thirty-Seven

He could've just stuck with defending her. He could've just kept out of her business and maybe nag the alpha for being disrespectful. But he didn't have to play with her. He didn't have to put her in a situation where she had to act like it didn't bother her; she had to act like she was already in love.

Karmen's never been in love. She always has been at the bottom of the food chain, always focused on work and supporting her siblings and trying to make a living. She's lucky enough her alpha recognized her talents for borders and strategy and she's lucky he decided to use her and not condemn her for it. She's always known her place and she's always accepted it. Finding love was just not in the agenda for her. Boys weren't in the agenda for her.

Finding her mate is the biggest shock of her life. It's like discovering she's pregnant after being raped and in a way, it's the same thing. Her life was raped when Fenrir decided to give her a mate and she ended up pregnant when she found him. Ripping her soul apart was the only thing she had to be grateful for. But it hurt so much. She doesn't know how she is going to fight off this kind of ache. Is there a certain medicine for it? Is it as simple as finding a rebound? Or will she, like so many others, suffer and died from the burned connection? Will it torment her for the rest of her life or will she finally be able to go back and focus on her duties to her family and her pack?

"Shh."

She feels someone's arms come around her and a voice whispers softly in her ear. She doesn't need to turn around to figure out who it is. Audrey has that kind of presence. Soothing and friendly, she was the first to notice that something was off. She's the first person to ever show concern over her, outside of her family. And now, for the first time in a long time, Karmen lets herself cry because Audrey's the first person to catch her in a weak moment.

Karmen can't breathe. The ache has become so prominent that she wants to pull her hair out of her head and knock herself out. Her nails dig into Audrey's skin but the Iota doesn't cry out to ask her to stop. She just tightens her hold on her, letting Karmen pour out her pain, rocking her and shushing her but never offering a word of comfort. Karmen's grateful for that.

When she's finished, she finds herself waking up in a bed in one of the rooms. She doesn't recognize it but there's a lingering scent in here. She doesn't remember how she got here but it's late and the room is dark. Audrey probably just took her to the first room she found, kicking out everyone else. But she can't be too sure. Her room is on the first floor, closer to the kitchens so she can be closer to her duty stations. There, she always knew when someone came downstairs in the middle of the night, needing a glass of water or warm milk or was having a bad night and wanted alcohol. Here, there isn't a sound and she knows the only ones who are up from this floor will be on the borders doing their runs.

Her head aches. A migraine starts from her left eye and goes on to cover her whole head. She's still in her clothes and the sheet around her makes her feel tangled and stuck. The bed is too soft and she can't argue herself into going back to sleep here. Audrey isn't anywhere to be found and all she can think about are those dishes.

Did anyone finish them?

With a sigh, she stands up and as she did, the door opens. She expected a blue eyed female alpha but instead, much to her dismay, Leon appears. He hasn't noticed her but turns quickly to shut the door quietly. When he turns around, he stops mid step, looking at her with surprise. His features relax and he continues towards her.

"You're up."

Karmen blinks at him and lets out a sigh. Now she recognizes that lingering scent. It's Leon's and it's only faint because he's hardly in his own room. He's either chasing skirts or too busy doing beta duties to sleep. "I was just about to go back to my room."