Adan
When I woke, Brenna was still sleeping. So, I slid out of bed and headed into my suite, then showered and dressed in a dress shirt and slacks, knowing there was a lot to do before she woke. When I was ready, I headed into the hallway, but no guards were posted outside Brenna's door. Rage filled me as I headed back inside and pulled out my cell phone.
"Alpha?" Mason answered on the first ring.
"Post guards outside of Brenna's door immediately." I let out a deep breath. "And make sure she has two guards posted on her around the clock."
"Aye," he replied. "Is there anything else?"
"Yes, see that Brenna's breakfast is sent to her room immediately, and I shall dine with her."
"Very well, Alpha!" Mason's voice was much too cheerful to be my Underboss. "Let me just say, Adan, that I am so pleased you finally chose a Mate—"
"Enough." I didn't have to answer to him, nor did I want to.
"I'm glad you ended up going to the Auction, after all," he continued without taking heed to my words. "And just think. If you hadn't gone tonight—"
"Enough!" I growled. "See that our breakfast is brought to her room but give the staff strict orders not to wake her if she's still sleeping."
"Aye." Mason paused at the other end. "Is there anything else?"
I let out a deep breath. "I will be gone tomorrow. See that Brenna is not disturbed. She needs her rest."
"Yes, sir!" I could hear the smile in the fool's voice. Obviously, he was thinking something dirty, but there was nothing dirty about what we did. I clicked off the phone and slipped it back into my pocket.
Unable to resist, I quietly opened the adjoining door and looked in on her. She was sleeping peacefully, faced away. Good. She needed to rest. I leaned against the doorframe and smiled, unable to take my eyes off her. Seeing her like this, she looked frail, vulnerable, even though she was the strongest woman I've ever met.
Watching her now, sleeping so peacefully, I remembered when I felt her need of me, and I couldn't help but heed her call. Strangely, I'd never felt anything like it before. It must be the Mate Bond, or something. I sighed, glad that I had waited for her. I would never forgive myself if I had settled and taken another Mate, only to meet Brenna and discover my true Mate.
As I watched her sleep, I knew this moment alone was worth the wait.
Suddenly, she turned toward me and opened her eyes. "How long have you been standing there?"
"Long enough." I shrugged. "Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you—"
"No. I felt you were there," she said, sitting up as her robe came open, revealing the top of one of her creamy breasts. But she quickly covered herself and sat on the edge of the bed. "I felt that you needed me. It's hard to explain."
"No, I felt the same thing last night." I pushed away from the doorframe and headed to her kitchenette. I poured her a glass of water, added ice, and then carried it back to her. "Here. Drink this, but drink slowly. You're probably dehydrated and malnourished." I tilted my head to the side. "When was the last time you ate anything?"
She drank down the whole glass all at once, not listening to my advice. Then she handed it back to me and held her stomach. "Oh, I'm going to be sick!"
I grabbed the small plastic garbage bin nearby, set it on the floor in front of her, and held back her beautiful long dark-brown hair as she vomited the contents of her stomach into it. But all that came up was water and bile.
"You shouldn't have drank so much so quickly."
Anger filled me, knowing she probably hadn't eaten anything in days. I would have words with Fletcher about her treatment, among other things.
"I'm sorry. I was thirsty." She pulled away and stood, obviously thinking my anger was directed at her. She huffed as she headed off to the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
"Brenna, I meant nothing by it," I said through the door, but then decided to give her some time, hoping that our connection from the night before wasn't short lived.
I picked up the bin and opened the door, knowing it couldn't stay in her room until the maid came.
Two guards were already posted on either side of her door. "Here," I said, thrusting the trash can to one of them. "See that this is disposed of."
"But Alpha!" His eyes were wide. "I was told not to leave my post—"
"I shall stay here in your stead until you return," I said, cutting him off. "But hurry. I do not have all day."
"Aye!" He took the bin and hurried off to do my bidding.
I stood in the doorway, leaving the door open so I could listen for Brenna. She couldn't be left alone. Not yet. Even though she slept soundly all night, it would probably take days—or longer—before she felt like herself again.
When the guard returned with a clean trash can, he handed it to me awkwardly. "Here you go, Alpha."
I nodded and then said to the other guard, "Go fetch Magenta immediately."
"Aye!" He headed off without further hesitation.
Magenta was the Pack Witch, but she was also a Healer. In our world, Pack Witches were Healers, too. After all, medicine is a form of magic, I would guess.
Anyway, Brenna needed to be looked over today. I was sure she was exhausted and hadn't been properly cared for. Fletcher, and the monster who took her to him needed to be shot. And I planned to do just that when I find the brute responsible. I don't care what she did, she didn't deserve this treatment.
According to the Rules of Pack War, Brenna was in her right to defend herself. After all, they had attacked her Pack first. Brenna was merely protecting herself and her people, but to no avail. The Alpha had decimated her whole Pack and probably would have killed her, too, had he not wanted to humiliate and degrade her. His Mate had foolishly taken Brenna on and lost. It wasn't Brenna's fault. His Mate would have gladly killed Brenna if she hadn't defended herself.
I shuddered at the thought, glad that he hadn't violated her. If he had done that, I would have gone medieval on his ass, cutting off his head and displaying it for the villagers as a warning. But alas, doing that today would just invoke the wrath of the humans, as well as the Pack Council.
No, wolf-shifters have existed side by side with humans for this long without knowing about us, and I intended to keep it that way. I had no intention of exposing our whole species to the world by doing such a vile thing... but I could dream.
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