Eve's smile faltered when she saw my expression.

Werewolf. That man was a werewolf. I was attacked by werewolves. I was in their land, on their territory... But how? Why?

"Uh, hello? Are you okay?" Eve wondered, her hand resting on my own.

I shook my head, "You're a wolf."

She frowned but then her eyes widened with shock. "Shit-I mean, yes, I am, but you weren't supposed to know that yet."

"You're a wolf," I repeated, scanning her features again.

The tall, toned body explained it. The way she communicated with her eyes more than her words around Doctor Seth, or how she could hear, and no doubt smell, someone in the corridor.

"I am... Are you okay? I... I don't know your name... What's your name?" She muttered.

"Ailia."

"Ailia, are you okay? Want me to get you anything?" She asked. "I know this can be difficult for you to hear, but I've let the cat out of the bag now so..."

"Just... just one question." I stammered, meeting her gaze.

"Yes?"

"Who was that man?"

"The Alpha."

"Alpha," I repeated. "I thought so."

"Why do you ask?"

My jaw tightened. "Am I on his land?"

"Yes, you are in the Cardinal Pack." She answered, nodding.

"Cardinal?"

"Do you know anything about my kind?"

I shook my head. "Nothing. We... my town... we are very secluded."

"What town were you from?"

"Evermore."

She scrunched her nose up. "Not heard of that one."

"We were off the map... off the radar until..."

"Until the hunt," She finished before sighing as she noticed my fearful expression. "You are safe here, no one is going to hurt you."

I blinked, tears burning at my eyes. "Can you promise that?"

She frowned, concern coating her features. "What is it?"

"Can you promise that?" I repeated.

She paused her answer, and I knew right away; she couldn't. I wiped a tear away, the fear for my life had only grown. Only this time, the landscape was different.

"No-one will hurt you, just trust in me, trust in Alpha Asra."

Alpha Asra. What a fitting name for such a large man-wolf.

"Let's finish tending to your wounds, and then I can get you dressed, okay?"

I nodded in agreement, allowing her to pull the covers and examine my body.

"Want me to list your injuries?" She wondered.

I shrugged, my jaw aching with how hard I was fighting back the tears.

"Well, we will start from the bottom. Torn ligaments in your left thigh, we have fixed it up the best we could. Some skin was salvageable, some we had to take from the other thigh to patch up." She murmured, pulling my gown around. "Dislocated left hip, six broken ribs, three either side. Broken pelvis, four tears down your abdomen that we have sewn successfully. Some bruising and tenderness, but otherwise, everything else seems fine. There are other... marks but they are much older... so..."

"Got it," I quipped, looking away from her as I wrapped myself back in the blanket. "Thanks."

"Want anything else?" She wondered.

I shook my head. "I'd like to be alone."

"Okay," She sighed. "Hit the nurse button if you want me back. If not, I'll be back for lights out."

Lights out? Sounds awfully odd.

I mutely nodded, and as soon as the door shut behind her, I felt the wave of emotions come crashing to the shore. Tears flooded my eyes, pouring down my cheeks as I sobbed into my hands. The overwhelming fear, confusion and anguish shook my body. I was stuck in a pack of wolves, with mis-matched skin and too many questions that I couldn't handle.

I didn't want to be here. I thought I was going to die that day.

I wasn't sure what was worse. The fact I would rather be home with Darius, or the fact that the alluring man in the hallway, the Alpha, set something alight in my chest that had butterflies grow in my stomach.

+++

I must've fallen asleep crying because when I woke, the sun was in the sky and my mouth felt dry and hoarse once more. I felt good though, my body didn't ache thanks to the painkillers and my mind felt rested from the heavy sleep.

Days blurred past me, and before I knew it, I had been conscious and stuck to this bed for four days. Eve often came in to feed me, change my bandages and bags but I avoided eye contact with her. Yesterday we tried to sit and swing my legs over the side of the bed, and she helped me a lot to gain my bearings. She was kind, softer and gentler than I expected a werewolf to be. We were told they were grotesque half-wolf shifters with an attitude matching the wrath of Nemesis.

The hustle and bustle of nurses in the hallways met my ears and with a groan, I tried to adjust my body's position. The gentle ticking of a nearby clock irritated my ears but otherwise, I felt a lot better. Eyeing the call button, I debated on ringing for Eve but thought better of it and waited a little longer. They seemed busy out there, so I'd wait until the noise died down to not be a hassle.

My eyes trailed the room, falling on the bland walls and dull sheets before travelling to the curtain drawn window. Someone must've come into my room last night because they were open when I had another emotional breakdown. Yep, another one. They were a regular occurance.

Licking my lips, I questioned whether it was worth disturbing Eve again as my agitation grew. I was thirsty, the tears drying out my throat before I had even woken up. Sighing, I gave in and pulled the remote to me and hit call. Moments later she appeared, a bright smile on her face.

I should've done it sooner.

"Good morning, Ailia. Sleep well?" She asked, causing me to nod at her.

"Yeah, just sore."

"Well, you were nicely healing last we checked! Let's look today and we can see if you can finally get somewhere." She beamed, pulling on some gloves.

I sighed but nodded and lay back down on the bed, allowing her to pull the gown up my body. A strange feeling of dread overcame me when she pulled the gauze away to reveal my flesh. Instead of the chewed up, stitched butcher's meat from before, my leg was now dark-red scabby lines, carved into my skin of various widths. Higher up, I found the same fate on my torso. All that was left was angry marks and black bruises.

"You are healing well for a human. You must have good blood cells." She murmured, cleaning my skin.

"Thanks..." I frowned.

What a peculiar thing to say...

"Eve..." I began once she finished her inspection.

"Yeah?" She smiled, helping me to sit on the edge of the bed again.

We were even in height now and I studied her cheery face with scepticism.

"How do you know so much about humans?" I asked. "And why are you not...eating me?"

She grinned. "I was wondering when you were going to start questions. As for your answer, I am only half-wolf. Half the wolf, half the instincts."

"Half?"

"Yep!" She nodded. "My father is a wolf, my mother a human. He found her during the annual hunt about twenty-five years ago."

"Oh, really? Your mother is still alive?"

"Yes, of course." She laughed.

"The wolves didn't kill her?" I wondered.

"Why would they kill her?"

"You said he found her during the annual hunt..."

"Yeah. He did, and he brought her back here. To safety, to be his mate."

Now I felt even more stupid. "Mate?"

She giggled. "You sure you want to go down this road?"

I pondered but having nothing else to do to satisfy my nosey nature, I nodded.

"Werewolves have soul mates. A soul created just for them by our Moon Goddess. Some say we were split at creation and placed into two bodies." She sighed almost dreamily. "It is an itch in the wolf's brain, that causes an instant attraction to each other."

"Sounds very fictional," I murmured.

She laughed loudly, her hand coming to rest on my knee. "Oh, you are funny."

I didn't mean it to be a joke but gave her a half-hearted smile.

"Enough of that anyway, you seem well enough to tease me so I will inform Seth of your discharge. I will take out all your tubes and we can try walking, okay?"

I sighed in satisfaction, wanting nothing more to walk. I was curious in nature and being confined to this one room for so long was driving me insane. I wanted to wander this place, to gage where everything was and then, hopefully, escape before one of the crazy shifters killed me for their dinner.

True to her word, Eve got me ready for discharge. After seven days of being stuck in that bed, three of which I was asleep for, I was more than grateful for it. I struggled to walk, the aching in my body preventing me from going too far. We had ultimately decided on a wheelchair and crutches to get me by. My body tired easy, the stitches pulling if I stepped too wide.

Eve wheeled me out of the stingy hospital room and down a large white corridor. I remained silent, wrapped in a blanket that smelt oddly of a musky spice. It was weirdly calming, so I kept it close to my nose.

We passed by a lot of nurses in similar outfits, and it was then I realised I had only seen Eve through my entirety of my stay. Seth had not even come back into my room, and he was my doctor.

A lot of the nurses look down at me with curiosity, and I shied away from their eyes. Pulling the blanket tighter, I kept my gaze on my hospital-socked feet, inhaling the comforting scent of the blanket.

"One more hall and then we will be outside." Eve cheered softly.

I didn't respond as we suddenly rounded a corner, and I was met with the brilliance of floor to ceiling glass doors and windows. The breath-taking view of the sun filled sky brightened my eyes and I felt my mood lifting instantly. Leaning forward in the chair, I was fully prepared to launch myself into the green grass and daises.

Eve stopped by the desk, talking to a largely imposing male behind the counter. I huffed at the delay in getting outside, crossing my arms with impatience. The man she spoke to caught my stare and gave me a once-over, one that had me sinking back into my seat.

"Okay, thanks Brody." Eve chimed.

Her hands were back on my wheelchair and with zero effort, she pushed me down the remainder of the hallway. With my eyes locked in on the freshness outside, I didn't care for the stares or whispers as we passed them by.

The doors opened automatically, and I inhaled deeply as a gush of fresh air flew past me. My hair caught in the breeze, flying past my ears as we descended the hospital's ramp. I smelt flowers, grass and dirt, something that had my hands eager to get stuck into. I wanted to lay upon nature's bed and gaze up at the sky, the endless blue a brilliant sight.

My surroundings all blurred behind me as I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the sun on my skin. Blanket forgotten, I sighed in satisfaction. A little taste of freedom and I was already addicted.

*****