— • 🌲 Nathan 🌲• —

"Beta, come with me."

Turning my head and bowing it slightly to my respecting Alpha. Saying a quick goodbye to Dale, one of the warriors, I tail my Alpha.

I assume we are going to his office to discuss something. But turns out he wanted to just walk and talk.

"How is Cleo managing with the guest? Is the guest happy staying with us? Do you think we should invite her to the dinner tonight?" He says, thoughts rolling off his tongue as they enter his brain.

I smile at the currently incapable Alpha asking for advice on such minuscule details.

As we continue to walk through the hallways that lead to the main entrance, I answer "Cleo is managing fine, from what I've heard off Dale they seem to have taken a liking to one another, despite being only in company a day. I'm assuming she is happy as she hasn't complained. Dale mentioned something about her calling him an asshole thought, which I found pretty amusing." This gets me a glare off the Alpha but I can tell by the sparkle in his eyes he's amused by the new addition to our pack.

"Her name is Isabella by the way. It would seem improper of you to not know her name." I add as a suggestion and hope he reads it that way and not like I'm pointing out flaws.

He flashes a subtle grin and I imagine he's bouncing her name round his head. He seems to have taken a liking to her. Honestly, if I hadn't gone to Cleo that day then I would be jealous of him getting all her attention. I mean he is the Alpha.

My thoughts flicker over Cleo and I think back to yesterday, all the tension built up. It was strange, like my body was compelling me to. All it wanted was to be near her, to hold her, and kiss her and tell her she's beautiful. It's something one would do around their mate.

Shaking the thought away as a song of hurt hits me at the thought of Cleo finding her mate and being taken away from me.

Distracting myself from my thoughts, I continue. "And yes, I think you should invite her to the dinner, we have to treat the guest with the upmost respect if we want her to willingly stay, besides," I say, nudging him slightly, wiggling my eyebrows, "it gives you chance to get to know her."

She scoffs at my childish behaviour but then he lets out a low chuckle. There we go, I knew I'd get a little something out of him.

I'm his bestfriend second to his Beta.

A few minutes away from his office, he is pulled aside by one of the she-wolves, claiming its urgent business.

Letting the Alpha know I'm going to head up to his office and wait for him, I set off in the direction of the main hall and his office.

Entering the main hall, an embarrassed Victoria flees past me.

Huh? What got her knickers in a twist? I don't think I've actually ever seen her embarrassed before.

Before I had chance to properly laugh at the situation I spot a very familiar red head.

I practically leap across the room, kneeling at her side. Checking her over for injuries, muttering to myself. "Who the fuck did this?" And "my poor Claire."

Ignoring my logic to stop thinking about Claire this way, I let my heart lead.

My body practically aches at the site of her leg.

So enthralled by Clair I don't even notice the beautiful brunette stood at the side of me, who currently has her bra on show. My full attention is on Claire.

Standing up, I dash out of the hall to find my Alpha. Running through the halls in a panicked state, I spot him still talking to the she-wolf that called him over earlier.

I quickly approach him, my speed nearly knocking the poor she-wolf called Alex over.

"Are you okay? What happened?" The Alpha demands, more concerned with the matter at hands than Alex who is leaning against the wall to catch her breath.

I mean I suppose it is his job, besides I cant fully fault him, he did give her a glance from the corner of his eye to check she was alright.

Locking eyes with my Alpha, I reply "It's Claire, she's hurt. In the entrance hall."

He gives Alex a curt nod to come with us, and follows me to the main hall.

Although Claire is a wolf and that makes her stronger, I don't know how she's coping. She's never been in a fight before.

Briskly making our way over to Claire, we don't even notice Isabella until the Alpha speaks.

"What happened here?" He asks.

All attention is turned from Claire to Isabella when she speaks. "Claire and a girl called Veronica had a fight." She says, eyes glued to Claire, not even addressing us.

It was only now that I actually noticed Claire wasn't alone in the room. Isabella must have seen everything. We can ask her about it later. But she better cover up. Standing around in a bra, is she asking for attention?

"Claire won." She adds after a long awkward pause. Thinking we were waiting for her to continue, probably not realising we shocked to see her in a bra.

Shooting Claire a smile, beaming with pride, I check her over again. My wolf demanding I check again.

Only upon inspecting Claire better I notice the blood soaked tee wrapped around her leg. I feel a little better knowing Isabella had a reasonable excuse to walking around half dressed. She's smart, I'll give her that. It's a shame she isn't a wolf though, she could have helped.

My wolf barked at me for not being here to prevent the fight. I try to reason that this was a good thing, finally standing up to her bully, but I'm torn as another part of me is mad that she had to get hurt in the process.

"You shouldn't be wearing just a bra when there are males around." The Alpha speaks. I turn to him and notice he's shirtless, passing it over to Isabella to put on. "Half of my pack are just horny males." He adds.

I mean he isn't wrong. Dale, Cameron and John are, just to name a few.

I watch Isabella fully take in the appearance of the Alpha, chuckling to myself as she stutters and blushes. "T...thank you Alpha." She says before sliding the top over head. The shirt looked like a dress on the small human.

Nothing like dressing a lass like your future mate. I can practically feel his wolf purring at the woman in front of him.

Fixing my attention back to Claire, I ask her basic questions like how many fingers I'm holding up. It might seem dramatic but she's quite dizzy and dazed from the fight, not moving the whole time we've been here.

"It looks good on you." The Alpha mutters but Isabella doesn't hear him, instead she comes over to me and asks if she can help with anything.

Telling her I'm fine with it, as I clean Claire up. She's back on the sidelines watching.

Alex went to fetch Veronica so the Alpha could ask about what happened. I kept working on cleaning Claire up.

I tended to her wound, cleaning it of dirt and grime so it could heal without potential infection. During this time she fell asleep so I laid her across me for support, whilst still being able to check her legs, arms and back for any injuries.

After a third and final once over I deemed her safe and healthy.

Not wanting to move, enjoying the feeling of her body against mine a little too much for 'just friends'. In fact, everything I feel is a little too much for 'just friends'. The thought of her mate crossed my mind and a wave of sadness hit me. But then it dawned on me. Maybe there is a slight possibility I was her mate.

The thought rippled happiness through me like I was filled with sunshine.

A command from the Alpha send me  up to Isabella's room. He had instructed that I take Claire up there, probably via Isabella's request.

He's got a soft spot for her, I can tell. I don't understand why he would fraternise with a human when his mate is out there , but he's the Alpha and I have to respect his choices, despite my own opinions and how much I disagree.

Carrying Claire very carefully up the stairs, I make a left and head towards Isabella's room.

I knock on the door, moving Clair to a more supportive hold, as I use my left hand to open the door.

The door swings open, and I'm met with a smiling Isabella, only for her face to be sheeted in anger when she realises it's me.

I mean I understand, how is she supposed to feel when a mysterious guy turns up at camp, only to disappear. And then to find out that same guy is living with the people that kidnapped you. I spied on her, I practically stalked her, I'm not surprised she wants to shove a knife down my throat. Well from the look on her face it would seem that.

That time I saw her fighting in camp, I knew the Alpha would want her. He had instructed me to go to the camp a few miles South from us, and find a human girl to kidnap.

Not daring to defy my Alpha I did just that.

He had intended to get a human to be used as a servant, a pet for his own amusement. But when I told him about her fighting skills, he changed his mind, deeming her fit to be a fighting toy instead.

But when he saw her... oh my, everything changed. It's like seeing her lit a spark in him and he is very slowly becoming obsessed with her... as I once was.

Until I found Claire.

It's not that I was never around her, it's just, I was never around her alone. I always felt a flicker inside me but never quite knew the source. Yesterday in her living quarters confirmed it was indeed her.

Other wolves before me have felt attraction to others before finding their mate, it was their wolves own impatience. Attaching themselves to a female. It was infatuation. It was obsession. It was illness.

It's Claire's birthday in a few days, if it turns out she isn't my mate, I'm going to have to go to the pack doctor.

Moving aside so I could enter the room, I very gently place Claire on the bed, lingering over her a second too long to allow her scent to cling to me a little longer.

If this girl isn't my mate I swear to the moon goddess, I will be so mad.

Standing up, I head straight for the door, ignoring Isabella completely. It might be rude but I have other things to do than endure her anger or millions of questions.

After leaving Claire in Isabella's room, I head towards the Alpha's office to pick up the business, that was interrupted by the fight. No doubt Victoria is going to plead her case.

⚠️ trigger warning ⚠️
❗️ mentions of sexual abuse/rape, but no description ❗️
If this is a triggering topic for you, skip this POV.

— •🔥 Emilia 🔥• —

Still too mad at the world for taking my mate away when I've only just found her, I continue my search without stopping, sleep no longer a priority.

I can't even guarantee that Isabella is my mate. She's not Brixels mate because we've seen eachother in wolf form and there was no clarification. I need her to see Mitzi in her wolf form, but that is easier said than done.

Especially with her circumstances, if it is indeed who I think it is that found her, well, let's say I would be risking my life just to simply see if she's my mate.

The burning question in the back of my mind will have to wait.

Following the trail to the edge of the rogue border, I stop. Realisation fills me like running water until I'm overflowing with worry.

It is them. Shit.

This is going to be fun. Not thinking of a plan, just the flickering desire within me to rescue Izzy, I step across the border and run.

The fallen darkness of dusk aids my journey as I follow the edge of the border round to the other side, in a rough semi-circle shape, until I reach the back of the pack house.

Staying flush to the wall, I peak my head around to scope out the entrance. Obviously, I'm not waltzing in through the main entrance, that's just trouble waiting to happen. I'm just assessing the security around the pack house.

I need to figure out the best way in. Without knowing the whereabouts of Isabella, it's hard to mind link her.

Hidden in the shadows, I observe the guards harassing some of the young she-wolves of the pack.

Home sweet fucking home.

This place makes me sick.

Flashbacks hit me wave after wave, resurfacing from the depth of my mind, after spending years tucked away, out of reach, out of thought.

Shaking my head in an attempt to diminish the surfacing memories that slowly rise, I stretch out my body as I prepare to move from my hiding spot.

A flashback hits me hard and I didn't see it coming. At first it was like I was watching a movie reel, my head spinning with multiple memories, before it slowed onto one and played out the cruel scene in my head.

All attempts to block it out were futile. I was going to have to ride it out and try not to make too much noise.

*Flashback*

"Hey, pretty thing, come join me for a moment." I look around until I realise he was talking to me. My spirits paced uncomfortably in my head, as I walk over.

I'm the Betas daughter but it doesn't mean I have to be rude. Being rude makes my life more difficult. It's like they feed off my discomfort, my pain, my existence.

Ignoring the nickname, I waltz over to the very good looking male that called me.

His name is Zayn and he's just one of the many regulars that harass the females of the pack. I'm one of the favourite targets due to the fact I'm an outcast.

Not an outcast as in I'm not a pack member. I am. Sometimes, I am treated as a valid pack member when it suits them, when they're not in the mood for taunting, name calling, bullying, and frequent physical attacks.

There's emotional abuse as well but I try to pretend it doesn't occur. Ignoring my problems makes them go away, hiding them in the back of my mind. I mean eventually I should just forget all the trauma and memories the members of this awful pack brought upon me. Right?

"You look very pretty today..." he starts before quickly moving to the real reason he called me over. Leaning in and whispering dangerously, "I think you owe me another favour, and you wouldn't want me to tell the Alpha about what you did yesterday."

I know exactly what he is asking for and I shiver at the thought. At this point I'm used to everyone walking all over me. The request doesn't bother me, I know he's going to get his way anyway, they always do. The thing that got me, was how he knows. There was no one around.

When I don't respond he continues speaking, all whilst running his fingers up and down my arms and face. I grimace at the touch but am powerless against it. "Sweetheart, I saw you stealing from that man." He mutters before growling in my ear. "Now down on your knees, or you'll be back in the cell."

He begins his physical attack, and I just go along with it. I don't have the energy to fight. Not anymore.

The constant emotional abuse made me weak. The mental weakness became physical weakness and now all I could do was ride out the attack and hope it was over soon. Then I could get back to my shitty life.

I've tried fighting back before, done for treason.

I've tried running before, done for defying an order. A rule. A law. They're all the same. Restricting me from my freedom.

Done for physical attack.

Done for murder.

Done for arson.

Done for lying.

Done for fraud.

Done for stealing.

Done for fricking trying to survive.

Done for anything they want to do me for. I'm helpless against it.

This pack try so hard to keep me here, only to torture me. They say I'm worthless, I'm scum, vermin, criminal, yet they do everything in their power to make me stay.

Being tied to this place ruins me and I want out, but I don't know how to escape.

When Zayn is finished, he just leaves without a word, not even a frickin sarcastic comment. Leaving me alone with my thoughts.

*End of flashback*

Being here weakens me, the memories breaking the barriers I've built over time, they chip at my resolve, eat away at my thoughts.

The memories reintroduce the doubt and lack of self confidence that this place bore into me. They awoke my nightmares, my trauma and I fall victim to the lies they fed me.

I was slowly loosing myself, simply from being back within these borders.

Not realising in the midst of the flashback, I had been shaking so bad I fell and rustled the bushes I was crouched behind, altering the guards of my presence.

So not only did I have to endure that awful flashback, I also got caught because of it.

The thoughts flooded my brain and reminded me of the feelings I had pushed down deep inside me for my protection. They lay dormant for so long, I almost forgot about them. Seeing them as a part of my life I no longer needed to deal with or worry about.

But here I am, hiding in a bush as two guards head straight for me. You wanna know the best bit about all of this? My body will not move.

Frozen in place. I command my limbs to move but they're stuck. Great time to go into shock body. I'm guessing the memories were too traumatic so my body is shutting down, it would make sense, but I'm really wishing my body could wait a few minutes to play up, until I got away.

"Hey, pyro long time no see, you set any fires recently?" A chuckle was heard as they approached.

I seethed as the comment as the memories of the man on the left flooded my mind. Liam was his name. He had darker hair and was older, but that didn't make him a nicer person.

"She's probably burn the first if it wasn't her home." He taunted.

"Rogue." He muttered.

Flames licked at my soul, with every word he spoke. A fire ignited deep within me, but unable to unleash the anger, due to the paralysis.

The flashbacks brought back the memories, the thoughts, the feelings, and I could cope, that is until these men made them a reality.

The anger bubbled up.

The rage spat.

The pain uncoiled itself.

Every emotion I had spend my life suppressing, rose to the surface.

The smell of smoke could be sensed as I burned inside. Closing my eyes and breathing deeply, I took control again.

I clutched to the positive emotions.

Happiness,

Hope,

Love.

Opening my eyes, I'm met with very intrigued eyes, and I'm not surprised. They're probably wondering what the hell I was doing.

Trying not to hurt them. I answered myself.

They step forwards and I step back. Shocked at the fact my body is responding, I dart to the right in escape.

Only to fall over something and land on my face.

The men are quick to my side, grabbing me roughly and pulling me up. They place steel and silver infused cuffs around my wrists.

I shiver in discomfort. But not pain. Complete silver cuffs were only use in extreme cases and only dealt out by courts, governs or royals. They were deemed cruel and only to be used if absolutely necessary, depending on the circumstances.

Wriggling my wrist to itch the tingle the cuffs leave, only caused it to worsen. Liam, responded to my efforts by yanking, quite roughly might I add, on the chain that he pulled me along by.

"Stop trying to escape, you're not getting away this time." He said with a glint in his eye, as if the thought of my imprisonment was somehow pleasing to him.

I nearly choke on the thought. I can't be locked up here again.

I can't do it. I won't.

Panic rises and I feel my body turn hot, causing the silver in the cuffs to burn me. I wince at the pain but continue to focus on dragging my feet along, to wherever Liam and his buddy were taking me.

Assuming they were taking me to the Alpha's office to be dealt with accordingly, I was surprised when we took a left and two massive doors gave way into a dining hall that was filled with people eating.

"Alpha. Sorry to disturb you. But look who we found hiding out behind the pack house." Liam says with distaste, as he tugs the chain for me to stop. The harsh action rattling my bones to a holt.

Parading me to the end of the table, followed by another harsh tug, we stop and all eyes are on me.

Judging eyes. Hating eyes. I shut my eyes to get away but I can still feel the glares all directed at me.

Opening my eyes I, my gaze meets the Alphas eyes. They burn into me like lasers. "Look what the cat dragged in." He spits.

But above all the gases upon me, there is one pair of eyes I feel the most.

The gaze not only burns into my soul, it sets me alight. It takes a millisecond for my whole body to prickle with an uncomfortable heat.

I whip my head to meet the owner of the eyes, although I already know who they belong to.

Piercing sky blue eyes, that glitter curiously under the LED lights. Underneath the curiosity, I see confusion. I see questioning. I see judgement.

In this moment, I'm not worried about the Alpha, or being locked in a cell. I'm not bothered if they cuffed my legs. Suppress my spirits. Anything and everything for a minute to explain. I can't stand the judgement. Not from her.

Tears fill my eyes, but I smile. I don't receive one back.

Word count [3893]

Hi guys!! This is a little insight into Emilia's past. Also apologies to anyone who was triggered in the scene between Emilia and Zayn.

Love y'all and see you in the next few chapters!

- Bri xox