A middle-aged woman silently stepped out of the hospital room. It was past midnight and Scarlett had just had her full check-up. They were currently at Rafael’s pack hospital. Both Alphas turned to her, tension clear on both their faces. Elijah had told Rafael exactly who Scarlett was and how Zidane had marked her.
“How is she? Can I see her?” Elijah asked as he shot to his feet. His hair was dishevelled from running his fingers through it repeatedly.
“Alpha, please calm down.” The head doctor gave him a stern look. “First of all, the wolfsbane must have been very minimum, there was barely any trace of it in her blood.” Elijah said nothing, he knew it was a lot, but he had a feeling it was to do with Scarlett’s special abilities. “To be honest, the speed she’s healed at is faster than even an Alpha,” she said; her eyes looked a little intrigued, but she simply sighed.
“So that’s good news, right?” Rafael asked.
“I’m afraid there’s bad news too. The mark on her neck… it’s poisoning her. I am not sure how it occurred, but it never should have happened,” she said.
“Martha, what do you mean poisoning her?” Rafael asked as he noticed Elijah stood there, emotionless. He did not miss the slight tremble in Elijah’s hands.
“Something about the very nature of the mark goes against our blessed Goddess, that much is clear. It should never have been placed upon her. Her body is fighting it, impressively I might add, if she was a normal she-wolf I would presume she would be dead by now,” Martha explained. Elijah growled threateningly and Rafael placed a hand on his shoulder.
“She’s alive and fighting it,” he reminded his friend, calmly.
“Is she at risk?” Elijah asked, his voice harsh yet strained. Martha looked at him sympathetically.
“She seems to be, for now. All her wounds are healed, and her body is fighting this, however, I do not know if it will have an adverse effect on her. Only time will tell. If her mate can mark her, the mark will disappear as her true mate’s will take its rightful place. I would say to mark her when she awakens, Alpha,” she advised Elijah, bowing her head politely. Elijah felt a stabbing pain in his gut, how he hated this.
“I’m… we don’t know if we’re mates…” he admitted, wishing the blood moon were here already. The doctor looked visibly shocked but hid it quickly.
“Oh… I see...”
“Can I… if I marked her… it wouldn’t help, would it?” Elijah asked, desperation and pain clear in his eyes. The woman shook her head.
“If you were to turn out to be her true mate, it may work, but the risk is too high. Two marks upon her neck, and neither belonging to her true mate, may end up killing her. I doubt that’s a risk you would want to take…” Elijah turned away, licking his lips in frustration and clasping his hands behind his neck. He looked at the ceiling and closed his eyes. No, it was not a risk he would ever take.
“What if I killed the fucker?” He asked looking at the woman. She sighed.
“Tell me, Alpha, when one wolf dies does the mark disappear from the other?”
“No,” Elijah growled, his eyes flashing dark cobalt blue. The woman flinched , feeling his Alpha aura rolling off him in waves.
“Hey, Elijah, chill.”
“T-then that is your answer, Alpha, I am sorry… there is nothing more I can offer,” She apologised, genuinely feeling bad for the Alpha who was visibly in pain regarding the woman inside. “You can see her.”
Elijah said nothing walking to the door, he entered the hospital room. His heart thudded in his chest. The pain was more than he could put into words. In the dimly lit room, she lay there, looking to be in a peaceful slumber. A thin, pale blue hospital gown covered her body, a linen sheet pulled up to her waist. Her chest rose and fell with each breath she took. He walked over to her, each step heavier than the last, as though he were wading through tar. The guilt that he had not been able to protect her had been eating him up inside.
He dropped to his knees beside her bed, his eyes falling to the mark on her neck that had now formed. He had seen it before, the same roaring wolf with a slash down its left eye. The very same mark that graced Jessica’s neck before she had it covered with several tattoos. Even then the mark shone through in the deepest shade of black possible.
The only difference was that Scarlett’s was surrounded by those pulsating black veins. It enraged him that another man had dared to mark her, to hurt her. His eyes flashed in anger. He had never hated anyone as much as he hated Zidane Malone and he would make sure he died a fucking painful death.
He did not know when his feelings had changed, but he felt so strongly for the woman in the bed he would give up everything for her. He took her slender hand in his, holding it to his lips, wishing he could take away all her pain, uttering the words that had almost slipped from his lips twice.
“I love you, Red. I fucking love you,” he whispered, “so fucking much.” The room was silent. Only the occasional distant howl from outside could be heard or the shutting of a door in the distance. He stayed like that for a while, kissing her hand softly, her fresh floral scent filling his nose and calming his troubled mind. He jerked his head back when he felt her stir, a soft moan leaving her lips.
“Baby?” He breathed, shooting to his feet, her hand still in his. Scarlett opened her eyes. Her entire body felt achy, but the only place she felt real pain was the side of her neck. It felt as if she had been stung by several wasps at the same time. She touched her neck, frowning when she felt the heat radiating from the spot. Elijah took her other hand, holding both in his as he kissed them tenderly making her heart skip a beat. He knew he would have to break the news about her mark to her… but he needed a moment or two.
“How are you feeling, kitten?” He asked softly, making her smile slightly despite the warmth that filled her chest.
“I’m liking the concern, maybe I should get hurt more often.” She attempted a weak joke, surprised to see the strong emotions in his eyes.
“If you want me to show you concern, I’ll make sure to, day and night. Don’t ever think about getting hurt though.” He growled lowly but it was more the sound of a wolf complaining than an angry one.
“Were you worried?” She asked softly as he got up and sat on the bed next to her, one leg on the floor.
“The understatement of the century,” he said looking into her gorgeous green eyes before his gaze flickered to her lips.
“Then show me exactly how you feel,” she whispered, wanting to feel his plush lips against hers. She didn’t need to ask twice. Elijah’s lips claimed hers in a sizzling passionate kiss, letting go of one of her hands to cup the back of her neck.
His touch was tender, despite the passion and emotions that went deep into that kiss. She tried to keep up, but she was either too tired or he was simply too fast, kissing her as if it were the last time. Their racing hearts, the sound of their lips meeting, their soft sighs were the only thing that could be heard in the room.
His tongue slipped into her mouth, exploring every inch, before he sucked on her tongue dominatingly, his grip on her tightening. She moaned into his lips, her stomach a mess of butterflies, feeling the familiar ache settling between her thighs, the wetness building, the betraying scent of her arousal filling the air.
He broke away when she needed air, breathing slightly heavily himself. She was satisfied to see she was not the only one turned on. A light blush coated her cheeks when her eyes fell on his front, his visible manhood making her core throb.
“Don’t,” he groaned “Trust me, I am not thinking about sex.”
“I know, I just love how I can affect you so easily,” she said with a smirk. Elijah flashed her a smirk back. He loved how she was so brave, impressed that she could act so normal, yet at the same time it worried him. It was almost as if she was used to it. She made to sit up, but Elijah swiftly scooped her up and adjusted her pillows
“Hey, take it easy. You were hurt quite bad…” His eyes now roamed her arms and legs. Not one wound, bruise, or mark was left. He still had his injuries, although they were on the way to healing. Scarlett tensed, seeing how his eyes roamed her body. She had kept her rather fast healing on the down low, ever since she was little when they had moved to Jackson’s pack. She rarely got hurt so it wasn’t hard to hide, but the way Elijah was looking at her now, she knew it was no longer a secret.
Elijah’s frown only deepened, a chilling thought entering his mind. He had seen the scars that littered Jessica’s back, her arms, and even her legs. There was one even on the back of her head. He had seen the few faint scars on Indigo… but never had he seen one on Scarlett. His father had once told him when he had been set to marry Jessica that they had all suffered at the hands of Zidane. He had also said how Scarlett was the luckiest and had not suffered as much as her mother and sister, but something told Elijah that he had been very, very wrong.
“If I ask you something, will you tell me the truth, Scarlett?” He asked softly, stroking her hair with such softness she closed her eyes under his soothing touch. She opened them, reluctantly nodding. She had a feeling what it may be, but she just hoped it wasn’t.