Vladimir:
"Please, please don't hurt me." The girl whimpered, trying to crawl back against the tree trunk.
My chest ached as I processed the bond that had my wolf calming down despite the anger that I felt when I was first entering their pack. And though I didn't react to it, I knew better than to fall for small emotions like this one, sacred or not, I had my responsibilities to take care of. This was the last thing that I needed.
I looked down at her before kneeling down on one knee. She cried out and curled against the tree, hugging her knees as she did. My eyes went down to her hand, and I frowned at the freshly burned skin.
"You're hurt," I said softly. I extended my hand toward her, careful not to stir her, and when my finger touched her arm, careful not to touch one of the cuts that the Alpha had inflicted on her. She was still bleeding, and I could tell that this was far by being over. The red marks on her skin told me that she was going to have bruises.
"We're not going to hurt you," I said, and she shook her head as she tried to hide herself deeper on the tree trunk. "And you are going to hurt yourself if you keep doing that."
I put my hand on her shoulder and that was when she screamed. Her eyes met mine and I drew my hand back, keeping my eyes on her as I did. "Please, please don't kill me. I'll leave, I swear…"
"You're the girl that she had no name." I said, stopping her. Arturo who was running to chase the fucker who had his scent hidden, came back and shook his head.
"We lost trace of him, Alpha. I doubt that he would be smart enough to come back." He said, and I nodded. He looked down at the girl and frowned when he recognized her. "Do you know who that man was?"
"I…"
"We need to take her to the pack doctor. She's injured." I said, stopping her before she could speak. Her heart raced and she shook her head as if frightened that I would hurt her. "No one is going to hurt you. But your hand is going to be infected if we don't do that,"
"I don't want to…"
"No one is going to hurt you. I promise," I said, my voice softening as I spoke. I went to extend my hand to her, wanting to help her, and she shook her head. I sighed and took a step back, I was clearly getting nowhere this way.
Her eyes met mine as she looked up at me, and I nodded at Arturo, taking a deep breath as I did. "Arturo, go back to the pack and have Bianca get the infirmary room ready. We'll be following you."
"Alpha…"
"Do as I said, Arturo." I said, stopping my beta. "Damon, have Miley prepare a room for our guest. She is injured is and going to need to stay here for a while."
"Yes, Alpha." They walked back to the pack and I waited before sitting in front of the frightened woman. She looked at me and I could tell that she was trying to read my expression, trying to understand what I was on about.
"You are safe. I don't know who hurt you, they had their scent mask, but I know that it was someone that you're scared of, someone that you don't want finding you. I promise you that no one will." I said, sitting on the floor in front of her. "I was at the pack today. If you are worried about me going back, it is only going to be if I need to."
"I will leave, you don't have to worry about me." She said, and I smiled.
"I know, but how about you allow us to take care of these wounds?" I asked, looking down at her hand. "Your hand is burned, and badly. It is a fresh wound and dirt is covering it. Can you allow us to check it out? The pack nurse is going to clean and bandage it for you, then when you've healed, you can choose to leave if you want."
"Do you need a new maid?" She asked, and I chuckled, shaking my head.
"I am not inviting a maid over, I am calling you as a guest." I said, keeping a small distance between us, not wanting to scare or startle the woman. She already was scared and worried, the last thing that I wanted to do was put her through more of whatever she was feeling. "Can you allow us to help you? It would ease the pain."
She looked down at her hand for a second before she nodded. I smiled and watched as she extended her hand to me, allowing me to help her stand. My chest tightened as I saw the cuts and bruises that were on her legs. She didn't say a word as I let her go, watching if she could stand. She couldn't take a step forward, I could tell by her expression that she was in pain.
"What…?"
I lifted her in my arms before she could say a word. She looked at me and my eyes softened as I saw her broken ones. She had no wolf, at least, not one that I could sense. She was of wolf blood, I knew that, I could tell. But she either didn't have a wolf or her wolf was oppressed.
"Where are we going?" She asked as I walked toward the pack.
"Well, considering that you found yourself on my grounds, we are going to the pack. There you are going to see the pack doctor. If she gives you a clear to sleep in your room tonight, you are going to be in the common house. If not, then you are going to sleep in the infirmary room for the night. They might need to keep you under surveillance to make sure that your hand is not infected and that your body is not reacting against it." I said, gently explaining what was going to happen as I noticed her calming down.
It was me being close to her that helped ease her pain. She was scared and I could tell, by how much she was shaking, that not only was this the last thing that she expected, but that she was in pain and was frightened of whatever was going to happen. Her heart raced and I couldn't help but find myself frowning when I saw her trying to clench her injured hand.
"Is something else hurting you? Am I hurting you?" I asked, knowing that I was holding bruises on her body. I could feel a cut on her back, under her dress, and though I expected her to say something, she didn't. Instead, she shook her head.
"I am fine, Alpha." She said, and I nodded. Arturo walked toward me, and I could see my sisters Liana and Miley following Damon. Both of them looked at the injured girl in my arms and Liana frowned.
"God, what the hell happened to her hand?" Liana asked, looking up at her.
"More importantly, who is she?" Miley asked.
"Is the infirmary room ready, Arturo?" I asked, dismissing both my sisters.
"Yes, Bianca has everything ready." Arturo said, and I nodded, walking toward the infirmary.
"Vladimir…"
"We are going to talk later. I need the room ready, and new clothes. If you can bring them here or send them to the guest room." I said, stopping Miley. Both my sisters shared a glance before choosing to quiet down, knowing to dismiss themselves until I spoke to them later. I walked inside the infirmary and Bianca, who was already waiting for me, opened the door, smiling as she took sight of the woman in my arms.
"Good god, what happened?" She asked, looking at the number of injuries on the woman. "You must have been attacked. These bruises and cuts are all fresh."
"I am fine." She said, and Bianca frowned. She looked at me and I nodded in assurance, watching as she took sight of her hand. the skin was burned through.
"I am going to need to take care of your hand first. It is going to hurt and because of that, I am going to need to give you something to sleep. It would help ease your pain and the sight is not going to be frightening." Bianca said, and the girl shook her head, not wanting her to do that.
"I can watch, I don't mind the pain…"
She looked back at me for a second and I looked away from the two of them, knowing that this was a reaction of fear. Whoever did this ha hurt her before, I could tell by the way that she was running that she was scared.
"I am not going to.
"Give her something to ease the pain, but if it is going to give her peace of mind, let her stay awake." I said, stopping Bianca from pressing on her. "Have these wounds taken care of. She was outside, and the more we are going to talk, the more chances there would be for them to be infected…"