Olive's eyes widened in shock. Wayne Knight… her mate? Was that even possible? She laughed at her stupidity. Yes, she was stupid enough to think that. She knew that it was just her mind playing with her and giving her what she desired. She desired a mate, and her mind was toying with her. Wayne was Cynthia's mate. That explained why she was with them in the first place.
Olive shoved the thought of Wayne being her mate back inside. She growled at her wolf to sit still and stop miscalculating things. Though this was the very first time her wolf had acted this way with someone, she still didn't want to believe her. The Big Bad Alpha couldn't be her mate. And even though he was, she was sure to be rejected by him. That angry look he was giving her few seconds ago explained that he was not going to show her any mercy. She closed her eyes on the floor there and slept off.
***
Alpha Wayne Knight was beyond angry when he saw Olive. So, she was sent to ki|| him?
He walked into the kitchen where he found the rest of his men, alongside Cynthia who was the only woman. He ignored all their looks and opened the fridge, almost yanking the door off. He pulled out a bottle of shifter-made tequila and a shot glass. He filled the glass to the very brim and chugged it down.
All eyes were still on him, seeing how angry he was, no one spoke. They thought he was having a hard time with the fact that The Vrek Cult was truly after him like Cynthia said.
"Did you ki|| the girl already? You look so agitated," Cynthia's smug voice rang across to him. He looked at her, scoffed then chugged down another shot of tequila.
"She's alive," he simply answered… coldly.
Cynthia smiled. By his answer, she knew he was going to give her a slow death. He was going to torture Olive because he seemed agitated and angry. She tried to walk up to him and massage him to calm him down. But he asked a question with a very deadly voice.
"Who tortured her?"
Cynthia stopped walking and blinked repeatedly.
"I did," she answered. His face reddened as he looked at her.
"You did that to her?" he asked in a calmer voice than the first question.
"Yes, I did. Did I do a good job?" she smiled at him, thinking he was impressed with her.
He raked his fingers through his messy hair and clenched his jaw.
"You did too good of a job. She looks like a battered piece of bread!" he gritted his teeth angrily. Cynthia flinched at his tone.
"If she did a good job then why are you yelling at her, Wayne?" Jake, his beta asked. Cynthia made a puppy face.
"Because that girl lying on the bare floor, bloodied and in pain is my f-__-king mate!!" he barked while pointing out the door.
Everyone in the room was shocked beyond comprehension. Their hearts fell to their feet. Their blood turned lighter and reddened their skins. No one moved, no one talked, no one even tried breathing heavily. To say they were shocked was even an understatement.
Cynthia—she was ki||ed. Yes, she felt like she had just died the very moment he said that. The body standing was just a mere pound of flesh. Her mouth was aghast, her eyes as wide as that of an owl and her breathing, seized.
"What?" her subconscious mind spoke out loud for her. Wayne kept emptying glass upon glass until he began to sway and held the counter for support.
"$h|t," Jake's voice was heard.
"How's that…" one of the men, Terry, wanted to ask how that was possible but he trailed off. The rest of the men recovered from their shock and looked at Cynthia who was still standing like Lot's wife. They knew how obsessed she was with their Alpha, and she was too possessive of him. She didn't waste a minute to flaunt him before any girl they came across. And they knew she was flaunting him to Olive too. But that same Olive turned out to be Wayne's mate. Irony of life!
"What are you going to do now?" Jake asked a very tipsy Wayne Knight. He ran his fingers into his hair and clutched them hard.
"I don't know. I f-__-king don't know," he muttered and was about to take another shot but Jake grabbed it and poured it in the sink. He put the bottle in the fridge and closed it.
"Is she still there? In that room?"
"Yes. I couldn't stand the sight of her," Wayne answered and closed his eyes, as if she was still before him. The blood flowing down her face hurt him badly. How dare Cynthia?
"Terry, go take her to a room with a bed. Clean her up and find something for her to eat," Jake ordered. Terry was about to leave when Wayne stood straight.
"No. I'll go clean her up. You go get her some food," he said and walked out of the room, swaying a little. Terry looked at Jake with questions written all over his face.
"What are you waiting for?" Jake asked him. He looked at the door then back at Jake.
"Are you sure that is really his mate? What if this is just—"
"Terry, how many years have you been with Wayne?" Jake cut him short.
"Roughly five years," Terry answered.
"And you've seen him sparing his victim, getting drunk for his victim, going to clean up his victim and getting so angry that she was hurt?"
Terry gulped down. Truly, what just happened was very foreign. The Big Bad Alpha wasn't one to have emotions other than h@ťě, anger and pleasure. He didn't have sympathy, empathy, love or kindness towards any other person apart from people on his side. So, for him to spare someone sent to ki|| him, that was definitely something new.
"Now, go get that girl some food," Jake added and Terry walked out of the kitchen. There was no food in the house because they had come there to set a trap for Olive. The tequila bottle was the only thing in the fridge and it belonged to Wayne. It was still the early hours of the morning so it wasn't hard to find food outside.
Wayne Knight staggered until he reached the empty room where Olive was kept. He opened the door and steadied himself. He saw her lying on the floor in a ball and surrounded with drops of blood. So, this was his mate. The one created for him… alone.
What if he had let his men ki|| her immediately last night when she was caught. That was how he would have lost his mate forever. He walked up to her and bent down. Her hair was all over her face. He pushed them all away and stared at her.
She was really a mess. He saw torn skin on her neck and face, and knew it must have been the whip that bounced against those places. He shuddered at the thought of how the rest of her body would actually look like. Gently, like a new baby, he carried her in his arms. She whimpered and winced in pain but didn't wake up from her sleep. He took her to a room, the room he slept last night.
After placing her on the bed, he began to tear off her clothes until it was just her undies. He closed his eyes at the sight of her skin. He had no idea that a person's wounds could affect him this much. He didn't want to look at her like that, but he didn't want any of his men to see her that way either. It would be embarrassing for her to be seen in this state… even though she was tortured in their presence.
Wayne got towels and a bowl of warm water from the bathroom, then began to wipe off her blood. She wasn't healing, making him a tiny bit worried. Some of her injuries kept seeping out new blood. He however, managed to clean her up fully. He didn't want to see her naked, so her undies and bra were still on. He treated her wounds and rubbed healing balm made in his pack on them. Then he covered her with a blanket and gently removed her P@ŋtîēṣ and unhooked her bra, all the while careful not to touch her skin. He was sure she had injuries there too, but he just didn't want to see her naked.
On a normal day, he wouldn't care if she was the curviest woman in the world. He would have seen her naked and not glanced twice. But today wasn't normal for Wayne Knight. He had found his mate, the woman he ordered to be tortured—the one he wanted to murder badly.
Olive was sleeping soundly and didn't even stir. Her face was still reddened because her blood had not cooled, she needed time to regularize her temperature. He left her there after discarding her torn clothes and undies. He closed the door, walked into the kitchen to wash his hands before heading out. He found his men at the front of the house. His face was in a terrible frown and they all stood straight, knowing he was still in a bad mood.
"Where is Cynthia?" he asked.
"She's in my bathroom," Jake answered. Wayne's brows furrowed and he looked up as if he could see through the ceiling.
"Jake, go stand by the door of my room. Don't leave there until I return," he ordered and began to walk down towards his car parked at the driveway.
"Uh, where are you going?" Jake asked.
"To go get some clothes for Olive," he answered, opened the door of his car and sat in before shutting it.
Jericho, one of his men looked at Jake and stifled a laugh. Jake shot him a glare and he looked away immediately.
"Okay, Alpha," Jake responded and walked inside. He had an idea why Wayne had ordered for him to go and stand there. It was for fear of Cynthia doing something bad to her. Everyone knew the relationship between Cynthia and Olive was anything but love.
Alpha Knight drove out and went to buy new clothes for Olive. He didn't know her size but he could guess the one that would fit her. When he arrived, he met Jake at the door of his room.
He gave him an appreciative look and Jake walked away. He opened the door and walked in only to be greeted by the wide green eyes of his mate.
✧✧Chapter 4
Olive screamed as she met eyes with Wayne. She was surprised to see him when she had thought she was dead. Didn't he ki|| her earlier? Or did she have a bad dream?
She shifted in the bed and tried to sit up but felt her arms brushing against the sides of her Břě@šťs. It was skin against skin. She looked down through the blanket and her eyes turned into that of an owl again. She was naked! She clutched the blanket against her chest and sat up, moving as far away from the edge of the bed as possible.
Her injuries were still fresh, but not bloody flesh. She seemed to be healing.
"What—what am I still doing here?" she asked with her face flustered.
"Where were you supposed to be?" Wayne asked with no emotions in his voice. He looked angry and murderous as he stared at her. And Olive—she was scared to death. Her heart began to beat loudly.
"I thought I was…I thought you would…I—"
"Enough of the I's," Wayne barked and walked fully inside the room. He dumped the bags on the bed and walked to the wardrobe.
"Get dressed, we're leaving in about an hour," he said and pulled open the door of the wardrobe. He brought out a big black backpack and closed the door.
"Where are you taking me?" Olive's shy voice reached his ears. He could sense her fear. She was terrified that he would hurt her badly.
"Somewhere you might wish you hadn't met me because…" he trailed off because he wasn't supposed to answer that question. And the answer his mouth was procuring was definitely not something he should say. He gulped angrily, with his brows still at an angle.
He hung his bag and walked to the door. He looked back at her and froze when he saw tears streaming down her face. She was wiping them off but they fell immediately she wiped them. Her eyes looked up at him and her body began to shake with sobs.
"Please, Alpha Knight, don't torture me. I swear I didn't want to come. They made me do it. I don't know why and I have no hand in this. I shouldn't die like this," she burst into sobs and both her hands went up to her face to shield her tears. Her blanket fell from her chest, exposing her Břě@šťs and Wayne was struck by a force he had no idea could affect him. Her Břě@šťs were full and big, smooth and looked like the softest flesh God had ever created. As she shook with cries, they moved up and down and it aroused him. He could feel the tender matebond drag him towards her.
How would those Břě@šťs feel against his skin? The thought that they were made for him alone soothed him.
He peeled his eyes away from her twin peaks and looked at her face. He clenched his jaw hard.
"Get dressed. We live in an hour," he said, totally ignoring her earlier pleas.
He walked out of the room, banging the door behind him. He clenched his fists as he stood behind the door. With what he just heard from her, Olive was just a toy in the hands of The Vrek Cult. There was something more to why they had sent Olive. They knew well that she wouldn't be able to do it, so they must have really wanted her dead. But why?
He looked back at the door and heaved a silent sigh. Then he walked away, into the living room where the rest of his men were with their bags, sitting down and not talking.
"She's awake already so we're leaving soon," he announced and slumped into a sofa.
"You are really taking her to Balendin?" Crusoe, one of his men asked. Wayne closed his eyes without answering him.
Balendin mostly called Balendin Pack was where he was Alpha. It was a large territory, like a state with cities, towns and villages. It was a hidden pack, just like most packs around the country. Balendin Pack was very balanced economically and had one of the best ammunition plus manpower. They hardly lost wars.
"Alpha Knight, she's not out yet. Should I put the food in the microwave?" Terry asked after a long while of silence.
Wayne opened his eyes and looked towards the door.
"Why isn't she out yet?" he asked no one in particular as he got on his feet and walked to the door. He walked through the hallway and entered the room only to see her still on the bed, crying.
"What the hell are you still doing here? I thought I told you to get dressed!" Wayne barked at her and she flinched, almost tumbling over. Olive had not realized that she had been staying still and crying for so long. She was reminiscing her life with her family, and how she would never have that life again.
She stared up at the angry looking Alpha and she shuddered.
"I'm-I'm sor-ry," she stuttered as her body shook with fear. Her heart calmed a bit when she noticed that Wayne's angry gaze on her softened greatly. Or was it her imagination? And why was her wolf looking at him with so much desire? What in the world was wrong with that wolf? Looking at the Big Bad Alpha with lustful eyes? Crazy!
"Get up," he said in a voice that sounded like silk, calm and devoid of the usual rage and terror that laced his every word.
"I'm sorry," she apologized again and tried to step down from the bed. Her body was very visible so Wayne turned around for her to arrange herself. She did and stood upright, with the blanket around her.
"You done?" he asked.
"Yes," she whispered. He turned around and looked at her for a few seconds then—
"Let's go to the bathroom… I'll bath you," he said and Olive's jaw dropped open.