C13 BEING ALONE

Raymond POV

Walking out of the pack's hospital, I could feel Aero's sadness; neither he nor I felt comfortable leaving our mate in a bed by herself. I rubbed the back of my neck as I tried to control my confusion and anger. Even though she couldn't talk, her action made it clear that if she could, she wouldn't have. I could smell the fear coming from her, and I knew she was afraid of me. She only concentrated on me when the anesthesia was in her system. Never in my life have I asked or wanted a female's attention, but I wanted hers. I wanted to memorize her face, I wanted to hear her voice. There were so many things I wanted to do; I wanted to tell my pack that I was her mate, not someone who forced their mark on her. I was her true mate, and she was mine. 'Do you think she is upset with us?' Aero asked sadly. I only frowned and looked at my house behind the pack house. 'Why are we keeping her a secret? Why can't we say she's our mate?' He asked.

Walking towards the wooden steps, I went up to the porch and fumbled with my keys to unlock the door, because we can't always be there to protect her. I have a feeling whoever hurt her is in this pack. I said and walked towards the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of orange juice and pouring a glass. I want everyone to know she's our mate. He cut me off quickly.

'It's because she's Mark. You-You're ashamed of our mate?' Aero sounded sad and mad at the same time when he said the last sentence. How could I deny that he was right? I was ashamed that my mate had been marked. To be seen with a marked female wasn't good. Even if we were true mates. My reputation would be considerably damaged. But the only way to remove that mark was to cut it out or to have the man remove it himself, and I couldn't do that to her. But it wasn't all about my reputation; we were the strongest, deadliest pack. And through the years, I've gained plenty of enemies. Announcing I have a weak mate could make her a target.

Walking away from the kitchen, I went up the stairs and into my office. I looked at the small stack of paperwork that was waiting for me.

Jack’s scent lingered in my office, and I knew he was in here today. I sat in the black chair as I pulled out my cell phone and looked at the disappointing texts from Alpha Kevin. I placed the phone down and placed my head in my hands. I needed to clear my head. Slowly, very slowly, with Aero whining, I picked up the phone. My hands shook as I bit my lip. This wasn't what I should be doing, but I could hear the hard words of my father as I dialed the phone number. And after three rings, the woman answered my call.

Moaliya POV

It has been almost two full weeks since I woke up, my wounds have been healing quickly, and just yesterday, Amanda sneaked in scissors and cut the right side of my hair. Her skilled hands had cut my hair a bit too short, and now it rests off my shoulders and curls towards my chin.

I sat in bed by myself as I looked down at my hands. My back and chest were covered in bandages, but I now wore what Amanda called scrub pants, which were black and comfortable. I hated the socks they gave me and refused to wear them. Last week, I spent my time in bed crying over the pain. I cried for what had happened to me and the nightmares that filled my nights.

This week, however, I started it by ignoring the pain, ignoring the pain medicine Amanda tried to give me. I spent my time raging. I had my left foot over my right leg, allowing some coverage as I looked at the scalpel in my hand. I had found it in one of the cabinets and was twisting it in my hand. Liya had returned just two days ago. I was thankful to have her back, but something had changed in her as well.

Liya was mad that she wasn't here to see our mate. But she was even more mad at how he never returned to the room. 'What do you plan on doing?' Liya asked as we stared at the sharp end. My lip smirked as I looked at my shoulder. I could hear her howl in approval,

'Get it off our skin for good!' It was the first time I felt approval and happiness from her. I waited for a moment and then walked towards the bathroom. The girl in the mirror didn't look like the girl I saw in the lake. My reflection had changed. The girl who glared back at me had a full face and hateful blue eyes. She had on a short top, which gave Amanda easy access to my wounds. Bandages still wrapped around my body as my blue eyes looked at the mark I was ready to cut out.

The girl at the lake held happiness I didn't even notice; this one held anger and rage. I lifted my arm. Liya purred in my chest as I brought the scalpel to my skin and dug the blade in. As soon as the blade fell into my skin, I could feel the jolt of icy pain in my body. My heart raced as I continued to pull the blade down. My breathing turned to pants, and my skin turned sweaty as I continued to yank the blade down.

I accidentally cut some areas that didn't have the mark. Liya cheered as we finished cutting the mark. The area was filled with dark red blood that flowed down the skin and soaked into the bandages. But the darkness that had been the mark on my shoulder was completely gone.

Liya howled in happiness 'Maybe Mate will come back-' She started to cheer but stopped.

No Liya. I said in a stern voice, Our mate left us in a hospital bed for two weeks. He's scary, and I don't want him. I want to go back to the forest-

We need a mate, Maliya. We deserve a mate!' Maliya said, I could see my eyes shift to a bright blue color as we looked in the mirror. Maliya was in charge as she looked at our bodies.

We don't deserve a mate like that. I whispered.

Liya knew it was the truth as she let out a whimper and allowed me back in charge. My face was growing rounder, and my blue eyes seemed to shine in the white room. We had taken a shower this morning, and my hair looked darker as it fell in wet strands. I took one of the rags and held it to the new wound. I watched as the white turned into a dark red. I held pressure to the wound for a while until my hand was covered in my blood. I then let the rag go and threw it in the trash as I went out to the room and grabbed more wrapping gauze.

Locking myself in the bathroom, I wrapped from my torso to over my shoulder. I want to leave today if we can, I thought as I walked out of the bathroom and paced along the tile floor. I put the scalpel in my pants.

'What if our mate comes for us?' Liya asked in a small voice. I snorted at the thought.

He hasn't come for almost two weeks. I said and shook my head, Our other half sucks. I added.

As if on cue, Amanda walked into the room holding a tray of food. She looked at me and raised an eyebrow, "Look at you.. Pacing." She said and brought the food to the bed, "Come and eat." She encouraged me. I looked at the solid food on the tray and then looked at her. I pointed towards the door, and she sighed, "You know I can't let you leave. The doctor has to approve your discharge." She said, I nodded and pointed at the door.