I will be back

Aleida’s POV

The scent of the forest meets my nose, and I have never felt so at home before. Hell, anything that doesn’t smell self-righteous leeches with God complexes is good enough for me. I’ve wandered aimlessly in the woods for hours, not knowing which way to go. Or, as in my case, limp. The injuries can’t heal because I still have silver in my blood. This means if I don’t find someone who can help me soon, I’m going to bleed to death. Since I have a broken leg and lost a lot of blood, I can’t move as fast as I would like. My stamina and fitness are virtually at zero right now. Although I usually have a persistent body, the silver takes it temporarily away from me. I find a rock that I sit on and try to catch my breath. My clothes consist of more blood than fabric at this point. I don’t know how much I lost, but it’s more than I can handle; that thing is for sure. A small stream is gurgling a few feet away from me; I crawl there and splash the freshwater over my dirty, sweaty face. My body feels unusually heavy. Therefore, I lie down on my back and look up at the twinkling starry sky. I’m so tired, but I won’t wake up again if I fall asleep. I take the opportunity to drink some of the water before getting up and continue limping away aimlessly. I think I see the light far away in the distance. Since I don’t really have any better idea, I decide to follow that path. I stumble several times by the shabby woodland and the rotting tree roots that spread out of the ground. Even more, blood is seeping out of my body from minor wounds given to me by all the falls. I need to keep the pressure on the side of my stomach—that’s the wound I got after King put a knife in there earlier. The further I go, the more it looks like a streetlamp. Which is precisely what I’m looking for; because if there are streetlamps, there are roads, and where there are roads, there are people nearby. Just as I thought, my bare feet touch the cold asphalt, and I breathe out of finally having taken me somewhere. Since I don’t know where I am or what territory I’m in, making it much harder for me to determine how far I have left home. But now, there’s hope. I look around both ways. It’s a fairly wide road but not wide enough that it can be a highway. I recognize my surroundings somewhat, but not enough to know which way I should go. Right or left? In the end, I go to the left, which I notice later that it’s probably not the best. There’s a steep hill that tilts upwards. My leg shake from the effort I put on it when I limp up the hill. Once I get up, I see some houses far away. I’m so excited that I don’t look where I put my feet, which results in me face planting and rolling down the hill. My head takes even more hits, and I know now that it won’t cope with much more. Slowly I get up with my scraped-up body. When I grunt from the pain, I can feel the presence of my wolf. Which means I can now use the wolf to howl and ask for help. I breathe in deeply before howling louder than I’ve ever done before. No answer. I do it again, even louder. Then I hear several howls back to me. I’m too far away to be able to determine whether the howls belong to someone I know or not. Right now, it doesn’t matter anyway. If I don’t get the help I need soon; I won’t survive. My body has taken many beatings, and I can withstand much more than a normal werewolf can, but even I have my limits. Everything hurts now; every little movement feels like someone is trying to rip the body parts off me. Even so, I struggle to keep moving forward toward the howling. I feel the vibrations in the ground as they approach. A werewolf weighs much more than a human does, and if many run together, you can literally feel the vibrations spread in the ground. The first wolf I see is black with white tops on its ears; I don’t know who it is. For this reason, I growl in warning that it shouldn’t get too close. Just because I called for help doesn’t automatically mean that this wolf is actually here to do it. More wolves come to the scene and circulate me, but not aggressively, instead in a protective way. I growl again, which makes them all sit down around me. A large and tall black-brown wolf jumps forward. I recognize him before he has even transformed himself into a human being. Nathan, my big brother, is standing in front of me with his arms outstretched, ready to take me home. I try to walk, but my legs fold. He lifts me and cries with relief that I’m alive. He caresses my cheek and hugs me close.

“My sweet baby sister, where have you been!? We have been looking for you everywhere!”

“He hurt me,” I whisper with a broken voice before my tears slowly fall down my cheeks.

It makes him stop and look down at me with a horrified look. He studies my clothes carefully as if he is a judge at a science fair. Nathan no longer smiles but cries out because King has hurt me; they didn’t find me before I got hurt; it’s too late; it has already happened.

“This isn’t the color of your clothes?” he asks, even though he knows the answer.

“No, it’s my blood,” I answer weakly.

My eyes droop over and over again; it’s harder to keep them open now. The exhaustion, anemia, food shortage, and fluid shortage are too much. My body can’t take it anymore.

“Aleida? No, don’t you dare to die on me!” he screams and starts running.

He howls a terrible and devastating howl echoing over the forests—it’s answered with dozens of other cries from different places in the area. He runs and runs; I can’t keep my eyes open, but I can feel the movements he’s making. Nathan gives orders here and there, growls all the time... But what can you expect from an overprotective brother? I want to ask how far from home we are, if my mates are okay, if my pack is fine, and if my sons have protection. But I can’t get a sound out. I’m conscious without being able to see or talk—I’m too weak. The only thing that keeps me awake right now is my strong psyche and stubbornness not to give up until I know that everyone is unharmed. I’m not going to give up; just get some sleep...

The next time I open my eyes, I’m in a hospital bed in our pack-hospital. My body connects to all sorts of machines that beep and blink. Beyond these sounds, it’s quiet; no voices. Am I alone here, or what’s going on? I make an effort to hear if someone is nearby and finally manage to discern several voices; I unplug the machines and try to stand up. As I thought, the body aches worse today than it did yesterday. A giant bandage sits over the wound I have on the side of my stomach, and dozens of bruises adorn my legs. Even so, I walk toward the door and open it. My legs feel heavy like lead, but I keep moving forward. I look around the corner and see Luis, Nathan, and Michael sitting there with worried faces.

“Michael, where the hell is my Starbucks that you promised me?” I ask with a big smile.

He looks up and runs toward me. His sobs make his whole body shake, and I caress his back in slow circles. My Michael, consistently so strong usually. I guess that this entire situation has broken him down. He backs away and looks me over before furrowing his brows.

“You aren’t supposed to be out of bed,” Michael says.

“Well, you guys aren’t supposed to sit here and cry like I was already gone,” I answer with a smile.

All three of them are crying heavily. I open my arms for them all to hug. They’ve been worried for me, looking for me, without being able to get there in time; this is what they need. We break apart.

“Alpha, you aren’t supposed to be up walking. Not with that silver dose still in your system and those injuries,” a nurse says.

I sigh but follow the nurse back into my room, with the three following me close behind. She walks away, and we all sit down.

“What happened?” Luis asks.

How am I supposed to explain everything that has happened without making it break out into a full-scale war with the vampires? These are my pack members and my family; they’re after blood. It’s evident in how they look at my injuries that they won’t rest until they get to punish those who subjected me to this. I can’t lie to them either. They deserve to know the truth as much as I do. So, I begin the story about everything that has happened. The “fight” with the vampire who kidnapped me, what King told me, the torture, my escape, and how I got to that place where they found me. No one says a word. They’re trying to digest what I’ve told them.

“Are my family safe?” I ask in a concerned tone.

“Your boys and mates are fine. Worried and pissed off, but fine,” Luis answers.

“Good, they’re not coming here, are they?” I ask.

The three of them are giving each other shameful looks. Something is up with them. Don’t tell me that... Oh god...

“What is it?” I ask and narrow my eyes.

“They’re kind of already here,” Michael answers and rubs his neck.

“What! How can you be so stupid and bring them here? We have no idea of how much of a dangerous this is!” I exclaim.

“Take it easy, sis. They’re alphas; we can’t make them obey what we say,” Nathan replies.

That’s true, of course, and I know it. It’s just the awful feeling of my mates being here in the middle of the danger that doesn’t sit right with me. Not that I doubt for a second that the fathers can’t protect our puppies. No, it’s more about me being practically helpless at the moment. I can’t help caring for and defending, which isn’t only my destiny as the queen but also my duty as a mother.

“Where are they?” I ask, defeated.

“In the packhouse. We haven’t told anyone that you’re awake yet. Thought you might want some peace and quiet before all hell breaks loose...” Michael answers cautiously.

“What are you talking about?” I ask in pure confusion.

“Aleida...” Nathan begins talking. “You must understand that all of us... Are shaking with anger about this whole ordeal. You aren’t only our queen; you’re also an alpha, sister, friend, mate, and mother. They kidnapped you and also disturbingly hurt you in the process. If you think we’re overdramatic about this, just wait until Kian and Miliano hear about it.”

I understand; they want to take care of me and make sure I’m safe. But even though my family all has good intentions basically, they must also understand that I’m not their responsibility; it’s the other way around. They’re not only friends and family; they’re also my people. As queen, I’m responsible for the survival of them all.

“Bring them in then; let’s get this over with,” I say with a big sigh.

Nathan’s eyes fog over, and I know he’s mind linking them. I lean back against the pillows in bed and enjoy the last little peace I’ll get to have until the hybrid asshole is dead.