The Alpha's Abused Mate

Chapter 10: A Discovery

I could not believe that she would be so stupid. Why would she run out of a room when she heard yells and bangs? 

My wolf, Odin, was inside my head yelling at me to protect my mate. As if I was not trying to do that already. So, I locked her inside of the room and went down to the basement to see our new prisoner. 

Once downstairs, I saw him chained to the wall while Edric and Rossier were ensuring he was secure.

"Move," I commanded the Beta and Delta.

Quickly, they moved out of my way and I walked up to the prisoner.

"Now, there are two ways in which this can happen. One, you can tell me why your pack is targeting mine without a fight. Or two, I can force the information out of you. Which do you prefer?"

The man, who looked to be not much older than 18, spit in my face before laughing.

I growled and lifted my arm before punching him in his already broken nose.

"Looks like we are doing this the fun way." 

I looked to Edric and nodded. He quickly left the room to grab a few items that I would need for the interrogation.

I knew we were in for a long day, but if I am able to figure out why Winter Haven was attacking, it would be worth it. 

Also, I needed to understand why he looked like he knew something about my Luna that I did not.

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It took a few hours and a few silver blades before we got any information out of the boy. 

I admit this interrogation was taking a lot out of me, and I knew it was time to let him sit in his thoughts for a few days without food, but I had to ask one last question.

"What did you mean by 'I would hate to lose her'?" I looked down at the bloody boy and he just grinned at me.

"Wouldn't you like to know," He just laughed and I growled before taking his head in my hand once again and cracking it back against the wall.

After that, I walked out of the basement and upstairs. 

Deciding it would be best to clean up before going to see Aliya, I went to a guest bathroom and took a shower to wash off any blood. I then grabbed a pair of shorts and a shirt that I keep within it for occasions such as this. 

Once I was presentable, I went back to my room and unlocked the door before going inside. So many questions were going through my head, but I knew one thing. Aliya was in danger. I could not let anyone hurt my mate. 

I may never have wanted to find my mate, after all, I avoided the mating balls for as long as I could, but now that I have her, I can not let her go. I could not risk her getting hurt again. 

When I opened the door, I saw Aliya asleep on the couch. As I walked farther into the room, her eyes opened and I sat down near her to explain what was going on. But, then I saw it. There was a bruise on her arm that was shaped like my hand. My heart dropped. How could I do that to her, after everything that she has gone through, I hurt her. She scooted away from me and I knew she was scared.

My wolf was yelling at me, "You hurt our mate! How could you hurt her. She is so perfect. Now, now she will hate us."

"Aliya, I'm sorry, I did not realize I grabbed you that hard," I tried to explain. I knew she would never forgive me.

I then moved closer to her, trying to show that I care, "I will never do such a thing to you again. I was worried for you once the prisoner addressed you in such a way and I acted out of impulse. I should have never grabbed you in such a way." I managed to say, my heart feeling heavy as I apologized. 

She nodded her head slightly and then asked, "w-what happened?"

"We interrogated him. As we already knew, he is from the Winter Haven Pack. My guess is that the New Moon Pack was not the intended target, but was used as a distraction mechanism to lower our defenses. Which worked. Sadly, we did not get much information from him tonight, but I do expect we will find a way to loosen his tongue before too long."

She nodded again before asking, "why would he say 'I would hate to lose her if I were you'?" 

I signed at this and answered, "often, as a way to hurt an Alpha, enemies will try to capture or kill their Luna."

She once again nodded before surprising me. She lent over and hugged me and I instantly wrapped my arms around her before breathing in her intoxicating smell.

I admit, I love to have her in my arms, but she has never intentionally embraced me first before now. I was pleasantly surprised. So, I stood up and carried her to the bed so that we could call it a night.

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The next few days were chaotic. I had Edric and one of my Deltas, Rossier, down in the basement trying to get the prisoner to talk, but they were not getting much information. I, on the other hand, was researching. I knew there had to be a reason behind this attack. Usually, Winter Haven attacks weakened packs, and my pack is known to be strong and protected. Additionally, they never plan so far in advance like they have this time around. 

So, why were they so keen on us? A few of the Alphas from Ally packs have come to speak with me, agreeing to assist if necessary, but they were hesitant about sending deltas due to what happened when I sent my men to New Moon. I understood but was frustrated. I have always sent help when they needed it, but they could not spare a single man.

It was not until I went to the library in desperation did I figure something out. You see, Aliya was in here before the prisoner was taken in, but has not been back since as I have tried to keep her in our room unless I was with her. This, as she now understands, is for her own protection. 

But, I did find the book she was reading, Alphas of Notorious Packs. Why have I not thought to look at this before? I should have read up on the current alpha, but I was distracted trying to figure out how to defend ourselves and what he was after. 

So, I read his chapter and was shocked at what I found out. 

According to the book, Kai Lightwood was a twin, a sister who passed away after having a child with a man who was not her mate. As I read on, I noticed some similarities between the woman's story and the one that I have heard about Aliya's mother. It couldn't be, could it? Could Aliya be related to the Lightwoods and they were attacking to find her?

I turned the page and saw a picture of a woman who looked exactly like my mate and I understood. Aliya is Alpha Lightwood's niece and he knew. He was looking for her.

I need to protect her now more than ever. But, I could not allow her to find out about this discovery, at least not yet. She will not understand the danger she will be in if her family found her. She would be taken away from me...Or she may willingly leave.