CHAPTER 4
1261 Words
Aria slowly opened her eyes, groggily taking in her surroundings. Her head was throbbing, and her mouth felt dry and sour.
She struggled to sit up, but a wave of dizziness washed over her, forcing her back onto the bed.
As she lay there, she became aware of a sharp pain in her leg. She tentatively reached down to touch it, and her fingers came away sticky with blood.
Just then, the door of the room creaked open, and a figure strode in. Aria's eyes widened as she took in the sight of Ryan, the beta of the pack, standing over her with a look of concern etched on his face.
But as she looked around the room, Aria realised that she wasn't even in her own chambers. She was in Ryan's room, and she had no idea how she had gotten there.
Ryan's eyes locked into hers, and he strode over to the bed. “Aria, can you hear me?” He asked, his voice low and gentle.
Aria nodded, still trying to clear the fog from her mind. Ryan sat down beside her and began to examine her legs, his fingers probing gently at the wound.
“What happened?” Aria asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Ryan's eyes met hers, and Aria saw a flicker of concern there. “You don't remember?” He asked.
Aria shook her head, and Ryan's expression turned grim. “You were found outside the pack's territory, injured and alone,” he said. “I brought you here to tend to your wounds”
Aria's mind was racing, trying to piece together the events of the previous night. But her memories were hazy and indistinct, and she couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
“The guards on duty found you close by, so they reported to Kael, he seemed angry” Aria scoffed at Ryan.
“Angry?, I wish” she muttered.
“You know it's offensive to be found outside your territory. What happened out there Aria?. How did you manage to sustain such injury and still made it close to our base”
“If it were to be anyone else, they would have been probably found dead or at least if they were found” Ryan marked.
Aria exhaled. “I can't recall how it all went last night,” she said.
“Well that's by the way. You should make up something before Kael gets here”
“What?!”
“You're lucky this was only kept between I, the guards, Kael and your parents, if it were to be heard by anyone else. You'll face serious consequences” Ryan stated.
Aria exhaled, collapsing on the bed.
The door slammed open with a force and Kael stood there, he was furious, his glare hard against Aria's.
“Are you stalking me?” Aria blurted.
“You find this funny?” Kael asked, walking in. Ryan got up and excused himself.
“ Well then, how and what are you looking for here?”
He touched Aria's leg and she winced.
“I'm sorry” he apologised.
“You're sorry?... How dare you show yourself to me again after everything. This happened to me because of you” Aria barked at him.
“What happened to you?, you were found outside the territory, do you know the consequences of disobeying the law?” Kael scolded.
“What law?” Aria asked sarcastically.
“So now you want to talk about disobedience? And not how you cheated on me with Cassie?”
“Oh please Aria, I'm discussing serious issues here” Kael replied pacing around the room. Aria scoffed into realization.
“Alright then” she muttered.
“How did this happen?Did they do this to you?” He asked.
“I don't know what you're talking about. I'm completely fine. I just didn't know how I ended up there”
“That's bullshit!, stop farting lies”
“I swear!” Aria yelled back.
“I must have lost my balance or something while trying to hunt, and I got bruised. That's all I recall” she said.
Kael heaved a long sigh.
“I swear to God, if I find out you're lieing, you'll be in big trouble” he drew close to her, her jaw held roughly in his hands.
“Get away from her” Steve intervened.
“How dare you lay those filthy things on her?”.
Kael swirled and came in contact with a blow on his face.
“Dad!” Aria yelled. Kael held his jaw, his furious stare challenged Steve's.
“Stay away from Aria,”
Kael stormed out of Ryan's room, his feet stomping hard of the creaky floor.
“What was that all about?” Aria frowned.
“ Payback. Something I've been longing to do for sometime for messing with my daughter” Steve's responded, he so much adored Aria. She smiled at him.
“What happened?”
“Ryan came in last night, he said you were found outside the territory”
“I can't…. remember “ Aria stuttered.
“The more I try to, my head hurts”
“It's okay. Whatever happened out there, I'm glad you're alive.” Steve felt a relief as he held Aria in his bosom.
Kael stormed into his chambers furious, Cassie dismisses the maids who were cleaning his quarters. She hurried up to Kael who held a towel to his nose.
“You're bleeding!” Cassie alarmed.
“What happened to you?, who did this?”
“Shut up Cassie! For Christ's sake you're so annoying!” He spat at her, his hands clenched in a fist.
“Make me a cup of coffee.” Cassie hesitated before she left to get one. She appeared minutes later with a cup of coffee in her hands. Kael took a sip, throwing the cup against the wall as it broke into pieces. Cassie backed away.
“You can't even make a cup of coffee” he muttered.
“I'll get back to him for this”
“Get back to who?” Cassie asked.
“Steve.”
Ravens Peak.
Lena walked into the room unannounced, her eyes scanning the space until they landed on the young man standing in front of the mirror. He was shirtless, his chest muscles rippling as he pulled on a crisp white dress shirt.
The young man's eyes met with Lena's in the mirror.
“Shouldn't you have knocked?, what if I was bare?” He asked. Lena stared sternly at him through the mirror.
“It's not the first time seeing you naked, Thane.”
“Well I must say you're really into me, aren't you?” he smirked.
Lena smiled a small, enigmatic smile.
“Good morning Thane”
“I see you're getting dressed up. Got a big day ahead of you?” She asked.
Thane furrowed his brows.
“You seem interested in my activities today, Lena. And that's very unusual” he replied.
She chucked
“Well I'm just concerned,Thane, shouldn't I be?. I'm your mate.”
“I see… soon to be, right?”
“Whatever” she said waving him off.
“So what's the plan for today?” Lena asked.
“Just the usual”
“Just the usual” she repeated.
“ Well I didn't know letting a wolf escape under you after she trespassed was a usual occurrence here.”
Thane froze, his hands hovering around his shirt as he gazed met back with Lena's.
- Writer
