Russian Alpha Queen

09

"It's okay, it'll stop hurting in a little bit, I promise." Mila looked up in surprise as she heard a voice come through the vent in the wall. In the week since she'd been kidnapped, Mila hadn't had contact with anyone but the man who'd killed her father. Ivan, she'd learned his name was. He'd come in once or twice a day when he was really angry, and he'd scream all his abuse at her before beating her. Usually he just hit her, but that day was the first of many in which he'd used something like an extension cord or belt to hit her, and having never even been spanked in her lifetime, Mila wasn't prepared for the pain it brought.

"Wh-who are you?" Mila asked in a whimper. The boy in the wall was quiet for a moment, and Mila's sobs grew again as she thought he was done talking to her. What had she done wrong in simply asking his name?

"You have to stop crying so loud, you're going to make him come back, and he'll be really angry with you!" the boy said hurriedly, trying to calm his new neighbor down. "I'm a friend, and I will do my best to help you. But you have to listen and do exactly as I say, okay?"

Young Mila nodded, her eyes still filled with tears, but her sobs quieting. Realizing her friend couldn't see her, she replied that she would listen, and a smile crossed the boys lips. He wasn't sure why his uncle had decided to kidnap a girl as young as he was, but he knew better than to question him at this point. She seemed really sweet, and he felt sorry that her circumstances had lead to her being here. "What's your name?" he asked, trying to take her mind off the pain he was sure was coursing through her.

"I'm Mila."

Mila. It was a cute name, and the teenage boy couldn't help but think she sounded hot. "Hi Mila. It's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too Friend. I haven't talked to anyone but that man since I was brought here. It's been so lonely..." Mila trailed off, and the boy tried to comfort her.

"I'm sure your parents are looking for you. I bet they'll find you real soon." Mila's sobs picked up again as she thought of her parents. Her father, the gentle giant that he was, had his throat ripped out mere feet in front of her. Her mother, while uptight, had always shown her so much love. And she'd repaid her by murdering her. Mila was a monster, she knew.

"No they won't," she sobbed in response. "They're dead. There's no one coming for me. I'm going to die in here." Mila cried harder as the reality of the situation fully hit her. Nobody was coming to rescue her. Everyone that loved her was dead, or would be if they tried to help her. She was on her own, with no option but to accept whatever it was this guy had in store for her.

The boy felt terrible, and tried apologizing, but that was the last Mila spoke for the night.

It had only taken six months for Ivan to get bored of hitting her. He'd moved to torturing her, pulling off her fingernails and laughing when she screamed in pain. Holding a bag over her head until she passed out, then leaving her there on the floor like he didn't care if she lived or died. Mila knew he didn't, but when she woke up on the floor she wished she had.

Mila had been counting the days she'd been there, as her friend helped her keep track when Ivan beat her too hard and knocked her out for multiple days. Her sense of time was muddled, and she often wouldn't know if it was day or night, had it not been for the small window Ivan had barred over on her first day of confinement.

Mila and the boy had continued growing closer. She'd heard Ivan beating him as well, and the two had found solace in each other whenever it got to be too much to handle. This night had been particularly hard for Mila, as Ivan had copped a feel on her breast for the first time, and had broken her arm when she tried to fight him off. She heard her friend in the wall screaming for him to stop. The sound of a door breaking distracted Ivan, and Mila sent a swift kick to his manhood, doubling him over and giving her a chance to run to the door. It came flying open, knocking her to the ground. Standing above her was a boy that looked to be around the same age as her. His long copper hair in front of his eyes that had turned black with rage.

He'd grown to love this girl, trapped like a bird in a cage in the room beside his, though he didn't know at the time that that was what he felt. The two had bonded through all the pain the two shared at his uncle's hands, and hearing her plead that she was a virgin and for his uncle to get off of her had caused something inside him to snap. He wasn't worried about any harm that would come to himself. He just wanted this girl, the girl who had brought light to his life that even Alexi wasn't capable of, to be safe. He wanted to free them both from this cage, to run away with her, find a pack that wasn't afraid to accept them, and show her that he could protect her.

Looking down at the bruised redhead on the ground, a black ring surrounding one of her blue eyes, all he felt flow through him was rage. He wanted to kill Ivan. Despite everything he'd done for Zeno, the teenage hormones and his recent actions blocked any positive feelings Zeno once held for him. The look on the face of the girl in front of him made his heart break as they both cried, Mila's eyes on him like he was an angel, coming to take her to heaven. For Mila, he might as well have been.

Ivan let out a roar, finally recovered from Mila's kick and realizing what was going on. That ungrateful bastard was betraying him! For what? For some girl he knew nothing about? But as he looked back and forth between the two teens, he realized the extent of his nephew's betrayal. He loved her! Ivan had brought a toy back for himself, and this stupid pup thought he would be able to claim her.

"Oh I see," he sneered as Zeno pulled Mila from the ground and stood between them. "You think you love her. You think you're going to defeat me to save her, thanks to the power of love. And then what?" He asked mockingly, his eyes narrowing on Zeno. "You're going to take my pack? Make this little w***e Luna, and live happily ever after? Well guess, what pup? If you thought you could take anything from me, you're wrong!" His voice raised to a shout at the end, and with a snarl, he quickly turned into his wolf and attacked his nephew.

"Run!" Zeno shouted, shoving Mila out the door and locking it behind her.

"No! What about you? Come with me!" Mila yelled, pounding on the door and desperately trying to open it. Her protector, the boy in the wall, was going to be killed trying to fight this Alpha, and it was her fault. She'd f****d up, and now another person was going to die because of her carelessness.

"Run!" he shouted again before shifting into his wolf and taking his uncle's assault head on. In a move of stupidity found only in horror movies, Mila stood there crying as she waited to see if her knight would save her. Snapping jaws, growls, and whimpers came through the door as Mila continued pounding on it. With how hard she was hitting it, she was surprised it was still standing, but she just couldn't break it.

After a few minutes, the sounds quieted with a distinctly final thud, and Mila's heart pounded aggressively in her chest. He'd done it! She was sure it had been her friend that had survived.

The door flew open, and Mila threw herself into her hero's arms. Everything was going to be okay now. All those dreams they'd shared late at night of their lives after getting out of this hellhole were all about to come true. Hearing him chuckle, Mila looked up from his chest and felt her blood run cold. The one holding her wasn't her savior, but her kidnapper.

"Look at that Zeno, your little w***e girlfriend is just ready to run into any man's arms," he sneered, dragging Mila back into the room and locking the door behind them before throwing her to the bed.

Zeno's eyes were struggling to stay open, and he looked on in horror as his uncle climbed on top of her. "No. Stop." He tried to stand up and rush over to save her, tried to turn his head, tried to close his eyes, anything but remaining there physically unable to move or take his eyes away. Ivan had broken both his legs, several ribs, and a few fingers before using his Alpha command to make him lay there and not look away from the bed.

Mila's sobs filled his ears, and his heart shattered as he watched his uncle have his way with her against her will. Her eyes never left Zeno's, hurt, shame, and betrayal flowing through them. At first, she was screaming and crying, begging him to help her. But eventually her voice quieted, and she whispered a single "why?" before accepting what was happening. Tears ran down both teens cheeks as Ivan stood, wiping his calming appendage on her leg before dragging Zeno out of the room and locking the door behind him.

He spent the next three days torturing Zeno further, before finally using his Alpha command on him. "You will not look at, speak to, or think about Mila Petrova."

"No, please!" Zeno begged, tears falling from his eyes, knowing what was coming next. He'd seen his father do this to every member of his pack that found their mate. He always made them forget one another, and he didn't want to forget the redhead he'd swore to protect.

Ivan merely shot him a sickening smile in return, before uttering the last words Zeno wanted to hear.

"You will forget you ever met Mila Petrova." More tears fell down Zeno's face as he sobbed before slowly stopped crying, the Alpha command washing over him. And he forgot all about the girl who'd already forgotten him.

Mila was surprised to find that both of them had tears on their faces as the memories came flooding back to her. All of the nights he'd been there for, the conversations they'd shared, the dreams they admitted to only each other when they felt it was just them against the world. How could they have forgotten all that?

She knew Alpha commands couldn't be denied, but she'd had no idea that they held so much power. To be able to completely make someone forget a person even existed, despite their bonds and memories together? That was terrifying, and the thought of other Alphas abusing that as well made her blood boil. No one deserved to have their mind messed with like that. She felt violated all over again at this new discovery, and as Mila's hands clenched around the arms of their chair, she swore to herself she'd make sure this never happened again.

"Mila?" Zeno asked softly. His eyes were filled with concern and his hands were reaching out to hold hers, but remembering how she responded the last time he'd reached for her, he put his hands back in his lap, patiently staring at her while waiting for her to collect her thoughts.

"When did you remember?" she asked, raising her eyes to meet his.

"Just a little while before you got here. I was trying to figure out why I felt like I had to protect you, even though I thought I'd just met you, and suddenly everything came flooding back." Mila nodded, sighing and looking down at her hands she had returned to her lap.

For months, all Zeno had wanted to do was wrap her up in his arms. Then as they started getting to know each other more intimately, whispering dreams and secrets through the vent, comforting each other in their darkest hours, he found himself wanting to kiss her. When he heard his uncle trying to force himself on her, he lost it and ran in there. He wasn't strong enough back then. His uncle handed him his own ass on a silver platter, and all Zeno could do was lay there as he watched his uncle do what he wanted. And then he just... forgot.

Zeno was disgusted with himself, wanting to do nothing more than take a run or punch something, but he instead turned his attention to his first and only love. He could see the gears turning in her head as she decided what to say, and Zeno felt his heart pulsing in his ears. For almost a year, all they'd wanted was to be together. Now they were finally in the same room together, so why did it seem like Mila remembering him was causing them to drift further apart?

"Zeno..." Mila started. Zeno felt something inside him spark to life upon hearing his name leave her lips, and he tried hard to push it down. He'd told Mila he didn't want a romantic relationship from her, and he had meant that. He still did. She'd been through far too much hurt at the hands of not just any man, but one related to him. That would take a long time to heal, and he didn't want to push her away by being too pushy. She was his Alpha now. He'd have all the time in the world to win her over later, for now he just wanted her to feel safe.

"Mila, I wasn't lying when I said I didn't want a romantic relationship with you. You've been through so much, and having just become Alpha, I know you need time to heal and focus on yourself and your duties before you would even consider something like that. I'm sorry I couldn't protect you back then. I really, really am. But please, just let me protect you and be your friend now. That's all I'm asking," he begged. He didn't mean to sound so needy, but the sudden thought that she might not want him around at all had him panicking. He was shocked how much he suddenly missed someone he didn't remember until hours ago.

"I'd like that very much." Zeno's head snapped up, his eyes finding Mila's as he stared for a moment, wanting to be sure he'd heard her right.

"What?" he asked stupidly.

Mila let out a little giggle before smiling at him. It was a smile Zeno had waited years to see, and she instantly had him wrapped around her finger like he was fifteen all over again.

"I'd like that very much. I do need time to heal from everything, and becoming Alpha all of a sudden has in fact been terrifying. But you were always such a great friend to me; we went through so much together. Why would I turn you away just because of something someone else did?" she asked, placing her hand on his once more.

Mila was once again shocked into silence when she suddenly noticed that she wasn't afraid of him. There was hardly any hesitation in her as she'd reached out to touch him, when just yesterday she had jumped away from him like his touch would burn her. Maybe it had to do with learning Zeno had been the boy behind the wall, but she felt herself able to relax for the first time in years as she bathed in his presence. She was almost as calm around him now as she was with Karine, who had all but dragged her for bff tattoos as they bonded earlier.

A goofy smile lit up his face, and he had to fight the urge to pull her up into a hug. "However," Mila continued with a hard sigh, making the smile slide right off his face as she pulled her hand back. "I'd like to rebuild our friendship slowly. We aren't the same kids we were back then, and I don't want to just assume our relationship should be."

Zeno nodded, a little hurt but he understood where he was coming from. He certainly wasn't the same kid he was back then, and he was glad she had offered him a chance to show her that. "Of course Mila. I don't want to do anything you're uncomfortable with. You're my Alpha, lead the way." He tried to finish it up with an encouraging smile, but his words shocked Mila as she worriedly glanced at his alarm clock. It was almost four in the morning by now, and she was horrified as she thought about what her pack members would think if they saw her leaving an unmated male's room.

"I-I have to go," she stammered frantically making her way towards the door. Zeno quickly rose to follow her, much to Mila's relief. "Could you please make sure there's nobody out there?" she begged.

"Of course." Zeno moved as if he was about to step out into the hallway, looking both directions before turning back to his companion who sported an extremely worried look. "The coast is clear, your majesty," he laughed, bowing low to the floor and gesturing towards the door.

Mila let out a laugh of her own, feigning a curtsy as she made her leave. "Good night Zeno," she called through the mind link, throwing a wave over her shoulder as she opened her own door.

"Good night, Mila. See you tomorrow?" He could feel her laugh through the mind link before responding.

"Of course."

The door clicked shut behind her, and as she gathered the things she'd need for a shower as she tried to slow her racing heart. So much had happened in the last few days, and it was a lot to think about.