Moon Blessed Luna

Chapter 12 - Brianna

The switch in her behavior was very sudden. One minute she was panicking, fighting me when I tried to hold her, the next she started licking my neck. I couldn't stop the moan that escaped me and I glared at Avery, who left promptly. Sparks ignited as Lena started sucking on the spot that was meant for her mark, and I could feel myself get wet as the scent of my arousal mixed with her own. I didn't know anything about this tiny woman sitting on my lap, licking and sucking my neck as if her life depended on it, but I didn't care. All I needed to know was that she was mine, and I was hers. Just as that thought popped into my head, I felt her canines pierce my skin.

On instinct I growled and pushed her away slightly, removing her from my neck. She growled back but the noise seemed to startle her, as her eyes flew open and she practically jumped off the bed, pressing herself against the wall.

Why did you push her away? Let her mark us! We will mark her, too! She's ours!

"What the f**k?" I mumble, ignoring Keena, as I touch my neck and look at the blood on my fingers. I feel the bite again, and feel that it healed up fully without leaving the bumpy outline of a scar. She didn't mark me, I think as relief and regret wrestle through my mind. I did want her to mark me, that realization surprised me but also made Keena pur in agreement. I was however relieved that she didn't mark me in a hospital room, probably purely on instinct as her panic was calmed by my scent.

I look over at Lena, and at the sight of her I go into protection mode. She looks absolutely frightened, her silvery blue eyes wide open like a deer looking in the headlights of a car. I get off the bed as well and reach out to pull her into a hug, wanting to tell her it oke, that nothing happened. The moment she sees my movement she shrinks even more against the wall, and I growl. Who hurt my mate so badly she panics when I reach out to her? At the sound of my growl she drops to the ground, shivering in absolute fear, neck bared to me.

"Please, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" she whispers, looking at the ground and baring the nasty looking mark at me. I drop to my knees in front of her, gently lifting up her head so she looks at me. Tears fill her eyes and the shivering gets worse. I pull her close, she's so light that I easily settle her on my lap again, holding her close as she silently cries out her fear. I start growling very low in my chest, it's more like a cats purr, and she leans in to me. Keena is going crazy in my mind seeing her mate in so much pain.

"Don't be sorry, Lena, nothing happened. Look," I say as she starts to calm down, and I push her away enough to look at my neck. She sniffles a few times, but reaches out her hand to touch the spot she bit. Sparks erupt from her touch and I hear her gasp as she also feels them.

"See? You didn't fully mark me, and even if you did I wouldn't be mad at you. I am yours. But it's best that we wait until you are all healed up so I can mark you too, oké?" she starts to tremble again and a tear falls down her cheek.

No! Mate is hurt! Don't make her cry!

I don't want to make her cry, you stupid wolf!

"What's wrong?" I ask as I gently wipe the tear away, absolutely baffled by her reaction. Didn't she try to mark me just a second ago? And now mentioning that I want to mark her makes her cry?

She shakes her head and bares her neck again, giving me access to the filthy looking mark. I study it for a second, bringing my nose close to it to smell it. She stiffens and stops breathing but doesn't move away. Whoever did this to her had completely broken her it seemed. She was absolutely terrified and yet she bared her neck for me, as if inviting me to bite it.

Yes! Mark her! She's mine!

If you don't shut up I will never let you out again! Can't you see how scared she is?

"I'm not going to mark you if you don't want me to, Lena. I just want to smell it to see if we can find whoever did this to you." I look into her eyes and several emotion flicker through her almost silvery blue eyes. Panic, fear, but a hint of curiosity as well, and I could see she was having a conversation with her wolf.

"Why?" she asks finally, her voice still barely more then a whisper.

"Because it's obvious to me they hurt you, so I'm going to kill them for hurting what is mine."

"You would kill someone for hurting me?" I smile at her voice, it's still soft but it's starting to get actual sound. It's the most wonderful sound in the world to me.

"Yes, I would. Because you are my mate, and I am yours." Her eyes grow big once more, filled with innocence and surprise.

"I am yours and you are mine? Only mine?" her words confuse me but I will get back to them later. Right now I'm just happy to hear her say she's mine.

"Yes, just yours." she smiles brightly and she bares her neck again, only this time there is no fear in her eyes. So I bend down and sniff the mark. I expected it to stink like a festering wound, or at least smell like some other wolf, but it didn't. It didn't even smell like her. The entire area of her neck smelled like absolutely nothing.

Do you know how this could happen, Keena?

No. Mate's mark spot should smell like her, or like us! Mark her! This is wrong!

No, you stupid wolf. Get your instincts under control and start thinking with your brain again. We told her we wouldn't mark her until she wanted us to.

She wants us to! I can sense her wolf! She wants to be mine!

I ignored Keena and pulled back from Lena's neck and smiled at her. She didn't need to know it smelled like nothing. I would make sure she was safe.

"No one will even hurt you again, Lena. Not if I can help it." Her shy smile melted my heart and I hugged her to my chest. She hesitated only a moment before wrapping her arms around my waist.

"Let's get you cleaned up and then we will get some food, alright?" at the mention of food her stomach growled and she pressed her hands to it as if trying to force it to be quiet. She send me a fearful glance and I realized I growled again. I really needed to get that under control with her, she was obviously scared of me when I growled and I didn't want her to be scared at me.

I gently lifted her in my arms, and stood up. The flimsy hospital gown shifted and sparks shot up my arm as I accidentally touched her bare back. This wouldn't do, I thought to myself and frowned. I put her down, supporting her until I was sure her legs wouldn't give out under her, and I pull my t-shirt up over my head. She looks confused and her cheeks turn pink when she sees me in just my sports bra.

"Do you need help taking off the hospital robe? I would prefer it if you wore my t-shirt until we get you some proper clothes." The thought of her walking through the pack house in an open backed hospital gown made both Keena and me go crazy. I didn't want to mark her until she was ready and healed, but I didn't need my pack looking at her.

"I don't need help." she says, as she starts to pull the robe over her head. The button keeping it shut makes it too tight to fit over her head though and it gets stuck. I try to look away but I can't help but glimpse at her body that she so easily put on display for me. Her pale skin is colorfully bruised around her ribs, all of which I can count even from a distance. Her hip bones stick out, and I can see several scars all over her body. There was not even a little fat to wiggle as she struggled to get the robe off her head. Eventually she stops and drops the robe back down in defeat.

"Maybe I do need a little help." she admits, her cheeks turning pink again. I force a smile to replace the scowl I knew was on my face.

When I find out who hurt her all these years, I'm going to make him suffer. Keena growls in agreement, for once lost for words after seeing just how badly our mate had been injured. It was clear to both of us that this wasn't a one time thing where she got hurt, this was the result of repetitive abuse. I shuddered as I imagined my tiny mate putting up with years of abuse. She was so much smaller then me, how did she survive?

"Here, turn around and I'll help you." I move to stand behind her, and undo the little button at the nape of her neck. Her greasy hair brushes my fingers, but it only bothers me a second because I can't help but gasp when I see her back. Multiple scars run in every direction, some still pink as they've only recently started healing. Even her wolf hadn't been able to heal everything fully yet, and I wondered is she ever would. I manage to compose myself and slip the shirt over her head.

"There." I say, as she turns around and look up at me. She barely reaches my shoulder and the shirt that was pretty tight on me, absolutely dwarfs her. I brush a strand of hair behind her ear and give her a kiss on her forehead before grabbing her hand.

"Let's get you something to eat, and then you can take a nice bath." she follows me obediently, never letting go of my hand as we walk out of the infirmary.