Chained To The Alpha

Chapter 6

Nyx sat on the bed in the hospital room. Her legs were dangling over the side. The nurse and Doctor had excused themselves about half an hour ago. She was quite literally twiddling her thumbs while she waited.

With nothing else to do, her mind wandered.

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————————— Flashback ——————————

The wind howled loudly through the trees outside. A 12-year-old Nyx sat under the Christmas tree, staring up at the lights, her body exhausted and her eyes closing. Beautifully wrapped presents surrounded her, all carefully hand-labelled by Luna Margot. None of them would be for Nyx. Santa didn’t visit traitors; he never had.

16-year-old Thorne was home from school for the break.

Outside, the typical winter snow was almost waist-deep for Nyx. It was cold enough to freeze a person solid out there.

“Trash panda… “You’d better get out into the garden and sort the lights out before you get your ass whipped again,” Thorne thundered, even at 16, his alpha blood sang out loudly.

Nyx scrambled to her feet, her heart already racing. She had only just checked them about an hour ago. Luna Margot had visitors, and Nyx knew better than to leave the house in a less-than-perfect state. But arguing that fact with Thorne would be useless.

She headed for the door, stuffing her feet into her worn boots and throwing her old parka on, even though it would offer very little protection from the wind or the cold. Nyx slipped into the gardens at the front of the house, the door slamming loudly behind her.

The wind howled around her as she pulled her coat tighter around her body, the zip busted long before it became hers. She trekked through the thin path in the snow down to the control boxes for the lights that lit the bushes on either side of the driveway. They were flickering.

Nyx reached the controls and opened the box. Someone had pulled out the fuse. She swore loudly as the circuits shocked her hand mildly when she stuffed the fuse back into place.

She was on her way back when thundering footsteps filled the silence. Nyx turned and found herself face-to-face with Jax, Beta Charlie’s eldest son and Thornes best friend. Before Nyx could respond, Jax reached out and threw her into the snow. Nyx hit her head on the control box and slumped down into the snow.

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It was several hours later, when she hadn’t shown up to help with the evening meal, before anyone came looking for her.

Alpha Henry had lost his mind when Beta Charlie had carried her in, barely conscious and blue around the mouth, the skin on her hands and feet blistered with snow burn.

Nyx was tucked into a makeshift bed by the fire for the night. Alpha Henry slept on the sofa that night to make sure she was ok. Nyx thought that things might finally change for her after that night, but by the following lunch, it was business as usual.

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In the clinic reception, the men had no idea that Nyx was reliving some of the worst times of her life. questioning the bond she was feeling.

“Tell me everything, Edward.” Alpha Henry demanded of the doctor.

Thorne stared down the hallway towards the room where Nyx sat alone.

“She’s been through a fair amount,” The doctor sighed softly.

Thorne growled softly, his fists balling until his nails nearly cut through the skin on the palms of his hands.

“Ignore my son, he has forgotten his manners after discovering his Mate has been badly treated by the pack”

The doctor nodded and took a deep breath, pulling up her chart on the computer in front of them. “Well, before today, we haven’t seen Miss Morgan since she was 10 years old and took a tumble at school. From her blood tests, we know she is deficient in nearly every mineral and vitamin, and she is malnourished and dehydrated. She has many old, poorly healed fractures; two in her arm will likely need corrective surgery at some point in the future.”

“f*****g hell… what happened to her?!” Thorne demanded of no one in particular.

“What about her wolf?” Henry asked

“Her ability to transform into her wolf form is a victim of malnutrition; it is highly unlikely we can reverse all the long-term damage caused by years of poor nutrition and sleep. She will never transform,” the doctor said sadly.

Thorne exploded into motion, thundering out of the clinic and pacing around the building. His Mate was permanently injured, cut off from the full abilities of her wolf for her whole life because of the actions of his mother and his pack. Hell, he was hardly innocent in this matter.

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Henry sighed deeply, his hand rubbing his short hair. “What is the girl’s prognosis?” he asked finally, his eyes on the door his son had just left through.

The doctor sat down heavily “Physically, she will recover, given the opportunity to eat properly and the right supportive care which we can provide. The challenge will be to keep her from ending up in this state again.” the doctor sighed softly “Alpha, she cannot continue to be treated as she is, I have seen and heard things, the girl has been through more than many wolves in this pack, the emotional damage from her experiences would be enough to break many lesser wolves, I cannot say confidently what recovery will look like for her.”

Henry sat down facing the doctor, “I know, Edward, my Mate has a lot to answer for, and I do not know if Thorne can forgive his mother or himself.”