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Word Count: 2041

~Dawn

I shudder at the sight of the closed door. It's a symbol of finality.

If I tried to get Lucy to stop cutting the circulation off in my hand, I would have to pry her fingers off with some vicious tool. She hates the idea of being trapped as much as I do, and not knowing what is in our futures is yet another daunting thought.

Rylan regards us silently, waiting for the right moment to bring up the questions he is so desperately wanting to berate us with. He knows he is walking on eggshells.

"You don't have to explain," Rylan says smoothly. I can tell that's his way of making me feel comfortable, yet I can still see in his eyes that he is fighting curiosity. I don't blame him. I'm sure the last thing he would expect from me is to show up at his door after this entire pursuit thing we have had going.

I exhale slowly. "Kaden wants me dead."

Slowly, Rylan closes his eyes. He knows the weight of the situation the moment I mentioned his name. For many years, Rylan has been trying to avoid his wrath to keep his Pack safe. Now someone who is supposed to be their Luna has lead him straight to them.

"Because of the Guard?"

I nod.

Guilt seeps into the back of my mind, but I do my best to dismiss it. What i did was an accident, yet for some reason, that's hard to swallow.

"What did he say to you?" Rylan questions, his shoulders growing tense, his eyes darkening with every word. I can't tell if it's his instincts as an Alpha that are kicking in, or the mate bond. Whatever it is, it's a frightening look on him.

"He was being deceptive and odd," I tell him, remembering his words.

There was no part of our conversation where I felt like I knew what exactly wanted. At the same time as wanting me dead, or living as a slave in his Pack, he wants me to protect myself. Either he is sick in the head, or maybe there is something else to it. If he is as manipulative as people say he is, then I can't be sure.

"Typical," Rylan mutters sardonically. Then he focuses his full attention back to me. "Thank you for coming to me."

I shrug, and a blanket of silence falls over us.

"Someone can take your sister to get cleaned up if you're both okay with that," Rylan suggests gently, nodding to someone behind us.

When I turn, I see an older looking woman with a cautious smile wander closer. If she wasn't someone who worked for Rylan, I would have thought her to be someone I would typically get along with, however, in this situation, I can't tell what the motive is. Lucy flinches when the lady touches her arm.

I give Rylan a suspicious look, and he sighs. "I promise you won't be separated for long. And she won't hurt her..."

If anyone could look after themselves well, it's Lucy. Just from looking at the woman, I can't help but trust her just a little bit. Being a true born Purity Pack from the looks of it, she shouldn't want to hurt anyone. Especially not an innocent ten year old girl. Not that she could anyway, since Lucy doesn't go down without a fight.

"I'm not worried about Lucy being hurt," I say carefully. "I'm worried about your being hurt."

Rylan didn't doubt it. He saw what Lucy did to get me back, and he would be stupid not to think she would do it again. Even I'm a little worried she will lash out after being confined in this place, despite how large it is.

However, she takes me by surprise, taking the woman's hand while letting mine go.

She's smart enough to know I have to deal with this before it manifests into something worse. Rylan may be the only way to keep us safe, and even though my entire body is quivering, wanting to flee. For Lucy's safety, I'm going to stay with this Alpha and hope the mate bond between us will stay calm enough for my head to keep clear.

I watch her walk off, trying to avoid eye contact with Rylan. That's the way he sucks me in like a hypnotist.

"I've been worried about you," Rylan murmured. "Really worried."

For whatever reason, I had expected him to be mad at me, wanting me restrained after my escape in the restaurant. Everytime I think about it, I remember the look in his eyes. I hate the way it hurts me. Even looking at him now, so clearly unwell has me on edge for him, even if I probably look twice as bad.

I look down at my fingers. "You didn't have to be. You know I belong beyond on the wall...Lucy and I both."

"I know. You're safer here, though," he says. He's right.

Kaden would have to drag an entire army into this Pack in order to find a way in. That thought along drapes a security blanket over my shoulders. What if Rylan wasn't my mate? Kaden's ultimatum wouldn't exist, and I would be in a holding cell in the Discipline Pack by now.

"Thank you, by the way," I offer, bringing my gaze up so he could see how sincere I was being. There may be a cold drift between us, but at the very least I can respect him for that much.

"You don't have to thank me," he adds. "I'll do anything for you. Don't you know that?"

He takes a deep toward, reaching out. I match it back.

There is a lot I can handle. His touch isn't included in that. The spark felt between mates in something that cannot be simply translated into anything else. It's unique, and that's distracting. The last thing I need to be doing right now is getting distracted by Rylan. The heady mix of his touch and presence might be enough to undo me in my current state.

I'm stronger than that.

"I can understand why you're worried, Rylan. I'll be fine," I tell him securely, straightening my shoulders as if to prove my point. The action makes me hurt my neck a little. Either that, or this dizzying feeling is from my weakness.

My eyes almost cross as my vision blurs, and for a moment, I question whether or not I'm going to remain conscious, or if I'm going to topple to the floor. In less than a second Rylan is steadying me, his hands firmly holding my biceps as I try find my equilibrium.

"I knew it," Rylan muttered distastefully while I gather my wits. "You're seriously not well."

"I'll be fine," I mutter, almost drunkenly. However, my hands find the broad expanse of his shoulders, absently gripping onto the hard muscle under his shirt to keep myself up.

Just his scent - of cashmere wood and citrus - has my mind spinning in another way.

I didn't really have much time to protest, as Rylan steps forward to wrap his arms around me, picking me up as if I'm some kind of blushing bride. My scowl of irritation is smothered by a jolt of pain to my head, similar to what I felt when I was being pursued by the Elite's. This time, though, Rylan is here to catch me, even if it's going against what I wanted from the start.

He carries my upstairs, with each step like a punch to my nose, my forehead jarring with pain. I keep my head close to Rylan's chest, feeling the warmth through his shirt and hearing the sound of his beating heart.

"This is why I tried so hard to find you," Rylan mutters, and I'm not sure if it was for me or him.

All of a sudden, I'm back in the room again. It's the same room I had previously been in when I was first taken here. When I had escaped, I had safely assumed I would never have to see it ever again. However, this time, I'm not as terrified of it as I was. This time I welcome the silken sheets under my skin as Rylan sets me down gently.

For once in a long time, my body relaxes and the dizzying colours spanning across my vision cease.

"I haven't been eating," I admit. I don't want him to assume it's because of our lack of proximity. "That's all."

He shakes his head, looking like a disapproving parent for a moment. I can see the way it distresses him with the look in his eyes. Without even realising it, he can be very expressive with his eyes, laying out an entire selection of his feelings, which can sometimes be hard to handle. It hits me square in the heart.

As I feel myself coming back to my normal self, it sit up, clutching my head as if it might make a difference to my sanity. Thankfully, my mind manages to stay stable.

He sits beside me, and I wonder if he would leave it I asked him to. I can't bring myself to do so.

"I'm sorry for everything I've done to find you," Rylan murmurs. "I hate myself for it, but you drove me crazy day and night."

I keep my mouth shut, trying not to mention the amount of times I looked up into the sky, wondering where Rylan was, and what he was doing. As much as I try my best to avoid mentioning it, I do think about him. It's like some strange compulsion that I want to act on, but I have manage to restrain myself when it comes to walking straight to his door and back into his arms again...

Until now, of course.

"We are just as bad as each other," I note, shrugging slightly.

Really, we aren't. I'm a Desire Pack member, who shouldn't care about their actions. He is the Alpha of the Purest Pack in the Quarter, who has a reputation to uphold. Something tells me he isn't as much as a Saint as everyone thinks he is.

"They fear me now. My own Pack fears me," Rylan says. I can see the way he is going over all his regrets in his eyes.

I shock myself, grabbing his hand.

The sparks are there, naturally. The feeling begins from my fingertips, streaming up my arms before it consumed my entire being. Instantly, I could feel myself heal from the inside, that simple spark between us reaching into my heart to give me a moment of bliss through all the pain and weakness I have felt through these past few days.
"You're an Alpha. Isn't that the point?" I question, almost sounding slightly breathless.

He smiles, not letting my hand go. His grip is as stable as a walking stick underneath me, keeping me able to sit up properly.

"Perhaps," he says softly. "Perhaps being an Alpha makes me a terrible person."

My mind comes back to Kaden. Not that I have ever met any other Alphas than Rylan and Kaden, but I believe I can safely assume all Alpha's a different from your average Pack member.

And as much as Rylan may hate to admit it, he may just be as forbidding as all of them.

💜••💜

Want more and don't want to wait!? More of Rylan is available now on Radish! (:

Also feel free to check out Asher on Radish if you're interested!

🔮••🔮

So I have a ton of seperate planners now for each book, so I feel like my life is a little more put together.

I'm going to actually plan out every book out and write down the chapters demographics and statistics now instead of ignoring it.

I don't usually ever get writers block, but I feel like this will help just in case.

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~Midika 💜🐼