Stalked by the Alpha

Part 10: Mud Bath

I woke up in a room that wasn't mine. After further inspection, I recognized it as the first room that I stayed in the pack house. The sheet I had used as the rope had been replaced with one that was a light gray. I had to concentrate to try and remember what had happened, and when I did, I started shaking. I reached trembling fingers up to where my neck and shoulder met and found, to my intense horror, I set of holes that felt suspiciously like bite marks. I pressed lightly on them and immediately was met with a blinding pain that caused me to arch my back off of the bed, my mouth falling open and my eyes slamming shut, trying to focus on something other than what felt like liquid fire through my veins. All I could hear was my heart racing in my ears. I guess I was screaming, because I could faintly hear someone throwing open the door and yelling to someone else. I starting writhing around as the pain increased, and a pair of hands held me down. There was a prick in my neck, and the fire cooled enough that I could hear the voices.

"Why is this happening to her?" Gabe sounded angry, but a little scared.

"Her body is trying to reject your mark Alpha. This is common when the marking isn't consensual." The voice that was speaking sounded uncomfortable, like the information was extremely personal. 

Gabe growled, and it was angry this time. "Never mind that. So what happens now?"

"She is going to be in extreme pain for the next few days, but because she is a human, she doesn't have the ability to completely reject your mark. Your mark will eventually take root. She's going to need wolfsbane shots every few hours to minimize the pain. I'll give her a sedative now to help her relax and sleep." The wolfsbane must have been the prick that I had felt earlier. I was able to breath normally now, but I could feel the layer of sweat that covered my entire body and the sweaty hair that was covering my face. I felt a hand smooth my hair back and I knew from the tingles that it was Gabe, but I willed my eyes to stay closed. I couldn't look at him right now. This was his fault. 

"Sweetheart, I have to take care of some pack business, but I'll be here when you wake up okay?" he whispered to me. He kissed my sweaty forehead and left me with the doctor. The doctor said that he needed to go get the sedative for me, so I was left alone. 

The second I heard the door close, I struggled to my feet, ignoring the intense pain, and for the second time, tried to tear the sheets into strips. But my arms were too weak, and I was forced to abandon that plan. I knew I had a matter of minutes until the doctor came back, so I had to hurry if I had any chance of getting out. I struggled over to the dresser and pulled out out the first thing I found, shedding my sweatpants in favor of a giant t-shirt and shorts. There was a stick of deodorant that I took with me, and I slid out of the door. To my relief, I was right next to the stairs and I took the stairs as fast as my aching body would allow me. I passed a few people on the stairs, but I kept my head down and prayed the clothes would throw them off enough to give me some time. I knew that my walk was strange looking because it felt like knives on the bottom of my soles, but I couldn't stay. I made it to the front door and exited as quickly as I could. 

I tried to calculate my options. Walking back to campus was not physically possible for me, so the best option was to enter the woods across the street. I limped over there, and walked for a few hundred feet before I came to a small stream. Water washes away scent, I remembered from something so I laid down in the water, letting my hair get wet and rinsing my face. There was mud along the banks, so I grabbed handfuls and smeared the mud all over my exposed skin and hair. I struggled to my feet when I heard a commotion from the house. I needed to hide. My eyes landed on a nearby tree with low hanging branches. I limped over to the tree and pulled myself up to the lowest branch. Climbing a tree was a strategy I had used in North Dakota, and I got pretty good at it after a while, but with how much pain I was in, it took a lot longer than it should have. The tree was huge, with thick bunches of leaves that made the perfect cover from those on the ground. I had just climbed up to the top when there was a crashing in the undergrowth. Gabe flew through the brush, followed closely by John and Paige. John and Gabe looked angry, but Paige looked nervous. 

"Dammit! Where the hell did she go?" Gabe yelled. Both John and Paige flinched at the power from his voice. 

"Her scent ends at the river," Paige said calmly. "She can't have gotten much farther with the amount of pain she's in," as she sent an accusing look in Gabe's direction. Gabe glared right back.

"Can we not talk about this right now? She needs another wolfsbane injection soon. Once the first one wears off, her pain is going to double. I need to be there for her." Gabe was pacing furiously.

As he said that, it was like the fire in my body was rekindled, but a million times hotter and more consuming. I couldn't think, I couldn't breath, and my head was exploding. I was making a strangled noise in the back of my throat, and I couldn't do anything when I started losing my balance on the branch. I toppled out of the tree, scraping my shoulder on a branch on the way down. I dimly heard a surprised gasp from Paige as Gabe sprinted forward and I landed with a heavy thud in his arms.  There was another prick of wolfsbane in my neck and the fire cooled just enough for me to look at Gabe and whisper, "I hate you."

"I know sweetheart. I hate me right now too. This is my fault, and you don't deserve any more pain. Let's go home so you can rest okay?" he said quietly, and then turned back to the pack house I had just escaped from 20 minutes ago and started walking.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

You know the drill! If you like it, favorite! If you think a certain part is cool or needs to be changed, tell me! Share with your friends! Thank you!