Chapter 6
I stared at Ryker for longer than would normally be deemed appropriate because his words took me off guard. He didn’t say anything as I tried to process everything that had just transpired.
In the span of two minutes, he told me he didn’t want me but he was going to keep me either way. Trying to think about what his reason was gave me a headache and I desperately wanted to beg him to do us both a favor and reject me.
“Why?” was what I ended up blurting out when I finally found my voice.
I regretted it instantly because it brought his sharp eyes back to mine and the intensity of his gaze had me directing my line of sight to the tiles in front of me. I started counting them absentmindedly as I waited for him to respond.
“You stumbled on my pack looking like you had been in a fight and lost, and like you said; you don’t have a wolf so you can’t heal yourself.” He said slowly, “Even if you weren’t my mate; it would be cruel of me to let you leave.”
“I meant, why won’t you reject me?”
“I- he opened his mouth to speak then closed it, “Because I don’t want to.” That was a bullshit answer and we both knew it but I decided to let it slide.
“Doesn’t it bother you that I don’t have a wolf?” I couldn’t keep my insecurities from bleeding into my question and I hated myself for that.
“Come,” he ended up saying after a beat, “Dinner should be ready by now.”
I knew he had avoided my question and he knew that I realized. I also knew what he would have said if he had answered- so did he. Whether he said it or not; it’s obvious that my lack of a wolf bothers him.
I started to get up from the bed but he stopped me.
I don’t know what I expected him to do, but it wasn’t for him to walk over to me and pick me up. I let out a noise that was a mix between a squeal and a protest. He didn’t acknowledge my obvious discomfort but I tried to channel it louder by squirming so he would notice.
He must have noticed because he spoke clearly and with no hesitation, “Lucy said to stay off your legs as much as possible; its either I do it or you sit in bed all day. Those are your only two options.”
I reluctantly relaxed long enough for him to reach the living room. He placed me on a chair in the dining room and left. I thought he would come back; even when the servants placed my food in front of me, I waited.
One of the servants returned and took a look at my empty plate, “Is it not to your liking? If there is something else you would like then please let me know.”
“No, it’s perfect,” she seemed to relax when I said that, “Where did Ryker go?”
“Alpha Caine left a while ago. He probably won’t be back until much later.”
When she said that I felt stupid; of course he wouldn’t eat with me. He literally told me he didn’t want me. It was incredibly foolish of me to think that he would be any different than Tyson.
I tried my best to eat but my appetite was lost and I couldn’t eat more than a few bites without feeling sick. I went looking for the servant but the house was too big and there were too many rooms- I ended up getting lost.
My soles had started to hurt so I resigned and tried navigating my way back to the room. I finally found it after almost twenty minutes of walking.
I decided to use this time to admire the interior of the room. It was a typical male designed room with black walls and massive four poster bed against one wall. There was a table and chair overlooking the balcony on my right. To the left were two doors, one that I know leads to the bathroom and the second that I assume leads to a closet.
“You’re the Alpha.”
“My name is Ryker, not Alpha.” he corrected and my breath hitched.
I’ve heard about him before. I once overheard the pack guards talking about an Alpha Ryker Caine. They called him the man that monsters fear because of his ruthlessness and brutality. They said he tortures his pack members for fun and host a public and random execution every month.
Fear gripped my insides like a clawed hand and I pushed myself as far into the bed as I could. He froze mid step and a bitte smile grew on his l*ps.
“I see you’ve heard of me,” it wasn’t a question so I didn’t bother with a response, “Are you hungry?”
“No.”
“Do you like the clothes?”
“Everything is fine; thank you.”
“Help me out here,” he threw his hands up in exasperation, “I didn’t want a mate and I definitely didn’t expect you to stumble across my pack territory. But you can’t just sit there cowering like a wounded puppy.”
As much as I hated to admit it, his words stung and I pulled up my knees so I could hold them close to my chest.
“I didn’t mean it that way.” He began,
“If I can have my bag that your men took, I’ll be out of your hair.” I assured him, “You can reject me and I’ll leave.”
“I’m not rejecting you,” I was stunned by his words.
“You said you didn’t want a mate.”
“I did, but you didn’t stumble on my pack by accident and there’s no way in hell I’m letting you go out in this condition.”
“So, what are you saying?”
“Welcome to the Blood Stone pack; it’s your new home.”
Chapter 6
I stared at Ryker for longer than would normally be deemed appropriate because his words took me off guard. He didn’t say anything as I tried to process everything that had just transpired.
In the span of two minutes, he told me he didn’t want me but he was going to keep me either way. Trying to think about what his reason was gave me a headache and I desperately wanted to beg him to do us both a favor and reject me.
“Why?” was what I ended up blurting out when I finally found my voice.
I regretted it instantly because it brought his sharp eyes back to mine and the intensity of his gaze had me directing my line of sight to the tiles in front of me. I started counting them absentmindedly as I waited for him to respond.
“You stumbled on my pack looking like you had been in a fight and lost, and like you said; you don’t have a wolf so you can’t heal yourself.” He said slowly, “Even if you weren’t my mate; it would be cruel of me to let you leave.”
“I meant, why won’t you reject me?”
“I-,” he opened his mouth to speak then closed it, “Because I don’t want to.” That was a bullshit answer and we both knew it but I decided to let it slide.
“Doesn’t it bother you that I don’t have a wolf?” I couldn’t keep my insecurities from bleeding into my question and I hated myself for that.
“Come,” he ended up saying after a beat, “Dinner should be ready by now.”
I knew he had avoided my question and he knew that I realized. I also knew what he would have said if he had answered- so did he. Whether he said it or not; it’s obvious that my lack of a wolf bothers him.
I started to get up from the bed but he stopped me.
I don’t know what I expected him to do, but it wasn’t for him to walk over to me and pick me up. I let out a noise that was a mix between a squeal and a protest. He didn’t acknowledge my obvious discomfort but I tried to channel it louder by squirming so he would notice.
He must have noticed because he spoke clearly and with no hesitation, “Lucy said to stay off your legs as much as possible; its either I do it or you sit in bed all day. Those are your only two options.”
I reluctantly relaxed long enough for him to reach the living room. He placed me on a chair in the dining room and left. 1 thought he would come back; even when the servants placed my food in front of me, I waited.
One of the servants returned and took a look at my empty plate, “Is it not to your liking? If there is something else you would like then please let me know.”
“No; it’s perfect,” she seemed to relax when I said that, “Where did Ryker go?”
“Alpha Caine left a while ago. He probably won’t be back until much later.”
When she said that I felt stupid; of course he wouldn’t eat with me. He literally told me he didn’t want me. It was incredibly foolish of me to think that he would be any different than Tyson.
I tried my best to eat but my appetite was lost and I couldn’t eat more than a few bites without feeling sick. I went looking for the servant but the house was too big and there were too many rooms- I ended up getting lost.
My soles had started to hurt so I resigned and tried navigating my way back to the room. I finally found it after almost twenty minutes of walking.
I decided to use this time to admire the interior of the room. It was a typical male designed room with black walls and a massive four poster bed against one wall. There was a table and chair overlooking the balcony on my right. To the left were two doors, one that I know leads to the bathroom and the second that I assume leads to a closet.
The room was bare of decorations, pictures or even art- It was a spare room I took a seat on the fluffy mattress and that was when I noticed smeared blood on the floor. I looked at my feet and realized I had bled through the bandages.
I muttered a small curse and rummaged through the drawers next to me for some bandages but I came up empty. I looked in the bathroom hoping to find something but I came up empty. My feet had started to sting badly and I was leaving bigger bloody footprints which meant more work for me,
I decided to look out the door silently praying I would find a servant, I wasn’t so lucky, but I saw a guard. I had to calm myself before I approached him.
He took one look at the trail of bloody footprints behind me and stood at attention, “Are you hurt? Should I call the Alpha?”
“No: I just need some bandages if that’s okay. There’s no need to call him.”
He didn’t look convinced but he nodded and left. He returned after a few minutes with a bowl of warm water, a rag, a maid and some bandages.
“It’s okay,” I assured the maid as she waited by the door, “I can do it myself.” She didn’t look convinced but she nodded and
left.
1 carried the things into the bathroom and sat on the floor while I unwrapped the bandages the nurse had done. I cringed when I looked at the shredded remains of my feet. I carefully cleaned the bottom and dried it off with the rag before wrapping it again.
I was doing the second foot when the bathroom door flew open and Ryker burst in. my heart caught in my chest at the raw emotions that seemed to be emitting from him.
“What the fuck happened in there?” I realized he was pissed because of the stains I left
“I’ll clean it up once I’m done, I swear,” I assured him but his expression didn’t change, “On second though; I could clean it right n-,”
“I don’t care about the stupid stains,” he cut me off, “What happened to your leg? I thought Lucy wrapped it.”
“She did; I got lost and I think I walked too far without shoes. It’s my fault; I’m sorry.”
He ran his hand through his hair in frustration and I saw the way the corner of his mouth tightened and I figured this would be the moment where he grabs me by the back of my neck and throws me out of his pack for being so destructive.
He took a deep breath before taking the bowl and bandages from me and sitting on the floor in front of me. I stared at him in confusion and shock as he cleaned up my second leg and wrapped it.
When he was done, he picked me up and carried me to the bed. I tried to protest but he shot me a dark look that had me sitting in place quietly. He took the rag and bowl and went on his knees. I watched in shock as he cleaned up the bloody footprints in silence.
When he was done, he rang a bell that I assume alerts the servants because within two minutes, there was a knock on the door. He handed the dirty things to the maid and she handed something to him. When he turned back to me, I saw that it was a tray of food.
“I was gone for less than two hours and you got blood everywhere.” His tone wasn’t mean or accusing, but I still found myself saying sorry, “Stop apologizing for everything.”
“I’m sorry,” it sl*pped out before I could stop it, “I’ll just be quiet right now.”
“I was told you barely ate; did you not like it?”
“I did- I just can’t eat a lot.”
“Can’t or won’t?”
“Can’t,” the word left my l*ps softly and he froze in place.
He slowly made his way over to me and placed the tray at the foot of the bed. In it was oatmeal and sliced fruits along with a glass of milk and another of water.
“Where were you running from?” he asked and I shrugged, “I won’t ask again Camilla.”
“I was running from my mate.”
The words hovered over us like a plague and I saw several unreadable emotions flash across his features before he finally settled on a mask of indifference and coldness.
“Explain,” his voice was cold and detached when he spoke and a part of me wanted to refuse to speak but another part knew that this was the wrong time to try to test my boundaries.
I am still an omega and he is the Alpha of this pack- mate or not, he can have me thrown out in a second.
“He rejected me and I ran away.” I kept it short and concise but it was enough for him because he let out a sigh of relief. “I can’t say any more; I’m sorry.”
Ryker nodded as if he understood, “Eat,” he said, “I won’t leave until you do.”
Somehow, I found myself reaching for the bowl of fruits. Fruits are something I have never had the luxury of eating- they were left for the actual pack members. I picked up a slice of mango and slid it through my l*ps.
I couldn’t help the small smile as the flavors burst over my tongue. I took another slice and ate it. I savored each taste and each fruit and was shocked to see that I had finished it.
I looked up and noticed Ryker staring at me in understanding. I flushed pink when I realized I had eaten all that in front of him. He didn’t make it uncomfortable, instead he cleared his throat.
“I’ll have someone bring another bowl for you,” he took a step back, “Goodnight Camilla; I’ll be back in the morning and so will your bag.”
Without another word, he walked out of the room leaving me to stare at his retreating back wondering what my confession would mean for the next day.
