Chosen

Chapter Seven

I woke up in a car, with my head resting against Cat. I sat up and smiled at her. She giggled and jerked her head in Axels direction. He was across from me, his eyes closed. He looked so relaxed. I bit my lip and blushed. Why did he choose me? What made him go through with the fight? I groaned as I realized my head was pounding. The hair style Cat had done for the ceremony was tight and made me sore. Axels eyes snapped open and he stared at me.
"Everything okay?"
"Mhm. I'm fine. Just a headache. My hair... it's tight and..."
"Hmm... Cat did a good job though. You look breathtaking. We'll be home soon, little one."
I nodded and blushed as I realized he was still shirtless. I squirmed in my seat and squeezed my thighs together. The things this man made me feel were foreign and confusing. He chuckled and Cat shook her head.
"Let me see how your mark looks. It should be healed by now."
Axel murmured and Cat scooted across the car to Blake. I looked away from her and Axel moved next to me. He gently tilted my chin and grinned. He ran his fingers along my mark and I gasped. The desire flooded my body instantly and caused me to jerk. Axel chuckled and leaned down, pressing his lips to the mark. I moaned and my nails dug into his shoulder.
"Will you stop torturing the poor girl? Wait until you're alone, Axel."
Cat scolded him and he glared at her. I giggled and curled against him. He sighed and buried his nose in my hair. I felt myself relax for the first time in my life. I felt safe. It wasn't something I was used to. It hit me out of nowhere, Alpha couldn't hurt me anymore. I was free from him. I jerked upright, startled. Axel and Cat noticed and looked at me confused and worried.
"I-I-I.... A-Alpha M-mark.... he..."
"He can't hurt you anymore, little one. You're safe."
Axel murmured and I glanced at Catherine. She nodded, confirming Axels words for me. I felt my eyes sting and sniffled. Cat looked at me with a sad smile and Axel pulled me into his lap. He rubbed my back in small circles and placed a soft kiss to my forehead. I relaxed further and wiggled a bit to get comfortable. Axel groaned and stilled me with a snarl.
"For the love of God, woman stop moving."
Cat burst into a fit of laughter and I paled, confused on what I did wrong. I crawled off Axels lap and folded my hands in my lap with a sniffle. Axel groaned again and closed his eyes. My eyes started to water and I dug my nails into my palms. The car stopped and I peeked up at Blake, he shook his head and sighed.
"We're home, Axel."
Axel grunted in acknowledgment and turned to me. He cupped my chin and swiped at my tears.
"Little one. Don't cry. I know you don't know what you did. You didn't do anything wrong. Some day you'll figure it out. Come.."
He whispered and tugged me from the car. I followed without protest, not wanting to anger Axel. Part of me knew he wouldn't hurt me, but another part was afraid he'd send me back to Alpha Mark. Cat skipped over to me and took my hand, giggling. Axel started towards the door and I followed behind him with Cat dragging me as she skipped. Blake laughed at his mate and Cat stuck her tongue out at him. We walked inside the door and the house was filled with maids rushing about. I looked around, taking in the room I was standing in. It was beautiful and open. The moon light softly streaming through the window. A sudden squeal caused me to jump and stop moving.
"Ma..."
Axel chuckled as someone threw themselves at him. He hugged the woman tightly.
"Axel. How was the ceremony this year? What happened? How did it go?"
She pulled away from him, firing off question after question. I looked at Cat, confused and she smiled at me. She squeezed my hand when Axel looked at me over his shoulder, making sure I had followed instead of run off. The woman noticed and followed his gaze. The woman clapped her hands together with a giggle and walked in front of me.
"You found a mate?!"
"Yes... Mom, that's Adalynn. Adalynn... this is my mother, Alice."
The woman smiled at me warmly. She stopped in front of me. Cat let go of my hand and I looked at my feet. I could feel everyone watching me. The woman reached out really fast and touched my face. I flinched as her hand landed on my cheek and her eyes widened. I took a small step back as my breathing sped up. I started to tremble. My mind brought back to one time when Alpha Mark smacked me in the face and then dug the knife in my arm.
"Addy.... it's okay. Breathe."
I heard Cat murmur and panicked more for some reason. I clawed at my throat, remembering the feel of his hands choking me. Someone grabbed my hands and I screamed.
"No... shh. Little one. It's okay. You're safe."
My eyes snapped to Axels and I started sobbing. He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into his chest. I clung to him and inhaled lungfulls of his scent, trying to soothe myself. Axel kissed the top of my head and purred, trying to calm me.
"Axel.... what... what happened to the poor girl?"
"Her old Alpha abused her. I'm not sure to what extent yet. She hasn't really told us how bad it was. But I get the feeling that it was pretty bad."
I peeked at his mother and she had tears in her eyes. Cat hadn't told Axel about how bad it was. She had seen me naked, she knew how bad. She knew about the physical abuse and had a feeling about the mental abuse as well.
"Where's dad?"
"In his office. I suppose you should go see him and tell him what you do know. Cat and I will take care of Adalynn."
Axel pulled back and handed me to Cat. He kissed my forehead and walked off. I followed behind Cat and his mother quietly. They lead me to a room and explained that I was staying here until I was adjusted and ready to share a room with Axel. He was trying to let me adjust and recover from my traumas.