Melody

36

Alexander was frantic leading a team of elites in search of Melody while Alec cleared the compound. The sound of fighting, gunfire, and explosions rang through the air. Alexander was focused on only one thing. Finding Melody. Her feelings had been all over the place, and then something had happened. She wasn't asleep, she wasn't unconscious, but something was deeply, deeply wrong with his mate.

He could smell her in this hallway, they were close. He kept moving forward as the men behind him smashed open locked doors checking inside for prisoners. Alexander was honed in on his target. He stopped in front of a solid metal door. There were different styled locks holding it closed, two appeared to be made from silver. The other doors had much more simple locks holding them shut. He knew she was behind this one, and he wasn't strong enough to open this one alone.

He called for help, the locks pried apart by the dragon shifter Alec had somehow summoned on short notice. The door fell forward, ripped from the frame. Alexander's heart stopped in his chest and he took in the sight in front of him. Melody was wrapped in a woolen blanket. One of her arms set in a makeshift splint and laying limpy at her side. Her other arm was chained to the wall and wrapped around her knees in front of her as she rocked back and forth. Lips moving like she was speaking, but no sound could be heard, her face mostly obscured under a curtain of her dirty hair that was full of leaves and mud. The worst thing for Alexander was the look in her eyes. Empty and broken. Matching how her emotions felt inside his own heart. He went towards her, saying her name over and over. She didn't stop rocking and didn't look at him. It was like she couldn't even see him right now.

He had to get her out of here. The dragon shifter came and broke the chains from the wall. Freeing Melody. Alexander wrapped his arms around her and under her knees, scooping her up blanket and all. He could smell something both familiar and strange on the blanket as she nestled her head into his chest. Her eyes falling closed. She wasn't sleeping, at least it didn't feel like sleep to him. It felt like she shut down. He carried her out of the room. There were no other prisoners. The elite team covered him on all sides as they made their way out of the grain mill and back towards one of the waiting vans.

Alexander took Melody into one of the vans. Guillermo got in as driver. There was no tech and no computers on the site at all. Nothing really for him to do here. "She will be ok. She is stronger than she looks. She just needs a break." Guillermo said, using the rear view mirror to make eye contact with Alexander. Guillermo didn't wait for a response before he started driving the van back to the pack house.

Melody was still catatonic, eyes closed in his arms when they arrived. Lydia, Alec's wife met them at the main entrance, where a makeshift triage and medical tent had been prepared in case it was needed. Alexander carried Melody in his arms to a stretcher. A Doctor quickly came over, immediately ordering for a portable x-ray machine when he saw the splinted arm. Melody was checked all over. Her arm was broken, and set in a proper plaster cast. She had some scrapes and bruises but nothing else seemed to be wrong with her. Alexander was given some sleeping pills, and a small bottle of ativan tablets if she had a panic or anxiety attack when she came out of her stupor.

Everyone in the medical tent assured him that she was just in shock. Her mind was forcefully taking time to recover from what had happened to her today. Alexander just had to take care of her until she was ready to come back to the real world. But they also said if she didn't return to being herself in 24 hours, he should bring her to the hospital for a more intense psych evaluation.

Alexander memorized everything the doctors said, and once they said he was clear to take her to her room for the night, he scooped her small body back up in his arms. She wrapped an arm around his neck as he carried her. It was more response than she had given when he removed her from the cell. He took it as a good sign, regardless of how small it was.

He carried her up to her room, laying her down, sitting her in the chair in her reading nook. The one he had carefully set up for her. Her open copy of Jane Eyre on the arm rest, falling to the floor, her place lost. She didn't react at all as the book slapped against the hardwood. She stayed where she was placed, like a doll. Eyes staring forward.

Alexander went to the attached washroom, and started to fill the clawfoot tub with comfortably warm water. Her washroom had all the amenities, though the shower stall and tub were on the small side. It would be everything he needed tonight.

Once the tub was full, he added some lavender oil to the tub. He knew Melody liked the scent and that it was supposed to be soothing. He was practically praying it would help her at this point. Alexander went back to Melody. She hadn't moved at all from where he had placed her. She really was like a living doll right now.

"Melody, baby?" He asked her looking for a response but getting nothing from her. "I'm going to undress you now, and help you get cleaned up ok?" He asked her unfocused eyes, getting no sense of response at all. He sighed and continued to talk to her as he worked to remove her torn and ruined clothes as carefully as he could. "I'm going to take your jeans off now Melody" he undid the button on her fly, lowering the zipper. Pulling the waistband down, using one hand to raise her bottom, the other to pull the jeans down. Once the ruined denim was beyond her wide hips it was easy to slide them down her legs. He took the jacket off her shoulders, removing her arms from the sleeves one by one. "I'm going to take your shirt off, arms up." She didn't really move, but there was less resistance as he pulled her tshirt up by the hem. Her arms weakly raised up to help him.

He pulled her to her feet and she stood, wobbling slightly with glazed eyes. But she stayed standing. He slid her panties down her legs, unclasped her bra sliding it down her arms to the floor. She so broken. It was shattering his heart. He had closed off the mind link. He didn't even care why she had been taken at this point, he just wanted to focus on bringing her back to him. There was nothing outside this room to him right now. Melody needed him to take care of her and bring her back.

Alexander held her hand and tugged gently. She took a step. He slowly guided her on her own legs to the washroom. Stripping his own clothes off along the way. He led her to the shower, that was already running at the perfect temperature. He kept her broken arm in plaster outside the stall, but had her in far enough so he was able to wash her hair out with the removable shower head. Gently rinsing the mud and leaves from her hair. Before shampooing it, rinsing and conditioning and rinsing again. Just like she had shown him when they had shared showers together. Taking much longer than she did when she did it. But he wanted to take care of her, do this right. He carried her from the shower and lowered her into the tub. Careful to keep her cast dry the entire time.

He washed the remnants of the makeup she applied that morning, and the mud and blood from her face, before continuing to wash her entire body until he had washed every trace he could of today from her body. His touch was tender, and while he felt the pull of the bond every time he touched her skin, there was nothing sexual about tonight. She still was locked inside herself, not responding to anything he said. He pulled the plug, lifting her from the tub and wrapping her in a fluffy oversized bath towel after drying her off. He carried her back to the bed, sitting her on the edge, he slid a pair of comfortable boy short panties up her legs, and pulled her favorite tshirt of his over her head before tucking her into bed. He pulled on his boxers and climbed into the bed beside her. Breathing a quiet sigh of relief when she snuggled back into his body. When she took his hand in hers after he gingerly wrapped his arm around her body he felt his body relax. Like it was letting go a breath he didn't know he had been holding inside.

He was laying behind her, savoring how she felt in his arms, the scent of her hair back in his nose. Breathing her deep inside himself. Soothing away all the nightmares he had thought of today while she was missing.

He was startled when she finally spoke."Why me?" Her words were quiet, but she had spoken. Immediately falling asleep after. True sleep. He felt the change in her. She was back. But she still needed to rest. Alexander closed his eyes, hoping that Melody would be ok when they woke up tomorrow.