an Everlasting Pursuit

fifty one

My mind woke before my body, my limbs still heavy from sleep. A dull ache from the base of my spine, working its way up to my head where it settled. I knew I was on a bed; the firm yet soft mattress was ingrained into my memory by now, but the smell of blood was new.

Why did this happen to me?

Why did this always happen to me?

Slowly but surely, the feeling came back in my limbs. I winced, my hands raising to rub at my eyes to try and clear some of the fog. A voice startled me, causing my heart to jump start.

"Ah, you are awake."

My eyes flew open, locking directly onto target. I tried to pull myself up, but my arms felt weak, and it failed. Blake snickered, crossing his arms as he stood in the doorway and watched me struggle.

"Exhausted?"

I felt my stomach churn with nausea, the desperate need to rid my life of his very being overwhelmed me. It wasn't new to me, being weaker was rather familiar. I was used to it, able to succumb to my own numbness whenever something happened. It was the after pain that always got me.

The feeling of disgust and exhaustion always haunted me. The ghostly touches, the bruises and aches in every limb and organ from the pain. The dull thumping of my heart as it tried to heal itself. My consciousness may be able to hide, but my compassion, my happiness, my love for life, was always destroyed.

I was used to abuse from Darius; the only curve ball he had given me was Ash. But Blake? That threw me. I was supposed to be safe in Asra's lands so why I had been taken? I knew he had guards on me, so how did Blake get to me? Why didn't Asra come running to my rescue like he did when Blake last took me by surprise.

He claimed he could feel me through our bond¸ and I thought I had shut him out, so maybe I truly did? Did I block him so bad that he didn't care? Did my not-so-secret guards get hurt? Did they know I was missing? How long had I been missing?

"Questions? Plenty of time for that. But first it has been requested for me to 'look after' you." He mimicked quotation marks, a grimace on his face. "So, I need to bathe you."

I swallowed past the dryness in my throat, my stubbornness taking the lead. There was no way in hell he was going to touch me, not so intimately.

"No." I growled. "I can bathe myself."

He tutted. "Always so stubborn."

I glared daggers at him, but he just smirked, shrugging.

"Fine. Whatever." He snickered. "I can't deal with your childishness. I made a deal anyway; I'm not supposed to hurt you."

"And yesterday was not that, right?" I quipped.

He narrowed his eyes. "You do realise, that in my pack, if we come across a rogue human, or one such as you, we kill them?"

I slammed my lips together, glaring at him silently.

"Look, it is either me, the one who has cannot hurt you... any further, or one of my men." He grinned, stepping towards me.

Grimacing, I weighed out my options. Neither were good, the fact he would either be bathing me or watching me, or one of his swine, ass-grabbing men would do it instead. At least with Blake I knew he couldn't hurt me anymore. I mean, I could do neither and wallow in my own dirt and pity, but I had plans. I needed to see where I was, scope out the place, and see who the fuck wants me here and why.

Sighing heavily through my nose, I dragged myself into a sitting position. "Fine."

"I see you have made your decision." He clicked his tongue, wrapping his arm under my bicep.