Feral

Chapter 3

Late into the evening, Vincent had settled on one of the single couches in the living room. He had only turned on the lush, yellow lamp propped beside the TV unit instead of any of the overhead ones. The warmly lit room brought him comfort after enduring the forbidding aura of the lab that morning.

The doctors had left a while ago after administering the nasogastric tube, during which Vincent had silently shed a few tears, and a few more procedures like hooking him up to IVs and getting blood samples. The alpha was now studying the pamphlet they'd left for him regarding Nine's care and sipping on a lemonade.

He had returned from the lab to a fully decked fridge and pantry. Elizabeth had gone all out to make sure her guests were comfortable during their stay. There were various kinds of home-cooked meals and fresh juices for the boys to enjoy. The bathroom had also been thoughtfully stocked with toiletries.

The alpha flipped a page and skimmed through the contents. Vincent's initial observation had been correct, his mate's nose was broken and unfortunately, because it had been a long time since the fracture, the doctors couldn't manually realign it therefore he'd need a rhinoplasty. Nine was also severely dehydrated, so he'd need daily doses of fluids through his vascular access.

The worst of all, however, was his missing talons and canines. The alpha hadn't noticed their absence until one of the doctors informed the other in horror. Canine teeth and talons are the two most important assets of a shifter as they are essential for hunting. Hunting is how wolves survive so by removing them, the scientists almost devalued his wolf.

As soon as the boy was okay physically, Vincent would have him see a therapist and a speech pathologist. According to his file from the lab, the report the doctors prepared for him, and the marks on his body, the boy had gone through horrible things and would need professional help. The alpha wanted him to start working through his trauma when it was still somewhat fresh, unlike Harper who had repressed his for five years.

A sudden growl cut through the thick silence surrounding the house, startling the alpha. The noise had come from the room he'd left Nine to rest so Vincent bolted upstairs to check on his mate. His heart was stuck in his throat as he ran, skipping a few steps in the process.

Though once he reached the door, he paused. This would be their first interaction with Nine fully awake and conscious. Vincent wasn't expecting the boy to be all sunshine and rainbows but he was still excited, as was Vaughn who was itching to touch his mate again.

He slowly turned the doorknob and opened it to find his mate still on the bed, intently observing the IV in his arm. The boy jumped in surprise when the door creaked at the alpha's entrance and snarled in warning as he watched him with cautious eyes. Nine seemed to be aware that he was too weak to defend himself against the big man as his reactions were still delayed by the narcotics, which unsettled him.

Nine's face was pale all over, except for the numerous pink large scars which made the alpha's stomach churn uncomfortably. He couldn't handle the thought of his mate being hurt in any way, especially not in a way that could leave such deep wounds. The boy's cheeks were sunk in due to the lack of fat in his body, accentuating his already high cheekbones. A particular scar ran diagonally, following the contour of his right cheekbone.

Vincent's heart thumped harshly against his ribcage as he found the boy's magnificent eyes. They were a vibrant green, and the homogeneous irises stood for attention against the black frame of his long eyelashes. He noted a short yet deep blemish cutting through beneath his left eye. He finally stepped into the room, trying to be slow and calm so as not to startle him.

"Nine." He greeted though the boy was displeased upon hearing his name.

His thick eyebrows furrowed in anger and his lips stretched to show his teeth. Nine tried to be threatening though he was scared which was clear when he tensely backed himself further into the headboard of the bed.