Unveilded by the Depths

Hard Truths

Dillon

Sebastian waits until the door closes behind her. "Now that she's distracted with her Beta, let's talk."

"Without Nix?"

"About Nix. Close down your bond as much as you can."

I mute the bond as much as possible without hurting her. Whatever Sebastian needs to tell me is going to be upsetting. "Is this about what we were talking about earlier? About her mother?"

He nods "She'll never talk about it, Dillon, so don't try to make her. The pain isn't what haunts her, it's the degradation, the complete lack of humanity Becca felt for her. So, ask me your questions, and I'll answer them the best I can."

"When did it start? The blood taking?"

"A few months after Becca tried to steal her power at the age of seven. She needed more powerful blood than hers and when she couldn't find an outside source, she used Nix."

"How?"

"She has a chair with restraints. She used sterile technique at least."

"You sat with her?"

"I never left her alone with Becca, if I could help it."

"Torture?"

Sebastian nods, "A lot. But never extreme, more of a control mechanism."

"What?"

"Becca tortures people," Sebastian stops himself. "Let's just say she makes wolf torture look gentle. But she never went that far on Nix." He pauses and I know he is reliving moments of his shared past with our mate. It should bother me, but instead I feel relief. If not for him, our mate would be broken. So broken, I fear she might have been lost to us, at least mentally. "But there was a lot of emotional abuse. Luckily our mate bond help as did Shay."

"Why force her to join a gym? Why make her get strong?"

Sebastian chuckled, "That one backfired. It was meant to be more mental torture. Becca knew no matter how much Nix trained, how hard she worked, her curves would never change. But, by paying for the gym, she made Nix believe it could, it was just her lack of effort. But Oliver refused to allow her to feel defeated, pushing her while bolstering her confidence. He helped her as much as Shay, if not more. And if he wasn't gay, and mated to Jefferson, I'd be tempted to kill him for touching her."

I grin, pleased to discover Sebastian feels the same jealously I feel. "So, when she says she doesn't want to talk about it, it's not denial?"

"Exactly. Nix somehow compartmentalizes it. When we end this thing with her mother." He grins, showing all his teeth. "Hopefully by killing the bitch slowly and painfully, I honestly think her memories will just disappear."

"I don't care how; I just want her coping to be healthy."

"As long as she has us, and the lake, she will be fine."

"Thanks for explaining. I just need to make sure."

Sebastian nods in understanding. "She is an amazing survivor." He winks at me. "I can't wait to see what she becomes once Becca is gone."

His comment reminds me of the other thing we need to discuss. "We need to make a plan, Sebastian."

His eyebrow arches. "About?"

"We need to learn each other's strengths and weakness. Soon we will have to fight for her,

protect her. We have to be able to do that as a unit, not two separate beings."