Mine, Forever Mine

Chapter 27: I'm Not Strong Enough

I wake up in a hospital gown and in the room I always go to when I visit the AshPeaks. "You're awake." Lance says and I nod. "You got your British accent back." I say and he smiles then it fades. "I'm really sorry to tell you this..." He starts and his voice disappears. I hear snippets and tears well up in my eyes. "I want you to not doing anything physical. You can shift but that's it." He says and I nod, tears still in my eyes. "You'll have to stay here for a week. Kane already said you could." He says, and I nod. "Where's Liam?" I ask, noticing he wasn't there. "Ace had to send him back. He went insane when we told him." He answers and I nod with a sniffle. "I'll get my mate Cathrin to bring you a blanket." Lance says and I nod. "I thought you didn't have one." I say. "I found her when I returned to London." He replies and I smile.  He smiles back and leaves.
The door reopens and Ace walks in. "Hey Sinclair." He says. "Hey Farkas." I reply. "I'm sorry about what happened." He starts but I hold my hand up. "Don't talk about it. Please." I say, my voice cracking with tears. He nods and I sniff. He backs away and I look up at him. "What's wrong?" I ask. "Your pain. I feel it. And I want to take it away." He says. I lean back into the pillows and Ace quickly leaves. Soon after, a woman around Lance's age walks in holding a blanket and towel. "Hello Alexa, I'm Cathrin, Lance's mate." She says with a kind smile. I smile back and she wraps me with the blanket. "My Alpha said I'm going to be the one to take really good care of you." She says and I nod. "I was hoping my mate would come." I start and she shakes her head. "Only your brother has been permitted to visit. Liam is too dangerous to have here." She says and I blink quickly. Too dangerous? I look down and she rubs my shoulder. "You'll be home in no time. I promise you that, as long as Beta Nick doesn't bother you." She says and I growl. "I forgot that idiot was here." She laughs, "Alpha's been keeping him busy." I laugh with her and the door opens. A guy younger than me walks in. "Alexander! Didn't I tell you to wait outside?" Cathrin snaps. "Uh, yeah. But I smelt pain and I wanted to know what it was. Sorry." He says and leaves quickly. I laugh, "Who was that?" "That was my adopted pup. His parents were murdered by rogues and we took him in." She says, a small smile on her lips. "How old is he?" I ask. "Just turned 17. He still hasn't gone through the first change, and Lance is worried for him." "But he can smell emotions." I say. "Yes. He got certain things, such as smell, eyesight, and his eyes." She says and I look at her. "Eyes?" "If you look closely, they are different colors. One is dark green with gold flecks. The other is bright blue with darker blue flecks. We don't know why they are like that, but Alpha says he's special." She says and I nod, remembering Kane too had different eye color. "Kane does too." I blurt out and she raises her eyebrows. "His eyes. He has one dark brown and one blue." I explain. "Our father told Kane his eyes were like that because he has the possibility of taking over the pack, and maybe as King. Kane never did get the chance to do so." I say and she nods. "Alexander has the chance too then?" I nod and she grins. "But don't tell him. He might go in over his head." I warn. "I need to shift." I mutter. "Come on then." She says and shifts. She goes out of the room and I pull on a pair of tights and a T-Shirt. I call on Echo and shift. I whimper at the pain still in my lower stomach but follow after Cathrin. She walks slowly through the very quiet house and I keep my ears perked. We go out through an opened door and Cathrin stops. Lead the way, Alpha.
Follow me.
I laugh back and go off at a trot. Cathrin nips my heel and I turn my head.
Run. Run, Shadow.
I don't get what she meant but something makes me run. Run faster than I ever have before and it feels right. The wind blowing through my fur.
I stop after a while and look behind me. The last rays of sunlight meet my eyes and I look for Cathrin. I bark twice and I get no reply. I trot through the dense trees and the prick of pine needles makes me lift my paws higher. Suddenly a very strong scent reaches my nose. I pause to sniff, and it disappears.
Strange.
Then another one comes. And closer to me. Then it too fades. I look around for the source and the sun finally sets.
Great. It's dark too now.
I'm not liking this one bit.
Echo. It's starting to scare me.
Don't be scared. Just find out who it is.
It's a who?
It's one of our kind. A shifter.
Great.
I sniff again and it hits me in a sweet smelling wave. Bright golden eyes look back at me. From the tree.
Cougar.
He's a shifter.
I bark and look up in the tree. I hear a roar then it comes from the tree. It leaps out and lands in front of me. I back away, my ears flat. I feel something behind me and I see another one.
The other scent.
Yep. Be careful.
I growl and a rumble comes from the first cougar. The second one pushes me closer. I growl and try to bite it. It snarls and I lower myself. It's tail tip flicks and I look up into its eyes. A bright amber. I turn and look at the first one. Pale grey. I shift back and fall onto my butt. The second cougar shifts back and then the first one does. "Brayden." The second one says and I look between them. "Brayden" walks over to me and squats down. "Who are you, wolf?" He asks, a hint of a snarl in his voice. "Alexa." I say softly, fear gripping my heart. "Well, Alexa. You've crossed into cougar lands." He says and I tremble. The second one's eyes are bright with amusement and I feel like snarling in his face. "Come on. We don't live too far from here." He says, holding a hand out for me. I squeeze my eyes shut when he helps me up. "Cas, help me." He says and the other one grabs my waist. I jump away and he laughs. "Jumpy wolf." He laughs. "Leave her alone. She's in pain." Brayden growls and Cas blinks. Cas sniffs and his eyes brighten. "I smell blood." He says and I bite down on my lip. I shouldn't have shifted back.
I don't feel the slickness anymore but the pain is still there. "What happened to you?" Brayden asks and I shake my head. "Long story that I don't want to talk about." I say. Cas snickers and Brayden glares at him. "This wolf is talking to you like your inferior, Brayden. And you're not doing anything about it." I look at Cas, "I'm an Alpha." I say and his eyebrows scrunch together. "My name's Alexa Sinclair. I'm the Alpha Female of the RedHill pack." I say and Brayden looks down at me. "Isn't the RedHill pack one of the Wolf King's top four Royal packs?" He asks and I shrug. "I don't know." I reply. "Cas, run on home. We're almost there. I've got to ask her a personal question." Brayden says and Cas nods. He shifts and runs off. "Can I ask you something?" He asks and I laugh. "You just told Cas you were so yeah." I reply. He nods, "Are you mated?" He asks and I shake my head. "Marked. And bonded by the King. But I never did the deed with Liam. Why do you ask?" I answer. "I need a mate. I took over my cougars when I killed their Alpha. But Cas was their beta from the start. He told me I wouldn't be accepted until I had a mate." He says. "And I wanted to find a wolf so we can have peace." I nod. "Well, you'll have to win my heart first." I say. He grins and my lips curve upwards. "Come. You'll have to stay with me." I gulp and he walks me up to a large cabin (photo inserted). "I live here alone. I like my privacy." He says and I nod. He opens the door and sits me on a chair. "I'll get your room ready." He says with a smile. I nod and smile back.
The home reeked of cougar, and his scent. Manly and woodsy. Much like Liam and Kyle. But Brayden's had a wildness to it.
So we're going to be with a cougar.
Yep. I'm tired of the fight against the cougars and rogues.
Pain wracks my body and black once again clouds the sides of my vision. Brayden comes towards me and I close my eyes, letting the darkness take over.