Alpha Brothers - The Cold Hearted Sister (book 5)

Chapter 19

Chapter 19
Nicholas
I had never felt so relieved to see the outline of the tents, never so eager to be in surroundings of the pack.
I had replayed the moment where I would be reunited with my mate in my head over and over. They change from being calm with just a simple hey between us. Others were more dramatic and more powerful where I would take her in my arms and kiss her till our hearts content. They were normally pushed to the back of my head, knowing that Allie would never accept them.
I wasn't just eager to see my mate if I was completely honest. Two days with a group of suspicious wolves wasn't easy. Irving was right. He wasn't the only one that noticed Allie's and mine's moment the other day and now rumours were spreading. Like, why was she sleepin' in my tent, why was she given food, why wasn't she beaten or bruised? All questions that couldn't be answers with the truth.
None of them spoke to me. They listened to my orders and took them with sceptical looks. Thinking the same thing I was. Why the hell was I here?
When we had reached the tents, I split from the group, heading straight for my own.
Barely in, I called out, "Allie I'm -."
My voice was cut off when I spied the empty tent.
I frowned, not understanding why it would be.
"Allie?" I called out again, my eyes darting around the tent.
I was about to turn around and have a look, furious that she had gone back on her word when I spied the top of her head beside the bed.
"Allie?" I said, taking a step towards her, confused to why she hadn't answered when I called.
I found her, curled up against the side of the bed, staring into nothingness. Why was she just sittin' there? Why wasn't she -?
My thoughts came to a tumbling stop when I spied the dark red stain on the jumper and her pale complexion.
"Oh my God Allie!" I screamed, pacing to her side, "God, let me have a look."
"No," she moaned, stirring, turning away from me.
"Allie, let me have a look," I told her more forcible, peeling away her hands from where they clutched her torso, myself.
God, who would do this? I asked myself as I tried not to vomit at the sight.
Her torso was torn in neat but deep cuts, like shredded paper. There was a graze on her pale cheek and the other was a mix of greys and purples like she had been hit several time. The smell of stale rum was in the air leaving me to think that somehow she had bathed in it. Her eyes were glassy, red and she refused to blink.
My wolf stirred as I slowly started to realize. Some bastard had done this to her.
"Who did this, Allie?" I growled, growing on edge, "tell me."
She just groaned and rolled away.
Snapping out of my anger, I realised that she needed serious medical help and needed it now.
"Allie, I'm goin' to put you on the bed, okay?" I told her, "I'm goin' to put you on the bed."
She was in no fit state to argue. Scooping her up into my arms, I lied her out of the bed. Lifting up what remained of my jumper, I assessed the damage. God, how she was still alive would always be a question on my mind.
"Allie, I'm goin' to stitch you up, okay? I'm goin' to get some thread and stitch you up okay?" I repeated, pacing over to my chest-of-draws on the other side of the tent to get my kit.
"No, Graham no," she moaned making me frown, "stop stealin' my slippers."
I bit my lip, trying not to chuckle. My mate was in serious danger, it wasn't a laughing matter no matter what she was saying.
Climbing on the bed, I clawed over to her stirring body.
"Malcolm, tell him to stop stealin' my thin's," she groaned, stirring around on the bed.
"Allie, Allie," I said cupping her shoulders, "it's me, it's Nicholas."
"Nicholas," she whispered, confused, "my mate. Nicholas, my mate."
"Aye, your mate," I said, threading the string through the eye of the needle before taking to two pieces of skin to sow together.
"He's away, he left me."
I froze, my body numbing. This was all my fault. If I hadn't had left her, if I was even half the man that her brothers were, I would have had the balls to stand up to Hector. If I was the man that she needed me to be, I would have taken her back to her family the moment she asked.
"I'm sorry, Allie, I'm sorry," I said, trying not to choke on tears as I continued to sow.
"God, please don't turn away," I begged.
"Turn away," she whispered, confused once again, "don't turn away."
I frowned, not understanding what she was mumbling now.
"Don't turn away from us, Malcolm," she mumbled, "why did he turn away?"
"He didn't, he's there for you," I told her, moving to the next cut.
"No," she moaned, slightly weeping, "Ma, I want my Ma."
"She's not here, Allie. I'm sorry, she's not here."
"Why?" She asked, slightly sitting up, "where is she?"
I bit my lip, my heart breaking. God, I couldn't go through this with her.
"Allie, your with me, Nicholas," I reminded her.
She frowned, lowering herself back down on the mattress.
"Nicholas?" She started, sounding more like herself.
"Aye, Allie. What's is it?" I asked her.
"Save me."

The bright shiver diamonds shined in the black blanket of the night sky. The nightly breeze blew sharp cutting anything insight and reminding me that winter was on our doorstep. Nobody was around, hidden in the trees or in their tents giving us a clear exit.
"Okay," I started, "time to go."
I turned around and spied a broken Allie, trying to walk. She was the image of a tried old woman with a broken hip, crippled, the tiniest of movements causing the greatest pain.
Her body swayed, too exhausted to go on. Her eyes rolled back into her head leaving me only second to catch her before she fell on the floor.
"Hey, hey, wake up Allie," I order, shaking her body to at least see the blues of her eyes, "wake up!"
With a little groan and a head roll, her eyes flicked opened, confused. I sighed in relief, trying to get my heart to a normal pace.
With little time to waste, I scooped her in my arms and carried her out into the darkness.
Fearing that if she didn't stay awake, I'd loose her forever, I said, "Allie, talk to me."
There was a silence.
"Talk to me Allie," I ordered, jumping her a little.
"About what?" She groaned, her voice barely audible.
"Anythin'. What day is it today?" I asked, "it's Tuesday. Say it."
"Tuesday," she muttered.
"Aye, that's right. It's Tuesday. What are your brothers' names?" I asked.
"Brothers," she repeated.
"Aye, what are your brothers' names?"
She paused before she started to stutter, "C-Callum...Arch -."
"Aye. Who else?"
"Gra-am...Mal-olm."
"Good Lass. What is your name?"
"My name?"
"Aye, your name?"
"Allie. Allie P-Patterson."
I continued to pace through the trees, not slowing down till I heard the roar of the flowing currents of the river. Taking a left I climbed the hill till I was amongst the boulders. Through the little passage way between the two large boulders, I came to my secret paradise.
The light from the moon lit up the space and made the water shine in the heated rock pool.
Sitting Allie down by the edge of the pool, I stripped to my underwear. It will be the only protection I had to stop my animal urges. Returning to Allie, I cupped her pale cheeks, forcing her eyes to look into mine.
"Allie, I'm goin' to underdress you. Nod if you understand."
She gave a lazy nod, shifting a little to get comfortable.
"Okay," I said preparing myself more than her.
I was going to see my mate naked. Oh my - focus Nicholas, I growled at myself.
In an attempt to calm my thoughts, I stood and walked so that I was kneeling behind her. Swallowing, I took the hem of what was left of my jumper, helping her arms through. She hissed at the simplest movements, her sowed up torso bleeding a little.
"Sorry," I told her, causing her eyes to roll.
A smile spread on my lips noticing my Allie.
My stomach turned when my eyes landed on her shoulder blade. An M shaped burn covered the blade. God, someone had branded her. Like a cow at a market. The worse part was that she was now Macangus property. Something she would never be.
Throwing away the jumper, I worked on her pants. She helped me by moving her arse a little before they slid down her blood soaked legs.
"Just stay there," I told her, slipping into the warm water.
Once my footing was stable, I held out my hands to her.
"Okay," I said, gesturing her to move.
She shifted closer to the edge, making me swallow.
Stop lookin' you peeve, I growled to myself, this isn't the time or the place.
Once she was almost in the water, I scooped her into my arms and submerged her in the water. We fell into a comfortable silence, Allie too tried to talk and me to distracted.
I was holding my mate in the most romantic setting imaginable and yet, the timing could not be worse. Someone, most likely my brother had tortured her. Had ripped open her stomach, had branded her and left her for dead. And I wasn't there. I wasn't there to help her.
"I'm dyin', aren't I?" Allie asked, breaking my thoughts and sounding like a drugged up version of herself.
"No," I told her, "I won't let that happen."
She was silent, thinking.
"I don't want a big funeral," she stated, skipping over what I had just said, "just simple with my brothers and sisters there."
I decided to play along, for her benefit even though it made my heart ache at the thought.
"And I want to be buried next to my parents," she told me, "Callum can say a few words, Graham too. Though he'll probably just say that I'm a bitch and deserved to be dead."
"I'm sure that's not -."
"And you can say somethin' to," she said, surprising me.
"Really?" I asked, shocked.
She nodded, "aye, your my mate."
I smiled, proud.
"I think I'm ready to die," she stated, making me swallow, "I mean, I might not have known real love but I've known somethin' of love. I had a good family, you know, for a while at least. Friends, good looks, a good home."
I bit my lip, not knowing what to say. God, was she seriously talking about dying? How - why - no. Just no.
Her small whimpers broke my thought, turning to look at her crunched up face. I was so surprised to see her tears that at first I didn't know what to do.
"I don't want to die," she cried.
"Oh Allie," I moaned as her whimpers grew.
I turned her body so that we were front to front and her legs and arms were wrapped around me. She cried into my neck as I caressed hers, trying to comfort her.
"Shh, just let it all out," I told her, swaying in the water, "let it out White Wolf. Let it all out."