Without them knowing

◉Chapter 31◉

"What?"

I didn't look him in the eye. "Your wolf refuses to heal you."

"My wolf won't heal?" he asked full of disbelief.

I shook my head and glanced at him. He was staring at me with such confusion. I didn't feel bad for him. He shouldn't be so confused, after all he did to me, I felt like he deserved this. He was slowly killing me. And now his wolf is doing the same to him.

"Your wolf can heal just fine, he just doesn't want to heal you. He is rejecting you."

"What?" Elijah growled, angrily. "My wolf is rejecting me?" He tried to sit up completely, but the chains restricted his movement. He yanked them and then winced in pain. "Why would he reject me?"

I looked up, suddenly brave enough to look him in the eye completely. He couldn't do anything to me. He was chained up and even he wasn't, he was way to weak to harm me. "Because I refuse to accept you as my mate."

He was furious now. "What do you mean Parker? You won't accept me?" he was yelling so loudly the I was sure Lorcan and the rest was going to rush in any second. Normally, him yelling at me would have made me cower in fear. It would have made me submit immediately. This time that didn't happen. I stood my ground.

"No Elijah, I won't accept you. I don't want you as my mate. You know this," I answered, my voice steady and calm. He was going to freak completely, but I was prepared for it.

"So you are just going to let me die? I will die if you reject me Parker!" He was furious, yanking the chains as hard as possible, trying to get loose. But he was too weak. He kept on shouting, but his voice didn't seem powerful at all anymore.

At that moment I realized that for the first time, I had all the power. The boy who had abused me, mentally and physically for as long as I could remember, was now broken and beaten. And I had the power to finish him. Rejecting him now, would literally kill him. I felt overwhelmed. I had always wanted a mate. A kind one, who treated me like one should treat a mate. Someone who loved me. Elijah was never that. Elijah never even came close to being a loving mate. And Lorcan and Thorn made me realize that there was more than the life I was used to. Elijah was the life I wanted to escape from. And part of me felt like he deserved to die. But was I able to kill him? Rejecting him was something I wanted to do. Something I needed to do. He didn't deserve me as a mate. But was I able to reject him if it meant it was going to kill him?

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't even realize Lorcan and the rest had indeed come in. Harry and Thorn were pushing Elijah back into the bed, while a doctor was injecting something into his arm.

Lorcan appeared besides me and put a hand on my arm. "The doctor is giving him a tranquilizer, it won't put him to sleep entirely, but he'll be a lot more calm."

"No! STOP! I won't accept this Parker! You're my mate! You can't let me die! You can't do that!" Elijah was still yelling as loud as he could, but his movements had slowed. The doctor said something to Lorcan, who nodded in response, and then he left the room.

"Don't listen to him," Lorcan said. "He's a weak son of a bubble, you deserve way better."

"I know," I replied. "I can see that now. But I don't-- I can't--"

"You won't be killing him, technically." Thorn was suddenly standing besides me. I looked at him in surprise. "If that's what you're worried about. He did this to himself."

I nodded, but didn't reply. I understood what they were saying. But I just couldn't.

Elijah had calmed down, but he was still angry. "What are you doing to do? If you reject me you have no pack anymore, Parker. I'm the Alpha. You'd be a Luna. A Luna, Parker."

Lorcan butted in immediately. "She can join our pack. And you're not much of an Alpha anymore actually. I don't think they'll accept you that easily as an Alpha again. I mean, you killed your dad."

Elijah growled in response, but he was too weak for it to be intimidating.

"Even you can join our pack," Lorcan continued, but his face looked like he would rather die. "You'll just be a regular pack member of course. And Harry, you're welcome too."

"As if we want to join a pack called after a disease," Elijah spat. "The Black Death pack? I'd rather die."

Lorcan shrugged. "Fine with me."

Elijah glared at him, but then looked at me. "You'll stay with me right?"

I didn't know how it was possible that Elijah still thought I would choose him. I didn't feel anything for him anymore. I didn't even feel guilty that he had killed his father. I didn't make him do it. It was his own choice. Elijah lost a lot. But after all he and that pack had done to me. No, I didn't feel bad. At all. But I couldn't reject Elijah knowing it would kill him. I wasn't that kind of person. But that didn't mean I was going to stay with him.

"I'll join your pack. I want to join your pack, I mean."

Lorcan smiled widely. "Of course you can. We'll gladly welcome you into our pack."

"What? No!" Elijah was getting more agitated again. But the chains could easily restrain him.

Harry was still standing beside Elijah, but he ignored him. "I want to join too."

Elijah growled. "Traitor!"

Harry turned to him. "I don't have a pack to betray. And I never saw you as an Alpha, Elijah. A good Alpha would've never treated his mate like that, no matter who she is." You could see he was having a hard time speaking to Elijah like that, even though he might not think of him as his Alpha, as long as he was still connected to the pack, Elijah was in fact still his Alpha. He was still our Alpha.

"You can't just join another pack," my mate spat, glaring at everyone in the room. "I have to exile you from the pack fist."

Now Lorcan butted in. "Actually, you don't. You're too weak. By now your pack should be feeling that your state is worsening. And went the Alpha is to weak to lead-"

"The Beta steps up," Harry continued.

Lorcan smiled. "Yes, so that means you can step and became the leader or you can join our pack. I promise you'll get duties assigned to you like you're used to. You can even help Thorn. Then he might have some more free time." The last part he sort of grumbled.

"I really don't have a pack to lead, so I'll join you. And I would be happy with any task you assign me," Harry replied.

"You guys can't do this. Parker, you can't do this. I'm your mate!"

I was starting to feel sick. We literally were abandoning Elijah. And I didn't feel guilty about it, but hearing him scream like that made me feel awful. It made my wolf feel awful. She was howling, but I tried to ignore her. Elijah didn't deserve to be my mate. I would rather have no mate.

"We are giving you a choice Elijah, you can join our pack."

"Never!" he spat.

"As you wish." Then Lorcan escorted all of his out of his room, ignoring his screams.