His Willow

Chapter 36

The room had died down into silence, everyone holding their breath at their fuming Alpha, red in the face and body heaving up and down in rage, standing in the open doorway of the panic room, blocking everyone's exit.

My eyes shot up from the floor at the astoundingly harsh voice. I couldn't see him amongst the large crowd of people that consumed me, blocking me from my loves view.

If there was ever a moment in this world that I haven't wanted anything more than to use my voice, now would be the time.

I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs capacity, wave my arms in the air and push everyone aside, dashing into the arms of my saviour and breathe in his intoxicating scent, making my skin prick with pleasurable sparks.

But my body betrays me in every way possible. I couldn't scream, I couldn't move, my crouched form stuck to the ground with bodies pressed up beside me and touching every inch of exposed skin, making me flinch in discomfort and sink further into the floor, begging and pleading to any higher power, to make this all go away.

And that's precisely what happened next.

"EVERYONE, BACK UPSTAIRS AND CONTINUE YOUR WORK, THE THREAT HAS BEEN DELT WITH." Alaric roared without an ounce of friendliness in his tone, no this was pure anger and aggression lining his voice. His fury was getting the best of him, and I felt it like a stab to my chest, wanting to find him amongst the crowd.

As the bodies started to move and run out the door, my feet buckled from underneath me as people barged over me, kicking me down to the ground with feet stomping over me at all angles, making me cry out in pain and my throat burn at the strangled gasps leaving me.

I felt so overwhelmingly alone and degraded at this very moment.

Being stepped on and tossed around like a meaningless ragdoll, no remorse nor kindness cast my way, only hurried steps as everyone left the room and away from their seething Alpha, watching the endless faces run without a second thought.

It was then that I let myself fully collapse to the ground, all strength leaving my bones and my mind was shutting down, the anxiety and stress had taken a considerable toll, and I was now feeling the aftermath, lying lifeless after a hard beating.

My body was scrunched up into foetal position with my head hitting the floor; my knees tucked up to my chin with my hands flopped beside me, looking half-dead to whoever could see me now.

"Willow!"

"ANGEL!"

"Oh my god!"

A chorus of gasps and commotion lightly tickled my ears, but I could distinguish much from the room, my eyes droopy and staring straight ahead, everything in my form had shut down and running solely on autopilot.

It felt like I was having an out-of-body experience, my mind drifting away as my body lied there on the ground, motionless and alone.

Loud thumps vibrated on the floorboards I rested on, booming in step and getting louder and louder in my direction. Still, I couldn't look up; I was so drained and powerless I couldn't even move my fingers, sprawled on the ground and losing the feeling in them, my strength slipping away into numbness.

Hands were now on my body, touching my cheek and rubbing my arms, It sent a shot of warmth straight to my heart, and I knew it was different to the mass of bodies, these touches were affectionate and had loving intent. I finally felt safe and secure in the hands above me.

Still, as several people hovered over me, touching my motionless body and feeling my cold bruised skin, all my eyes could see and focus on was a young girl hiding in the shadows of the open doorway, a little figure in my line of vision, a blurry silhouette with brown pigtails and tattered clothing, its arm extended in the air and waving in my direction with blood trickling down her hand, signalling goodbye with one last point to their heart. Then the mass of blur turned around in an instant and dashed up the stairs, running away from me and out the door, like a petal dancing away in the breeze.