Filed To Story: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Talia felt her fighting spirit deflating.
“Six hours?”, Talia asked in a shaky voice.
Maya tilted her head, indicating to Doctor Travis to go ahead. “Make it quick.”
“How is Alpha Dayson doing?”, Talia asked.
“You should worry about yourself.”, Doctor Travis grumbled.
“What’s wrong with me?”
“You suffered a blow in the head, one in the stomach, but the worst part is the damage done to the muscles in your legs.”
Talia remembered the slap and the kick but “My legs?”
Doctor Travis nodded. “They are nearly ripped like you put them under extraordinary strain.” She shook his head. “I don’t know how to explain it. I never saw anything like that. What happened?”
Talia pressed her lips into a line and there was a hazy image of her running to stand between Dayson and the rogues and then rogues flew away like they were paper kites caught in the storm.
Talia knew how that was not normal. Another explanation would be that she imagined it. In either case, she decided to keep that for herself.
“I don’t know. I remember that Alpha Dayson came to rescue me, but then I fainted.” Talia looked at Maya. “I’m sorry. I only wanted to go for a walk, but I ended up bumping into four”
“Don’t worry about it.”, Maya interrupted Talia. “Rogues in our territory is nothing unusual. They knew our patrol schedule and routes. Jaeden issued an order to scramble their schedule. You were unfortunate to bump into them.”
“They had knives…”
“Your blood pressure is fine.”, Travis interrupted Talia.
Talia exhaled sharply as her anxiety rose. They didn’t let her finish talking and no one told her what was bothering her the most.
“How is Alpha Dayson doing?”, Talia asked again.
“You will see in a minute.”, Travis responded and turned to the nurse. “Get a wheelchair for Miss Talia.”
When the nurse stepped out, Travis spoke to Talia in a hushed voice, “You should know that only a handful of us knows Alpha Dayson’s condition. If this information leaks, the whole pack will be in danger. You would also be kept in the dark, but Beta Jaeden and Maya vouched for you as trustworthy.”
Talia got her answer why they were interrupting her whenever she tried talking about the incident.
In situations like these, even the walls have ears.
Maya pushed the wheelchair with Talia on it, and Doctor Travis opened the door that was guarded by two warriors.
Jaeden stood up from the sofa when he saw the trio entering and he asked Talia how she was doing, but she didn’t hear him because her whole world was reduced to Dayson who was lying on the bed with bandages covering his body and various machines attached to him.
Talia couldn’t accept that the most handsome man in the world who would smile at her, tease her, and make her days better was now unmoving and it was all her fault.
Dayson did so much for her, yet she ended up disobeying him and going into the forest. He told her to stay safe. He told her that there are rogues and that it’s dangerous. She didn’t take him seriously and because of that, he was hurt.
Talia vividly remembered the knife in his stomach and the whimper when the bullet hit him, yet he still glared at the evildoers with an unwavering gaze.
Will he forgive her? Will she forgive herself?
The sound of the door closing pulled Talia out of her daze, and she asked, “Can you tell me now about his condition?”
“Two stab wounds and he was shot three times.”, Doctor Travis said. “The blades and bullets were laced with wolfsbane. Luckily, none of the wounds was fatal, but he lost a lot of blood. I flushed the wolfsbane out of his system and his condition is stable.”
Talia didn’t feel better when Travis said that Dayson’s condition was stable. “When should he wake up?”
Travis let out a long exhale. “I don’t know. His healing is unusually slow, probably due to the wolfsbane.”
Talia couldn’t accept this. Dayson was lying on the bed, most of his body was covered in bandages, he was pale, and Talia’s heart was heavy.
The only thing that could make it better would be if he opens his eyes and smiles and tells her that everything will be alright.
“Is there something we can do?”, Talia asked without removing her gaze from Dayson.
“In this situation” Travis paused. “The only thing we can do is wait.”
Travis saw that Talia’s expression fell and he put his hand on her shoulder. “Alpha Dayson is strong. If anyone can pull through this, it’s him.”
Maya and Jaeden exchanged gazes and Jaeden nodded in understanding. They didn’t need the mind-link to know what the other one was thinking.
“Doctor Travis”, Jaeden called. “Can we have a word? In private.”
Jaeden and Travis stepped outside, and Travis led the way to his office.
After making sure all windows and doors were closed and that no one was nearby to eavesdrop, Jaeden turned to Travis and spoke in a hushed voice.
“Healing is faster when mates are together.”
Travis’s brows came together when he understood the meaning behind Jaeden’s words. “True, but Alpha Dayson didn’t find his mate.”
“He did.”, Jaeden said.
Travis stared at Jaeden, and Travis’s eyes widened when he realized “Talia. Why?”
“She doesn’t know.”, Jaeden interrupted whatever Travis wanted to ask next. “With her wolf gone, she can’t feel the bond. Considering her previous experiences, Dayson wanted to win her trust before disclosing they are mates.”
Travis nodded in understanding. “I assume that Maya knows also.”
Jaeden confirmed. “Elder Samson and Elder Charlie know as well. With you, that makes six of us.”
Travis realized that he just found out a big secret. “And you told me this because” Travis waited for Jaeden to finish the thought.
“It’s essential for Dayson’s benefit that Talia stays close to him. But you can’t tell her they are mates.”
“How will you make her stay close to him without explaining why?”, Travis asked.
“Let me take care of that.”
…
In Dayson’s room
“You are not allowed to blame yourself.”, Maya told Talia who responded with a weak smile.
“Dayson told me not to go there on my own, but I still did. If I didn’t go to the forest, I wouldn’t bump into rogues, and Dayson wouldn’t get hurt.”, Talia said. “Or if I left with them obediently”