Chapter 8

Nicholas

The wait is killing me, and my heart is cold. We wait in the hallway while my mate is in the surgery room. My parents are talking to Blade, whispering while they send worried glances at me. 

An hour later, the door opens, and the doctor walks out. Everyone jumps to their feet. 

" Doctor! Is she going to be alright?" my mom asks. The doctor gives her a pitiful smile. My heart drops to the floor. It isn't going to be good news. Doctor White glances at my youngest siblings. 

" Can you grab something to drink at the cafeteria?" she says. She doesn't want them to hear what she has to tell us. A shiver goes down my spine. They scowl and hesitate, but one glare from my mother, and they leave. 

" Prince Knox, please go with them," Dr White says to my seventeen-year-old brother. 

" I'm not a child," 

" Knox, please," Dad says sternly. He grumbles something unintelligent and leaves. 

Blade's pov

I stumble to my feet when Prince Nicholas stood up, panicking. 

" What's going on?" He ignored me and ran. I contemplated jumping from the fourth floor but doubted myself. Nicholas landed perfectly, but it's Nicholas. He's perfection—a protege. 

' Shift mid-way, you dummy,' My inner lycan growled as though he was bored of me. 

' I was going to do that,' I murmured. I shapeshifted in a jump. I hissed as my fur soaked in seconds because of the heavy rain. What was happening this time? I didn't ponder and followed my alpha's scent.

 As I neared the border, I heard a growl that shook the ground beneath my paws. I bolted into the forest.

I finally caught up with Nicholas. We had foreigners in our territory. Even though the Sapphire royal pack was open to everyone, these weren't welcome here. Nicholas was fuming. I'd never seen him this angry because he had mastered the art of stoicism. 

I saw two getting away, but I pounced on them. I killed one and injured the other. However, the injured one escaped, and I lost his scent due to the rain.

I went back to the alpha Prince. He had killed the five wolves without breaking a sweat. I grimaced, seeing their tortured body on the ground. Only Nicholas would kill like this. Well, they deserved it if they were abusing an innocent woman. 

" Mate," I heard my alpha whimper. I approached him and finally saw the girl in his arms. Her white hair covered part of her face, and she was injured... badly. Nicholas removed the hair off her face. My breath hitched, flabbergasted by her transcendental beauty. Despite the dirt covering her face and body, anyone can tell she's exquisite. 

" Oh, goddess," a low sound escaped my mouth as I looked closer. 

Nicholas scooped her up in his arms and ran with her. I followed, and once we reached the general hospital, I shapeshifted, and the guard there gave me shorts. 

... 

Standing still, like a statue, is Nicholas. He is still soaked, his cold glare riveted at the emergency room his mate is in. He still has a murderous aura around him. His parents and siblings are here, too, watching him as though they are scared he will snap and murder everyone. No one wants that. No one. 

My Dad, Danford, the king's right-hand man, walks up to us. He was out there investigating and trying to get details about this. 

" The wolves who attacked her are all dead, and we can't find the one guy who escaped. The surveillance in the southwest wasn't clear either due to the rain, and we don't have people watching that area. However, Jack and Jake are still searching in the nearest packs," he informs us. 

" Do we know who she is? Where she's from?" Lady Anaiah asks. Our gaze turns to Nicholas, but he ignores us. 

" We know nothing about her. Alpha Nicholas just went into a panic and ran to the border. He must have felt her distress through their matebond," I answer.  

" Check with the closest packs to see if there are any reports of a missing girl," the king orders,

" She must have been so scared. Imagine being attacked by fully grown wolves," 

" I wish I was there. I would have shown those wolves hell," Lilibet growls, letting her murderous aura slip. This family didn't know how to contain their powerful auras. 

An hour went by, and the doors were still closed.  Lady Anaiah is agitated, and her husband has her in his arms. My Dad is on the phone, speaking to our people about what happened tonight and looking for answers. Lilibet seems pissed at the situation, Knox and the other two siblings, look bored out of their minds, and I wish for a hot cup of coffee right now. 

The red light on the screen above the emergency door finally goes blue, and the door opens. Doctor White walks out. Everyone gets to their feet and approaches her, except Nicholas. 

Doctor White asks everyone under eighteen to leave. 

" She's stable now but is unconscious. We stopped the internal bleeding. However, the wound on her head is more concerning, but it's not swelling, so that's good," she explains.

" She has several lateral ribs broken and has multiple old fractures. She is also malnourished and dehydrated," 

 I glance at my best friend in concern. His expression is stoic, yet I feel a dangerous storm brewing within him.

" So, um, w—we did a standardized test," she suddenly fails to speak, her eyes sad. I'm dumbfounded. What did they discover in the test?

" We did a test…" she repeats.

" You fucking that said already," Nicholas's cold voice is chilling and threatening, making the doctor visibly shudder. 

" Nicholas," his father scolds. " I know how you are feeling, but you need to calm your temper, son," 

Doctor White clears her throat. " We ran a rape kit and found bodily fluids inside her. The patient was assaulted,"  

There is a deafening silence after her words. It is so loud. The doctor continued to speak, explaining things I couldn't comprehend as the words she had said earlier rang in my head.

" The girl has been through a severe traumatic experience, not only tonight. She'll need a lot of help when she wakes up," 

The doctor discusses the girl's condition; she's careful when speaking because Nicholas is here. While she explains, Nicholas suddenly leaves. I follow suit. He needs to blow off some stem. 

' Keep a distance from him,' I hear my father say through the mind link. 

' I know how to handle my best friend when he's like this, Dad,' I snap. I know I'm not supposed to be so close to him when he's this angry.

' Sorry,' 

' I know, son,'

I'm so angry this is happening to Nicholas' mate, my Luna, and our future Queen. When we find out who abused her, they will pay dearly for it.