Talia and Damon stepped inside the cabin to find themselves in one room that was a kitchen and a dining area with a table that had two chairs. On the left was an open door through which Talia could see a sofa and a coffee table.
Talia didn't know how to react to Olivia's submissive behavior. She expected many things, but this was horrible. Even abused she-wolves at the shelter were not this timid, and it seemed that Damon's presence made things worse.
"Can you wait in that room?" Talia asked Damon while gesturing to the door on the left.
Damon nodded and went there.
"Olivia?" Talia called as she stepped toward the female, and she touched Olivia's chin, making her lift her head. "What happened to you?"
"Nothing."
"This is not nothing," Talia said sternly. She remembered Olivia as a bubbly girl with a smile that compared to sunshine, and this was different. The Red Moon pack treated Omegas horribly, but no one dared to bully Olivia because her father was the chief pack doctor.
'You are scaring the girl,' Liseli spoke in Talia's mind. 'She is obviously abused. I can barely sense her wolf.'
Talia's temper flared. How dare they abuse Olivia to the point of harming her wolf!
Talia released a long breath to calm down and spoke softly. "I won't harm you, and neither will my mate." She waited for Olivia to nod before asking, "Where is your mate?"
"He won't be back until tonight."
"Will anyone else come?"
Olivia shook her head.
"Good," Talia said and moved toward the table. "How about we sit, and you tell me what you've been up to since you left the Red Moon pack?"
Olivia apprehensively looked toward the direction where Damon went.
"He won't disturb us," Talia assured her, and Olivia gingerly sat on the chair.
"What do you want to know?"
"Everything," Talia said. "I remember you telling me that your mate was talking to your dad. His name is Luis, right?"
Olivia nodded a little.
"You were so happy to find your mate. How is your life?"
Olivia's face fell.
"You can tell me," Talia encouraged her.
Olivia's head fell, and Talia decided to do something.
Talia released some of her aura. Comforting warmth wrapped around Olivia, holding her tightly, yet gently, like a mother's embrace.
Olivia's shoulders shook, and she started crying silently. It was a long time since someone was so caring, and she missed it immensely.
"What happened to you, Olivia?" Talia asked. "I need to know. Everything…"
Olivia was a sobby mess, but she started talking about how Luis was polite and stern, maybe a bit distant, but she believed that was because they had just met, and he needed to warm up to her. But the moment they reached the territory of the Shadowbite pack, things changed.
"He changed," Olivia said and wiped her nose on her apron. "Or maybe he didn't change, but I was too blind to see who he was. He told me that here, he was in charge, and I must obey him or suffer the consequences. I thought he was joking, but soon I realized that he didn't…" Verbal abuse quickly turned into a physical one, and he would deny her food and medical help if she even looked at him wrongly.
Olivia was his cook, cleaner, and a bedmate when he wished one. He would keep her contained within their cabin, and contact with other females was rare and supervised.
She got pregnant during her first heat, but she miscarried when he hit her because dinner was not flavored as he liked it. After that, he called her incompetent to give him a pup, and the beatings intensified.
Olivia said that not all females are treated this badly, at least not to her knowledge. "But it's not all bad. When I make the dinner right, my chores are completed how he likes them, and when his day with warriors is not bad, Luis will be good to me."
Olivia poured her soul out, venting her grievances and telling about her everyday life, and Talia cried with her.
'That's not good for our pup, kitten,' Damon's voice sounded in Talia's mind, and she was grateful that he still stayed out of sight.
"Olivia," Talia called while wiping her tears with the back of her palm. "If you could leave, right now, would you?"
"Leave? Where?"
"With me, to the Dark Howlers pack."
"Luis will never allow it. I don't know how you got here, but Alpha Silas won't allow it either."
"That is not their decision to make, Olivia," Talia said. "Don't think about them. Think about yourself. I can take you away from here."
Olivia paused. "You never told me… why are you here? Don't tell me you were in the neighborhood and came to say hi."
"I have an event, and I wanted to invite you," Talia said while omitting the Alpha and Luna business. "Unfortunately, your Alpha prevented our messengers from delivering an invitation, so I came to do it in person."
"An event you can invite me to?" Olivia asked absentmindedly.
"Yes. A party."
"And you can take me away and return me without anyone noticing?"
Talia was confused. Why was Olivia talking about coming back?
"I won't return you here unless that's what you want. I won't force you to come to the party either. It's your choice. If you wish to leave this place forever, I can give you a new home. You need to break your mate bond and denounce this pack."
Olivia stared at Talia. She wanted to say something, but the door flew open.
A male appeared, and he glared at Talia. "Who are you?"
Olivia was quick to stand between them. "She is my friend."
Talia realized that the burly guy was Luis, Olivia's mate. She couldn't see him clearly because Olivia was blocking the view, but the guy was huge!
Talia was about to introduce herself when Damon appeared at the door, and before anyone could react, Olivia's body flew to the side, and she hit the stove with her hip violently.
Talia gaped at Luis. "Why did you hit her?" And this was not just a hit. Olivia flew like she was a paper kite.
Luis snorted. "She dared to stand in front of me and show disrespect… Ahhh!" He ended with a shriek and fell to his knees as Damon's aura pressed on him.
"Why didn't you attack him right away?" Damon grumbled at Talia. "What if he hurt you?"
"He couldn't harm me, and I was hoping we could resolve this peacefully," Talia explained. Well, she was hoping for peace until he hit Olivia.
Seeing that Luis' eyes were rolling at the back of his head, she reminded Damon, "Don't kill him. He can be useful."
Talia moved to Olivia and helped her to stand. "Are you alright? Where did you get hurt?"
Talia was about to lift Olivia's t-shirt and see where the bruise was forming, but Olivia tugged the t-shirt back with, "I am fine."
"This is NOT fine, Olivia!" Talia snapped. "This is not normal. You don't need to endure. Mate bond doesn't give him the right to do this!"
Olivia was tearing up again. "You don't understand. I have nowhere to go. They will not let me go. They will hunt me and punish me for disobedience. I can't leave this place."
"Yes, you can!" Talia exclaimed. "Reject him as your mate and come with me to a life where you don't need to bow your head for existing."
Olivia was a mess. She didn't know what to do.
