Talia and Damon entered the room to see Olivia sitting on the bed and Travis standing one step away from her.
Nurses were updating Talia on Olivia's condition, so Talia knew that Olivia had surgery and was recovering. Based on the changes in readings from the machines attached to Olivia, nurses notified Talia that Olivia was awake. That's why she came.
"You are awake," Talia said with a smile, and she paused when she realized that Olivia barely paid any attention to her. Olivia was totally focused on Travis.
Talia's eyes moved from Olivia to Travis, and then she put her hand over her mouth. She could feel the energy fluctuations between them, which confirmed they were mates, but something was off.
"What's going on?" Talia asked.
This time, Olivia reacted. She turned to look at Talia. "He says he is my mate."
"Do you think he is lying?"
"I don't know what to think." Olivia realized that Travis kept his head down in submission when Damon and Talia entered. "Who are you?"
"I guess I didn't introduce myself properly. My full name is Natalia Moonrider. I am the Alpha of the Midnight Guardians pack and this…" Talia tilted her head toward Damon. "...is my mate, Damon Blake, the Alpha of the Dark Howlers pack."
Olivia gaped at Talia. "Did you say you are an Alpha?"
"No matter who I am, I will always be Talia, your friend."
'You have bigger problems than your friendship to salvage, girl,' Liseli spoke in Talia's mind. 'With her wolf weakened, Olivia doesn't feel the mate bond.'
Only then Talia realized what was wrong. She knew firsthand what it meant not to feel the bond because she went through that with Damon. At that time, even if someone told her that Damon was her mate, Talia wouldn't believe it. On top of Olivia's body and spirit weakened, she also had a bad experience of abuse by her first mate and the breaking of that bond was still fresh. What a mess.
Talia needed to tread carefully, or this might implode.
Talia remembered when she met Travis for the first time. His demeanor reminded him of Olivia. Wasn't that a sign they were two halves of a whole?
Talia walked to the bed and held Olivia's hand. "This man is Doctor Travis. He is the main Doctor in the Dark Howlers pack, and he would never harm a person regardless of if she is his mate or not."
Olivia's eyes teared up. "You say he is my mate, but I don't feel it."
"I know your wolf is weak, but can't you sense his scent?" Talia reached to take Travis' hand and she guided him to put his hand over Olivia's. "Don't you feel the sparks even a little bit? Aren't your instincts telling you that this man is your other half?"
Olivia stared at their connected hands. Did she feel something? There was the prickling sensation, and Travis' touch felt good but… "The sparks were wrong before." She pulled her hand away and hid it under the blanket.
Talia could see Travis' disappointment and Olivia's doubts, and her heart ached for both of them.
"I don't know why the Moon Goddess gave you Luis as a mate," Talia said. "Maybe he was necessary so you can end up here and meet Travis. Travis is a good man. He taught me about herbs and medicine and helped me heal when others thought that my wolf was gone for good. Take your time, Olivia, but don't reject him. He would never harm you. If he dares to raise his voice in your presence, let me know and I will teach him a lesson."
Olivia's shoulders shook and she lowered her head. Talia wrapped her arms around Olivia and patted her back gently.
'I'm so sorry, Travis,' Talia spoke through the pack link. 'I know that this is not how mates usually meet, but Olivia is traumatized. You will need to be patient with her. She is a good female, but her mate abused her for the last few years. She broke the bond today. Everything is fresh.'
Travis' wolf was urging him to get closer to Olivia and not touching her was torturous. 'Tell me what her mate did to her.'
Talia didn't think it was a good idea. 'Are you sure you want to know?'
'I need to understand what I'm dealing with if I am going to help her.' His wolf needed to understand also.
'It won't be pretty,' Talia warned him.
Travis steeled his resolve. 'I can take it.'
'Relax. Open up your mind…'
Travis wondered what Talia was up to, but he did as she asked.
Travis recoiled when images started flooding his mind.
Olivia looking at him and smiling... Olivia's expression changed into confusion and then fear… Olivia in tears... Olivia bruised… Olivia setting up the table with shaky hands… Olivia with her head lowered while keeping her eyes tightly closed like she was bracing herself for impact... Olivia crying and begging for the hitting to stop, and then she stopped making noise as she curled up into a ball while wishing for the pain to stop.
Talia didn't show the ones that were of sexual nature. She wanted to spare Travis from seeing that, knowing that even this would be too much.
Travis felt his insides churning in dejection and helplessness because it felt so real like it was happening right there. He saw his mate suffering, yet he just stood there and watched. Even worse. He was the one who made her suffer.
Travis put his hand over his mouth and ran outside.
"Can you go with him?" Talia asked Damon.
Damon grimaced. He was not willing! They could hear Travis puking his guts out in the hallway. Why would he go there? But Talia was looking at him pleadingly and he stomped outside.
"Why did they leave?" Olivia asked.
"Just as you need time to adjust to this situation, Travis needs the same," Talia explained softly. "He won't force you to accept the bond or his mark, but it's hard to fight the urges to claim his mate. He will be back in a few minutes once he calms down."
Olivia nodded in understanding. "Will you tell me how you became the Alpha? How did you meet your mate?"
Talia didn't know where to start. "Tell me what you know, and I will fill you up." She assumed that Olivia knew at least something about the waves caused by the appearance of Alpha Natalia.
Olivia shook her head. "Since I left the Red Moon pack, my contact outside the Shadowbite pack was cut off. I had no access to television or media. Some rumors would drift in occasionally, but it was more for entertainment because no one knew how reliable they were."
"Well… The Red Moon pack is gone," Talia said. "Alpha Edward fell in the Alpha challenge."
Olivia was visibly shaken up by this information. "Who would dare to challenge the Red Moon pack?"
"He was the one who issued a challenge to the Dark Howlers pack."
Olivia glanced at the door fearfully. "Your mate killed Alpha Edward?"
"No. He used a Champion." Talia didn't want to spend time explaining about George and his history, so she stuck to the relevant parts. "The territory and members of the Red Moon pack were divided among other packs, and their packhouse is now a neutral territory that we use for settling disputes."
"What about my dad?"
"He is in the Lightclaw pack, working as a pack doctor. I didn't contact him because I didn't know how long you will need to recover. Let me know when you want to see him, and I will set it up."
Olivia looked toward the window, and she could see her reflection in the glass. She reached to touch her sunken cheek. "Maybe later."
The door opened and Travis and Damon walked inside.
Talia and Damon exchanged knowing nods, and Talia said to Olivia, "If you need anything, tell Travis or the nurses. If you want to reach me, they can help you until we get you a cell phone." Or until she joins the Dark Howlers pack.
Olivia felt fear gripping her insides. "You are leaving?"
"I will come tomorrow. Until then, spend time with Travis, Olivia."
Olivia's eyes darted to Travis.
"He is your mate," Talia reminded Olivia. "He will take care of you. Give him a chance."
"I don't know how."
"Listen to your instincts. I know it's hard but give him a chance. You owe that to yourself. You can sit in silence, talk, hold hands, or whatever. If it feels good, go at it. If it's making you uncomfortable, let him know and he will stop."
Travis looked at Talia gratefully. "Thank you, Luna."
Talia smiled sadly. She didn't resist when Damon's hand wrapped around her, and Damon led the way outside.
"Olivia," Travis spoke first. "You are the daughter of the pack doctor from the Red Moon pack."
"Do you know my dad?"
"Only from stories."
"How do you know who I am then?"
"Talia told me stories about you."
Olivia blinked. "What did she say?"
"Talia said that she had one friend while growing up. And it was a kind girl who went out of her way to help her out when no one else would…"
Olivia smiled a little while Travis reminded her of how Olivia taught Talia about herbs and the basics of medicine, and how they read and studied together.
Olivia didn't realize at what point Travis sat on the edge of her bed. He was close, and she could feel his behind against her leg through the blanket, but he didn't initiate any physical contact.
Did she want him to hold her hand? She was not sure but being with Travis like this didn't feel scary at all.
