The Alpha's Guardian

Ali POV

Every bit of me ached from the hair on the top of my head down to the toenails on my feet. There is only so much torture a single person can take. They had trained me for torture and in the art of keeping my pain at bay. But when the person who trains you is your tormentor, they get creative. I can honestly say I am surprised by Samuel's betrayal. He had been so kind and attentive when I was younger. But perhaps that had more to do with my abilities to fight than his desire to treat me like I was his own.

The moment they caught me, I knew Samuel wouldn't allow Wade to know I was still on his pack lands. I was trying to formulate my way out, but my body was so exhausted from trying to speed its healing process that I couldn't stay awake. It wasn't until I noticed I was in someone's arms that something inside of me awoke. Every pain and ache blossomed into a beautiful tingling, acting as a salve to my burns and ebbing away my suffering.

Wade is my mate.

I smile into the back of the warrior who is carrying me. I look over my shoulder, hoping to catch a glimpse of him, knowing it will disappoint me when I don't see him. But it was worth the pain in the neck for even the thought of seeing him. All I want to do is hop down and race for him. But that would be suicide for his pack. I smirk again. Our pack. If we are able to be reunited again, I will be his Luna. and the pack that has grown on me will be my home.

This is the best day ever. Well, for my romantic life, that is. On second thought, this is a shitty day. I found my mate and I'm torn from him. This plain sucks.?I groan in pain when the warrior stops abruptly and lowers me to the ground. I'm unsteady on my feet and Simon reaches out, helping to keep me upright.

"We have a car coming in a minute. Then we can get you looked at. Your uncle will meet us at the healers." he assures me.

I nod in understanding and look around, noticing only now that we are in a makeshift campsite. Rogues slowly trickle in, looking worse for the wear. A few of them seem to have fared decently, though the majority are covered in blood. "You guys launched an attack?" I ask, bewildered.

"Not on our own," Simon says, helping me to a chair. "Your Alpha reached out amid us planning and said he would help in any manner possible. He seems to have known you were his mate."

"He figures things out before others somehow." I blush at hearing someone else say it out loud.

His mate.

"The mighty guardian blushes?" Simon jibs. I laugh at his remark. I'm not sure when my reputation as a guardian robbed me of my humanistic qualities in others' eyes, but apparently, it did. "I do many things, Simon. Including blush. I'm not ashamed of it."

"And you shouldn't be." he smiles softly. "It's a gift."

There is a glint in his eyes, a memory, and a sadness that sits just out of reach. It's strange to be on this side of the fight. To be saved by the people I have been fighting. It's much harder to take a life when you know it has value, a story that hasn't been told or one that hasn't been lived. Being here is giving me the human side of the nasty rogues who are full of bloodlust. I'm thinking they aren't full of blood lust, but heartbreak and a desire for vengeance.

A large black SUV pulls up and Simon pops up quickly, turning to aid me. He stumbles slightly under my weight as I lean on him. After a few moments of struggling to get up and into the car, I am finally settled and finding myself winded. Simon crawls beside me as a few other injured warriors follow suit. The car ride is tense and uncomfortable as every wolf in the car groans or grunts in pain as we bounce down the bumpy road.

I can't help the audible sigh that escapes me when we finally stop in front of our destination. A gurney greets me as I'm whisked away into the building, two healers bustling around me as they try to assess the extent of my injuries. They whisper to each other as they examine my collarbone, arms, and ribs. My face is still a mangled mess, but from what I can feel, nothing up there is screaming out that it's broken. My ribs, however, are feeling mighty painful, and it feels like my left lung is being poked with every breath. "What's the issue?" A familiar voice asks from the doorway. I turn my head to see Uncle Corbin.

"We don't understand..."

"How I heal so fast in certain areas?" I ask.

"Well, yeah,"

"My mate carried me out and held onto me until the very last minute."

"Well, that explains some of it."

"Some of it?"

"Ma'am. You are an omega werewolf. Which means you should heal at the same speed as a human. Yes, your mate can help heal you with their presence. But you are healing exponentially faster than any omega, even with your mate not here." The male healer explains.

"She is only partially omega." Uncle Corbin answers.

"I'm sorry, what?" The female healer asks in shock.

"I was born with a wolf, and they took it from me when I was a child."

Both healers grow pale.

"For you to survive, they had to do a lesser dose, which led to you keeping some of your wolf qualities without having your actual wolf." The male healer finishes connecting the dots.

"Healing is one quality I retained partially. So I typically heal four times faster than humans but twice as long as the typical werewolf."

The female healer looks at Corbin with sadness in her eyes.

"I remember you." She murmurs. "I defected from the pack that day, a lot of us did."

Silence falls over us.

"Uh, so what's the damage?" I ask, trying to break the awkward tension.

"Right. I'm sorry. Um. You have four broken ribs on your right side and two on your left. The lower rib on your left is close to your lung, but since you are already healing, I don't think surgery will be required. Your burns were infected, but even as I look at them, I can see the fluid is turning clear. Your bruising on your face is looking better by the minute and I don't see any actual breaks in your nose or orbital bones. You will need at least a week to recover. Two weeks to get back to normal."

"OK," Corbin sighs heavily. "Ali, get some rest and see me in the morning, ok?"

"Sure," I respond and he turns and leaves the room.

"I'm going to give you some sleep medication. It's important you get as much rest as possible."

"I don't need-"

"Ma'am, with all due respect, I get you are an incredible warrior, but you just underwent torture. Your physical health is important to us, but so is your mental health. You will have a hard time without these pills. When you are healing better, we can assess your psychological injuries. But for now, I'm not asking." The female healer says,

"Thank you," I say, taking the pills from her and tossing them back. I know when to give in to a battle. And for the sake of healing faster, I can back down this time.

I open my eyes to see the sun peeking through the curtains with a blinding fury. My head is throbbing and my eyes hurt but after a quick body check, I'm relieved to find that my extremities all seem to be in working order, more or less. I stretch my arms over my head and regret it immediately as my sides ache menacingly.

"Ali-Bee." Uncle Corbin says from the doorway. "You're awake, I was starting to worry."

"How long did I sleep?" I ask gently easing myself up on the bed.

"Oh, roughly 32 hours."

My eyes widen in shock.

"I'm sorry it sounded like you said 32 hours."

"Indeed I did," he smirks at me and walks into the room towards my bed.

"How are your injuries?" I ask him looking at his face that looks mostly healed.

"I fear you fared far worse than me." he frowns. "But you're safe now, and that's what is important." He shifts uncomfortably from one foot to the other. and clears his throat.

"Ali, I think it's time we finish our conversation."

"About who killed my parents?" I ask

"That is part of it, yes, but we have much bigger issues-"

"Do you have a name?" I ask, cutting him off.

He looks away momentarily.

"Uncle Corbin, do you have the name of the man who shot my parents?"novelbin

He nods and sighs heavily.

"It was Samuel."