Alpha. Part 18

I turned away, looking out the window into bright suns.h.i.+ne.

Safe.

I didn't want to be safe. I didn't want to be alive. I wanted to be with Zane.

"Mr. Marks, she needs to get some rest."

"I understand. I'll be here when you wake, Aria."

I drifted off to sleep, blissful, numbing sleep.

It was a dream, but I didn't care. It was better than my reality because I remembered the feel of Zane's hand around mine, remembered it going limp, our fingers still touching, neither of us truly able to hold on any longer. And yet, here he was, dressed in his usual jeans and T-s.h.i.+rt, smiling down at me. He was more than a little beat up, but he was here.

"Zane?"

"Aria." He smiled that smile I so rarely saw, the one I remembered from before when everything was good, where my mom and my brother were still alive.

I sat up, glancing down at myself in my hospital gown, at the tubes attached to me. Nothing hurt, and there seemed to be a glow around us.

"You need to lie back down," he said, still smiling. "You need to heal."

I wrapped my arms around him, feeling his strength as he circled me with his. But it was wrong. He didn't feel warm. In fact, he felt cold. Ice cold.

"What's happening, Zane?"

He kissed the tip of my nose then my forehead. "Shh. Rest now."

"Are you dead?"

He pulled back, that smile having faded a little, his eyes sad. But he shook his head. "I'm going to come back to you. I promise."

"I don't understand. My grandfather -" But I realized he hadn't actually said anything. He'd never confirmed one way or the other.

"He's only trying to protect you. Trust him."

"I love you, Zane."

"I love you, Aria. I have for a very long time. You're my thing, remember?"

I did remember. He had told me how everyone has a thing, the one thing that can break them. I was his, and he was mine. And we were breaking together.

I nodded.

"I need to go. I'm tired, Aria." That was the first time Zane had shown weakness. The first time since I'd known him. Giving me a sad smile, he stepped back, his body already fading from view.

"Don't go." Tears slid down my face as I quietly wept, trying to hold on to him for a little longer even as he faded out.

"I have to."

I woke crying, with my grandfather holding my hand again, his face drawn. Outside the window, it was dark. How long had I slept? Hours? Days?

"Where is he, Grandfather?"

"He was badly hurt, Aria. He was shot twice. One bullet pierced his lung, the other damaged his heart. And the time had come to test the next Alpha. When the father dies, the next in line undergoes changes, trials. It's to prove if a man is worthy to be Alpha. If you don't die, then the answer is yes."

"Oh G.o.d."

"It was a lot for him, given his state."

"Is he dead?"

He shook his head. "I gave him my blood. I'll give him more today, but I don't want you to get your hopes up."

"I want to see him."

He shook his head. "It could be dangerous for you."

"I don't care. I have to see him."

The nurse came into my room to check the screens, giving my grandfather a look. "Please don't agitate the patient, sir, or we'll need to sedate her."

"No. No more drugs. At least tell me where he is. Where I am, for that matter."

"You're at our compound."

I looked at him, confused.

"Rage's compound."

"You have a hospital here?"

"No, just some medical rooms and equipment. It's easier to deal with our own kind when we need care."

I guessed that made sense.

"Where's Zane? Is he here, too?"

He nodded.

"Please take me to see him. I need to."

"He's not fully in control of himself, Aria. He could be a danger to you."

"You'll be there. And he won't hurt me." I needed to see with my own eyes just what was happening.

"All right. They're taking the IV out tomorrow morning. If you feel well then, I'll take you to him."

I opened my mouth to protest, to make him take me now, but changed my mind. "Okay. Tomorrow morning."

"Get some rest."

"That's all I've been doing."

He patted my shoulder before leaving. He was taking care of Zane? He was giving blood, his own, to help him.

Chapter Twenty-Three.

Zane I woke from the dream of Aria, knowing she was going to be all right. Me, I wasn't so sure about. Waves of sheer agony consumed me, only giving me the briefest moments of reprieve, of lucidity, in which I found myself behind bars, men standing outside, guarding me. Or guarding the rest of the people here. I was at Rage's headquarters. Their logo was emblazoned on the wall. Men came and went, soldiers, all with guns, ready to put me down. But Xander didn't want me dead. He needed me.

And, truly, it was going to take a miracle for the Alpha trials not to kill me. Being injured before it began wasn't helping my situation. For a long time, I'd wondered what would happen when Cain did die. Whether Ace would have been the one to be tested.

The door opened and Xander walked in, flanked by more soldiers. He was dressed, as usual, impeccably.

"Zane. You're... yourself?" We healed faster in wolf form, so I'd remained as such for a long time.

I closed the eye that was open, the splitting headache returning. I lay on my side, waiting for it all to begin again, a few moments of tranquility before the next trial. Whether it was my mind or my bones, it was all pain.

"I'm giving you more blood, son."

"I'm not your son."

"Ah, there he is." Xander laughed. "If you're feeling up to visitors, Aria is demanding to see you."

Headache be d.a.m.ned. "She woke?"

Xander nodded as he rolled up his s.h.i.+rtsleeve. "Just as stubborn as ever."

I smiled. That was my girl.

The doctor p.r.i.c.ked Xander's arm, drawing blood. He flinched when the needle broke skin. Could it be that Xander Marks, Alpha of Rage, was afraid of needles. I'd laugh if it didn't hurt so d.a.m.ned much.

But it had been his blood that saved me. He was Alpha, his blood superior, and it healed me enough that I didn't die as soon as the testing began.

Lightning flashed behind my eyes, another wave of agony coming. I clung to the thought of seeing Aria, of touching her again, holding her close. It was the only way to survive it. Although touching her wouldn't be an option tomorrow. I'd have to be locked out of reach of her. I felt stronger than ever before, but couldn't take a chance that I'd hurt her.

"You think it's wise to bring her here?" I desperately wanted to see her, but not if I was even remotely out of control.

"I think it will help both of you."

Still, was it a good idea for her to see me this way? I sat up and met his gaze, even though the pain nearly blinded me. "You're sure she'll be safe?" I paused, eyes flicking away before finis.h.i.+ng. "From me?"

Xander studied me for a long time. "You won't hurt her." His eyes held a warning though. If I ever did, I'd be a dead man. I respected him for that.

"Finished." The doctor pulled the needle out of Xander's arm, the blood collected into a bag.

"Thank you, Xander," I said, needing to lie down again. Wanting him to leave before I did. He had saved my life with the transfusions.

He nodded. "Until tomorrow, son."

He kept calling me that, but it was said differently now than it had been that night he'd come to the bar.

"Until tomorrow."

Tomorrow took too long to come. I slept badly, but I slept. And, somehow, today, I'd woken with slightly less pain. I'd taken pain-free days for granted all my life. I'd be grateful for each one going forward.

I held my hands out in front of me - they'd changed, grown bigger. I wore no clothes apart from a pair of briefs. I'd torn through everything else. But it was subsiding; I could feel it. I had survived the test. The ache in my bones the last days had been horrific. I was bigger. I had no mirror to see my face, but my hair had grown longer and hung to my shoulders. I only hoped I wouldn't scare Aria.

"Guard."

The man met my eyes.

"I'd like to see a mirror."

He nodded, left the room, and returned a few moments later with a handheld mirror. I took it from him, willing myself to be strong. To be ready. I'd only ever known my father as Alpha. I hadn't seen the change come over him. But I had seen photos that showed his change had been dramatic. It was that way for many Alphas, and the younger it happened, the more marked the differences. I hoped I still resembled myself.

I sat back down and held the mirror up, relieved as soon as I had to courage to meet my reflection. My hair was longer, thicker, and a heavy beard covered my jaw, but, apart from that, I was myself. The bones of my face were sharper, but I was myself. Perhaps because I'd already been tested six years ago and, even though I'd failed, a change had already taken place inside me, making me stronger than ever, making me a true Alpha.

Sounds in the corridor drew my attention, and I picked up her scent instantly. My body reacted as soon as I did, and I cursed myself, cursed my c.o.c.k for its eagerness at welcoming her. I tugged the jeans they'd left me up over thick calves and thighs and willed my d.i.c.k to calm. It didn't. She was mine. I'd claimed her, and I wanted her again. Now that she was near, and I was Alpha, the urge was even more powerful.

"Restrain me!" I yelled to the guard, holding up the chains that hung from the walls. I'd worn them the first weeks. I wasn't sure if it was so I wouldn't harm others or myself then. Rage had filled me when it had all begun. Rage at what had happened, at how this had all happened, especially when I didn't know if Aria would live, but now, that had pa.s.sed, and only a nagging ache remained.

"Alpha won't allow it."

Perhaps he was right. Or perhaps he had more faith in me than he should.

What if I hurt her?

"Please."

He shook his head as the door opened. Xander took up all the s.p.a.ce there and, for a moment, I wondered about his Alpha test, but not for long once I heard her voice.

"Let me in." Aria. I smiled. She shoved at him to move aside. He did, but when she tried to rise from the chair they'd wheeled her down in, he put a hand to her shoulder.

"We have a deal, Aria."

"Fine." Petulant. I loved that about her.