Haunted by the Mysterious Alpha

CHAPTER 14

Calix’s POV.

I plummeted into the water and missed a large rock by an inch. Expelling rings of bubbles, I searched the deep and saw her drifting away unconsciously toward the bottom. A few anxious strokes, I got to her, and realized she was bleeding from her head.

Cursing under my breath, I propelled us to the top and broke out from the water. Taking a deep breath, I saw my men running down the cliff all shifted into their lycan forms and I glanced at the woman in my arms; I lifted her from the water and howled.

I swam to the shore and tried to perform some resuscitation on her like I did the last time under the probing gaze of my men, but none of that seemed to work. My thoughts were all jumbled up even as I collected my cloak from Han, shredded out a part and used it as a bandage around her head.

“My lord?.. My lord?” Han interrupted via the mind-link. “We need to get her to a physician in Tyr before it's too late.” He was right.

I guess he figured out how much I wasn't ready to lose her; not yet.

“I will take her.” He took a step closer to my mate and I snarled as I sent him a ‘back-off’ glare. I don’t care if he’s my beta, I’ll rip off his head if he dared to touch her. What's wrong with me? I hated this woman yet I didn't want anyone coming close to her.

A growl rippling my throat, I transformed into my lycanthrope as I figured that’s the fastest way to get to Tyr. Han and the men with me took a few steps backward and bowed, not only because I was their alpha and a lot bigger than them; but the fact that I hardly shift, and for the moments which I do; it's usually like being in the presence of lightning. No one wants to mess with me and be struck with the thunder of my fury.

Amidst the show of loyalty from my men, my gaze darted to the woman in my arms. I let out a loud howl and bolted.

The ground blurred below me, the forests formed a vague landscape even as the sun dipped below the horizon and a full moon shone. My heart palpitated as I glanced down at the woman in my arms and she remained unconscious...the memories of her smiling at the riverbank played in my head and I couldn't forgive myself.

Letting out another howl, I doubled my pace just as the walls of Tyr emerged in a distance. “Quick, Han..get the physician!” I commanded.

“Yes, my lord.” Han bolted in the other direction towards the town, and a few of the men followed him. I headed in the other direction and soon arrived at the castle, the men with me slowed to a halt as I reached the terrace and leaped past the two balconies above and broke into the windows of the castle’s sickbay. Amidst the shattering of glasses, I walked to the bed and gently laid her down.

A howl leaving my lips, I shifted from my lycanthrope and panted as my gaze settled once again on the woman before me. What have I done? Perhaps, if I had retreated from the cliff with my men, she wouldn’t have jumped. Perhaps, if we hadn’t come to the hamlet at all, she wouldn’t be in this predicament.

Reaching forward with a shaky hand, I wanted to touch her hand, but remembered who she was, the fact that she’d chosen suicide just to spite me.

Once again, anger rolled down my spine and my hands clenched to fists. Footsteps echoed behind me and I flung around. “It is I, my lord,” Han soothed and stretched forward a tunic and a pair of breeches at me. “The physician is here,” he notified.

Quickly, I jumped into the clothes and he went back to the hallway to fetch the man who was said to have handled my birth.

“My Lord.” Mr. Petesin bowed. “I came as fast as I could,” he added and his gaze settled on her.

“She fell off a cliff. I think she collided with a rock or something.”

He walked past me to her side, he stopped and glanced at me. “May I?”

I loved the fact that he asked for my permission before touching her. “Go ahead,” I replied and he proceeded in checking her pulse, meanwhile my heart thudded all over.

“She has a pulse,” he said and sighs of relief escaped Han and I. “However, the pulse is weak..and she seems to have lost a lot of blood,” he added as he reached out to the cloth worn around her head.

“Can we save her?” I blurted, almost impatiently.

“Y-yes, we can...though it could take a lot of days. First we need to clean her up and administer an intravenous(IV) fusion while we conduct some blood work on her... that’s if you approve, my lord,” he said.

“You have my approval,” I said.

“We will need some new clothes for her,” he said.

“I will arrange that,” Han offered and hurried out of the room. Meanwhile, Mr. Petecin rummaged through his bag and began to set up the place for the IV fusion. A ball of anxiety arose in my throat as I watched him searched for a vein across her skin and then found one, exactly the moment Han returned with a dress and two maidservants.

“I know you wouldn’t want a male cleaning her up,” Han whispered as he walked past, to the only chair in the room and placed the dress.

Quickly, Mr. Petecin administered the intravenous fusion to my mate, dressed the cut on her head, and took her blood sample. “This is for the bloodwork,” he reminded and I nodded as he turned to the dress on the chair.

“The maidens will handle that,” my beta announced

“Oh, sure,” Mr. Petecin bowed. “I will be going now so I can run the test in my laboratory. I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

Bowing again, the man hurried out of the room and the maidens with us stepped forward with bowls of water and began to undress the princess, starting from her shoes. “I will wait outside.” Han excused himself.

This wouldn’t be my first time of seeing a woman naked, yet as they lifted her and undid her zipper, I looked away and strode to the window. But her sweet scent grew and tickled my senses, willing me to turn around.

My hands clenched into fists as I fought the urge not to turn around and take a glimpse of her, listening to the soft gurgle of water as the maidens cleaned her up. My gaze fixated on the stars above, I let out a sigh as the breeze tousled my hair.

Footsteps echoed behind me. “We’re done, my lord,” one of the maidens announced. I turned around and found my mate cleaned up and now wearing the new dress, her beauty glowing even under the candlelight.

My heart constricted just watching her and I glanced at the two maidens. “Thank you,” I mumbled.

“You’re welcome, my lord.” They chorused, exchanging shy glances, they turned and continued out of the room. I was left alone with her and glanced from the intravenous drip to the bandage on her head it, was lost in thoughts and didn’t hear when Han walked into the room.

“What’s next?” he asked.

“What about the rest of our men in the hamlet?” I questioned.

“They’re back.”

“And the casualties? And our dead?”

“Thanks to our ability to heal, we have no casualties, but we lost five pack members to the cold hands of death.”

Gnashing my teeth, I turned around and faced him. “And all fifty of Alpha Thane’s men?”

“They’re all dead, we made sure of that, my lord.”

My thoughts darted to that moment Han sank his teeth on the neck of her father's gamma, for the second time, clawed his chest and hurled him to a tree. “Her father's gamma, did you make sure he was dead?”

“He wasn’t breathing, my lord, our men made sure of that before leaving,” he said.

I stared at him, and then my gaze darted to my mate, and was back on him. “I want guards at the entrance of this room and in the courtyard below the windows.” I instructed and headed out of the room.

Han followed me, but halted briefly in the hallway as he assigned two guards at the entrance of the sickbay. He hurried and caught up with me just as I hit the stairs and headed for the last floor.

“Your dinner is ready.” Han announced.

“I’m not hungry,” I replied. We arrived at my chamber and I paused in my tracks. “Prepare a feast for the men, they fought very well today. And you too.” I said and continued to my chamber, and shut the door behind me.

Exhaling, I proceeded to the washroom and enjoyed a warm bath, was back in bedroom and shortly after stepping into some fresh clothes; a knock rapped on my door. “Speak!” I commanded.

“Mr. Petecin is here.” Han announced behind the closed door. My gaze darted to the dressing mirror, I finished up with my clothes, combed my hair and headed out of the room.

I arrived at the foyer and saw him waiting patiently for me. “Mr. Petecin.”

“My lord.” He dipped in a bow. “The results of the bloodwork is out.”

A few strides and I stood before him. “What are the results?” I asked and watched as the man before me fumbled with the big envelope in his hand, and came up with a piece of paper and he gave it to me.

“First of all, her blood sample reveals she’s a hybrid; born of a human parent and a werewolf parent.”

“I know. What else?”

“There’s a strong presence of phencyclidine in her blood.”

“What’s that?” I asked.

“Phencyclidine is a dissociative anesthetic known for its mind-altering effects such as hallucinations, distorted perception of sounds and violent behavior to mention but a few.”

Silence fell into the room as I recalled what the spy sent to the hamlet reported last night, about hearing a female possibly my mate screaming.

“Is there anything else?” I asked.

“I mentioned earlier that she has lost a lot of blood. However, it’s not serious, she’d be fine.”

Heaving a sigh, I nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Petecin.”

“You’re welcome, my lord.” He smiled. “If I have your permission, I will like to examine her before I retire for the night.”

“Of course.”

In the sickbay, I watched as he checked her vitals and replaced the drip with another exactly the moment Han walked into the room and whispered something into my ear.

“Mr. Westley is here.”

While we saw the physician off, we met with my late father's friend on the terrace. “Good evening, Alpha Calix,” Mr. Westley greeted.

“Hello, Mr. Westley.”

“I learned the invasion was successful. Congratulations!”

A faint smile touched my lips. “Thank you.”

“Where is she?” he asked.

“She’s currently unconscious and in the sickbay,” I replied. And then my brows creased as I remembered something. “Has anyone seen Leia?”