BROCK’S POV~
The chair was too small for the doctor.
That was the first thing I noticed when we walked in.
He was a chubby man, soft around the middle, and when he sat down, his legs were forced up at an angle because the seat was too high.
He looked like a toddler at a dinner table, dangling his feet, trying to look professional while his knees pointed at the ceiling.
It would have been funny if the air in the room wasn’t so thick with the smell dried blood.
I stood by the door, arms crossed, watching him read the clipboard.
The paper was shaking slightly in his hands.
He was reading the report on Isla.
My eyes scanned the room, taking in the stainless steel trays, the pile of blood-soaked gauze in the corner, and the report on the wall.
Malnourished.
Dehydrated.
Multiple contusions.
fractured ribs.
I had memorized the list while we carried her here before taking her back to the pack house.
The doctor cleared his throat, his eyes darting from the paper to me, then to the two wolves pacing behind me.
“The…
uh…
the subject is stable for now.
But the shift…
it took a lot out of her system.
She’s barely eighty pounds.”
“We know she’s light,” I said.
My voice was flat.
I didn’t care about her weight.
I cared about how deep her injuries were.
“Read the injuries.”
“Right.
Well, there are…
extensive bruising patterns on the upper arms.
Consistent with gripping.
And…” He swallowed hard, looking at Slade.
“Bite marks.”
Behind me, the air pressure dropped.
Slade was vibrating.
I could hear his breathing turn ragged, like a bull about to charge.
Across the small room, Colt was sprawled in a plastic chair, his legs stretched out, his ankles crossed.
He looked bored.
He looked like he was watching a movie.
But I knew better.
Colt was the one who noticed everything.
He was the one who twisted the knife.
Slade was standing by the doctor’s desk, staring at the pot of black roses on the corner.
His hands were clenched into fists so tight his knuckles were white.
He was looking at the flowers like he wanted to rip them out by the roots and eat the dirt.
His nose was flaring, taking in the scent of the doctor’s fear.
“Hey, Slade,” Colt drawled.
He didn’t look at him.
He was picking at a piece of lint on his black jeans.
“You’re breathing loud.
It’s annoying.”
Slade didn’t move.
“Shut up, Colt.”
Colt smirked, finally looking up.
His eyes were dark, gleaming with that nasty, provocative light.
“What?
Why do you look like you want to behead me?
I’m just telling the truth.
You can’t even control yourself.
You were extremely violent with her.”
I stepped forward, just an inch.
“Colt.
Stop.”
He ignored me.
He leaned forward, his elbows on knees, staring right at Slade. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
“I saw the marks, brother.
Your bite marks are the most prominent on her skin.
You didn’t just bite her.
You mauled her.”
Slade’s head snapped toward Colt.
His eyes weren’t human anymore.
They were flashing that sick, amber color.
Colt shrugged, playing with fire.
“What?
I’m saying the truth.
If anything happens to Isla…
if she doesn’t wake up…
everyone of us needs to hold you guilty.
You hurt her the most.” Colt’s voice dropped.
“Especially with your Sadistic tendencies.
You liked it, didn’t you?
The way she screamed.”
The sound of a chair scraping against the floor was deafening.
Slade moved faster than a human eye could track.
One second he was by the desk, the next he was in Colt’s face, hand wrapped around Colt’s throat, slamming him back into the plastic chair.
The doctor squeaked, dropping his clipboard.
Slade’s teeth were bared, saliva dripping onto Colt’s face.
He wasn’t even thinking.
“Shut the fuck up,” Slade snarled, the sound vibrating in the small room.
“Now!”
Colt’s lips twisted into that cruel smirk I hated.
He was enjoying this too much.
He liked poking Slade because Slade was a powder keg, and Colt liked watching the explosion.
I felt a muscle under my left eye twitch.
Once.
Twice.
It was a warning sign I usually ignored, but right now, with the doctor trembling in front of us, it was unbearable.
My jaw clenched so hard my teeth ached.
They were bickering like children.
Before Colt could spit out whatever venom he was cooking up, Slade burst into a cruel laughter.
“Well, well,” Slade snickered, the sound dripping with malice.
He looked at Colt with pure disdain.
“Look who’s talking.
The pack’s most dirty playboy.
The one who couldn’t even control his dick and spent every day slipping it into every random girl’s pussy.”
Slade took a step forward, invading Colt’s space.
“Huh?
Wasn’t you the one who just woke up last from Bella’s bed?
You have the guts to judge me?
At least I lost myself in the warmth of Isla.
I wanted her.
I fucked my mate.
But you?
You were meant for everyone.
You’re nothing but a stray dog humping legs.”
The smile on Colt’s face vanished instantly.
It didn’t fade; it was wiped off, replaced by a cold, murderous light.
He snarled and shoved Slade’s hands off his neck.
They both snarled, their wolves surging just beneath the skin.
The air in the room got heavy.
My patience snapped.
“Both of you,” I said.
I didn’t shout.
I used my Alpha tone.
It vibrated in their chest, a command that bypassed their ears and went straight to their wolf instincts.
“Quit it.
NOW!”
The doctor jumped, dropping his pen.
Colt’s eyes flickered.
The wicked glint was still there, but he stepped back.
He brushed off his neck where Slade had grabbed him, wiping the invisible dust away as if Slade’s touch had tainted him.
He then walked past Slade, deliberately hitting his shoulder hard enough to bruise, and stopped at the doctor’s desk.
The doctor adjusted his glasses, his hands shaking slightly.
He stared at the report like it was a holy scripture, refusing to look up at us.
He was pretending he hadn’t just watched a near-brawl.
Smart man.
Slade turned over his shoulder, glaring murderously at Colt’s back, before grabbing a metal chair and slumping into it.
He kicked his legs out, staring at the doctor with a scowl that promised pain.
I pulled out the chair next to Slade and sat down.
I crossed my legs, smoothed my jacket, and looked at the doctor.
“Go on.”
The doctor cleared his throat, nervously.
“Alphas, you see… the long-term beating and abuse Isla had sustained all these years has caused great mental and physical damage to her health.”
He flipped the page.
The paper crinkled loudly in the quiet room.
“There were also new and old wounds over her body.
Contusions on the ribs, lacerations on the back…
she might have experienced a fresh beating yesterday.”
My chest tightened.
My fist clenched under the table.
Beside me, Slade lowered his eyes, his face going pale.
Across the room, Colt stopped pretending to look at the bookshelf.
He glared at the doctor, then at me.
Shit.
Guilt.
Heavy, rotting guilt filled my chest.
It was true.
Neither of us had noticed.
We had seen her thin frame, we had seen the hunger, but we hadn’t seen the fresh wounds under the rags she wore.
We had been too busy, ravaging her fucking delicious skin that we didn’t notice something was wrong with Isla.
Our Isla.
“Prepare supplements,” I ordered.
My voice was cold, clipping the air.
“High calorie, protein dense.
Iron for the blood loss.
Something that will heal tissue fast.
We are going to taken them to Isla immediately.”
The doctor bowed his head, practically melting into his chair.
“Yes, Alpha.
Right away.”
I stood up.
The chair scraped against the floor.
Slade and Colt stood up too.
The three of us moved toward the door.
As we stepped into the hallway, the smell of the clinic faded, replaced by the scent of rain and pine.
Colt was the first to break the silence.
His voice was low, and dangerous.
“I think Isla’s father had a hand in her beating.”
“Oh, I know he did,” Slade chirped.
The darkness in his voice was there.
He cracked his knuckles, the sound echoing in the corridor.
“I’m going to enjoy ripping his head off.
And I’m going to feed it to his wolf while he’s still watching.”
I stopped walking.
I turned to look at them.
My eyes felt heavy, dimming with a rage that was colder than Slade’s and sharper than Colt’s.
I looked at my brothers and I felt the monster inside me wake up.
“Of course,” I said.
“We’re going to teach him a great lesson.”