The Blacklisted Rogue
Chapter 28

Sally POV

The rope cut into my wrists as I struggled to get free. Alpha Richard stood in front of me with a silver knife. "Let's have some fun." He sneered.

He cut the front of my shirt with the knife before unbuckling my belt and pulling my pants down.

Cold air hit my bare skin and I tried to scream.

But I couldn't.

It felt like my mouth was full of cotton.

I couldn't breathe.

Suddenly, Alpha Richard knocked me to the ground and straddled the back of my thighs.

"Stay still, little girl, or he dies."

Alpha Richard pointed at Elijah, standing on his knees with a gun to his head.

I stopped struggling and Alpha Richard gripped my hips harshly before thrusting into me.

*

My own scream woke me up. I put a shaky hand on my chest and took deep breaths to calm my racing heart.

I glanced at the clock and saw that it was 11.15 PM, I pulled the covers off me and went out into the kitchen for a glass of water.

The Beta wing was quiet. George was called to a late tactical meeting regarding the threat from the Midnight pack and Elijah was asked to go with him. I had decided to go to sleep before he came back. I realized that it was the first time since we escaped from the Midnight pack that I fell asleep on my own.

I cursed that pack for ruining us like that. Elijah had nightmares about that place, I had them too because I fell asleep on my own after Elijah went off to a meeting about the same goddamn pack that keeps pestering our lives in every way possible! The fact that Elijah hadn't come back yet worried me a little.

Did it mean that the Midnight pack was about to attack?

I hoped and prayed that wasn't the case.

I made my way out to the kitchen and found Alex on his computer by the kitchen table.

Alex looked up from his computer.

"Hey. You still up?" I asked.

"Mhm." He hummed. "Just finishing up a few things. Why are you up? I thought you went to bed?"

I pulled out a jug of water from the fridge and poured myself a glass before taking a seat on the chair opposite from Alex.

"Bad dreams." I grunted. "They make it hard to sleep without Elijah next to me."

Alex smirked.

"Mate bond does that to you."

He quickly became serious again.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

I shook my head and sipped on the water.

"No. It's embarrassing." I said.

"Embarrassing how?" Alex asked. "Did you have one of those dreams where you go to school and realize that you forgot your clothes back home and you're naked in front of everybody?" I snorted.

"Ha! That's a classic. I wish that would be it."

Alex chuckled and closed his laptop.

"Was it about what happened at the Midnight pack?"

I looked down at my glass of water.

"Yeah." I whispered, feeling tears well up in my eyes. I blinked rapidly trying to make them go away. I didn't want to cry about it and especially not in front of Alex.

Alex reached over the table and held my hand.

"Hey girl." He said. "You are so strong. You survived all that. But you're safe now. You don't have to be strong anymore."

A traitorous tear slipped down my cheek and I quickly wiped it.

Alex caught my movement and sighed.

"What happened in your dream? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but you don't have to carry all of this on your own."

I sighed.

"I dreamt that Alpha Richard raped me and Elijah was forced to watch."

I said it quickly, without looking at him.

Alex was quiet for a few seconds, and I was sure he didn't really know what to say. I couldn't blame him since I basically just dropped the most uncomfortable topic in his lap. "Do you have nightmares like that a lot?" Alex asked after a while.

I shook my head.

"I usually don't have nightmares, but I haven't spent a single night without Elijah since we met."

"Is it a real fear of yours? That Alpha Richard would..." Alex trailed off.

"Yes." I whispered.

The tears I had been trying to hold back escaped my eyes and left wet trails on my cheeks.

Alex quickly got up and walked around the table. When he reached me he crouched down on his knees. He took my hand and rubbed circles with his thumb on the back of my hand.

"Hey girl, don't cry." He cooed. "You know, it's not going to happen. This entire pack got your back right now. I've been here long enough to know that Midnight pack isn't really that popular around here. If he tries to get to you, then he'll have to go through us first." "I-I'm s-sorry." I hiccuped. "It just feels like our presence here puts all of these people in danger. I don't want the pack to go to war because of me, and I don't want to put Elijah in danger. Sometimes I can't help but wonder what would happen if..."

I stopped myself before I could finish the sentence. Alex shouldn't have to be burdened with the darkest thoughts of my mind.

Unfortunately, Alex caught on my hesitation.

"What would happen if...?" He asked.

I avoided his questioning eyes.

"If I traded myself for the safety of Elijah and the pack." I finished.

Alex frowned.

"Don't think like that!"

"But I do. The reason we actually managed to escape was because of Elijah. I did nothing to help really and I just feel like I cause a lot more trouble than I contribute with good things to the pack. I just don't know how to fix this."

"There's no way of knowing if Alpha Richard would actually stay true to his word even if you gave yourself up to him. This is not your fault, so it's not your responsibility to fix it on your own either."

"I just don't want to be so helpless." I cried.

"But you're not." Alex retorted. "You were brave enough to sacrifice yourself for George and I. God knows what would have happened to the two of us if you hadn't taken the blame for Tommy's death. You are stronger than you think, and you are definitely not helpless!" Before Alex could continue, the door opened and George and Elijah came in.

"Finally!" Alex exclaimed. "I thought that I would have to wait for you until the a**-crack of dawn."

He stood up and pulled George with him to their bedroom.

"G'night peeps!" He cheered.

When he passed Elijah, he nudged him in my direction before they left.

Elijah noticed the traces of tears on my cheeks and immediately rushed over and cupped my face in his hands.

"Are you alright, Love?" He asked, a worried expression taking over his beautiful face.

I put my hand on his arm and squeezed reassuringly.

"I'm okay. I just had a bad dream. It's the first time since we met that I fell asleep without you by my side and I guess my mind decided to play tricks on me."

I forced a smiled on my face, but I couldn't fool him. Elijah frowned and lifted me up bridal style.

I squealed and wrapped my arms around his neck.

"Let's go to sleep, Love." He said and kissed my forehead. "I'll keep the nightmares away."

Elijah carried me back to our room and gently put me down on the bed.

He took off his shirt and his pants before climbing into bed with me.

Once he had pulled the covers over the both of us, he turned on his side and looked at me.

"Will you go on a date with me?" He whispered.