The Silver Siren
Chapter 23

Brad

I had to go in. There was nothing else I could do. I knew I had to. Of course I did. But that hasn't stopped me pacing outside the entrance to the dungeons for the past 30 minutes. My wolf, Ezra, won't shut the fuck up, wanting me to go to my mate now. He was still raging at me that we left her here and ran away. He has been pining for her ever since we left.

I admit that it was a dick move, but I panicked. I've trained my whole life to protect the pack and then one of the rogues that threatened the safety of the pack turns out to be my mate. It was pretty unbelievable!

I needed some more time before I went back to her. I always thought that when I found my mate, things would be different. That I would know exactly what to do and say. it hadn't worked out that way. Not in my wildest dreams did I ever think that my mate would be a rogue.

It had taken several agonising hours of interrogation of the male rogues to finally get any answers at all. Reece and Alpha Spencer had agreed that Penny hadn't had any real conscious involvement in the attack and had been controlled by dark magic, like all the other rogues were.

So here I am. Still pacing, working up the nerve to go and face her, knowing that I should never have run away in the first place. Night was starting to fall, and I couldn't wait any longer.

"Go back to her, now!" Ezra demanded. I don't think he had ever been this angry with me. When I left Penny in the dungeon earlier, I almost lost control of him.

"Alright, cool it!" I said, "I'm going."

Not knowing what I would say to her, I pushed the door open to the dungeons and walked down the corridor to her cell, nodding to the guard as I went past.

I smelled her as soon as I rounded the corner. Wild strawberries! The smell was amazing and Ezra purred and got excited all at once. Her cell came into view and her scent became stronger. She was laying on the cot on the floor, curled up with her head tucked into herself and I felt an urgent need to get her up off of something so degrading and dirty.

As I unlocked the cell, the noise of the keys making her shift to a sitting position. She looked different. She was no longer wearing the oversized T-Shirt and sweatpants, but had on a beautiful sundress, probably the work of the Luna. And her hair was combed neatly. But as beautiful as the dress was, I couldn't stop a frown as I registered her slim frame and protruding bones. Her skin was pale and I noticed several bruises on her legs in various stages of healing. But that didn't stop her being the most beautiful thing I think I had ever laid eyes on. Her features were petite and perfect, classically beautiful with full pink lips and radiant eyes.

I realised I was staring and forced myself to look away to try and get a hold on the anger I was feeling at seeing my mate injured and malnourished.

"Hi," I said.

She didn't answer. Instead she pushed herself up against the wall, hugging her knees tight to her chest, making herself as small as possible. Ezra whimpered in my head, registering her fear. She was trying to get away from us. Fuck, this wasn't good.

"Are you ok?" I asked, taking a step closer.

She nodded, yes. Reece had filled me in on the outcome of the interrogations, so I knew roughly what she had been through under the control of Lucien. But she was safe now.

"Penny, I'm sorry I ran away and left you here. That was stupid," I said. Again, she didn't answer. The silence was deafening and torturous.

"Please say something," I said, unable to keep the hint of desperation out of my voice.

"How long do I have to stay here?" she whispered, her voice shaky.

"You don't. The Alpha said you can come to the packhouse," I told her. "With me."

Her eyes widened slightly and she didn't say anything.

"Is that what you want?" I asked her, slowly approaching her, trying not to scare her too much. She had been held as a prisoner by Lucien and his army and her body had been used in the most evil of ways. She was lucky to survive and as I inched closer to her I realised how close to death she had been during the attack.

My heart twisted thinking how close she came to losing her life. And we would have lost her.

I slowly sat down next to her, carefully leaving a space between us. The fear in her eyes was unmistakable and I didn't want to add to it. I needed to take it slowly and convince her she will be safe here.

"Penny, I really am sorry," I said to her softly. She deserved an explanation.

"I've spent most of my life protecting my pack from rogues. And I acted without thinking, without knowing the whole story. I know you were under Lucien's control and had no input to the attacks voluntarily. I promise I won't ever leave you again. And I promise you will be safe here. I won't let anything hurt you again."

I heard her sniff and turned my head to see tears rolling softly down her porcelain face.

"It's ok now," I said, reaching out to touch her arm. But as soon as I touched her skin she flinched violently as if I had just jumped out at her from behind something. I pulled my hand away quickly, not wanting to scare her anymore.

"I'm sorry," I said, " I didn’t mean to scare you. Are you ok?"

"I'm......ok," she said, "I just......"

"Why don't we go to the packhouse to talk?" I suggested. She turned her head to finally look at me. Her eyes were mesmerising, I could easily get lost in them. And when she looked into my eyes, my heart rate increased, thumping in my chest. There was less fear in them now, still some, but not as much.

"Ok," she said, quietly. I smiled at her and her eyes twinkles ever so slightly. Barely there but I saw it. It was a small sliver of hope that had Ezra buzzing. And i couldn't deny I felt the same.

I got to my feet as excitement fizzed in my chest. Penny attempted to get up but was having trouble getting to her feet. I didn't want to freak her out again but reaching for her and i was just about to offer her a hand when she made it to standing. But she was clearly weak and slumped against the damp wall, exhausted.

"Can I help?" I asked. She looked unsure but, realising she did not have the energy to walk to the packhouse, she nodded reluctantly.

"Would it be ok if I carried you to the packhouse? It's not far but if you don't want me to I will call the Luna," I said. She deserved options and the right to make her own decisions. Manhandling her would not help the situation.

"Ok," she said after a few seconds of thought, and reached out her arms to me. I came closer to her left side but as I put my arm around her back she said, "No, my other side." I nodded and moved to her right side, not thinking on it much. I slipped my arm around her and under her knees, lifting her with great care. She weighed absolutely nothing and I could feel every bone jutting out of her skin. She was stiff in my arms at first but after a few seconds loosened up.

"Comfortable?" I asked her. She nodded but held her hands in her lap awkwardly. "If you want, you can put your arms around my neck," I suggested. She looked uncertain, her internal struggle obvious, and after a few seconds she jerkily raised her arms and rested them around my neck. The mate bond sparks danced across my skin where her hands touched and I felt her relax a little in my arms.

Penny

He was here. He came back. He came back for us!

My heart started to beat faster as he slinked down to the floor next to me and his scent enveloped me, making Indie purr. His words were sincere and my heart wanted to believe him so badly, but my head was still warning me against this Beta. Memories of my old pack made me shiver and I swallowed hard, willing them away.

When he reached out his hand and touched my arm, it caught me off guard, I didn't see it coming. He'd sat on my left and I couldn't see him, and that thought hurt me more than I could say. But the small contact ignited a rush of heat in me and delicious sparks danced over my skin at the light touch.

"Why don't we go to the packhouse to talk?" he said.

I thought back to what Allie had said. He did come back so maybe he wasn't going to reject me? And he had apologised to me for running away. Maybe I should give him a chance. Turning my head to face him, I nodded and he beamed a smile at me that made my stomach dip, and mouth twitched as if it wanted to smile. It had been so long since I smiled, I thought sadly.

He got to his feet and I tried to do the same, but my energy levels were non-existent and the effort of just getting to my feet was enormous. I finally managed to get upright, and leaned against the wall for support. He noticed how difficult the small act of standing was and offered help. I had no idea how I was going to walk back to the packhouse, I didn't even have shoes, and I knew I would have to accept the offer of help from him.

“Would it be ok if I carried you to the packhouse? It’s not far but if you don’t want me to I will call the Luna,” he asked.

"Ok," I said reluctantly, and he moved closer shifting his body to get into the right position to lift me.

“No, my other side,” I asked, I wanted to be able to see him. He switched sides, not questioning it, and slipped a muscular arm under my knees, wrapping the other around my back. The contact made me shiver and Indie was going crazy in my head, dancing about loving being close to our mate.

"Comfortable?" he asked, checking in with me. I was but I had no idea what to do with my hands so I left them laying limply in my lap awkwardly.

“If you want, you can put your arms around my neck,” he said. It was a simple suggestion but I felt the weight of it. I did want to, and feeling a tiny bit braver, with Allie's words echoing my thoughts, I lifted my stuff arms up and rested them around his neck and I felt myself relax a little as he started to walk out of the dungeons. The bright light of the beautiful day stung my eyes as they adjusted from the darkness of the dungeons, and I turned in to his body shielding my eyes. He held me closer and I breathed in his heavenly scent, feeling calmer than I had in months.

It was a short walk and we were walking through the large door in only a few minutes. His tall frame stalked up a set of Central stairs and down a corridor to his room. Once inside, he laid me carefully on the huge bed along the back wall. His room was nice, neat and tidy with clean lines and wood features that stood out against the neutral light grey walls. The bay window housed a comfortable looking window seat that looked out into the forest, and I could see it was getting dark outside.

It must be night time, but I had no idea what time it was. Where was I going to sleep tonight? I could only see one bed in here and he hadn't mentioned a guest room. Or would I be sleeping back in the dungeon later after our talk?

"Is this your room?" I asked, needing to check what the deal was.

"It's our room now," he said, smiling as he went to a mini fridge and produced two bottles of water. He handed me one.

"Oh," was all I could say. He unscrewed the cap of the water and took a long gulp.

"I'm going to jump in the shower quickly and then we'll talk. I won't be long, I promise," he said, and turned towards the en-suite. As the bathroom door closed behind him, my panic went into overdrive. He wants me to sleep here with him in this bed. He's going to want to do things. To mate. I couldn't stop the panic completely taking over and it clawed at my insides. Everything suddenly felt too much, and I had to get out of here, the urge to run was immense.

"Stay. Mate will protect us," Indie tried to calm me.

"We can't stay. We will get hurt again, Indie," I told her.

"We can't leave the pack. Its not safe," she said. I knew she was right. We had to stay in the pack grounds for now. Indie is too weak to shift and we would be vulnerable if we left.

Well, if we couldn't leave the pack grounds, I could leave this room. I summoned all my strength and wobbled to the door, only just making it to an empty room I found next door, quickly closing and locking the door behind me. I focused on my breathing, which was now erratic and ragged, trying to take deep breaths to calm down. Indie wasn't helping though, wanting me to go back to Brad. But I couldn't. Instead I curled up on the bed and squeezed my eyes shut, hoping it would stop the tears from falling.

It didn't.