CHAPTER THREE

As she got older, Lina had always taught herself to learn from other people's mistakes. Never pick a fight with the largest person in the room, don't talk back to a man with a pride bigger than his head who might be visibly turning red and most of the times she avoided making those mistakes but it was her own that she just never learnt from.

It's like her brain was always challenging her to see how stupid she could get everyday and she always succeeded at that. To prove how stupid she actually was that is.

And at that moment when she finally woke up from her not so peaceful dream she couldn't help but to wonder what mess she had gotten herself into this time.

The pounding in her head made her think that she had definitely had way too much to drink, which explained her not remembering what actually happened. She knew she wasn't a heavy drinker but every time she joined her rug rat friends she was always trying to prove that she was just as good of a drinker as the next guy and no matter how many times she hit her head after a few drinks she just couldn't get it into her head that she couldn't handle more than two mugs.

Groaning, she moved her hand to rub her forehead only to feel a burning pain shooting through her whole hand, prompting her to bring it flying back down to her stomach.

"Holy shit" she groaned louder as if that was going to stop the pain that was shooting through her whole body making her toes curl and her body doubling over as she clutched her stomach.

Her body immediately screamed at her in protest as she rolled over to her left side bringing her knees to her chest. That was probably another one of her best dumb ideas, she didn't know why she thought that position was going to make her feel better because more than anything it just brought her more pain.

Maybe she had gotten more than just drunk yesterday. A fight maybe? She asked herself. But that was highly unlikely, not impossible but rare. She couldn't have. She couldn't help but to wonder how drunk she could have gotten herself to have gotten into a fight.

Instead of screaming her voice out, she buried face into the soft silk pillow. Silk pillow?

Her head quickly shot up at that thought, and as if to answer her question the door opened to reveal the bulky blue eyed monster and with him he brought a flood of unwanted memories.

She had surely dug herself into a lot of bull shit this time.

"What do you want from me now? I already told you that l don't know anything, l don't know what you people want from me" she said speaking into the pillow, she had no doubt that he heard him.

"I didn't come here to cause you any harm"

"Then what do you want, l doubt you came for a friendly greeting, or maybe you came to wish me dead for whatever you assume l did"

Reed could feel the painful sting of her words that were accompanied by a hateful glare. She was angry and he didn't blame her, it just hurt that his mate would look at him with anything but love in her eyes.

"You know what? It doesn't even matter, l just want to get out of here" His eyes immediately shot up to meet hers as he started panicking at her. He didn't want her to leave. She couldn't leave.

"No." he said reaching his hand out as if she was already taking her leave, getting a tilted confused look from his mate "I mean you can't leave now." He was starting to fidget from where he was standing and he couldn't help but to realize that he was still standing by the open door.

Turning back he immediately closed it and when he turned he could see the panic behind her eyes. She thought he was going to hurt her, he thought as his blood was at the brink of boiling. He would never hurt his mate. But you did, his wolf said. It was the second time since he met his mate that he spoke. How nice of him to make an appearance.

"So then you want to keep me locked up in here? You want to keep me prisoner until l say something" she said as she kept looking around as if a hole could suddenly open up for her to escape.

"I told you l don't know anything" she yelled as tears started rolling down her face.

Reed didn't even have to think about it as he practically ran to her side and engulfed her in a hug.

Without even realizing it she hugged him back as she let her tears flow freely as her body started to shake uncontrollably

"I just want to go back home" She cried as she buried her face into his chest. Lina already knew that they were mates but finally feeling the sparks wash through her body was a different feeling on it's own, one that she couldn't help but to bask in. Even for a little moment, she told herself. She wanted to feel safe with no worries, she wanted to be held by someone else even if it was for a little while.

In her mind and heart she knew her mate would never hold her like this if he knew the slighted bit about who she is.

"I'm sorry but l can't let you go right now" he said as he squeezed her tighter.

As if his words were burning coals on her skin she quickly pushed him away and wiped her tears. She knew she wasn't supposed to expect anything from him especially when he had put her through torture but she just couldn't help but be hopeful. If he didn't want her as his mate, wouldn't it be easier to send her away?.

"So what? Am l your prisoner now?" she said as she moved away from him and gave him a glare. She wanted him to feel even an ounce of her anger.

"Of course you are not. It's just…" he sighed as he ran his hands through his hair "It's just that, you and me, we're… we're…"

"You and l are mates?"

"How do you know that" he asked with wide eyes trying looking straight into hers. A human to easily pick up on their mate was never heard of no matter how much they knew about mates.

"How l know doesn't matter does it? What matters is that you don't care"

" Of course l care"

"No, you don't. If you did you wouldn't have done what you did. So don't come here now acting like the knight in shinning amour that you're clearly not."

&    &     &       &        &

Blood was still trickling down his arm but now it was dripping slowly which came as a huge relief to him. The pain in his stomach was the problem. He had screamed an ear piercing scream whenever he had to stop and try to tie it with whatever leaf and rope he could find but he still felt like he had done nothing to slow the bleeding as it kept pouring down his pants.

At this rate he knew he wasn't going to last if he didn't make it home fast. Home? He scoffed at that. He didn't have a home, neither did his friends or family. They were rogues after all. Shaned by every wolf that had a pack thinking they were below them, out to squash them under their shoes like the bugs they said they were.

At least he had people to go back to. He thought to himself as he kept himself from falling unconscious. He had to get back to his family. They wouldn't be proud of what he did today but they would still love him no matter what. That he was sure of.

Just as he was ready to give up and throw himself on the ground he hear

heard someone calling his name. At first it was too faint he thought he had imagined it but when it got closer he felt like his life had been put back into him.

"Gale, goodness Gale"

"Stop yelling in my ear" he groaned as be looked at her panicked face, looking over his wounds, panicking even more as she saw the amount of blood he was losing.

"You're not healing, why aren't you healing?" She said as she looked into his eyes.

Without waiting for his reply she turned to someone behind her and started giving out orders "Go on and tell Marsae to be ready for us, and also that he isn't healing fast enough" she practically shouted at the pup, it was probably the first time the young boy was seeing so much blood as his face turned pale.

"You three help me carry him back. Hurt him and l will reap your heads off"

Gale didn't know how and when they got back home, he just woke up with his whole body aching and bandages covering most of his body. He was sure all the bandages where unnecessary but when Rebecca started acting like a freaking mother, she went all out.

"Don't move. You might move the bandages" said Rebecca as she stopped her pacing and stopped him on his track with a piercing glare. She was angry and he knew it.

"Where did you leave Lina Gale?"

"Where is she Gale!?" she didn't care whether he was hurt or on his death bed, she was just about ready to kill him herself if she didn't get an answer and he knew it. He just didn't know which answer was going to let him live a little longer.

"I didn't have a choice. I barely got out"

"You barely got out? So what? you just left her there to die? She came to save you you bastard. And you're the one who chose to join that attack remember? So don't come here talking about not having a choice."

Gale knew Rebecca had a temper, always yelling at anyone when things didn't go her way but now, he knew he had messed up and he deserved it as he watched her knees give out and she went crashing on the floors on her knees. She wasn't yelling because she wash only angry with him.

 She was yelling cause she was worried about what was going to happen to their friend. That made him feel worse about himself. He had run to save his own skin and now their friend was in trouble because of him.

"They are going to kill her you know?" she said as she silently sobbed in her hands "The moment they find out about her they will kill her"

And he knew she was right.

& & & & & &

Tossing and turning in the silky bed that night, Lina couldn't help but to think that she was a little too hush on the guy.

he was after all her only way of getting out of that place so she had to come up with a better plan.

And that's all she slept dreaming about, amongst other thing.