Chapter Four: Briar

Briar woke up in a state of pure terror. The scent in the air was unfamiliar, but she could just faintly make out the scent of a predator and as an Omega she understood more than any other wolf in the pack, that that meant danger. Snapping her eyes open she tried to push herself up into a sitting position, but that turned out to be a mistake.

Every single part of her body hurt. Her face hurt. Her arms hurt. Her ribs hurt more than she’d imagined was possible. Her toes and feet and legs definitely hurt.

The room that she had woken up in was dimly lit. She had no idea where she was but she was relieved that it wasn’t her bedroom and it wasn’t the jail cell back in Iron Moon.

“Hold still, Little One. You really went through something. The doctor’s on his way, but he has quite the drive from Fairbanks and apparently we’re due for our first storm of the year. I guess I found you just in time, I didn’t hear about the storm until I turned on the radio when I got back. Hopefully he’ll make it before the storm does. Either way you look like you could use something to eat and drink, if you’re feeling up to it. Are you?”

Briar stared with wide eyes at the hulking shape that was sitting in the chair in the corner of the room. Never in her entire life had she seen a man so huge, and it wasn’t as if werewolf males were small. He was in the shadows, so she couldn’t see him clearly, but she sensed that he wasn’t entirely human either. Even without seeing him though, she was certain that he wasn't a wolf shifter.

“What are you?” The words slipped out of her mouth in a soft whisper, and the second that she said them she wished she could take them back. Was it rude to ask someone what they were? She didn’t even know the man’s name yet. And she certainly didn’t want to get off on the wrong foot. She always seemed to be doing that and it usually ended badly for her.

But instead of getting angry, the giant only laughed and the sound was deep and rich and made the hard painful knot in her chest unclench the tiniest bit. His dark eyes were so kind, and the way that he looked down at her was so unlike the way that the men in her pack usually looked when she caught their eye that she relaxed ever so slightly. His hair was dark and he had a full, neatly trimmed beard, but it couldn’t hide the clear, strong lines of his handsome face.

“Oh Wolfling, we’ll get to that, I promise. In a way I think we’re alike? But I do think that we shouldn’t get into all that on an empty stomach. And once you’re full, if you’re feeling up to it, you can use the guest bathroom right in there to take a bath? If not that’s okay too. I don’t want you to faint again, especially not in the bathtub, so if you think that might happen, let me know, okay?”

Briar nodded.

“Do you think I might wash up a bit first, before I eat? Not an entire bath or anything. I just feel so disgusting.”

“Yeah, here let me help you though. And maybe as I’m helping you, we can have you take a few sips of water and see how you keep that down.”

Briar nodded again, eyeing the man nervously as he moved towards her. He closed the distance between them and bent to scoop her up and then, much to her surprise carried her into the bathroom where a stool was already waiting in front of the sink.

The bathroom was enormous. It had two sinks, with an enormous mirror, a whirlpool tub, and a giant shower.

“This is your guest bathroom?” Briar asked, her eyes wide.

“Mhmm.” The man replied as he reached for a couple of washcloths and turned the water on, making sure it was warm before he began submerged the washcloths and then began to ring them out.

“Who are you?” Her dark brown eyes were so wide and innocent, that Torin nearly smiled, which was not something that he did very often.

“My name’s Torin.” As he said his name he gently began to dab at the dirt and blood on her cheek. Even as he attempted to wash away the grime, he wondered if there was any point really trying to clean her up before she took a bath. The blood and dirt was so dried and hardened so that she really needed a good soak to get everything off of her.

“Is there anything that you feel like eating?” he asked as he continued to work to clean her up. He couldn’t help but admit to himself that he was curious about what she would look like when all the dirt and blood was washed away. Or better yet, when she had a few months of healthy meals packed on. Quickly, he pushed the thought away. He wouldn’t be around her when that happened. She’d be someone else’s problem by then. She had to be. He shook his head, as if the motion could clear away the thoughts.

“Anything sounds good.” she said, with an easy smile, before wincing when the washcloth brushed over a cut that had been hidden under the layers of dirt. He paused, watching her for a long moment.

“I have an idea. Why don’t you take a shower? Do you think you’d be up for that?”

Briar thought for a minute before agreeing that she would.

“You do that,” he’d begun to dig through the assorted extra toiletries he kept around for when various shifter visitors ended up stopping by and needing a place to stay, which wasn’t an altogether uncommon occurrence given his position in the Grizzly hierarchy, “and I’m going to go heat up some chicken noodle soup that one of my mother's friends brought over last week. She brought enough to feed and army and I have several containers in my freezer. I’ll heat one up for us for dinner right now, along with some bread. Does that sound okay?”

“That sounds wonderful.” The girl’s eyes were enormous as if he’d suggested lobster and caviar. Then again she did look as if she was rarely fed. While he was taking care of her, he was going to make sure that changed dramatically.

He showed her how to work the rather complicated shower, and then got it up and running for her, before setting out several towels and a robe.

“I’ll put out one of my t-shirts, which will be like a dress for you, in the bedroom. I’ll have to see about getting you some other clothing.” He paused, his eyes skimming over her body, smiling ever so slightly as her cheeks turned pink. He couldn’t help but think that she was lovely, before he pushed the thought away.

“I don’t have anything that wouldn’t be gigantic as pants. But the t-shirt would do. Just look for it on your bed when you’re done. And then head down this hallway and you’ll find me in the kitchen. If you need anything, yell.”

“Thank you.” Her voice was soft and pleasant and he nodded, smiling to himself as he turned and walked down the hallway towards the kitchen.

Briar closed the door and stared at herself in the mirror, taking in the cuts and bruises before she turned away. Her mind went back to the previous morning when she had smiled at herself in the cracked mirror that hung on the back of her bedroom door. She'd been excited for her birthday that morning, sliding on a pair of well worn jeans and a cute new shirt that her mom had managed to get her. The pink t-shirt Briar had been so excited to wear for her birthday had been destroyed at some point during the last twenty-four hours, but she wasn't sure exactly when.

Wincing she stepped into the shower. The warm water cascaded over her body and she let out a sigh. It felt good to wash away the dirt and blood that had accumulated since she'd recognized her mate.

Picking up the soap she scrubbed her body, ignoring the way the soap suds burned the cuts that hadn’t fully healed. If her wolf was stronger they would have already closed, but she was the weakest wolf her pack had to offer.

She had a younger sister and for years she’d been giving most of her food rations to her sister, so that her sister could grow to be strong. She desperately wanted her to be stronger than just an Omega. Her sister was twelve now, and already she could keep up with the other girls who were higher in rank and stature.

Briar managed a small smile as she poured shampoo into her hand and lathered her hair. It would be worth it if her sister could somehow manage to rise above the status that they had born into and become something else. She would take every blow and every unkind word and never say anything back just to know that Lilliet hadn’t been given the same treatment that she had received. Rinsing her hair she plucked an expensive looking conditioner from the wall and watched as it pooled in the palm of her hand before massaging it into her hair.

This all almost felt like a dream. And a nightmare. She was still bound to her mate and as long as that link between them remained then he would ultimately have to come looking for her, wouldn’t he? He couldn’t just let her go, to live her own life, when the mate bond still remained between them.

Maybe she should have waited in the cell for him to come and sever the bond. A shiver crept up her spine at the thought. But she had heard the guards discussing what else would befall her in the morning. They’d seemed certain that she would be executed, but they’d also been arguing about who would get to have her first, before she was killed, after the Alpha rejected her.

Cara, she heard someone say, had promised them that they’d each get a turn before she drew her last breath, and that had been the first time she’d emptied her stomach of the meager contents of her lunch, barely managing to turn her head, with her hands bound tightly above her.

Rinsing her hair, she turned the water towards the red, until it was so hot she could hardly stand it and let it run over her skin, closing her eyes. It felt good to be clean. She would have to get out soon. But for just a moment she let the cleansing, almost painful heat sweep over her body, and tried to pretend that it could wash away more than just the dirt and blood from the past day.

For a moment she pretended that she could wash away the link that forced her to feel something for someone that she didn’t even know and didn’t want to care for. It all felt wildly unfair.

Just like the last time the attack came on fast. Briar felt a tightening in her chest and she tried to reach for the silver knob to turn off the water, but her vision blurred as a stab of pain, as sharp as any knife, sliced through her abdomen.

Somewhere in the distance she heard a woman scream, not realizing that the sound had left her own lips as she slipped down the slick blue tiles. Briar curled into a ball as her eyes fluttered shut as the pain overtook her again, the betrayal of the mate bond slicing through her body until there was nothing left but pain and sorrow.