33

Word Count: 2147

~Dove

Steeling myself, I slowly lift up my skirt a few inches until the mark on my thigh is revealed to the physician.

He takes it in, pausing for a moment.

"Oh...Varian, this is your mark," the physician marvels, confusion furrowing his brow. "I thought you were having her remove a mark so you could mark there."

I roll my eyes, shaking my head.

"Dove does not want to bear my mark, and that's being honoured," he says tightly, giving me an apologetic look that I scowl at.

"Very well, but you should know that a connection to an Alpha is rare and strong. It will be much harder to break," the physician says casually.

I straighten. "Are you serious?"

This is only getting worse the longer I'm sitting here. Lucky for Varian, he looks just as surprised about this, which assures me at the very least, he hasn't marked anyone before.

Varian tightens his grip on my shoulder, looking down at me. "Do you still wish to go on with the procedure?"

I face ahead. Varian has lost his mind if he thinks I'm backing out of this now. A bit of pain is worth it to get this mark off my body.

"Do you have pain medicine?" I question, scanning the tray which comprises of a devastating lack of products.

The physician only waves his hand. "It would interfere with the process. It would be best not to allow anything to drag this out."

I sink deeper into the seat, letting out a groan. I should have figured that would be the case.

"Fine," I grumble reluctantly. "Let's do this."

"Be especially careful with her," Varian says suddenly, pinning the physician with a look that sends the temperature in the room plummeting.

The physician pauses, and then nods quickly. "Of course."

I chew on what is left of my nail. They've been bitten all the way down throughout the drive here, and now there's barely anything left.

"Lean back and try to relax," the physician orders calmly, picking up the strange, clear liquid before handing it to me. "It's time to drink this. Every drop."

Scanning it for a moment, I give the liquid a little shake. It quivers unnaturally, having a gummy, vicious texture to it. I look at the physician and Varian in turn, waiting for one of them to tell me this is some kind of elaborate joke, but their sombre expressions give nothing away.

Sighing, I bring the glass up to my lips. With one final deep breath, I chug half the liquid down, cringing at the strange texture as it glides smoothly down my throat.

"Ugh, it's foul tasting," I complain, shuddering from the sensation. It tastes metallic and off putting, leaving my mouth sticky.

"It's better if you drink it all in one go." The physician taps the underside of the glass.

"I think I might be sick." My stomach is pitching, threatening to expel everything that's just made it down there.

Varian runs gentle fingers along the crown of my head. "It's okay Dove. You're okay."

With a scrunched up expression, I down the rest of the liquid, coughing into my elbow once it's gone. My body already feels weak and wary. This is only making it worse.

I glare up at Varian. "I hate you for this."

"I'm so very sorry," he admits. "I'll make it up to you. I promise."

I'm undecided on how I'm going to make him repay me. Maybe I'll demand he stays away and gives me the gift of his absence. That might help me get over this.

By now, the physician has taken the glass from my hand and set it down. He's settled on a stool beside the stool, dipping a square, compact bundle of gauze into herbal solution that is supposed to remove the bond from my body forever.

It's going to be over soon...

"Just do it before I pass out," I plead, looking down warily at the dripping cause, and then at the exposed mark.

The physician glances up at Varian, as if for final permission before he presses the soaked gauze against my thigh.

For a moment there is nothing except for the startling sensation of the cold herbal mixture touching my leg. It makes me gasp, clutching the arms of the chair.

And then, all at once, a tidal wave of pain overcomes me.

On instinct, I try to jerk away from the pain, but Varian is there to grab me before I do. The physician grips my leg, keeping it pressed against the chair so the mixture doesn't slip away from where it needs to be located.

A guttural scream tears from my throat. Agony sweeps through my body in waves, following the path of my veins, heating up my insides.

The worst of the pain comes from where the mark is located. It feels as though my skin is melting off, dripping onto the seat when past the fog of pain, I know it's just the liquid.

"This is a normal response," the physician assures us, looking up at a panicked looking Varian.

"Breathe Dove. It will be over soon," he says with a shaky breath, one hand still pinning my arm, while his other brushes the hair back from my face.

My skin is burning, so hot I can feel the sweat swiftly gathering on my skin before sliding away. My muscles are tight as pain digs into them, feeling as though the fibres are being ripped away at, shredded into nothing.

The physician presses down harder on the mark, drawing another pained shriek from my lungs. "Only a minute left."

"You're so strong. You're doing so well." I can barely hear Varian's words of encouragement. All I hear is the dull thumping of my waning heartbeat in my ears, and the violent flush of blood around my head.

Even my vision seems to be collapsing. Dark spots mottle the world around me, a dark vignette closing in around the edges.

"Shh, don't cry." Varian's hands feel wonderfully cool as they touch my face, even if he sounds as though he's in another room. "Think of how great it will be to finally rid of me, huh?"

Maybe I'm lost in the pain to the point where everything feels like the sensation, but the thought of casting Varian out of my life is almost enough to make me throw up all over myself.

Suddenly, the pain vanishes as the physician releases his grip on me and removes the gauze from the mark.

"Alright, it's done."

I slump in the seat, a flood of exhaustion pinning the weight of my body down.

"Holy fuck...that was excruciating," I gasp out between burning breaths, feeling every ounce of pain flicker out of my system.

I'm back in the room, back in reality. My body feels drenched in sweat and tears, and when I look up, a worried Varian is looming over me.

However, his troubled stare is trained on the physician, who is inspecting the mark.

"Ronald, what's wrong?" Varian questions.

I lean my head up, my body feeling leaden. The physician looks stricken, his overgrown brows pushed together, mouth open with shock.

My heart immediately plummets to my stomach. Something has gone seriously wrong.

"I figured there may be remnants of the mark remaining." He shakes his head in bewilderment. "But it's still here, fully intact."

Sitting up, I ignore the ache of my limbs to look down at my thigh. Sure enough, the mark remains where it is, completely untouched. Not even the edges have frayed. The crimson skin around it is the only indicator that this procedure even took place.

Panic grips my throat as effectively as a hand around it. No.

"That's impossible," Varian snaps. "Is your mixture weak?"

"It didn't feel weak," I croak.

The physician sheds off his gloves, his shoulders drawing forward in resignation. "My mixture is just fine. The bond is too strong."

I look up at Varian, startled. Damn him and his ridiculously strong Alpha genetics. He's forged a bond between us that cannot so easily be broken.

"Please don't tell me I have to do that again. I can't take it." I shake my head at the physician, the thought so excruciating I could cry all over again.

He only looks up at the Alpha. "Varian, are you aware of what this must mean?"

"I am not."

The physician's expression has morphed from confusion to marvel. He looks between the two of us, seeing us in a new light that I am yet to see for myself.

"You're mates," he breathes.

My jaw goes slack. "What?"

"Why would you say that?" Varian demands, his eyes falling to the mark.

He looks shocked, terrified and confused. His dark hair is messy and wild from the amount of times he's raked his fingers through it, and most of the blood has leeched from his face.

"I've only ever failed to break the bond between a mark and it's giver once before," the physician explains. "In that instance I was trying to break a bond forged between mates. It cannot be broken. Not like this."

"You're lying," I grit out.

This has to be some ploy. Varian may be excellent at acting, but this can't possibly be true. This is some kind of game to get to Matthias, to pretend there is a connection between us when there is not.

"I am not," the physician grumbles, offended I even made such a remark. "The mate bond is stronger than a common mark. Many times so. It's forged by the Moon Goddess, it's metaphysical, intangible. It cannot be broken, which is why the mark remains."

Everyone's eyes fall to the mark, so I shove my dress down to my knees. This is ridiculous. I've been subjected to all that pain for nothing.

"This better be some kind of sick joke," I growl up at Varian.

He only stares at me, eyes wide and vulnerable, lost deep in thought.

"I imagine that if you're in each other's proximity long enough, other elements of the bond will reveal itself. You'll feel the sparks soon enough." The physician stands, having said all that he needs to say.

"No!" I swing my legs over, ignoring the bite of pain from the sensitive mark. "You set this up to trick me, to get me to move here."

Varian shakes his head desperately.

"Dove, I didn't—"

I stand from the chair, my entire body almost collapsing from the weight of my exhaustion. I brace myself against the arm of it to keep myself steady, trying to let my anger fuel my walk out of here.

"We are not mates. I refuse to believe it," I snap at him.

He reaches for my arm as I make an attempt toward the door. "You can't walk yet."

"Yes I can...ow." I falter, my head spinning, the walls tilting in different directions. Varian grabs at me, keeping me from toppling over, but I shove him off. "Get off me."

He lets me go, but he doesn't look pleased about it. I can hardly care, wanting to put as much distance between myself and him as possible. He's lying about a mate bond, and I'm not going to sit here and let myself be convinced otherwise.

"Let me help you out, at least," he begs, wincing as I bump against the doorframe.

"I'm getting in your transport and your driver it taking me home," I tell him between shaky breaths. "I never want to see you again."

As I push through into the little shop, Varian swerves around me. I've never seen him so unkempt, so uncertain. It's jarring, knowing the kind of person who usually is.

"I understand this is shocking, but we need to speak about this."

Despite his desire to keep me here, he still opens the door for me. I emerge into the cool night, relief brushing against my skin in the form of a gentle breeze.

Stumbling toward the transport, I brace myself against it, turning to look at him over my shoulder.

"Don't come find me," I demand softly, before shoving the door open, and slipping inside.

Through the window, I catch one last glimpse of him. He looks anguished, defeated.

I can't bring myself to care, as the transport pulls onto the street, and drives away.

💙••💙

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***

My hands tremble by my sides. "Don't sleep with her..."

He steps toward me, his eyes dark. "Why not?"

"Whatever you were planning to do to her tonight, do it to me instead," I whisper.

***

~Midika 🐈‍⬛💜