An Alpha's Duty

Chapter 31

Ryan rushed towards the memory of Lenah as she sat motionless in the middle of the room. She was tied to a chair, with her hands bound behind her back and her legs chained to the seat. Blood dripped from her face. He noticed her lip was split and her eye socket was badly damaged.

She had open slashes across her arms and legs and her breathing was extremely laboured. For the moment, she appeared to be unconscious, just sagging forward slightly in the chair. He had no idea what had happened to his mate but she could only be about 16 or 17.

Even in her unconscious state, her glamour stayed in place so that her markings were completely hidden. Wherever they were, she didn't want to show her true form.

There was nothing else in the room other than an empty table off to one corner but Ryan knew an interrogation room when he saw one. It wasn't so different to the ones at his own pack but he never expected to see his mate in a cell such as this.

It smelled of death and decay and Ryan could see that Lenah's blood was pooled on the floor. She'd been left in this state for some time and the thought made him angry.

The door to the cell swung open and a large man walked through followed by three others. He watched as the man's cruel gaze landed on Lenah's broken body and his lips turned up in a satisfied smile. It was a cold, calculating smile that had Ryan's stomach turning over in dread.

Lenah was beginning to stir but she kept herself still so as not to draw any attention to herself.

"Take her to the holding cells. She stays there in case that healer gets any ideas." The men rushed forward and unlocked the chains from the chair but kept her hands tied behind her back.

They half carried, half dragged her body through the door and down two flights of stairs before throwing her into an already occupied cell. Ryan winced as her body fell into a heap in the middle of the cell and he heard her ribs crack from the force but Lenah made no sound.

"Well brother looks as though you've got a new cell mate. Try not to kill her now, okay?" The large man laughed at his little joke and began walking back the way he came until the door slammed behind him.

The sound echoed around the room as the other men went to sit inside a room adjacent to the cells. If Ryan had thought the interrogation room smelled bad, the holding cell smelled worse. The whole place smelled of blood and Ryan shivered involuntarily as he spotted Lenah's new cell mate.

The figure was obviously chained to the wall and wouldn't even be able to reach Lenah, where she laid in the centre of the room, but Ryan had a feeling he wouldn't go to help her anyway. His clothes hung around him loosely and he kept his eyes down, unwilling to focus on his surroundings. His features were hidden behind wild hair and a long beard but he didn't look that old, maybe slightly older than Ryan.

After awhile Lenah began to twitch as she fully regained consciousness. She let out a little gasp of pain as she tried unsuccessfully to push herself to her feet. In the end he watched her drag herself across the floor and slowly ease her back against the wall.

She hissed slightly when she finally managed to get herself into a seated position and tried to wipe the blood from her face. Her hair was cut severely short but judging from it's jagged design, Ryan would guess that it was a new addition thanks to the man who had ordered her here.

Once her eyes focused on the man in front of her she looked nowhere else but at him. Ryan could swear he almost saw a ghost of a smile cross her face but then she grimaced in pain and the moment passed.

"Your brother's a dick." When she spoke blood ran down her chin and dripped onto the floor as her busted lip moved awkwardly with her words.

The man didn't even raise his head, only the sound of rattling chains indicated that he was even breathing. Lenah tilted her head as she looked at him with a thoughtful expression.