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He watched as Dr Abbie finally disconnected the IV bag that had been supplying his mate with the needed supplements for survival and gathered up her syringes. He wasn't the only one watching. His beta, gamma, and delta were all present, including his sister. They were all driving him insane with their bickering, as much as he tried to block them out.
"Don't you guys have anything else to do?", he asked irritably.
"No, Alpha", Bo and Alexis chorused, smirking at him. "We want to meet her too".
"And I suppose you can't meet her another day", Lucas mumbled under his breath. He saw Bo give his sister a grin and roll his eyes.
The voice of Dr Abbie interrupted the less than friendly thoughts he was having towards his friends.
"That'd be all", she said, stuffing the last of the drugs inside her bag. "Now, we just have to let the last effects of the drugs die out on their own. And remember, Alpha. No stimulation. Anything could set her off, from loud noises to sudden movements."
Lucas nodded. "Thank you, Doctor".
She smiled, gathered the rest of her things and left the room.
He sighed, then turned to the rest of them. "You heard her", he said. "No stimulation. Which means you can all return to your duties and not use your Luna as an excuse to slack off." He gave them his best glare.
"Oh, come on, Lucas", Cole said, crossing his feet at the ankles and leaning back on the sofa. "Don't be a spoilsport", he grinned up at him.
"No one's gonna disturb her", he assured them. They frowned slightly. "Except maybe Bo".
"Hey!", the latter protested. "I'll have you know I'm perfectly capable of keeping shut, thank you very much!", he said indignantly.
They all chuckled, even Lucas. "All right. You can stay", he conceded. "But for God's sake, be quiet!"
Bo grinned and highfived Alexis, while Lance stood and headed for the door.
"You're not staying?", Alexis asked.
His gamma shook his head. "I have work to do, and besides, Luna isn't awake yet. I'll meet her when she is."
"Finally, someone with a bit of sense", Lucas mock-groaned while Bo mumbled under his breath.
With Lance gone, the rest of them settled into a comfortable silence that was broken when, only a few hours later, the small figure on the bed stirred.
***
Adrienne POV
I woke up to a surprising absence of the steady beeping of the heart machine that I had somehow gotten used to. With a brief spurt of terror, I wondered where I was. I had been moved from the hospital, that was for sure.
The stark white walls, the bright lights, the sterile air and smell of antiseptic, those we're all gone. In their place instead were dark grey walls, slightly dim lights, plush bedding, and the smell of roses.
I can't remember anything happening in the last few days, but I do remember that I was drugged. Heavily. My head was still throbbing slightly from them. Groaning, I thought of the nice words I would have if I happened to come upon Dr Abbie again.
I was so detached from where I was that I didn't notice I wasn't the only occupant of the room. My attention was swiftly called to it when I heard a voice whisper.
"She's awake."
My head jerked in the direction of the sound and I came face to face with four people staring at me earnestly. Slowly, almost indecipherably, I moved backwards. They weren't in threatening positions, but that hardly mattered. That could swiftly change.
One of them took a step forward, and I scooted backwards a lot more, my eyes widening as I recognized him. It was the man Dr Abbie had referred to as "Alpha". What was he doing here? Although that really shouldn't be the question I should ask. What was *I* doing here?
"It's okay, honey", he said. His voice was like velvet-wrapped steel. Smooth, and at the same time strong. It almost made me want to curl up to him. I shook my head. Where were these thoughts coming from?
Apparently, he took my head shake for negotiation, because he stopped dead in his tracks. "Okay", he said. "I won't come any closer. I'm not going to hurt you".
I almost scoffed. That's the worst lie I've ever heard. "I'm not going to hurt you" is exactly something you said to someone you were planning to hurt very, very badly.
I shivered slightly as I suppressed the memory.
"Are you cold?", he asked, his voice almost sounding like he cared. But I knew better.
Keeping my face neutral, I shook my head slightly.
"Okay then. I'm just going to..." He pointed a thumb over his shoulder at the chair he was supposedly sitting on before. I stared, wanting to ask the question that had been on the tip of my tongue since the first time I woke, but keeping my mouth shut for fear of getting beaten. Asking too many questions could get you that.
I looked down at my body and was surprised to see myself wearing a loose-fitting lilac sundress with little flowerprints. My wrists were bandaged thickly and I could feel the same bandages on my back and torso. I surreptitiously patted my body and was shocked to touch something hard. A rib brace. For some reason, the wounds in that area stung only slightly. These people have taken care of me, I thought. Why though? I'm a total stranger, and now a rogue. A pang shot through my heart, not at the thought of my old pack but at the thought of my wolf. She had lent me her last bit of strength on the day I escaped, right before I had my unexplainable burst of power, and I hadn't heard from her since, even now. I couldn't even feel her.
Tears gathered in my eyes at the thought that she was gone. Just like they all did. My mate, my friends, and now my wolf. She was supposed to stay with me, but now she's gone. *They* made her go. They made her leave me.
The tears began to fall faster and I began to sniffle, trying hard to hold in the sobs that threatened to spill out. I saw a shadow fall over me and looked up to see the Alpha gazing down at me, a pained expression on his face.
This was it. I'm going to get beaten again for showing weakness. I shut my eyes tight and waited for the blow to land as he stretched out a hand towards me. Instead, I flinched as his hand touched my face softly, almost caressingly. He tilted my head up and my bangs fell out of my face, leaving him staring into my eyes. My heart began to beat faster as I saw the confusion cross his face like everyone else did when they saw my eyes.
He furrowed his brow. "Why? You're.."
My tears seemed to have stopped prematurely, whether in response to his touch or in response to what I was sure would happen next, I wasn't sure. I waited for him to comment on the unusual nature of my eyes when he cut my voice.
"Alpha, you might wanna see this", the voice said.
We both turned to the male wolf that had spoken to see him looking at a bunch of white roses in a vase that must've been giving off the scent earlier.
I stared at it. The flowers were wilting right before my very eyes. The plump, white petals that were just now standing proud began to turn black as it curled up on itself. I watched with horror as the stalks also began shrivelling slowly, until the whole thing just crumbled into the vase, a few petals landing on the table and immediately turning to dust.
Turning slowly, they all looked at me with wide eyes as if they couldn't believe what they had just seen. In a way, I couldn't either.
Then slowly, the Alpha's hand slid from its spot on my cheek as he kept on staring at me. His mouth opened and he said one of the words that I dreaded to hear.
"You're fake."
