Chapter Three - My Mysterious Mate

Alexandrios Vasiliou’s POV 

I stared at the beautiful girl in my arms with horror. She was the most exquisite creature I had ever seen in my life, her skin and hair almost exuding a silvery hue. However, the blood oozing from her wounds had me concerned. The overcoat covering her hardly covered her tattered clothes and injuries. My heart sank with dread at seeing her condition. Who had done this to her? I ignored my wolf, Rio, who kept chanting only one word since he saw her.

‘Mate!’ 

“She’s a spy, Alex. Don’t let her die. I need to extract important information out of her,” said Alpha Zephyrus as we rushed towards the elevators. My heart sank with disappointment. Was my mate a spy? The girl looked too young and innocent to be a spy. 

“Are you sure, bro? I don’t think she’s an adult even. Who did this to her?” Rob brought a stretcher, and I eased her gently into it, but couldn’t loosen her grip on my coat. A wave of tenderness filled my heart for the young female, critically wounded and battling for life. 

“The prison guards. I’ll investigate this and take action on them. If she recovers, call me.” Zephyrus left, and we rushed the patient to the emergency ward with her still clinging to me. My entire body was filled with anger at the thought of someone abusing the young creature. 

“Call Dr. Sylvia right now, Rob.” Dr. Sylvia was our experienced gynecologist, and I needed to be sure about the extent of the abuse. I checked her feeble pulse, and we immediately placed her on life support and IV drips. I had to save her life, not because Alpha Zephyrus wanted me to, but for myself. My heart went out to her, and I felt a powerful urge to protect and take care of her. 

She was way younger than me. I was sure Rio was mistaken. This pale creature couldn’t be my mate. We carried out the routine examinations on her in the next few minutes. Yet she didn’t gain consciousness. 

Dr. Sylvia arrived, and I had to leave for my rounds. Thankfully, Dr. Sylvia helped ease her grip on my coat so I could leave. “I’ll report to you when I’m done checking her.” 

I nodded and walked away reluctantly. A strange force pulled me towards her and I couldn’t leave her and go. But I was a busy doctor and the founder and owner of the only proper hospital in Lucania.

It was my dad’s dream, and I had achieved it at the young age of twenty-six. Although my twin Leandros funded the project alongside me, he wasn’t interested in operating it. Now, within a short time, we had renovated the only hospital in Lucania which our dad, Elias Vasiliou, had built twenty years ago when he was the Zeta of the Luceres Pack, headed by Zephyrus’s father, Alpha Demetrius. It was a monumental task, and I had a jam-packed schedule with no time for enjoyment. As such, I hardly missed the absence of a mate. 

While my twin and my friends had already found their mates, I was the only one left behind. So, was the young spy my mate? I blinked the thoughts away and checked my patients instead. 

After a round of the Emergency section, I headed towards the ICU to check up on the mysterious spy girl. How had Dr. Sylvia not called me yet? Was the girl critical? A sense of dread gripped my heart. Did she die? Wouldn’t I have felt it if something untoward had happened to her? After all, she was my mate!

I entered the ICU and walked up to her bedside to see her in the same condition as earlier. Only now, her wounds had been tended to. The nurse rushed in to report to me. 

“Good evening, doctor! Here’s the patient’s chart. Dr. Sylvia left just now on an emergency delivery.”

I nodded and frowned at her medical chart as she updated me. “The patient’s pulse rate is still feeble, ranging between 50-55. There are no signs of se*ual abuse. Her genitals are untouched. All the injuries were inflicted by a blade mainly on her limbs.” I breathed a sigh of relief. 

“That’s good news. Did she gain consciousness yet?” It was important to know more about her before Zephyrus did. I had to know her name and find out her motive for coming to Lucania. 

“No, doctor. Dr. Sylvia tried everything in her power to revive her.” With her respiratory rate fluctuating, and her blood pressure low, I immediately knew she was sinking. 

“Have you tried CPR?” The nurse shook her head. 

“Dr. Sylvia wanted to do it when she returned.” I immediately set to work on the mysterious creature. She hadn’t stirred ever since she fainted in my arms. “If this doesn’t work, we’ll induce hypothermia to lower the patient’s body temperature and stimulate her brain. Prepare for surface cooling first. You can get two of our cooling blankets to induce hypothermia. If everything fails, I will use intravascular or endovascular methods. Clear?” 

“Yes, doctor.” She left to do her job while I removed the cover and prepared the patient for CPR. She lay still, and I felt angry with Zephyrus for treating someone this way. He should have taken more interest in what was going on in the pack than going on a honeymoon trip with Lena, his Luna. 

I checked the patient’s breathing and put her in the recovery position to open her airway. Wasting no time, I performed 5 sets of 20 chest compressions in two minutes. Now was the time for rescue breathing and Rio was excited. 

‘Mate! I’ll save you,’ he whispered with determination. 

‘She isn’t our mate, Rio, but if you can connect to her, I’ll be glad. Revive her if you can.’ 

‘She is our mate and I’ll prove it to you.’ Rio sounded mad and I left it at that. He could try reviving her, but we would never pursue her. She was too young for me. 

I tilted the creature’s head and lifted her chin to open her airway. Pinching her nose close, I sucked in a deep breath and placed my mouth over her soft one to create an airtight seal. My heart, my mind, and Rio’s too went into overdrive at the touch of her soft mouth to mine. I lost my senses! So did Rio! 

It was strange since I had performed CPR more than a million times already but felt nothing at all until now. ‘Focus, Alex!’ I tried to concentrate on the task at hand, which was to revive her and prevent her from slipping into a coma. 

I blew my breath into her for almost a second, checking to see if her chest rose. Rio tried connecting to her through the mind link. 

‘Wake up, mate! I’m here for you!’ 

‘Open your eyes, pretty mate! I’ll protect you always!’ 

Rio kept on while I went for a second round of rescue breathing. I just wished this would work, and I didn’t have to use an AED to provide electric shocks as the last remedy. 

Again, I placed my mouth on hers, but this time, her lips felt warmer. I blew air into her like before and her chest rose and she sucked in a deep breath. I released her mouth to see her stirring! 

My heart thumped with excitement as I patted her cheeks gently. “Wake up! You’re safe here.” 

She slowly opened her eyes, and I staggered backward as a jolt of electric current shot up my body. What was that? Her beautiful golden orbs gazed back at me with confusion, and I drowned in her eyes. 

When she lost consciousness in my arms earlier, her hair had covered her hooded eyes. But now, after meeting her gaze, I knew she was my mate. She was the one I had collided with earlier, but she had disappeared like a breath of fresh air. I couldn’t pursue her with a surgery to handle in ten minutes! 

“Water,” she croaked, and I came out of my dazed state. I brought a bottle of water to her and helped her up. She took a sip, her scared eyes holding my gaze. 

She was too frail to be eighteen. Was she underage? “Who are you?” she asked in a whisper after quenching her thirst. “Please don’t send me to the prison. They’ll kill me.” 

I released her and sat beside her to know her details. “I’m Doctor Alexandrios Vasiliou and you’re under my care in my hospital. You have nothing to fear. You’re safe here.” 

“Are you a Lucerian too?” She cringed with fear as she waited for my reply. I realized she distrusted us after what she went through. 

“Yes, but I’m just a doctor. I’ll help you recover. What’s your name?” 

She hesitated, watching me warily. “Will you punish me? I swear I’m not a spy.” 

“I know you aren’t. I’ll protect you. So what’s your name? Are you underage?”

She gave me an apprehensive look. I knew she didn’t trust me. 

“I’m Cerelia Belmont. I’m not underage, I’ll turn eighteen in two days. Please don’t throw me out.”