Chapter 15

Sybil’s POV

I’ve been stabbed, I brought my hand down to press at the gaping wound, the pain from it running down my spine in a chilling sensation.

Before I could look back at who had stabbed me, the soldiers were already mixed up. I brought my hand to the wound and scooted over to the side of the hallway, using the wall to support my form.

Blood was quickly oozing from the wound and my head was getting light, vision doubling over the other. I brought my bloodied hand to my eyes and saw it multiply in the same lot and felt my stomach churning angrily.

“Sybil?” An unfamiliar voice called. When I looked up I saw a familiar face, but I couldn’t tell who she was because my eyes were blurry.

“Whoa.” She caught my head with her hand, “what happened?” I knew the person now on a closer inspection, Eve, my quiet second roommate. I thought she hated me, she barely spoke to me or paid a glance in my direction.

“That’s because you feel you are high and mighty, quick to judge all the girls here like the generals and soldiers do.”

What? Did I say that out loud?

She chuckled, very low, that I didn’t know if my head was playing tricks on me. “Yes, you said it out loud.” Her arms came around my shoulder, “we have to take you to the infirmary.”

No!

If I go there my secret would be discovered. I can’t bear that.

“I’m fineeee.” Every word felt like my tongue was injected with lead to make it hard to lift and fine.

“You are far from fine, girl. The infirmary.” Eve looked around frantically, placing her hand on my wound to stop the flow of blood, but it only soaked both our hands.

“Anyone help! We need a hand here!” She yelled and I immediately yanked her down with all the strength I could muster.

“Pleaseeee, not the in-infirmaryyy, fine, I am fine.” I wobbled on but she shook her head, believing I was suffering from some sort of concussion.

When she didn’t believe I had the next best thing; give her a half-truth. It was a secret I’d sworn I would carry to the grave with me, but if I was discovered, I couldn’t imagine what they would do. Alpha Kane, the rogue alpha, and the generals.

No, I would be in much more danger than I am now.

With my free hand, I pulled her closer to me. The side of my stomach where I was stabbed began to itch. It was already happening.

“Can I trust you?” I slurred, breathing through my mouth as the feeling of nausea increased.

“What nonsense are you spilling?” She turned to holler for another help when I quickly said.

“I don’t need to go to the infirmary, I’ll be fine, I just need you to take me out of here.”

She halted and took in the urgency in my voice and look.

“A-are you sure?” She stuttered and dropped her gaze to the stabbed wound.

“Yes, please get me out of here.” Eve was quiet for a moment, probably contemplating what madness was running through my head before she nodded and gave in.

“Can you stand?”

“Mhmm.” I shook my head.

“Alright, wrap your arms around my shoulder,” she instructed and I did just that. My arms draped over her shoulder as she rose gently.

“Please no one has to know.”

A worried sigh left her then she murmured, “this is why it is good to keep to yourself.”

As we stood up the world tipped back and I stumbled over, dragging Eve along with me.

“We need help,” she said. I shook my head.

“I can’t possibly carry you alone, what do you think they feed us here?”

“I’ll be—“

“And don’t say you’ll be fine.” She shut back before I could complete my sentence.

“What’s going on?” Aria yelled and we both released a sigh of relief. I haven’t been this happy to see her before.

My head pounded like the camp was throwing a party on it and my stomach churned even angrily, pushing all the food I had consumed to my throat. I shut my mouth tight and managed a stern look at Eve not to say anything.

“Can you help me, she was stabbed,” Eve said, completely ignoring me.

“What?!” Aria rushed to our side immediately. “How? What happened? I told you to stay back!”

“There’s plenty of time to yell at her, let’s get her out of here immediately.”

“The infirmary—“

“No!” Both I and Eve yelled. We exchanged a glance and Eve added, “it’s not that deep, besides we have something that can help back in the room.”

She crouched before me and nudged Aria with a tilt of her head. “Help her to my back.” Aria didn’t protest and neither did I.

I flung my hands over her shoulder, acutely aware of the blood drying up and the itching of my skin. “Are you sure it’s not serious?” Aria asked staring at the pool of my blood on the ground.

“Yeah. Now let’s go.”

Eve carried me all the way to the room, she didn’t stop till we neared the bed. When she placed me down she turned to Aria, “get a bowl of warm water with a rag please.”

Aria stood, shifting from one foot to the other. Her pale eyes found me and asked, “Are you sure we shouldn’t take her to the infirmary? She looks bad.

Eve turned to me and gave me the, you see what I’m saying, I’m not the only sane one here,’ but she turned to Aria and said, “Yes, just get the rag and water. I’ve got this.”

Staring at us one last time, she hurried out. Eve faced me immediately, “If I’m going to protect your secret, you have some explanation to do.”

She grabbed the scissors from the table and cut the pieces of clothes around my torso open, revealing the gnawing wound.

“This looks ba—what the fuck!” She gasped, blinking and staring at it again.

I knew what was happening, the skin around the wound was quickly stitching itself together. I could feel it from the itching feeling, beckoning me to scratch it.

This wasn’t the first time, in truth it was the only way I survived all the mistreatment with Alpha Kane’s soldiers. I discovered my fast healing abilities some few years back and I had kept it a secret till now.

“I know, but you can’t tell anyone.”

“Bleeding moon!” She cursed and I quickly grabbed her hand to slam her back into reality before Aria returned. I trusted Aria, but the fewer people who knew your secret the easier it was to know who betrayed you.

“I can see your skin melding together. Oh, moon goddess. How is it possible?”

“I don’t know, questions later, Eve, you need to wipe it clean before she comes.” I adjusted on my bed, careful not to get blood everywhere. “My head feels light.”

“Oh sorry.” She rushed to her bed and pulled out a metal box, then pulled out the blood-drenched clothes from under me.

“I’m here guys.” Aria set the bowl of water down, she brought two then handed a white clean rag to Eve.

“Are you sure you’ve done this before?”

It was Aria who answered for her as she went to work, “Yes, always helps with the girls. She’s good.” Aria explained as she took a peek at my injury.

It was small now, compared to when I was first stabbed. I clenched my teeth and pumped my jaw as I felt the itching coming. If Aria kept prying then she was bound to see my skin sewn against the other.

“Move, I need my space,” Eve shooed her away, to my luck Aria raised her hand and stepped back muttering something like, Yes ma’am.

I watched Eve meticulously clean the area of the wound, then apply antiseptic, and wrap the side of my stomach with white fabric even though I didn’t really need it.

The manner in which her fingers moved told me that she had done this more than once. Aria seemed to see my staring in awe and filled in, “her dream was to work with the physicians in her pack before she was sold here. Her parents used to be healers.”

I see. Eve’s jaw locked and her eyes grew hard as she tried to push away the memory.

“Nobody chose this life, Sybil,” Aria added and Eve rose to her feet.

“Don’t go pouring tears now,” Eve said taking the bowl to the bathroom, “I can’t stand it.”

Aria snorted, “But you can stand blood.”

“Mhmm.” She hummed from the bathroom. A few minutes later she walked out and helped me out of my dress completely. “Not everyone.”

“What?”

Eve grinned, “Violet wants it.” Then she and Aria burst out laughing. I couldn’t help but feel bad at the thought of being an outsider to an inner joke.

“The alpha’s daughter, Violet.” Aria sweetly filled in, “She might want to be a sex slave so bad.”

Now I laughed along with them, having been added to the circle.

As I laughed I thought that I had somehow made family here than in the pack I was brought up in. A girl I didn’t speak with knew my secret, she cleaned me up and another helped.

We may be trauma bonding, but I believed a bond had to be formed from somewhere, didn't it?