Chapter 143: Chapter 143

/Aiden's POV/

Damon insisted on calling his mate to inform her that we were leaving for the clinic. I asked him to tell Rose about my location, not wanting to worry her. Along with my beta, we both stepped inside the room, finding Slyvie on the bed.

The doctor bowed as soon as he saw, greeting politely. I waved at him, my eyes flickering towards the frail body of the omega. My heart clenched at sight, guilt swarming in my belly as I recalled the way I behaved with her in our past meetings. I should have given her another chance to explain instead of letting it go.

"H-How is she now?" I croaked, turning to the doctor, my hands falling by my side.

"The patient suffered a head injury. The attack was not major, so I gave her a painkiller injection and iv drip. She is fine and will wake up in an hour or so. But just in case, I advise you to let her stay overnight in the clinic, Alpha."

A sigh escaped my chest, shoulders easing at those words. If something were to happen because of me, I could not handle the guilt that came along. I already carried a lot of it for not giving my mother a chance to explain herself.

"We will take care of that. Thanks, doc." Liam mumbled, seeing him out of the room.

Damon came back after attending the call, his gaze settling on Slyvie for a second before staring at me. My friend was aware of the history we shared as to why he hesitated to ask me about her. So, the beta was quick to explain the situation, and we decided to wait for Sylvie to regain her consciousness.

"Should I make you an arrangement in the packhouse, or do you prefer a cabin for your stay?" Liam asked, turning to Damon, their chairs pressed together.

Technically not more than one person was allowed inside the room, but the doctor made an exception for us. Still, he reminded Liam that only one of us could stay the night.

"Liam, he is not alone. Arrange a cabin for both of them." I chimed, interrupting their conversation from the couch.

"Oh shit! I almost forgot."

Damon chuckled and brushed it off.

***

A few minutes later, I saw Slyvie's eyes blink open, letting out a long and pained groan, the omega undoubtedly feeling the repercussions of the pain in her head. I scooted my chair up the bed when her unfocused gaze fluttered around the room and her shoulders lifted in an attempt to get out of the cocoon of blankets. She sat up, her back resting against the pillows.

"Hey," I whispered, slowly moving my palms in front of her.

Damon and Liam decided to get some coffee from the nearby cafe, leaving me all alone in the room.

The omega's lips parted in an attempt to reply, but the only sound that came out was a raspy cough that went on long enough for tears to trickle down her pale but blotchy cheeks. Rushingly, I leaned over to the nightstand and grabbed one of the glasses filled with water. It was not filled to the brim, so it was easier for the omega as she accepted it shakily.

"Are you okay? Should I call for the doctor?" I asked, looking over my shoulder, breaking the pressuring silence that surrounded the room.

"N-No." Slyvie winced, wiping her lips with the back of her mouth. "Where am I?"

"You're at the Pack clinic, and you shouldn't move too much," I cleared my throat. "The doctor said that you hit your head pretty hard."

"Oh..." She breathed, her eyes widening, wriggling one hand out of her blanket to gingerly touch her temple. A white bandage was wrapped around her. "I don't remember—What happened?" With that, Slyvie blinked confusedly, her wide eyes glancing around, probably taking in the pale clinic walls. "Who brought me here?"

"My pack guards found you on the border." I swept a tongue over my dried lips, straightening in my chair. "Do you remember who attacked you? Anything might help."

"I-I am sorry..." She shook her head, pain etching across her features and teeth latching on her bottom lip. "I wish I could be of help. Everything happened so fast."

A sigh escaped past my lips as I blinked at her, taking in the defeated look. She's the victim. I did not want to put any more pressure on her. Not when Slyvie herself was trying to come in sync with her situation.

"It's alright. Take some rest. I will be here if you need anything."

Before the omega could reply, I heard loud footsteps approaching the room. Whirling around, I noticed Rose rush in along with Ria in tow. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Slyvie squirm in her bed, slowly pulling the covers close around her body. Then it sank me that she might be afraid of Ria after what went down between them in the past.

I stood up, facing the two ladies, giving them a weak smile.

Rose came rushing to me, wrapping her arms around my neck. The heaviness in my chest eased a little as soon as her scent trickled in my nose. I pressed a kiss on top of her head, smelling the citrusy shampoo.

"Hey, love."

"Can we talk?" She blinked at me, the grave tone alerting me.

My eyes settled on Slyvie for a second before I hummed. Leaving her all alone with Ria was not a wise solution. The worse comes to worst; she might drop due to the added stress. That's the last thing I wanted, given she's the only hope for me to find the killer who attacked my mom.

"Sure." I turned to Ria. "Damon and Liam are in cafe. You can find them there."

"Oh...okay. I'll see you later then." With that, the beta turned on her feet and left the room.

"Let's go!" Rose tugged on my arm, pulling me towards the empty waiting room. The omega rushed to close the door, standing against it as she met my eyes. A worried look crossed her face.

"What's going on?"

"Ria told me all about Slyvie, Aiden. You have to get rid of her now."

I spluttered at the panic in her tone; my eyes narrowed together. "Ria? Seriously? What did she tell?"

"You don't understand...Ria said that Slyvie was two-timing you and threatened to kill Ria if she ever told you about it." Rose frantically said, throwing her hands in the air, a heavy flush sitting on her face. "Ria caught her kissing that Ricky guy! I am telling you, get her out of here. She is here for a reason, Aiden."

I took a step closer to my mate, wrapping an arm around her waist to calm her down. The sound of her heart thumping echoed in my ears, breathing erratic. "Baby...calm down. Are you seriously going to believe Ria? Slyvie told me that my friend threatened her and made her leave. You know it. Besides, Ria tried to sabotage our relationship. It would be foolish to take her word again."

"But she sounded so honest..."

"She does that. Also, Slyvie is injured, and the doctor asked her to be in the clinic for one more day. It would be rude to send her away when she's in this situation because of me."

Rose let out a sigh, her hand coming to cradle my jaw. "It's not your fault. You didn't know this would happen again. Stop blaming yourself."

"Yeah, but after the attack, I should have tried harder to find the person who did this to mom."

"We will get him soon."

"I hope so too." I made a face. "Why did you come all the way here? It's still raining outside, right?"

My mate let out a noisy breath, her hand coming to rest on my chest. She started draining random patterns, eyes trained on her index finger. "I had to see you. You were gone all day. Did you eat anything? I made some chicken curry for you."

"Baby, you shouldn't have. I told you to take it easy."

"That's what I have been doing all day. Ellen and Caden came to check on me in the evening."

"They did?"

"Mhm, they were worried for me now that Ria is back."

I winced at the mention of her name again, knowing fully well that it must have been a shocking surprise for her. "I am sorry about not telling you about her before hand. Damon got mad that I did not tell him about anything. He will be staying here for a while with Ria."

"It's alright. Ellen and Caden told me anyway. They ran in the rain to see me, so I let them in our cabin today, Alpha. Do not worry, they were not in my nest."

Of course not. Omegas are possessive about the nest they make and rarely allow their own mates to enter inside. It's their private space, a place to connect with their pup all alone.

"Oh!" I breathed. "It's alright, baby. I will scent the rooms later for you."

"Thank you." Rose pressed a kiss on the corner of my mouth, pulling away with a shy smile. Her hand came to wrap around my wrist, the fingertips digging into my skin. Looking up at me, she blinked, her lashes fanning the cheekbones. "Let's go now. I want us to have dinner together."

"Uhh...I can't."

***