Chapter 7

Maxwell POV

I twist my body slightly to face her, and Ava immediately looks past me to see the girl sitting against the tree, crying her heart out. “Oh my Goddess,” she gasps quietly. “Are you okay?”

She pushes herself further into the tree, digging her heels into the dirt. I watch her mouth, but she says nothing. She flicks her eyes between Ava and Sebastian hesitantly.

“Are you hurt?” Ava tries again. It’s obvious she’s injured, but making small talk is better than nothing. The presence of a woman might help her trust us.

The girl shivers against the tree from the crisp night and lack of clothes on her body. “I just want to get away,” she murmurs again.

“Then, let us help you,” Ava says softly. “We can get you all the help you need. You’re safe with us.

You’re injured. We can help get you cleaned up, and then we can get you to wherever you need to go.”

For a moment, I see her guard drop. She’s battling with herself whether she should believe us or not. I get it; trauma doesn’t go away in seconds. But I fear she’s about to make herself incredibly ill if she’s not seen too soon.

The sound of a branch cracks behind us, and I spot Sebastian inching closer. I tense my shoulders to find her trembling from the unexpected noise.

Ava shoots him a look, and Sebastian moves away. “Please, please, please,” she begs desperately.

“Hey,” Ava’s hand moves forward, but she doesn’t touch her. The girl eyes her fingers. “Hey, easy. It’s okay.

I watch as her eyes roll into the back of her head, and she slumps against the tree. “Shit,” I curse. Her exhaustion must have forced her body to shut down.

“What should we do?” Sebastian asks.

“Take her home,” I state.

Ava looks at me like I’m crazy. Maybe I am. But she doesn’t know the main reason I want her to come home with us. “We can’t take her home. That’s Maxwell. We weren’t brought up to be those kinds of wolves.”

“What do you expect us to do?” I hiss under my breath. “Drop her off at the police station? Goddess knows who or what is after her, and I don’t trust those shitty cops. She’s already emotional and le. The safest place for her is our house.”

Ava’s blue eyes flick between mine rapidly. “Or the damn hospital, Maxwell. She's Luna.”

“And?”

“She doesn’t belong.”

My jaw grinds. “And she’s about to die if we don’t get her seen as soon as possible.”

Sebastian sighs from behind us, and Ava glances at him. “And when she wakes up?”

I shrug because I haven’t thought that far ahead. I want her safe first. “We’ll figure it out. Please, just trust me. I need to do this.”

Ava’s eyes are weary, but she nods after a few moments. “Fine,” she huffs. “But only because her injury looks severely infected, and even I can’t heal something that serious, especially on a Luna.”

“Can you keep her in a deep sleep until we get home?” I ask. “Use your powers to keep her safe for the time being. The last thing we want is her waking up mid-drive and trying to throw herself onto the road.”

“I don’t like this, Maxwell,” she grumbles but moves closer. “I want her healed, and I want her to find her family, friends, or whoever can help her after whatever she’s been through.”

I bite down on my tongue before I say the wrong thing. “Agreed.”

Ava gently casts a hand over the girl’s face. A wave of energy emits into her body which will keep her asleep for a little while longer. Once she’s in a comfortable, deep sleep, I scoop her up into my arms and carry her to my car.

I choose to ignore all the sensations running through my body. Now is not the time to be having a revelation when she’s fighting for her life. I might be desperate to know more, but her health comes first.

“The infirmary?” Ava suggests.

I nod. “Then we can get her settled in one of the spare rooms for privacy.”

Once we get back to the house, I carry her towards the infirmary. A pack doctor inches closer to see the injured Luna in my arms. “Alpha?”

“She needs her .”

“Right this way.”

I step into the private room and let her down onto the soft bed, her frail body dropping as she rests against the pillows.

“Maxwell?” Ava grasps my attention, but her voice is too loud for my liking. “Are you going to tell me what on earth is going on?”

I press a finger to my lips and shake my head once.

She’s still sleeping. I shoot through our mind link.

One of Ava’s brows flexes, and she places her hands on her hips, waiting for an answer. I love my sister to death, but it’s annoying that she always figures out when something is wrong, even when I feel like I’m good at hiding it.

I hold her stare. She’s my mate.

She doesn’t move. She doesn’t say a word; she just stares at me.

What do you mean?

She’s my mate. My wolf felt it. I felt it. Something is there between us, and I know that sounds crazy, but I can’t explain it. I just know.

Ava looks dumbfounded. I am, too. Maxwell, are you sure–

Yes. Yes. I’m sure. I’m not going crazy. I know what I feel.

How? Second-chance mates are a myth.

Now That I feel. Just trust me on this.

Her eyes wander over my mate as she sleeps against the white bedsheets. What’s her name?

I don’t know. We didn’t get that far. A deep sigh escapes my lips. I study her chest as she breathes, every movement rigid and harsh. But I know whatever she’s gone through has been hell.

My fists tense, and I grit my teeth in anger at the state I found her in.

I turn back to Ava. When she wakes up, can you please be here to help? She’s petrified, and maybe seeing another woman will help her calm down. I’ll have the doctors on standby.

Of course. She nods and she reaches out to take my hand, giving it a quick squeeze. I can’t believe this, Maxwell.

I can’t believe it either.

Ava leaves the room to locate my leading pack doctors whilst the other doctor begins to check her temperature. “Her abdomen,” I point. “She’s wounded, and it looks infected.”

The doctor glances at the large gash and studies it for a moment.

“Gemma and Alyssa will need to heal this. I fear my powers won’t be strong enough for a Luna body.”

When he leaves, I find myself studying the fragile girl lying against the soft sheets. From an outsider's perspective, I realize how odd this situation may look, but I couldn’t have left her.

I want answers. I need to know who did this to her. I need to know how I may have made it.