I felt the sluggish throb of persistent pain as I peeled my gritty eyes open.

My mouth tasted of copper and rot and my throat felt as if it was made of jagged stone, painfully dragging the sound of my groan up and out. I raised a heavy hand, blinking rapidly at the burning light. I probed my face, my groan dragging out longer.

'Where was I?"

My mind was hazy. Drugged.

I pinched my brow, clenching my eyes shut against the burning light. It felt as if my eyeballs were smarting, no - pulsating inside my skull.

I tried to listen instead. For the sound of Lux's lawn-mower snores or Muffin pattering around the kitchen. Lux and I always dissolved into messes on our drinking nights, but usually she blackened out the windows. She thought I had sensitive eyes.

Beep. Beep Beep.

Not Lux's clock.

A machine?

I peeled my eyes open again, wincing at the flood of light. For a second, I just blinked and rocked my thousand tonne head to the side. White walls.

The paint was immaculate.

Bile burned in my throat and I looked up again, seeing just burning lights and white ceiling.

No. No. No.

Panic swamped me, blasting through my fogginess like a shotgun shell to a skull. I lurched up, teeth gritted against the hot flash of pain. I fought against the constraints of my tightly tucked blankets, my breathing ragged. I threw my legs out first but when I put my weight on them, they crumpled under me.

My head knocked against the side-dresser and a vase of flowers shattered against the ground. Water pooled out and I blinked at the colourful tulips lying forlorn now on the white floor.

Flowers?

Muscles trembling, I pulled a shard of the vase towards me and then stood. I wore nothing but a night-gown that hung to my knobbly knees. My hair was greasy, slicked back into a braid.

The beeping monitor was going haywire and only then did I notice the needle in my arm, now after tearing its own path after my graceless fall from the bed.

The door opened.

A male stepped in, a hand on the weapon on his waist. His eyes fell on me instantly. "Miss Linden...?"

I ripped out the needle, rage building like a tempest and I whirled on the monitor, and hurled it at him. It shattered against him and he collapsed in a rain of plastic and wiring.

Need to get out.

White surrounded me. Consumed me.

I hobbled towards the door, aware of the blood soaking down my leg. I could feel the bandage, wrapped tight against my skin. Useless now. I yanked the walkie-talkie from the man as he groaned in pain. Still alive?

Another manufactured Ravi freak.

Whatever they had pumped into me was strong. I moved in ragged, parallel lines, staggering from wall to wall with a trail of blood following after me. Every slow step only made me feel my escape time ticking down.

The medical wing was surprisingly unguarded, save for nurses and the occasional guard. I was able to cut through the corridors, using shadows and turned backs to escape on silent feet. The walkie-talkie was enough to avoid the guards, but the static was grating on my senses.

They knew I was out. They were coming for me.

Their mistake was not strapping me down like they usually did. And there was shit in my veins.

I couldn't string together a coherent thought and shifting would only unleash bloodlust. That wouldn't help me escape.

I stumbled down stairs and cut into another unit. And slowed.

Crying.

I stood in a wide lobby. Across from me, a set of electronic doors led into a coloured hallway. Nurses and doctors moved beyond the windows, dressed in pink scrubs.

I read the sign above the door. 'Maternity ward.'

Bile burned my throat as I inched forward. They're experimenting on new-borns now? Monsters. I inched forward, dragging trails of blood behind me.

From another set of double doors, a young woman stepped out. She was dressed in scrubs, in the middle of biting down a yawn. Her attention shot to me and her eyes widened. "Dear, you shouldn't be walking on that leg."

I wanted to cut the kindness from her throat. Fake, deceptive kindness. "What are you doing to those babies," I pointed to the alarmed door, my hand quivering.

Confusion pinched her brow. The talkie on my waist buzzed but I didn't take my attention away from her. She shrunk under my gaze; like a rabbit freezing when a wolf stepped from the shrubbery. I inhaled the sweet, sharp scent of her fear. "We're delivering them."

"Delivering them where?" I imagined giant needles in tiny bodies. I took another step towards her, watching as she glanced between the alarmed doors and the ones she had just come from. Her panic was growing, her heart pattering furiously.

I was going to tear it out of her chest and kill every single one of those freaks beyond the door.

"Nova."

His low voice slowed me. I stopped, side-stepping to find the Lycan standing in the doorway leading to the stair-well. His obvious panic began to subside when I met his gaze, but he promptly glanced between the nurse and I.

I glanced towards the window.

"Is she upsetting you?"

It took me a moment to realize he was asking me that. I blinked at him, floundering. The sight of him, standing there dressed in dark clothes – a stain against the burning white, seemed to break through the fogged panic of my mind.

"They're experimenting on babies," I croaked, but when I looked back to the alarmed doors, I could see the animals painted on the walls.

The nurse spoke then, her voice shaking. "Alpha, I don't know what's she's talking about."

The Alpha Supreme turned to look at me again. At the talkie clenched in my hand. The blood pooling at my feet. My shaking.

Guards began to filter in and I startled, falling back to the window. None of them had their weapons drawn, but continued to just watch me.

"What would you think they're experimenting on babies," His voice was calm. Soothing and yet, authoritive enough that I actually listened.

"The Ravi!"

"It's just a hospital," The Alpha took a single step towards me, hands raised. My gaze cut to the windows. I could see another building through it. "I wouldn't let that filth take a step inside this building."

Not too high.

"A hospital," I wasn't that stupid. I knew what a hospital was. But any wounds I had gotten during my freedom had been dealt with using duct-tape and whatever medical supplies I could get my hands on. Lux had never questioned my fear. She had her own troubles with doctors.

Lordie, Nova.

"A Lycan hospital. Reserved for Lycans and their human...well," He was suddenly pent-up energy, and his rising smile was a touch nervous. "Humans like you."

Mates. Moon-bounds.

The fog of panic in my brain faded. The nurse went to move, freezing when my attention snapped back to her. And yet, a low and rumbling call was enough to ease my worry, drawing my gaze back to him. He watched my easing shoulders and my calming breaths.

"I broke a machine," My thoughts flipped again, racing. "I need to – to pay it back."

"Don't worry about that. I will sort something out."

I eyed him critically. "I suppose an Alpha Supreme is considerably wealthy."

A guard spluttered out a noise, something that sounded remarkably like a laugh. The Alpha let out a low noise, sweeping that un-natural gaze around. "Leave us."

Without questions, the guards left. The nurse skittered towards the alarmed doors, slipping in. Beyond the glass, people had paused long enough to watch us.

Aggression reared her ugly head again. I hated being watched.

The Alpha glanced behind me, his lips lifting into a snarl. The nurses and doctors dissipated instantly. Unwillingly, and yet completely unable to help myself, I looked at the Alpha Supreme again.

"So, what's the plan oh 'mighty' leader."

A dark brow quirked. "You're bleeding all over the hospital floor."

"Yes?" I glanced down at the blood spilling over white floors. Good. Paint it red.

Lips pressing tight, he replied. "A nurse or doctor can get pretty antsy when a patient is just standing there, bleeding, and not being treated."

"I don't want a doctor anywhere near me." My head shot up, my tone cold.

"You need to be treated." He stood there, feet planted. Unmoveable.

"I usually manage." I snarled.

The blood was warm around my feet. Usually, a wound like this would be begun healing itself back. An itchy, uncomfortable feeling but one that had kept me alive. Whatever the Ravi soldiers had shot at me was meant to wound me for longer.

I suppose that made sense. Why create a beast and not create a way to stop them? All those shooting sessions made sense.

"You're friend made me promise that I would look out for you," The Alpha said awkwardly, "While my people escorted her back to her apartment to collect her things."

I could just imagine Lux demanding the Alpha Supreme himself to look over me. The image was enough to break through the final shroud of panic.

I loosed a sigh. "I will go, but on one condition."

The Alpha tilted his head. He was showing remarkable calm, even though I caught him glancing at the blood repeatedly. "What is it?"

"I want no pain killers. Nothing that will make me foggy."

Something flickered over his expression, too quick for even me to catch. With a softer tone, he said, "Of course."

With a limping walk, I followed him back through the hospital. He only turned to glance back at me occasionally and he took the stairs without question when I balked at the tight, metal box of the elevator.

I kept my attention primarily on him, eyeing the broadness of his shoulders and his hefty arms. The Omega had been created to fight Lycans like him – I just wondered if I would be presented with the opportunity. He led me to another hospital room where two people were waiting.

Darren was one of them. He was dressed in a nurse's uniform and smelled alarmingly of disinfectant.

"Hello Nova," He said softly, smiling even as I frowned at him. The Alpha cleared his throat. "I thought a familiar face would comfort you."

"How nice of you to assume anything about me," I limped past him, eyeing Darren and the female doctor who stood beside him.

The Alpha didn't respond, his expression grim and bothered. He observed the room suspiciously, crossing his arms and then, eventually returning his attention to me.

"Darren," I greeted tersely, moving so that I could keep them and the door all in my line of sight. The other medical professional was a dark-skinned woman who just clucked her tongue as she watched me. With a tone that brooked no argument, she said, "You are going to have to let us treat you."

"This is Doctor Helia." The Alpha explained. "She's trained to..."

"I can speak for myself, thank you Alpha," The doctor responded swiftly and I paused, waiting for the Alpha to flip.

He just took a breath and smiled, "I am overbearing you again, aren't I, Helia?"

"Like a mother-hen." Helia side-eyed him momentarily, before returning her full attention to me. "Now, I will need to examine your leg. Aswell as the bullet wound to you...oh, dear!"

I yanked the night-dress over my head, standing in nothing but a pair of knickers. The room went deathly silent.

Cheeks burning, the Alpha spun on his heel with lumbering gracelessness to face the wall. Clearing his throat, he said in a strangled voice, "I will go and get something to drink."

Only when the door slammed shut behind him, did the doctor speak, "You know dear, we are supposed to pull over the curtains and get your consent before you strip."

"I'm used to it," I had been conditioned to strip at the doctor's commands on threat of a blast from the water cannon or a trip to the lightening room. Some days I had fought, but then I had simply decided to pick my battles and wait for a better moment to strike.

"Well, I don't want to get sued," Helia informed me primly. "And I hear that you don't want pain relief?"

"No."

"As a professional, I would have to advise against that." Helia eyed me. "This will hurt."

"I would prefer the pain over the fogginess."

"Our pain relief shouldn't cloud your mind. The pain might."

I shifted, my chin hitching. I levelled my gaze at her, my tone a degree colder. "I don't want to take that chance."

"Alright," She marked something down on her clip-board. "Let's get to work then."

Darren moved to pull over the curtain, seemingly falling into a practiced routine. He didn't look at me as I watched him curiously. They began their work on me, and the doctor kept her word. She didn't give me anything to numb the pain. It was bad, but Lordie, had I suffered through worse.

"The Alpha doesn't mind a man being in here?" I asked as Helia moved to my gut. That wound had held up better, but hurt much more.

Darren shook his head. "I am a professional. This is my job. Easton understands that."

"Easton?"

Darren's gaze shot to me finally, his eyes wide and startled. "You don't know his name?"

"Never bothered to learn it," I pointed out stiffly. "And I didn't have many chances."

"Well, he should have told you." Darren shook his head. "Typical Easton."

They finished their work, efficient and quick but exceedingly gentle. As if I was made of porcelain and not bone. I could sense the Alpha beyond the doorway, like a heaviness inside my skull. I found myself slipping, tuning into the tread of his steps or the rustle of his clothes as he sat and then quickly stood, continuing to pace in agitation.

At one point, Darren just glanced at the door to laugh lowly.

When they were done, Darren pulled off his gloves and left the room, leaving only the doctor and I. "You will need to come for a check-up."

"I think I'll be okay after this."

"I don't think you will," Helia responded. There was no aggression in her voice, just calm. It kept me from tensing and I waited for her to finish. "This conversation is confidential. Alpha Young can't hear this and legally, he cannot make me tell him details of your condition."

I snorted. "I think Lycans are used to taking what they want."

Lips creasing in discomfort, she checked the door. "I know who you are. You're the Alpha Supreme's dead mate come back to life. A lot of things changed in the time you've been missing. Laws passed that protect the human mates of Lycans. There are procedures and practices in place and if I broke them, I could lose my job."

"And even the Alpha Supreme follows these laws?" I asked suspiciously.

"He implemented them." The doctor cleared her throat before continuing. "You've healed remarkably well, but you were put on a strong concoction when you were under. You will need to keep it up. I have a list to go through here that details the medication you will need to take, the dosage and the duration. I will get Darren to go through that with you, but..."

"I've dealt with worse." I told her. "I don't need the medication."

"Just because you've dealt with worse, doesn't mean that you have to continue dealing with it." She explained softly. "If you are uncomfortable with the medication or dislike the effects, I will try and provide a substitute."

I was silent for a moment. "I - I don't like not knowing what you are pumping into me."

"What I am giving you is nothing I wouldn't give myself." She told me, before raising a hand to pull aside her doctor's coat and the top she wore under it. There was a scar lying on her chest, dark and warped. "I was shot by Ravi soldiers once – it was a few years ago when I was walking home from a shift in this hospital as a resident. And I was only human so they expected me to die, but I didn't. I pulled through, took the medication the doctors advised, followed their recovery regime and now I am here, working in a job that I love and the mother of two gorgeous children."

I didn't respond and Doctor Helia continued as if nothing happened, handing me a fresh hospital gown to dress into. Soon, there was a knock on the door.

Helia glanced around the curtains and returned with a smile, reaching up to yank the curtains back. "Here is someone who might make you feel better."

The curtains were pulled back as the door clicked open.

"Meg!" Lux was a frantic mess, rushing forward, then pausing as she took me in. "You idiot! Why did you get shot?"

The tension plaguing me since I woke, eased. "I didn't ask to get shot."

She snorted. "You worried me. I never ran so fast in my damned life to get to the guard station. Goddess, they thought I was an incoherent mess."

"But you got help."

Lux eyed the doctor, who promptly made excuses to leave and shut the door softly behind her. Thumbing the strap of the bag hanging from her back, she dropped it to the floor. "This is full of your clothes."

"Thanks."

I let Lux help me get dressed. I didn't know if I was supposed to dress or if they were going to try and confine me here, but I would not stay within these white walls. I had to go- make a plan.

Somehow, protect Lux too.

She dressed me in another loose jumper, tucking it into the elasticated waist-band of a rainbow coloured skirt. Stretching knee high sheep adorned socks up along my legs, she asked, "You've some dangerous people after you, don't you?"

My throat tightened to me. "I am sorry about your apartment."

"Oh," She waved a hand. "Don't worry about that."

"But your plants..."

"We all got out, didn't we?" Lux placed her hands on her hips. "Although you're going to have to do a lot of grovelling to get Muffin to forgive you."

My lips twitched tiredly. "I'll buy her some treats."

Lux moved around the bed so I didn't have to turn and slid her hands into my hair. "You think the queen herself would be bought with treats?"

As Lux tried to braid my short hair into two little braids, I focused on the iridescent pattern of my skirt. I tried to think.

I had two problems. The Ravi and the Lycan. While the Lycan was a formidable male, the Ravi outweighed him. He certainly had never tied me down to a hospital bed and pumped me full of poison. Or locked me up, but only time would tell on that one.

"The Alpha Supreme asked me to ask if you would go to the canteen to get coffee with him. To talk he said." Lux said eventually, her tone gentle.

"You don't sound opposed to the idea?" I turned my head, observing her from the corner of my eye.

She hesitated, her hands falling from my hair. I touched the end of the short braids, smiling briefly when I noted she had used my cherry hair-ties to bind it.

"He was there when I got to the guard's station," She said. "And while he rallied Lycans to go and find you, he made sure I was given spare clothes, some coffee and that Muffin was tended to. I mightn't be the best judge of character...."