Kael’s POV
"There will be days she is too weak, and days she will stand so strong you may not know how to deal with her. Her mind will remain volatile for a long time, or maybe forever. You must accept this broken version of her if you wish to keep her with you."
"As long as she stops attempting suicide, I am fine with any version of her," I said firmly. "Tell me what we must do to drive those thoughts out of her mind."
"The root of everything lies in the pain and suffering she has endured through the years," the doctor replied. "She has locked it all away. She trusts no one, sees no hope. She lives like the walking dead. First, we must free her mind from the prison of that pain."
"How do we do that?" I asked.
"By making her face it, making her talk about it. She needs to express what she has buried so deeply. It must be allowed to flow out," the doctor explained, then asked, "Have there been any instances that provoked strong reactions in her?"
I gave a short nod. "Twice. Once when she happened to see her own abuse video, and again when we spoke of her child."
"Both are precisely the keys," the doctor said. "They strike at her deepest wounds. Once she begins to release that pain and somewhat heals, the second step is to reunite her with her son—if he can be found and if it is possible."
"I will do that," I assured her.
"Not yet," the doctor warned, her tone firm. "It would not be good for a child to be near a mother who is unstable. Though she loves her child, that love can be dangerous for them both. There is a real chance she might try to end both their lives together."
And here I was thinking of running her with her son soon to make her feel better.
The doctor continued, "You saw yourself how she spoke of wanting her son to die as well and meet him in afterlife. In her mind, this world holds no worth. She believes strongly in afterlife. And we cannot risk her acting on that belief and harm her own child."
Her words chilled me. I never could guess her situation was this bad. She was dying every day while breathing, that’s why she cared for nothing.
"I will keep that in mind," I said at last. "I will not bring her son to her until she is ready."
The doctor gave me an proving hum.
We discussed further on how to make her release her pain and we had a plan after a long talk.
"...It will be truly painful for her, but we have to do it," the doctor said. "And I will be around as well, so she should be fine."
I hummed again. I had to tell my brothers about it.
----
Rafe’s POV
I came to the prison administration office to get Eira’s file. My arrival wasn’t informed, so ultimately everyone was shocked and somewhat terrified to see one of their five Alphas. I could smell the fear even from the distance.
They feared me more because, to those loser wolves, I was a Vampire—the kind that didn’t sit well with them.
Fuckers! As if I am going to drain them dry of their filthy blood.
"A-Alpha Rafe, welcome," one of the suckers said.
"Where is the main officer?" I asked and entered the main office area.
Before he could answer, the main officer showed up and, just like the previous one, he welcomed me with wariness as if I was here to bring disaster to their heads.
"I want a certain case file from six years back," I told him as I entered his office, with him following me, while I settled in his chair, my legs stretched on his work desk.
"Yes, Alpha. Please tell me which one?" the officer said.
"Eira Caldwell," I told him. "You get only five minutes for that." I looked at my old, almost ancient-looking wristwatch. "And your time starts now."
The officer ran out while I told the other one, "And you. Get the one who was in charge of the case."
The other one quickly ran out.
I closed my eyes and rested my head back in the chair, my sharp hearing senses zeroed in on the almost non-existing sound of my watch’s hands.
Tick! Tick!
"Five... Four... Three... Two..."
"Alpha, here is the file," the officer hurried inside the office.
I opened my eyes lazily and looked at him. "You just saved your blood."
He controlled his wariness and handed me the file. I got it and looked through it. "Where is her blood report?" I looked at him.
"It’s... it must be there, Alpha..."
I tossed the file on the table. "Do you think my eyes can only see the blood rushing through your veins and not what’s in this file?"
"Apologies, Alpha." He picked up the file and realised there was no blood report. "As per the strict protocol, the blood and physical tests are always performed on the... but why is it missing here?"
"Are you seeking the answer from me?" I asked coldly.
"No, Alpha... I..."
Just then a man entered the office—the same officer from the video who interrogated Eira.
"Alpha Rafe," he offered a professional bow.
The first one turned to him. "You were the officer in charge of this case. Why is there no blood report?"
He looked through the file and then looked at me. "Alpha, her blood was indeed taken for the test. That same night, the entire pack was in chaos, and instead of paying attention to her, every one of us had to enter the fight with the enemy. And after that, we all were dealing with chaos and going after our enemies. Later Alpha Kael declared her a culprit, as we all knew what she did, so there was no more need for wasting time on anything."
I couldn’t fault him, as we were all the same in that regard.
"Blood was sent for a test, that means reports were made?" I asked.
"That should be the case. We have to check the hospital record from six years back," he said. "I will get it for you."
"No need," I replied and stood up. I didn’t have time to waste on their snail like pace.
I headed straight to the hospital. Not just Eira, but I had to get Alice’s blood test reports as well. The way Alice was terrified and asking Eira to save her, I was sure something was wrong there too.
I had to go through the hospital archives. Fortunately, they had at least conducted the tests. With the reports, I went straight to Kael.
I met him in the corridor. "Are you coming from the doctor?" I asked, his expression serious.
He hummed and looked at the envelope in my hand.
"Her case file and the blood reports," I told him as I handed him one file.
Kael quickly opened it while I told him, "She was indeed drugged."
Kael’s hand froze for a moment, but he read the report anyway.
"Not just her, but Alice as well," I said and showed him another file—Alice’s case file. "The same drug was given to both of them."
The veins on Kael’s hands tightened as he heard it. I could feel the anger inside him, the same as mine when I first read the reports.