Chapter 9 - A blessing or a curse?

“GET UP!” The old woman shouted as she pulled on the chains to unlock them. She didn’t care that Lena was in incredible pain as she pulled Lena upright and dragged her out of the room. Lena recognized the direction they were going in and she rolled her eyes when she heard the woman complaining about having to babysit her. Apparently, she had never been this humiliated in her life.

The doctor seemed happy with the way the wounds were looking as he cleaned and dressed them and informed the old woman that Lena was not to get the bandages wet. It was as if he had just asked her to carry Lena for the rest of the day, and Lena fought the urge to laugh. The old woman dragged her back down the passage and came to a halt in the middle of the laundry room as she scanned it from one side to the next.

If she forced Lena to wash anything, the bandages would get wet and the old woman would be in serious trouble with the doctor. She seemed to make up her mind as she suddenly turned to her left and walked over to where the girls were pretending to work. She shoved one of the girls out of the way and told her to take over Lena’s station before tying the chains to the table.

Giving Lena a quick run through of what needed ironing, she gave her a quick look up and down before stomping off to her office. Lena breathed a sigh of relief for just a second before she realized that the two girls on either side of her weren’t happy to have her there at all. Not only was she their worst enemy, but she had clearly taken the place of their favourite person who had now been banished to the far end of the room. Oh, how Lena wished she could go back to that corner as she ignored the two girls and started with the ironing.

She worked until they all left for what she could only guess was lunchtime and she was preparing to work through her lunch again when Rebecca appeared in the doorway with a tray of food. The old woman had left with the girls and Rebecca plopped the tray down on the table in front of Lena. She pulled a strange-looking key from her pocket and unlocked not only Lena’s chains from the table but also her cuffs around her wrists and ankles. Lena almost cried with relief as she dug into the delicious sandwiches and fresh orange juice.

Rebecca made sure they had enough time to eat and talk a little while before she had to lock poor Lena up and leave. When the old woman and the omegas returned, they were none the wiser as Lena was already busy ironing. She wondered if they didn’t notice that she was still busy with the same shirt she was last busy with when they left, but it didn’t seem as if they noticed anything. She kept her smile to herself, thinking of how the young girl was able to move about without anybody noticing anything.

Or did none of them dare take her on, since she was the alpha’s sister perhaps? It didn’t matter, Lena felt as if she had someone on her side for the first time in many years. Rebecca was making sure she ate, and the doctor seemed to have a soft spot for her even if the man that was meant to love her could care less about her wellbeing. In the late afternoon, after all the omegas had already left, Rebecca stormed into the laundry room with Alaric hot on her heels.

The little girl looked positively furious as she pointed at Lena. Apparently, the doctor had been waiting to see her for the past hour, but she was still working. Alaric sighed and Lena pretended not to notice as he walked over to the office of the old woman. He closed the door, but their screaming could be heard clearly, and the old woman came storming out to unlock Lena from her desk.

She glared at her and Lena knew she was going to pay for this in the morning, but she was surprised when the old woman handed the chains to Alaric, promptly informing him that if he was so adamant about keeping their enemy alive, he could take care of her. Leah was in shock! From the little she knew about wolves, they were pretty adamant about their hierarchy and the old woman had clearly overstepped her boundaries.

When she looked up and her eyes met those of Alaric, she felt a bolt of lightning run through her body as he turned on his heel, handed Rebecca the chains and stormed back into the old woman’s office. This time he didn’t close the door and it really wasn’t pretty. He didn’t give the old woman half a chance to say something and Lena had to run double time when he burst out of the office and grabbed hold of her chains, dragging her out of the laundry room.

“If I had known you were going to be so much trouble, I would have killed you at the festival!” He growled, but one glare from Rebecca instantly changed the atmosphere. Lena heard Alaric take a deep breath before he turned to look at her. “I’m sorry.” His eyes snapped at Rebecca, who was smiling, but it was as if there was a silent conversation going on between brother and sister and Alaric sighed again.

Before Lena could say or do anything, he unlocked the cuffs on both her ankles and wrists and he glared at Rebecca as if he was warning her before he stormed away. After that incredibly intense staring contest, Lena jumped when Rebecca shrieked with joy and hugged her tightly.

“You are now my personal omega!” Rebecca gripped Lena’s hand and they walked to the doctor’s room while Rebecca explained what the job entailed. She couldn’t believe that Rebecca had spent the entire day trying to find some place for Lena to work where people would treat her with respect. In the end, Lena was right. There had been a silent conversation between brother and sister as Rebecca apparently demanded that Lena work for her. The doctor listened to the conversation continue and added that Rebecca had even been there to speak to him.

“She can be pretty persuasive when she wants to be.” He laughed, saying that nobody stood a chance against the little girl when she made up her mind about something. Especially not their poor Alpha. The doctor finished cleaning and dressing the wounds and the threesome walked to the dining room. Lena could hear the happy talk and laughter down the passage, and she felt like running when everything died down as soon as Rebecca walked in with her.

The doctor excused himself and Rebecca gripped her hand and dragged her to the table right in the front. Lena tried her best to convince Rebecca that she shouldn’t sit there, but Rebecca insisted. Unfortunately, for the little miss, she had pushed her luck too far for one day and Alaric told her that no omegas were allowed to sit at their table. Rebecca pouted and Lena burst out laughing, quickly swallowing it when Alaric glared at her. Alaric refused and Lena could have sworn Rebecca’s eyes grew three sizes, but still he refused.

“You have done enough for me for one day, thank you, Rebecca.” Lena decided to intervene when a bright idea hit her like a ton of bricks. “Why don’t I grab your dinner, hmm?” Lena smiled and she didn’t miss the look of surprise in Alaric’s eyes as Rebecca beamed. She told Lena what she wanted and pointed her in the right direction. When Lena looked at the people dishing up, she kind of wished that she hadn’t suggested anything, but she made her way over to the table.

The people were anything but friendly, but Lena quickly explained that the plate was for Rebecca and they all seemed to change their attitude instantly. It was still so damn silent in the room that Lena heard her own footsteps as she made her way back to the table and handed Rebecca her plate. She was about to excuse herself to go back to her room when Rebecca pointed her to an empty seat at the back.

She told Lena to grab a plate and sit down and all Lena really wanted to do was get out of there, but she knew she couldn’t go against Rebecca’s instructions. Not at that moment, and not in front of everyone. Especially not after what the little girl had been through to help her. She had to make her way back to the table and she quickly grabbed a couple of things before making her way to the open seat. To Lena’s amazement, the others at the table got up and walked away, and she wished that the earth would just open up and swallow her when she saw the angry glare from Rebecca.

Suddenly, being her omega was going to be harder than being in the laundry room and she almost wished to be back there. She ate as fast as she could and took her plate to the kitchen where she rinsed it and packed it away before she returned for Rebecca’s plate.