BK 5 - Chapter 58 - Acceptance
Nathan thought Isla would be terrified when the earthquake hit, but she barely acknowledged it. She had told him she had witnessed real terror; earthquakes didn't scare her. He didn't have the heart to tell her that Grandma Cat thought it was an earthquake caused by the underworld.
That night, Nathan stayed awake until he was sure Isla was asleep. When he could hear her soft snoring, he relaxed and began to drift off to sleep. A couple of hours later, the sounds of her screams woke him up. He jumped out of bed and ran to Isla's room across the hall. She was clutching her quilt while she screamed. When Nathan sat on the side of her bed, he could see that her face was covered in sweat. He gently put his hand over hers, not wanting to make her nightmare worse.
"Please don't do this. I promise I'll be good. I was hungry, but I didn't steal the food." When Isla stopped talking, she let out a scream so horrific that it made tears run down Nathan's face. He could feel her pain when he touched her and knew she was reliving every horrible thing they did to her.
"Sweetheart, it's me, Nathan." He spoke to her gently, putting her hand between both of his.
"No, no, no, please get out of here before they hurt you too. Nathan, please go before they get you. I can't let them hurt you." Isla shook her head as she squeezed his hand; her eyes were still tightly closed.
"Open your eyes, Isla. You're not with them anymore. You're here with me." He brushed the hair off her wet forehead. Isla slowly opened her eyes, and when they became focused on his face, she sat up and threw her arms around him as she cried.
"I dreamt that they were hurting you. They had you chained up with me and used the cattle prod and whips on you. I was so scared they were going to kill you." Nathan couldn't believe that her screams were because she thought he was getting hurt.
"I'm okay," he said, gently stroking her head. Isla pulled back slightly and looked into his eyes. She had never felt safer than when he had his arms around her.
*"Go ahead and ask him. Nathan's not going to hurt you."* Her wolf Scarlett said. Isla took a deep breath.
"Will you stay in here with me?" She asked, looking down.
"Yes. I'll sit in the chair while you sleep," Nathan replied. He started to get up, but she stopped him.
"No. Will you sleep in here with me? I feel better when you're touching me." Isla could barely get the words out. She was scared to have him in the bed with her, but she was more fearful of the nightmares.
"Are you sure?" Nathan asked. He would do whatever she wanted if it made her feel better.
"Yes, please," Isla replied, lying down with her back toward him. Nathan got under the blankets with her and moved so he could spoon her. He wrapped one arm around her and slid the other under her head.
"Is this okay?" he asked once he had her tightly against him. Isla moved, so she was even closer.
"Yes. Thank you." She answered softly. Nathan kissed the back of her head, and Isla closed her eyes. The fear of the nightmare left her, and she fell asleep wondering if Nathan would sleep like this with her every night.
The next morning, Isla woke up in the same position she had fallen asleep, wrapped in Nathan's arms. She could tell he was still sleeping, so she didn't move. She felt better and stronger than she had her entire life.
Isla wondered what it would be like to have Nathan as her mate. She'd never have to be alone again. If she was going to accept him, though, she had to tell him what had been done to her. When she felt him move behind her, Isla feared that he would get out of bed. He tightened his hold on her, and she sighed with relief.
"Good morning, sweetheart." Even though she couldn't see his face, hearing him call her that and feeling his breath tickle her ear made her face hot.
"Good morning. Can I talk to you for a minute before we get up?" She asked.
"Of course. I'm in no rush to move. I could stay here all day, just like this, if you wanted." Isla thought that sounded pretty good, but they may need to eat at some point. Now that she had regular access to food, she made sure to eat to keep her strength up.
"I want to accept you as my mate, but before I do, I want to tell you what happened at the pack I was rescued from." She could already feel the tears burning her eyes. Isla had only been away from the pack for a few weeks, so everything was still fresh. Even though the alpha and all those who had tortured her and others were dead, it didn't stop her fear.
"Okay, whenever you're ready, I'm right here." Nathan kissed her head and waited. Isla took a few deep breaths before she began.
"I know the pack I was with bought me from another pack, but I don't remember my parents or the pack I came from. At first, it wasn't terrible; they treated me like all the other omegas, but then the old alpha was killed, and his son took over. Alpha Michael was horrible. He believed that the omegas were there for him to torture. He would have me tied to a tree while he or others used whips and cattle prods on me. Sometimes, they would give me wolfsbane, so the pain was even worse. I don't know why they took such a special interest in torturing me. They tortured the other omegas, too, but I always got it the worst. I was starved and left tied to a tree, sometimes for a couple of days at a time. When I wasn't being tortured, I was forced to sleep in the dungeons on the floor. There were days that I begged them to kill me just so I would no longer have to be in pain."
Isla stopped talking as the tears ran down her face. Nathan was scared to move. He was so angry that he felt like bringing the bastards back to life just so he could do everything they did to her and more.
"Did any of them rape you?" He asked, trying to control his anger so he wouldn't scare her. Isla glanced over her shoulder at him and shook her head.
"No, that was the one thing they didn't do. Don't ask me why because they raped many of the other omegas. The alpha kept saying they couldn't do that to me because I had to be saved for something else." Isla replied. She never understood what they were saving her for, but whatever it was, she was grateful that it prevented them from taking that piece of her.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through any of that for so long. I promise that you'll never feel any of that pain ever again. Even if you don't accept me as your mate, I will still protect you." Nathan buried his face in her neck and breathed in her scent. Isla turned over in his arms so she could look into his eyes.
"I want to accept you, but are you sure you want a mate like me? I'm damaged and broken," she asked, looking down. Nathan rubbed his hand up and down her back.
"You may be damaged and broken, but I'm here to help you put the pieces back together until you feel whole again," he replied. Isla hesitantly raised her head and decided to follow her heart, not the pain.
"I'll accept you," she said with a small smile. Nathan kissed her forehead and hugged her tightly.
"I promise you won't regret it," Isla smiled slightly against his chest. She felt like she could breathe without the fear of being hit. Maybe things wouldn't be easy, but at least she could begin to heal.
Nathan couldn't stop thinking about what the pack had been saving Isla for and where she had come from. He knew Morgan was coming to check Liam's DNA and wondered if he could check Isla's. Maybe there was something special about her that even she didn't realize.
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