Raff

The words said by Theo genuinely shocked everyone present, except for Derek and Grey who seemed to already know. I feel Tess begin to shake next to me as an angry aura grows in the room, and Nina’s alpha presence is released full force. I admit it is very powerful, and Theo seems terrified.
“Your first mistake was assuming hurting her would make her want to hurt you.” Nina says in a low deadly tone. I see both Derek and Grey visibly tense up. I have never seen Nina so angry, so I'm unsure on how this will play out. “Because of your stupidity the only thing you have successfully done is hurt YOUR MATE. You have no idea the things she has been through, and no idea how what you did hurt her. Once again your arrogance has gotten you in trouble, because you assumed she would want to hurt you, because of how cruel you are. Did you not even consider that instead of anger she would simply be hurt? Did you not think anything past YOUR OWN selfish wants, and thoughts?! Have you ANY IDEA the hell she had to RE-LIVE, because you ASSUMED?! YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE THE ONE TO PROTECT HER! TO KEEP HER CALM, AND MAKE HER HAPPY! TO CHASE AWAY THE MEMORIES OF WHAT HAPPENED TO HER-”
“US, IT HAPPENED TO US NINA! You were always just stronger than me.” Tess interrupted the raging Nina with those words before she broke down again. Theo looks baffled, and at a loss for words. His want to comfort his mate is apparent, but Nina beat him to it. Hugging her, and shushing her she asked Tess if she wanted her to tell him. Through her sobs Tess nodded her head yes. When Nina looks up at me I know I'm about to hear something I won’t like. What she said next is something I was never going to be prepared for.
“It started when I was one, and Tess was two when he came for her. You probably don’t remember, but my father once had a brother. He didn’t have a pack of his own even though he was alpha born, and it made him bitter. I’m not sure when he….discovered his love of little girls, and i'm thankful we were the only two who had to suffer that….love. Sometimes he would put us in the same room, and rape us one at a time, and sometimes he would do it individually.” The sharp intake of breath, followed by the growl came from Theo who had black eyes, and was already partially shifted. I have tears in my eyes again for knowing my mate went through that as a kid, and immense anger at the thought of it happening. My body was shaking with anger, as hot tears drenched my face. I ball my hands in fists in my lap as Nina goes on.
“In a way Tess had it worse than me. When he would hurt me so bad I was passed out in a bloody pile he would move on to her, but he never seemed happy with her. He would never call her by her name. He would call her by mine, and when she didn’t act like me he would be more harsh, and hit her more. She got punished for not being me, and that has stuck with her through this whole time. This continued for three years for me, and two for her. One day he came for me, but said he wanted to take us together….I tried to run in hopes of making him angry with me, so she wouldn’t have to suffer as much. When I ran I didn’t expect to run into Derek and Grey, but when he saw them he was going to take them too, but for the first time I decided to fight back, because I refused to let more kids get roped into what was happening. That is something both Tess and I had agreed on. No matter what we went through we would do whatever it took to keep his attention on us. This worked until that day, but when this happened Grey caught on to what was happening, and was so overcome with rage he forced a shift at four, and killed him.” When she finished her story we all looked at Grey who looked uncomfortable with all the eyes staring at him. He began shifting from foot to foot looking more uncomfortable, so with tears covering my face, and my body still shaking in anger I stood up. I saw him look at me, and he instantly got a worried look on his face, dropping his arms to his side as if preparing for a fight. When I got in front of him I reached out my hand for him to shake. Confused, he took my hand, shaking it when I placed my hand on his shoulder.
“Thank you, for being there for her when she needed it most, and always protecting her.” I looked at Derek, and nodded at him. “Thank you both for being there for my mate, and helping her so much in her life. I will forever be grateful to you both.” They were both stunned into silence. When I dropped Grey’s hand I hear my mate softly crying, so I turn around to comfort her, and see Theo holding a crying Tess, and whispering in her ear. I only caught bits and pieces of it as I walked to Nina, and pull her into my arms. I heard things such as “I’m so sorry,” and “You will always be enough.” I felt relieved that things had worked out between the two, and focus on my goal of helping my mate. Knowing how shy she is I feel she is probably uncomfortable crying in front of all of these people, so I gently pick her up bridal style, and carry her to my room. Afraid of being rude, and entering her room without permission I take her to my room, and sat her on the bed, and simply held her while she cried. Her crying broke my heart, and I wanted to cry with her, but I knew right then she needed my support more than anything.
When I felt her begin to calm down I pulled away from her, and began wiping her face. She looked at me surprised, and I let out a small soft smile.
You’re not alone anymore, and I know I messed up in the past, but please believe me when I say I will never let ANYTHING like that happen to you again. You will always have me, and whether it’s for comfort, or stress relief, or even to let your anger out I will be here through it all. I see the sadness slowly leaving her eyes as she nods her head yes, and wraps her arms around me in a tight hug. I feel her bury her head in my neck, and take a deep breath, and feel her body relax. I lean my head down, and do the same, and it comforts me knowing my precious mate doesn’t have to go through that anymore, that she is safe and in my arms. We stay like this for a few more moments before she pulls away. I look in her eyes to try and figure out what she is thinking when she leans in closing her eyes, and kisses me sweetly. It was a very tender and loving kiss, and the taste of her mouth was almost more than I could handle. It was mixed with a slight saltiness from her earlier tears. I place my hand on her jaw gently rubbing my thumb across her cheek. She brings her arms around my neck, and holds me there. My other hand goes to the small of her back, and I gently pull her to me. Just the thought of having her kiss us like this is enough to make us over the moon as Neil does a happy dance in my head. I know that no matter what I will cherish her more than life itself.