Chapter 63

Silver’s POV

My heart was hammering as we pulled up to the hospital. I stared at the familiar large building in front of me and waves of panic hit me like a freight train. Memories of my time in this hospital consumed me and I thought about the last time I was here. It was right after I was kidnapped by rogues. I suffered from a concussion, and I was unconscious for a while. But when I woke, I was alone. It turns out that my darling husband was with Shirley.

His expectations of me thanking Shirley for saving my life hurt me because I was pretty certain it was Shirley who helped them kidnap me in the first place. She wanted to get on Elliot’s good side, so she staged saving me.

Then, when I spoke to Shirley alone, she told me that she and Elliot were actually fated mates and that I was just getting in their way. My heart hurt at the very thought of it but now I know she was lying to me. She just wanted me out of the way so she could have Elliot for herself.

I was glad her plans didn’t work, but I wasn’t sure why we needed to be here now. I looked up at Elliot who was also fixing his attention on the hospital building. I wondered if he was just as nervous, or if he was angry. Was he going to make me apologize or thank Shirley?

Elliot finally spared me a glance and his gaze softened; I could see his wolf in his eyes and his wolf was fighting to take control. I frowned and cocked my head ot the side.

“What is it?” I asked him.

“My wolf is having trouble dealing with everything. He’s angry,” Elliot confessed. He reached out and grabbed my hand, squeezing it and it was reassuring. I found myself smiling at him, wanting to ease his wolf.

It seemed to be working because his body relaxed as we stood side-by-side.

“Why are we here?” I finally asked him, my voice coming out softer than I intended.

“Because we need to talk to Shirley,” he answered simply as he pulled me along with him and into the hospital.

My chest tightened even more with each step we made. We reached the third floor, which had no other patience besides Shirley. There were a few gamma warriors in the waiting room along with a couple of nurses at the nurse's station. The gammas stood tall when they saw us approaching.

“Welcome back, Alpha,” one of the nurses practically purred. I had to keep from rolling my eyes at her; if I had a wolf, I knew I would be growling all over the place.

“Is Alpha Shirley awake?” Elliot asked, barely sparing her a second look.

“Yes, sir. She’s been requesting you for the last couple of days. She will be happy to see you.”

Elliot hummed his response; he never let go of my hand as we walked through the waiting room and through the doors that lead to the hospital rooms. As we passed the nurse's station, I noticed the deadly glares that were fixed in my direction, and I found myself feeling uneasy. I kept my eyes downcast as we walked through the doors.

We paused outside of the hospital room that I knew Shirley was in. Elliot took a deep breath, collecting himself and probably calming his wolf down. Did he have to do this every time he saw Shirley? Was it because his wolf wanted to claim her, and he was trying to keep that from happening?

I thought they weren’t mates.

The thought made me feel sick to my stomach.

Elliot released my hand just before he pushed the door open, and I suddenly felt cold and alone. I took a deep breath and stepped into the room behind him. Shirley was seated on the bed, scrolling through her phone.

She didn’t look all that injured besides the cast on her foot and I still wondered why her wolf hadn’t healed her yet.

She looked up when we entered, and her eyes widened as soon as her gaze locked onto Elliot.

“Elliot! You’ve come back!” She purred. “I didn’t think I was going to see you today. I’ve missed you so much…”

“We need to talk about something, Shirley,” Elliot said, folding his arms across his chest.

His tone surprised me; he didn’t seem happy to see her, he sounded almost angry. I raised my brows but stayed at the doorway; I expected him to force me forward so I could apologize to her or thank her like he wanted the last time.

“We can talk about anything you want, Elliot. But come sit with me. I’ve missed you so much. I need to be held,” she pouted as she patted the spot on her bed that was empty.

Elliot walked over to the bed, and I could feel my heart cracking from the pain. I knew this was too good to be true. He lured me here so I could see him with his mate; he wanted me to see what I was missing when I divorced him. I felt a part of me slipping away. I was a shell of myself and there was nothing I could do other than stand at the doorway and watch my husband with another woman.

Tears immediately formed in my eyes and my hands started to shake at my sides.

Elliot put an arm on each side of her and brought his face close to Shirley. She blinked a few times and then started to close her eyes, getting ready to kiss him. This was it… I was going to watch him kiss another woman.

“Did you lie to my wife about being my mate?” Elliot said in a low and threatening growl through his teeth.

I heard Shirley’s sharp intake of breath before her eyes flew open and fear was evident behind them. I lifted my gaze and looked up at them, noticing for the first time that Elliot’s pose wasn’t romantic, it was threatening. He was caging her in so she couldn’t move, and his wolf was on the edge; not because he wanted to make her, but because he wanted to trip her throat out.

“Wh…what?” She stammered, unsure of what was happening. “What do you mean, Elliot?”

“I’m not going to repeat myself for a third time, Shirley. So, listen to my question carefully,” he said slowly and angrily. I could feel his fury rolling off him in waves and it brought a chill to my body. “Did or did you not, lie to my wife, and tell her that you are my mate?”

“I…I…”

She couldn’t come up with an excuse on the fly and for the first time, she looked utterly terrified. Shirley was a very strong Alpha female, the only female that had her own pack, and she was cowering away from Elliot. She was so confident up until this moment and it was strange to see her like this.

“If you ever disrespect my wife and Luna again, I won’t hesitate to rip your throat out with my teeth,” he hissed, and then he took a step away from her, uncaging her and glaring down at her with such disgust that my mouth nearly dropped to the ground in shock.

This was unexpected.

“Elliot… I’m your friend… one of your oldest friends. I would never—”

“Don’t fucking lie to me, Shirley!” He growled, the hospital grounds shaking from the force of his roar, and I had to grab the door for support.

“I’m not lying,” she whaled, tears springing from her eyes. “I don’t know what she has been telling you but—”

The way she said the word “she” was like a bad taste in her mouth, and she gave me a pointed look at the same time. Elliot didn’t let her finish her sentence because he had her throat in his hands, and he slammed her against the wall behind her bed.

“Don’t test me,” he growled, his wolf surging forward and nearly taking control. “This is your final and only warning. You are no longer allowed in the Crown pack. Our alliances are over. You have until sundown to return to your pack. If you aren’t gone by then, my gammas have orders to execute you.”

She choked as he held her throat; she struggled to break free until she was blue in the face and then he finally released her. She coughed and gagged, attempting to catch her breath again.

He turned to face me, and I saw the gold in his eyes indicating that his wolf was in control. When he saw me standing shocked at the doorway, I saw a flicker of Elliot in his eyes and his gaze softened. But it only lasted a moment because he was soon grabbing my arm and yanking me towards him so I could stand next to him.

“Apologize to my Luna,” he ordered.

Shirley glared at me; if looks could kill, I certainly would have died immediately.

“APOLOGIZE!” Elliot shouted, making me tremble in place.

“I…I’m sorry…” Shirley stammered, tears pouring out of her eyes.

If she hadn’t been so terrible to me, I would have felt bad. But at that moment, I didn’t feel anything.

Elliot looked at me and I stood frozen.

“Do you accept?” He asked after a moment.

I stared at Shirley and saw her crying; my heart tugged and for a moment, I hated my conscious.

“Yes,” I whispered. “I accept your apology. But Shirley…” I added, narrowing my eyes at her. “I never want to see you in my territory again.”