Chapter 73 Healing

Chapter 73 Healing
Auren's pov
I run my thumb over my palm. 

There isn’t even a tiny mark. It has been so long since I had healed this fast. Over the years, Marcus and the pack had great fun in trying to make the bruises last longer than a few minutes. 

Especially Seris. 

She enjoys it especially after I was bounded again and the wounds don’t heal anymore. There is this satisfaction she gets from seeing the wounds she inflicted on me not healing. Curling my hand into a ball I dig my nails into my skin watching tiny beads of blood appear as my nails pierced my skin. The moment I release my fingers, the wound disappears immediately leaving only tiny droplets of blood stain behind.

“This is what Marcus wanted, Auren. To beat you down, to take away your power, to make you little more than nothing. And you.” Alpha Dravik tips my chin up with a finger. “You’re not nothing. I need you to see that.”

His other hand moves to my waist as he continues to look at me. 

“We’re having the Luna ceremony. It’s time I tell the pack about you.”

“No.” I try to move back but he holds me tight. 

I’m not ready. I don’t want them to see what I look like and reject me. 

“Auren, it’s time. I have held off for as long as possible. I have already marked you. This is the next step. They need to know.” 

I lower my eyes. 

Maybe it’s better that they know, then they can reject me as their Luna. It’s better I find out sooner instead of later. 

“They won’t reject it.” 

I look up at Alpha Dravik to see his eyes watching. He didn’t seem a bit worried. I close my eyes and nod. 

“Good. It will be held tonight.” 

“What?” I snap my eyes wide open. “This…this night? But…but… I thought it would take days. Can you even plan a party in a few hours?” 

I thought I would have more time to talk myself into it. 

He smirks. “With my money? I can plan it in minutes. Besides, it's only strictly our pack that’s attending.”

Seeming to sense my hesitation he leans down, kissing me on the lips, and doesn’t stop until I moan, melting into him and gripping his shirt to pull him closer. 

“I will be right by your side,” he says as he pulls away. “Hope, Brandon and Garric will be by your side too. You have nothing to worry about.” 

I nod. 

“There is something else I need you to do for—”

I shake my head quickly. “No…I can’t…I don’t know how.” 

“I’m not asking you to shift. I want to ask you what I should do about Xavier.”

“Ohh.” My brow pulls together. “Do…do you think he’s a risk?” 

“I and Shadow still don’t trust him. But at the end of the day, he’s your family.”

“I….I still don't know anything about him.”

He snort. “You should probably speak to Brandon, he has been having a lot of conversations with the guy.”

“What do you mean?”

“Long story,” he says and picks my ear plugs off the table. “Make sure you wear them. It’s going to be loud. I will send Hope up to help you get ready.”

He kisses me again and starts to pull me out of the kitchen. I look back to the floor. “The glass….I have to..” 

“There will be someone along to clean it, " he says. “You need to rest before the activities begin.”

I spend the rest of the afternoon pacing the room, totally not resting. What if they reject me? What if they don’t want me as their Luna. Alpha Dravik loves his pack so of course when it comes to choosing between them and me, he will pick them. 

He will send me away. 

Hours later, I catch Hope’s scent just as she opens the door and breezes in with Lana and Maureen, their hands filled with clothes and other stuffs. 

“Girl. You haven’t bathed yet? I brought that dress we bought,” Hope says as they all lay down the things on the bed. 

I stand where I am, looking at them. 

“Come on. Off to the bathroom you go to. Maureen brought this heel for you that is to die for,” Hope chatters as she ushers me into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me and I hear them talking in the room.

I sigh and put on the shower. I really don’t want to do this. My stomach is in knots and I think I’m going to be sick.

By the time I finish bathing and step out, the bedroom looks nothing like the room I left. Clothes, shoes, jewelry are spread across the bed, makeup is scattered everywhere, and they move around with the confidence of women who have done this a hundred times. Hope wears a short fitted black gown that hugs her body, with thin straps crossing over her shoulders, while her red hair is center parted and stretched to perfection.

Lana looks classy in an emerald green silk dress, while Maureen wears a sleek, backless black gown that makes her look like a high-fashion runway model. 

They all look like models.

They are exactly the kind of breathtaking women who belong beside Alphas, not a broken girl like me. I start to feel self conscious as I look down to my feet, my toes crossing over each other.

"Here, I brought this specifically for you to wear under the dress!" Maureen announces, handing me a small, beautifully wrapped box with a wink.