“We’ll begin with you, Alpha Zayn,” Alva said, her tone clinical as she gestured toward the adjacent room. “It shouldn’t take long.”
Lily watched as Zayn’s jaw tightened. He didn’t like being told what to do, especially by a human he’d just met. Still, he nodded curtly and followed Alva into the examination room.
As per Alva’s request, they’d set up one of the spare guest rooms as the examination room in the packhouse. This gave Zayn and Lily more privacy, away from gossip and prying eyes.
“Please remove your shirt,” Alva instructed.
Zayn clenched his jaw. His wolf didn’t like Alva from the moment they met and wasn’t willing to comply. Still, he did as she asked.
His torso was littered with scars, reminders of the torture he’d endured during his enslavement. Alva’s eyes scanned carefully, her expression unchanged.
“Lie down,” she said, pointing to the examination table.
Zayn’s muscles tensed as she began her examination.
“Do these scars still hurt?” she asked, pressing down near his lower back.
Alva continued to check his reflexes, eyes, and listen to his heart. Her expression remained unchanged throughout. Cold and distant.
“Your physical condition is above average,” she finally announced, stepping back. “As expected for an Alpha.”
The nonchalance in her tone made him narrow his eyes. He merely grunted in response.
“Now, have a seat,” She gestured to a chair and sat across from him.
“How did you get those scars? If you could go into detail, that would be perfect.”
“What?” Zayn immediately stiffened.
Alva didn’t lift her eyes from the papers she had in front of her. “I understand your scars were accumulated from years of torture, yes? I need to know how they were inflicted. As detailed as you can.”
Zayn sprang up from his seat. The chair fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
“That’s irrelevant,” He seethed.
“Quite the contrary, it is very relevant, Alpha Zayn.” She gave him a quick glance before scribbling down on her paper, “Traumatic experiences often cause more harm than people believe. This would be most–”
“Alpha Zayn, if you want—”
“I said no! You will not dig into my past to satisfy your sick curiosity!” He roared at her, knuckles turning white from the force of his clenched fists.
Alva remained seated, unfazed by his outburst. “It’s not for my curiosity, Alpha. You don’t have to like my methods. But they work.”
“Find another way,” he snarled, grabbing his shirt and pulling it back on.
“Running won’t solve your problem.”
Zayn paused, hand on the doorknob. Cursing under his breath, he wrenched the door open and stormed out without looking back.
Lily, who was waiting in the corridor, jumped to her feet when Zayn burst through the door. His face was dark with rage, his fists clenched at his sides. He didn’t even notice she was there.
Talia immediately ran after him, calling his name.
Lily stood frozen, unsure whether to follow or stay. Before she could decide, Alva appeared in the doorway.
“Luna Lily,” she called calmly, as if nothing had happened. “Your turn.”
Lily looked back at the hallway where Zayn had disappeared down. After a moment of hesitation, she followed Alva into the examination room. Martha was about to follow in when Alva stepped in her way.
“Only Luna Lily will do,” Alva said.
She didn’t even wait for Martha to give a response before she slammed the door close in her face. Lily, panicking, quickly pointed to her throat to indicate that she could not speak. But Alva didn’t seem fazed.
“You can hear, yes?” She asked.
“Good. I can converse in sign language too. You’ll be fine,” Alva spoke as she demonstrated her sign language.
Alva repeated the process with Lily in the same cold voice.
Lily hesitated as she undressed. The cold wind made her shiver as she stood in the middle of the examination room in her naked form. Alva scrutinized every inch of her body just as she had done with Zayn.
“You’re definitely severely malnourished,” Alva remarked.
Lily lowered her eyes, unable to respond without her hands free to sign.
“Open your mouth,” She instructed. Using a special candlelight, she shone it into Lily’s mouth as she examined her throat.
“Interesting...” Alva whispered to herself before instructing Lily to lie on the examination table.
“Spread your legs for me, Luna,” Alva said as she prepped her tools.
Lily looked up at her, color drained from her face. She squeezed her thighs close.
“I assure you, it’s just standard procedure. A part of the examination,” Alva explained.
Remembering what she was doing this for, Lily obliged. She slowly opened her legs, allowing Alva a clear view. A cold chill ran down Lily’s spine as the cool metal tool Alva used touched her inner thigh.
She was gentle, but firm.
“Has the Alpha hurt you during intercourse?” she asked bluntly.
Lily didn’t respond, her gaze fixed on the ceiling.
“Why did you stay?” She switched topics. But the question was equally hard to reply to.
Lily sat up a little, just enough to sign, “Where else would I go?”
She bit her lip. Realising the weight of her own words.
“Things aren’t bad... not anymore,” Lily quickly added.
Alva watched her carefully. Nodding. She continued her examination in silence.
Then, without looking up, she asked, “Are you being forced to have children against your will?”
Lily sighed. ‘I wish the circumstances were different.’
Alva didn’t ask any more questions. When she was done, she helped Lily sit up and told her to put her clothes back on.
She offered Lily a seat, the same spot Zayn had sat earlier.
“The circumstances can be different,” Alva said quietly as she looked up at Lily, “I could make it appear that you’re infertile. Zayn would have no choice but to let you be.”
Lily’s eyes widened in shock. She quickly shook her head and signed emphatically, ‘No. I don’t want that.’
Alva furrowed her brows. “Why not? Do you love him?”
Lily widened her eyes in shock at Alva’s question. She didn’t know how to respond. Her hands trembled as she tried to find the right words to speak.
‘I made a promise to be his Luna. I vowed to uphold my responsibilities,’ She signed firmly, ‘I’m doing this for the pack, not just Zayn.’
Alva nodded along, scribbling on her papers.
“Very well,” She moved on to a different topic, “Tell me more about yourself. Were you always mute?”
Lily explained how she was poisoned when she was still a baby. She told Alva about her father and brother, how they blamed her for her mother’s death during childbirth.
“How did they blame you for it?” She asked.
‘They would hit me. Shout horrible things at me. Sometimes, both at the same time.’
Lily’s hands began to tremble as she recalled the nightmares she’d buried deep in the vault of her mind.
When she was five, her father stumbled into the packhouse reeking of alcohol.
“Lily? Lily! You little runt, where the fuck are you!”
The moment she heard her father’s voice, Lily immediately hid herself in a corner. Martha was busy elsewhere with her maid duties, unable to come to her rescue.
When he couldn’t find her, Grayson started throwing things. Glass and porcelain shattered on the ground. Lily covered her ears, tears streaming down her face. She rocked herself back and forth, praying to the Moon Goddess for it to end.
“Come out you little fucker! Lana is dead because of you!”
Just when everything seemed to quieten down, Lily felt someone grab her by her collar. She was lifted off the ground. She kicked and cried, begging voicelessly to be let down. When she opened her eyes, she met her father’s glare.
A shiver ran down her spine as she saw the rage. The hate.
“Don’t you dare look at me!” He growled as he threw her against the wall.
In the present, Lily had fresh tears streaming down her face.
‘He kept yelling at me. Telling me over and over that my mother was dead because of me. My brother was there too. He took great joy in kicking me, watching me squirm.’
The memory consumed her. Lily’s breathing became rapid and shallow. Her father’s face became more real. Her brother’s laughter echoed in her ears.
She clutched her chest, heart pounding.
“Luna Lily?” Alva called out to her, but Lily didn’t respond.
She was trapped in the nightmare, pleading for her life.
The door to the examination room burst open. A tall figure stood in the doorway, backlit by the hall lights.
“What the hell is going on in here?!” a deep voice demanded.