Chapter 31 - No Pain, No Gain.

"Ok Emily, I'm coming, I don't know why you couldn't just mind link me instead of calling me"

"Because I like to be a little annoying sometimes, Natalia"

You're always annoying.

I thought to myself.

"I heard that, Nattie"

"I didn't say anything"

I said whilst putting on my white heels, I'm wearing a really cute outfit today and these shoes go perfect with it.

"I heard you through our mind link, anyway, hurry your ass up otherwise you'll miss out on all of the good food"

"Yer, yer, whatever, I'm on my way"

"That's what you said an hour ago"

"Well, I'm definitely on my way now"

I quickly grab hold of my bag and leave my room.

"Hey Em, is Cole there? I haven't seen him since last night and that's not normal"

"I erm...I..I've gotta go, bye"

What the...that was odd, oh well, I haven't got time to worry about Emily, I need to hurry up and get to the packhouse before all of the fat asses eat everything.

It's been a week since everything went down between myself, Cole and the rogue and what a week it's been, Cole has been spending each day trying to prove to me that he really loves me and wants me back.

The day after our fight, Cole asked me out on a date which I wasn't too sure about and probably would have said no too but the bastard asked me in front of everyone and before I could even give him an answer, an over-excited Emily jumped up shouting 'of course she will, come on Nat, let's go and shop', I don't know when that girl all of a sudden became team Cole but I'm telling you now, it's weird.

Anyway, Cole took me on a date and it was beautiful, he was a total gentleman all night and never once crossed the line with me which I guess a small sceptical part of me thought he would, he's also been spoiling me all week by buying me gifts, sending me flowers and every night after training, I've come home to a nice hot bath waiting for me with scented tealight candles spread all around it and rose petals floating in the water amongst the bubbles.

I told Cole that he didn't have to do all of this but he said that he did because the queen of his pack should always be treated to a bath like this, he even made me blush bright red one night when he suggested that he should join me so that he could help me to wash my back.

Urgh!!, he's such an asshole.

Cole's been pretty determined to get me back and I have to say his efforts so far have been quite spectacular but also quite odd, yesterday Emily mind linked me to tell me that she'd overheard a conversation between Cole and Brody where my mate was asking my ex-lover for tips on how to woo me, how f*****g awkward is that?.

Anyway, after a not so long walk, I arrived at the packhouse and was instantly greeted by pack members who would say 'good morning, Luna', I objected to this at first because I haven't totally forgiven Cole or even said that I would be his Luna but Cole was adamant that the pack address me by my proper title, well, if that's the case then I should be called princess considering I'm technically a member of the royal family even if they are taking their sweet ass time coming here to see me.

"Hey Nattie, you're finally here, come over and try these pancakes they're to die for"

I chuckled when I saw Emily stuffing her face looking more like a chubby hamster than the badass she-wolf that she claims to be.

"Calm down, Emily will ya, Jesus, you're not pregnant are ya?"

Shit.

"Nice going, dummy"

My wolf scolded me even though I knew before I even finished what I said that I'd made a mistake.

"Sorry Em, I wasn't thinking"

"Don't worry about it Nattie, actually, I think I might be pregnant because I'm late this month"

She said with a huge grin on her face causing all of our male pack members in attendance to groan in disgust and stop eating, I chuckled as I took a sip of my drink, only Emily can stop a pack of wolves from eating just by mentioning her monthly cycle even though she never said the actual words.

"Here you go, Luna"

One of the omegas said whilst handing me a plate of food, I groaned internally at once again being called Luna but I just smiled and thanked her so that I didn't come across as being rude, the last thing I need is any more enemies especially one who makes my food and also if I'm gonna be Luna of this pack then I need to learn to get along with these people.

"Come and sit down, Nattie"

"Ok"

I picked up my glass and made my way over to the seat next to Emily, everything was all fine and good until I felt the most debilitating pain shoot through my back.

"AAHHH!!"

"Nat, Nat, are you ok?"

"I'm fine, I just...AAHHH!!"

SMASH!!.

The pain once again shoots through my back causing me to drop my plate and I keeled over unable to withstand the pain any longer.

"Natalia, what's going on? are you ok?"

"I..I..I d..don't k..know...AAHHH!! SHIT!!...oh god, E..Em, I..I f..feel l..like I..I'm b..being wh..whipped"

The pain continued to shoot through my back, each one being more painful than the last, I looked up at Emily and I couldn't help but notice that her face had paled and her eyes were filled with worry and pity.

"Wh..what's g..going o..on...AAHHH!!...wh..what's g..going o..on w..with m..me, E..Emily?"

I've been feeling this kind of pain quite a lot this past week but it hasn't been as severe or as painful as it is today, I just thought they were pains from the training we've been doing but I haven't done any training today, well, except for doing my usual morning run but I shouldn't be feeling pain like this just from a simple run.

"I don't know honey, come on, let's go to my room"

Emily called for one of the warriors to help me but for some strange reason, I didn't want anyone touching me especially a man.

"No don't touch me...E..Em, where's Cole?"

I asked whilst groaning in pain, Emily's whole demeanour changed and I could tell that something was wrong.

"Emily, wh..what's wrong? wh..where's Cole? is he ok?"

I had a niggly feeling that something was wrong and I was determined to find out what even despite the pain I'm in.

I continued to ask Emily about Cole but she was being evasive and acting shifty, I got so fed up with her that I shouted at her to tell me where he is not realising that I'd used my Luna tone for the very first time which is the same as an alpha tone and it also means that everybody except for Cole and members of the royal family are affected by it and can't fight it.

Emily tried to fight my command but gave up when she knew she wasn't gonna win.

"H..he's in the dungeons"

The dungeons? why the hell is he down there?.

I stood up with the help of the warrior who was standing next to me, I was in a lot of pain but I knew I had to fight it so that I could go and see Cole and get to the bottom of what's causing me these pains.

"Thank you"

I started to walk towards the dungeons but was stopped by a panicked Emily.

"Y..you can't go down there, Nat"

"What? why?"

"Because Cole doesn't want you too"

I heard a faint whimper coming from Lucky and I was worried.

"Lucky, are you ok?"

She shook her big wolfy head and whimpered again.

"What is it?"

"Mate...mate's in pain"

"What?"

It didn't hit me at first what she meant but when I put two and two together, I realised that the pain I'm feeling isn't mine...it's Coles.

"Oh my god"

I stumbled towards the door that leads towards the dungeons but was blocked by Emily which pissed me off.

"Emily move"

"No Natalia, I can't"

"Why? what's going on? what's Cole doing down there?"

Emily didn't answer me but she looked torn, another wave of pain hit me and I screamed as this pain seemed worse.

Lucky once again whimpered before growling at me.

"NATALIA!!, GO TO MATE NOW!!"

"Sorry, Em"

I pushed her out of my way and briskly walked towards the dungeons, I kept stumbling and panting as the pain got worse and worse.

Urgh!!, I'm so gonna kick this boys ass if he hasn't got a valid reason for why I'm in so much pain.

The pain got worse the closer I got to the dungeons confusing me even more.

"I'm sorry Luna, we can't let you passed"

I glared at the guard who's clearly got a death wish.

"Listen Robocop, if you don't get the hell out of my way right now, I swear to the moon goddess, I'll rip your balls off and make you wear them as earrings"

The guard's faces paled as they reluctantly let me passed, I gave them one last glare before making my way through the dungeons looking for Cole, my heart pained when I heard a blood-curdling scream coming from one of the rooms, it was a mans scream, oh god.

I ran towards the room where the screams were coming from, I burst through the doors and what I saw instantly made me freeze on the spot, my eyes widened in horror and I thought for a second I was gonna throw up.

"WHAT THE f**k IS GOING ON HERE?"

Everyone turned to face me and tears fell from my eyes when I saw the reason for all of my pain and not just my current pain but also my past pain tied up with silver chains dangling like an animal ready to be slaughtered and his back was ripped to shreds, it was so bad that I could barely make out the skull tattoo that takes up the whole of his back.

"Nattie, sweetheart"

"SHUT IT!!"

I didn't look at Brody, I couldn't...I couldn't look at any of them, all I could look at was my mate who was a beaten and bloodied mess.

I walked over to Cole and I felt sick seeing him in the state that he's in and what's worse is that the people who have put him in this position are two guys who I thought I loved and trusted the most in this world.

"Baby girl, please...please listen to us"

"Shut the f**k up, Angelo"

I growled as I yanked the chains off Cole and held him so that he doesn't fall to the ground.

"N..Nat, wh..what a..are y..you d..doing h..here?"

Cole asked in a weak voice.

"I'm saving your ass, ya dumb shit"

I called for a couple of warriors and told them to take their alpha to the infirmary and to make sure not to let any of the pack members see them, it won't look good for Cole if his pack sees him in this state.

When the warriors left with Cole, I turned to face my brother and my best friend and I slapped them both hard across the face.

"Nat..."

"Don't...I don't want to hear your excuses"

"No Natalia, you don't understand, we...."

"You're damn straight I don't understand Angelo and I never will, he's your f*****g brother for f***s sake, how can you whip him like that and with silver off all things? you know that it could kill him but you did it anyway....why?"

Neither of the men answered me, instead they stood there looking down at the floor like they're ashamed of their actions which they should be.

I ran my hand through my hair in frustration and anger as I take a deep breath.

"You both better hope that he hasn't suffered any serious damage because of this and if he has...then I'll never forgive you both"

I left the dungeons and used my werewolf speed to get to the infirmary.

When I arrived, I asked the receptionist where Cole was, she explained that he's in the emergency room and told me to wait in the family room and she'll have the pack doctor come and see me when he's done.

I did what she said and waited for hours on end in the family room for news on Cole, I was a nervous wreck and my heart was beating really fast whilst my mind was racing with many different thoughts as I felt a migraine coming on.

Urgh!!.

I groaned as I ran my hands through my hair roughly tugging on it, why the hell did they do this to him?.

"Luna"

I turned around when I heard an unfamiliar voice, I was relieved when I saw the pack doctor but my relief didn't last long when I saw all of the blood on his scrubs.

"Oh no, please don't worry Luna, alpha Cole is fine, this blood is from when I had to clean him up so that I could attend to his wounds"

I closed my eyes as I sighed in relief, thank the moon goddess.

"How is he, doc?"

"He's fine Luna, luckily for him, there wasn't enough silver in his wounds to cause any severe damage, I guess whoever did this used just enough to cause him pain but not enough to be fatal"

That makes sense I guess, he was whipped by his own brother, I doubt Angelo would want to kill him even despite how much he dislikes him for what he did to me.

"Can I see him?"

"Of course you can Luna, I'll take you to him right now, if you'd like"

"Yes please"

I head out of the family room and follow the doctor who led me to the more private part of the hospital, the same area that I stayed in when I was in here, anyway, we arrive at the alphas room were the two guards from the dungeons were standing on guard.

"Luna"

They both bowed as I walked passed them and entered the room, I walked over to the bed and looked down at Cole who looked peaceful considering not too long ago he was being whipped with a silver whip.

"I had to put alpha Cole in a drug-induced coma, Luna so that he can fully heal without being in any pain"

"I understand"

Beep!!, beep!!, beep!!.

"I have to go Luna, if you need me just press the red button next to the bed"

"I will, thank you"

The pack doctor leaves and I take a seat next to Coles bed, I grab hold of his hand and intertwine it with mine.

I didn't know what to say or do so I just sat there in a peaceful silence, well, the room was silent, my head, on the other hand, wasn't so silent, I had a million questions running through my mind and no answers but you can bet your ass that I'll be getting some as soon as Cole wakes up.

A Few Hours Later...

"Mmm"

I moaned from the feeling of shocks and tingles on the right side of my face, I opened my eyes and looked around the room, when the hell did I fall asleep?.

"Good morning sleeping beauty or should I say good evening"

My head snapped towards my right and a big bright smile made it's way onto my face when I saw Cole smiling like a Cheshire cat and looking as healthy as ever.

"Cole, oh thank the goddess"

I wrapped my arms around him and nuzzled my face into his neck, Cole wrapped one of his arms around my waist and placed his free hand on my head stroking my hair.

"Don't cry babe, I'm fine"

"I know, I'm not crying because of that, I'm crying because you're awake"

I pulled away from him and sat back in my seat, Cole cupped the side of my face and wiped my tears away with his thumb.

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine babe, I promise"

I sighed.

"I'm fine may work on everyone else Cole but not someone who's had experience with silver...how are you really feeling? and don't make me use my empath power on you again because lord knows I've felt enough pain to last me a lifetime today"

Cole looked at me with guilt as his grip on my hand tightened.

"I'm sorry about that, babe"

"Not as sorry as Angelo and Brody are gonna be....I can't believe they did this to you"

"Babe..."

"I mean, what were they thinking? they obviously knew that I'd feel what you felt so why did they do it?"

"Natalia..."

"I swear they're not gonna know what's hit them when I get my hands on them"

"NATALIA!!"

"What? jeez"

I groaned from the impact that his voice had on my poor ears, I looked over at Cole who was smirking.

"Why the hell are you smirking, idiot? do you not realise what happened today? Angelo and Brody tied you up in your own dungeons with silver chains before almost whipping you to death with a silver whip"

"I know, I asked them to do it"

"What?...wh..why would you do that?"

I asked confused.

Cole sighed as he ran his free hand over his face and through his hair.

"I asked them to whip me because I wanted to prove to you how much I love you"

What the f**k?.

"Are you being serious right now? you had Brody and Angelo whip you to prove to me how much you love me?"

He nodded his head.

"But Emily said that you didn't want me to know...how am I supposed to know that you're proving yourself to me, Cole, if I don't know you're doing it?...and why would you do this when there are so many other ways to prove your love for me?"

Cole let out a shaky breath.

"Answer me, Cole"

He looked down at me and I felt overwhelmed with all of the emotions that are radiating off him.

"I did this because I wanted to be worthy of your love, Natalia and I knew that I never would be until I felt at least a small fraction of the pain that I put you through so...every morning after I made you breakfast and put fresh flowers in your room, I went to the pack dungeons and I had Angelo and Brody tie me up and whip me until I was knocked out....they didn't want to do it because apart from the obvious reason, they didn't wanna lose you and they knew they would if you ever found out or caught them in the act but I promised them that they'd never be blamed"

"I can't believe this"

I rested my arms on the bed as I covered my mouth with my hands and closed my eyes.

I can't believe he did this, I can't believe he tortured himself so that he could feel worthy of my love, am I really that special?...am I really that important to him?.

"Of course you are babe, you're the most important person in my life...you're the love of my life"

He said whilst once again taking possession of my hand.

"Why couldn't you just carry on doing what you were doing?....you didn't have to hurt yourself for me, Cole?"

"Yes I did babe, you suffered so much because of not only me but my parents and everyone else in this pack, if getting whipped unconscious every day is enough for me to..."

"Every day? you've been doing this every day?"

I cut him off and he nods his head.

"Yer"

Oh my god.

"Well this explains a hell of a lot"

"Like what?"

"Oh you know things like you randomly disappearing and being gone for hours on end, you being incommunicado and the pains I've had in my back all week, although none of the pains have been as bad as they were today"

"You felt my pain?"

I nod my head.

"It's not surprising, we're mates after all"

"Yer but our bond isn't that strong because of the rejection, even if you didn't reject me then I still wouldn't be able to feel things that strongly until you marked me, it makes no sense"

"Do you think it could have anything to do with your powers?"

"Hmm, maybe, I'll have to ask my momma when she gets here"

"Wait, what? your momma as in your real biological momma is coming here to this pack?"

I nod my head.

"Yep...I don't know when, all I know is that she's coming and she's bringing my father and brothers along with her"

"Brothers? how do you know you've got brothers?"

"Because she told me, she also told me to warn you"

"Warn me about what?"

"My father and my brothers, I'm guessing they're gonna go all daddy wolf and overprotective big brothers on you when they arrive"

Cole chuckles.

"They can do what they want, babe, I'm not scared of them"

"Really?...what if they wanna hurt you for hurting me?"

"I'm an alpha wolf, babe, it's gonna take a hell of a lot for them to even come close to hurting me but I'll let them if it means I'm one step closer to getting you back"

I tried not to smile but I failed.

"You've got a beautiful smile, babe"

"So you've already told me"

"And I'm gonna keep telling you every morning, noon and night for the rest of our lives until the day we both die"

"What if I'm not here for you to tell me?"

"Huh, what do you mean?"

He scrunched his face up in confusion and anger.

"Well, what if my family try to take me back to their pack?"

"MINE!!"

Cole growled and in a flash, he grabbed me from my seat and placed me on his lap.

"Jesus, Cole"

"MINE!!"

He repeated whilst nuzzling his face into my neck.

"Calm down captain caveman, I'm not going anywhere"

"You're damn straight you're not"

"Not yet anyway"

I teased him not expecting him to take it so literally but he did growling a very deep and scary growl, he gripped my chin and forced me to look at him.

"YOU ARE MINE, NATALIA!!, DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT?...MINE!!...YOU ARE NEVER LEAVING ME!!"

Cole growled which freaked me out slightly but I'd be lying if I said that him being so dominant and possessive over me also didn't turn me on a little or cause butterflies to flutter in my stomach.

Cole looked down at my lips and a small part of me hoped that he would kiss me but the rest of me didn't want him too because I knew that I wouldn't be able to control myself if he did and I'm not ready mentally or emotionally to be with him like that, he's still got a long way to go before I can even consider being with him especially when it comes to being intimate with him,

The sound of a throat being cleared behind me startled me and I was mortified when I turned around and saw Angelo, Emily, Brody and Jason standing in the doorway with huge smirks on their faces.

Oh god.

"Well, well, well, don't you two look cosy"

Huh, I looked down at myself and Cole and blushed bright red when I realised I was still sitting in his lap.

Oh my god, this is so embarrassing.