Page 22 of Crystal Luna
“You did really well,” Marvin praised, sending a shiver down her spine.
“You’re not in trouble,” Heath repeated.
“Rayan provoked you and learned his lesson.”
“He said he would….” Her voice broke. She couldn’t even bring herself to repeat it.
Marvin’s eyes now rested on Velora. He softened his face. “You did well, Velora. Those were empty words. Nothing is going to happen to you. He was just looking for a fight and he’s going to recover just fine. His body will, at least. We’ll have to see about his ego.”
She slumped against Heath, the adrenaline visibly fading from her body.
He pulled her close as she buried her face in his chest. “It’s alright, Velora,” he hummed, stroking his hand over her back.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
Heath couldn’t help but shoot a glare at Marvin. Though he’d proven his theory, he’d pushed Velora too far.
Rayan stirred, his eyes fluttering open, confused as he took in his surroundings. “Fuck,” he grumbled as he sat up. “That was fucking amazing.” His eyes then fell on Velora, who still hid her face in Heath’s chest. “Oh no. I’m so sorry, Velora!”
His words fell on deaf ears as she sobbed into Heath’s shirt.
“I didn’t mean to,” Rayan tried to explain but Heath cut him off.
“It doesn’t matter if you meant to or not. You went too far and you’re going to fucking fix it.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
“Velora, it’s okay,” Heath shushed as he kept running his fingers over her back, her tears beginning to soak through this shirt.
“Please don’t send me away,” she begged, gripping his shirt in her fingers. “I’ll be good.”
Rayan sat next to her as she cried, completely baffled.
Heath sighed and pulled Velora onto his lap. When she was secure in his arms he stood and cradled her to his chest. Silently, he walked out. Not wanting anyone to see her like this he walked around the outskirts of the village towards her home. She kept sobbing, apologising over and over for hurting Rayan and promising to do better. It was awful being unable to console her.
Not wanting to leave her to herself, he sat down on her couch and held her until her sobs faded and exhaustion took hold. He leaned his head back and took deep breaths in an attempt to calm his own temper. He regretted not stepping in—he’d trusted Marvin. He knew Rayan was cocky. He loved playing with fire but what he’d said had triggered Velora in a way he could only hope she would recover from.
She was far too young to have to go through life’s beatings like this. His only intention had been to give her a safe place if that was what she wanted. She was barely of age and was already so worn from life that she could hardly look anyone in the eyes.
Marvin’s mind pushing against his pulled him out of his thoughts. ‘How is she?’
‘Passed out.’ He closed his mind off again and reached out to Curtis. ‘Hi buddy. It’s time to get up.’
Curtis’s mind was still clouded by sleep, but Heath felt his concern.
‘I needed to take care of some things this morning and was hoping to be back for breakfast, but I’m stuck here. Can you get Mia ready and grab a few snacks? I will let Mirabel know that you’ll need breakfast before you can start on your schoolwork.’
‘Yes, Father.’
Heath held Velora until she slowly roused herself from sleep. Her eyes opened slowly, swollen, and still red almost an hour after she’d passed out. She looked terrified as she took in her surroundings, and he gently sat her beside him.
“I’m so sorry, Velora—”
“Please don’t send me away! I didn’t mean to hurt him.”
He shifted until he faced her, softening his expression as much as possible. “I’m not sending you away and I’m not angry with you. Rayan went too far, and he got what he deserved. You did nothing wrong. I promise.”
Her fingers started fidgeting with her t-shirt. “I wanted him to stop talking,” she mumbled. “I didn’t want him to take me away. I can’t go back there.”