CHAPTER 26
Rayne felt utterly disgusted by Iosif. His hands shoved desperately at the man, but Iosif did not stop, ruthlessly forcing the kiss upon Rayne.
In a final, desperate attempt, Rayne bit down hard on Iosif's tongue, forcing him to break away.
Iosif paused, looking down at Rayne while slowly licking the blood from his lips.
Then, with sudden, vicious speed, he tore off all of Rayne’s clothes, leaving deep scratches on his body. Iosif bent down to Rayne’s shoulder and began to savagely bite his skin.
“Aaaaargh~~no! Stop! Please, Iosif, stop!” Rayne was begging, his body wracked with pain from the scratches and bite marks. But he was completely unable to stop Iosif. Iosif bit down even harder on Rayne's neck, then sat up, looking down at Rayne’s broken form.
Rayne was sobbing, his whole body trembling with fear, a complete mess.
Iosif clutched his own head in frustration.
He had never intended to do things like this to Rayne forcefully, but he simply couldn't stop himself from touching him.
And in Iosif's mind, it was Rayne’s fault that he had seduced him.
“You asked for this,” Iosif rasped as he watched Rayne weep.
Abruptly, he grabbed Rayne, lifting him and picking him up in his arms. He then sat down on the bed, settling Rayne into his lap and embracing him tightly.Rayne was terrified.
No words would come out of his mouth; he was completely frozen.
Iosif was hugging Rayne as if nothing had happened.
Rayne’s mind spun, trying to understand why Iosif was doing this now.
He already knew Rayne had moved on from him and was married, so what was the point of all this?
Kidnapping him, trying to sell him into a slave auction, attempting to mark him, and touching him so disgustingly, Rayne couldn't process it.
He wondered if Iosif had only ever wanted his body all this time.
Just then, a ding sound came from Iosif's mobile phone.
He quickly pulled the phone from his pocket and read the message, which was from his subordinates.
After reading the message, Iosif slammed the phone onto the ground, shattering it into many broken pieces.
The sudden sound of the mobile breaking made Rayne flinch and become even more terrified.
"Th-There, don't be scared. I need to leave now. That bastard is reaching here sooner than I expected, but don't worry, I will come back to get you," Iosif whispered into Rayne's ear.
He pulled a new mobile phone from his pocket and gently set Rayne down from his lap. Iosif stood up and walked toward the window of the two-story bungalow.
He turned back and smiled at Rayne.
"See you soon, baby. Let's continue later what we had to stop now," Iosif said. He gave one final smile before quickly jumping down from the window and leaving.
As he left, Rayne slumped back onto the bed, his back pressing into the mattress.
He felt like complete shit. His whole body was hurting, a constant reminder of what had just happened to him.
He could barely move. Just a few minutes later, hasty footsteps sounded outside, approaching very quickly, almost at a run.
Just then, Lucian burst in, running. He was panting, his eyes bloodshot and red. He immediately spotted Rayne on the bed. Ren and San quickly followed, rushing inside behind him.
As Lucian neared the bed, he took in Rayne's condition: his clothes were torn and shredded, and his body was covered in bites and scratches.
Even Rayne's lips were swollen, and his cheeks bore the angry red marks of fingertips.
Lucian quickly ripped off his own coat and draped it over Rayne, covering him.
Rayne's eyes were closed. Lucian desperately checked his breathing, realized he was alive, and instantly scooped him up into his arms, leaving the room without another word.
When Rayne's eyes opened, he saw a blurry, white ceiling. He closed his eyes, then opened them again, and that's when he realized this was not the place he had been earlier. He glanced around and slowly registered that he was in a hospital ward.
He remembered passing out on the bed moments after Iosif had jumped down from the window. So who brought Rayne here?
As he began straining his memory, the door opened. Lucian stepped inside, and with him, Kerry.
"Lucian!" Rayne uttered, looking at him as he quickly tried to sit up. He felt intensely weak, and the sudden movement brought a sharp, spiking pain at the back of his neck, right along his glands. When he tentatively touched the spot, he realized there was a bandage covering the back of his neck.
“Ugh, my neck,” Rayne hissed in pain.
Lucian sat down beside him and suddenly pulled him into a fierce hug.
Rayne was caught completely off guard, but as Lucian's body pressed against his, he felt a wave of relief, as if everything was suddenly okay.
With Lucian here, he knew he didn't have to worry about anything.
His hands instinctively gripped Lucian's back.
After a few minutes, Lucian finally broke the embrace. But Rayne still tugged on his sleeve, unwilling to let go of Lucian at all.
"I am sorry, Rayne. I should have come to rescue you sooner. I am trash who couldn't even keep you safe," Lucian choked out.
Rayne couldn't understand why Lucian was apologizing in the first place; it wasn't his fault. All of this had been done by Rayne's ex-boyfriend, Iosif, and he didn't blame Lucian for even an inch of it.
"Lucian, please, don't apologize. But how did you find me?”
Lucian gently touched Rayne's face. "When I tracked his location, I came straight to his house. We found out from Jora that he had taken you, but that bastard ran away before we even reached. So, we don't know where he is now."
Rayne didn't say anything; his eyes just fell.
"Rayne, how are you feeling now?" Kerry asked in a worried tone as he moved closer to the bedside.
“You are also here, Kerry?” Rayne asked.
“Yes. Lucian contacted your mom, but since she was with your Dad, I came because I was worried about you.”
Rayne offered a faint smile.
Lucian hadn't given the full details to Rayne's parents. Rayne’s dad still hadn't woken up, so his mother was staying by his side. She had realized Rayne’s father hadn't made that mistake knowingly and had forgiven him, but he remained unconscious.
Kerry had been staying with Rayne's mom constantly. Though she didn't fully like him, she didn't show it and treated him kindly. Because of this, Kerry went to her after work every day. She had instructed Kerry to look after Rayne as if he were his younger brother.
This is why, now, as Kerry reached out to gently pat Rayne's head, the sight of the approaching hand suddenly reminded Rayne of Iosif.
He instantly recoiled, terrified, trying to curl up into Lucian's chest. His whole body trembled.
Rayne even covered his face, crossing both his hands over his head for protection.
Lucian quickly pulled him onto his lap. “It's okay. I'm here. Don't worry about anything. I won't let those things happen to you ever again.” Lucian's words were a profound source of relief for Rayne.
According to the doctors, Rayne's glands were slightly damaged.
Because he had already been marked, and someone had then attempted to force-mark him, his glands were now severely compromised.
A mark removal surgery would need to be performed on Rayne to remove the temporary mark.
Even a temporary or permanent mark was dangerous for the current state of his glands.
He was quite shocked that he could never be marked now.
However, the tension of the upcoming surgery was eating him up inside; he desperately did not want any surgery.
But for his safety, the surgery was necessary.
In the end, he could only sigh. He couldn't possibly say no to something that was inherently dangerous to him.
"Everything will be fine. Don't worry, you won't even feel the pain," Lucian said softly, trying to make him feel comfortable.
For the last two hours, Rayne had not let go of Lucian at all.
He became intensely anxious whenever Lucian moved away from him or went to the restroom.
Seeing Rayne's state, Lucian had no choice but to stay right by his side.
Lucian understood that Rayne was suffering from severe trauma due to the incident.
The doctor had informed Lucian that Rayne was not sexually violated. However, this news offered Lucian no relief. His Omega was now terrified of everyone, shaking like a leaf in the presence of others, which was heartbreaking to watch. But it was a small comfort that Rayne was relying on Lucian.
The nurse came in to inform Rayne that the surgery was scheduled for two hours from now. Rayne instantly grew nervous upon hearing the time. After the nurse, and then Kerry, left, he began biting his nails. Now, they were the only two left in the ward.
Suddenly, he felt a gentle push onto the bed and looked at Lucian, who had made him lie down and was now settling down right beside him. Rayne stared at Lucian, his eyes fixed on him, when he suddenly remembered Angel.
“Wait, what happened to Angel?” Rayne’s expression instantly turned worried, confusing Lucian. “Who are you talking about?” Lucian wouldn't know about Angel, since he had gone straight to Iosif's house, not to the slave organization.
“Angel, the one who was with me in the basement of the slave organization. He was just a kid! Please, Lucian, save him. I promised him I would take him with me.”
Lucian looked at Rayne with a steady, straight face, then gently patted him.
“Okay, I will send someone to get him from there. Anything else you want?” Lucian asked.
Rayne shook his head no, then opened his arms wide. “Hold me, Lucian.” Lucian immediately pulled him into his arms. “Rayne, when you are ready, can you tell me what he did to you? I need to know everything.”
It was clear Lucian wasn't pressuring him, and Rayne knew it.
But he was terrified. If Lucian found out that Iosif had kissed him and left bites all over his body, Lucian would think Rayne was disgusting.
That thought was deeply bothering Rayne.
“You will hate me if I tell you, and what if you feel disgusted with me?” Rayne whispered, his voice shaking.
Lucian gently forced Rayne to look at him.
“I could never hate you, nor could I ever feel disgusted by you. Because I love you. I love you, Rayne.” As Lucian's words sank in, Rayne couldn't believe his ears.
He questioned if he was actually hearing this right now.
Even in his wildest dreams, he hadn't expected Lucian to say he loved him.
After all, they had only married recently and had never even dated.
As Lucian's words sank in, Rayne couldn't believe his ears. He questioned if he was actually hearing this right now. Even in his wildest dreams, he hadn't expected Lucian to say he loved him. After all, they had only married recently and had never even dated.
“Since when?“ Rayne mumbled under his breath, but Lucian caught the words.
“Since the beginning. I fell for you back when you were refusing to go on that blind date. The moment I saw you for the first time, I fell. It was love at first sight.”
Rayne was stunned. Lucian had loved him from the very start? Lucian had either never shown it, or Rayne had been too heartbroken and lost in his own grief to notice. Rayne covered his face, overwhelmed by the unfamiliar emotion.
“How did I not realize you loved me?” Rayne whispered. “I... I am sorry. I don't know what I feel for you yet.” But to Lucian, it didn't matter. As long as he was allowed to love Rayne, that was enough.
“It's alright, Rayne,” Lucian said gently. “You can take all the time you need to understand your feelings for me.”
Two hours later, Rayne was taken into the OR for his mark removal surgery. Lucian remained standing outside the doors. Once he had sent the message, he settled in to wait.