Chapter Fourteen
Axe comes back to my room later on after Dashiell leaves.
“I want an explanation, Elora. Why did your father say you're missing? Who hurt you in the forest?” Axe's voice is firm and the way his arms are folded over his chest screams seriousness.
Should I tell him everything? I'm still set on leaving once I heal so what's the point in revealing all my secrets. I don't want to talk about it and I don't think he wants to hear about it.
“It's nothing.”
“Elora.” Axe walks over and sits on the side of the bed. “You need to tell me everything.”
“I want to sleep. Can you please respect my privacy?” I shuffle down the bed and roll on my side, pulling the blanket up to my chin. Hopefully, that gives him the hint to leave.
“I don't want to be kept in the dark. How do you think I felt when Dash accused me of hitting you? I had no answer to give him since I don't know what happened.” Axe stares intently at me.
“I'm in pain. Can you please go?” I even add a wince so he believes me.
“Get some rest.” He sighs and leaves the room. Hm, he listens to me when I tell him I'm in pain. Definitely going to use that way out whenever he questions me.
Instead of sleeping, I use my phone and research hotels in the area that are cheap. I also look for affordable apartments/share-houses/studios, literally anything that I can pay steadily without driving myself to exhaustion from working too much.
As generous as Axe has been, I just don't want to be around werewolves anymore. I want to start new where no one knows me. I'm leaving soon. I'm sure of that. Axe helping me will just be a memory.
***
Waking up, I stay cuddled against the pillow.
I reach out for my phone and see it's Monday; a new week is starting.
I'll probably take this week off school too.
But I shouldn't. I took last week off, only having gone one day.
I go to the bathroom and use the toilet before going back to bed.
Lifting up my shirt I cover my torso with the bruise cream.
Ever since I was able to move my arms without aching, I've been putting the cream on myself.
It was getting too intimate having Axe rub close to my breasts.
Just as I'm pulling the blanket back over me, the door opens and Axe walks in with a tray of food.
“How are you feeling?” he asks, setting the tray on the bed.
“Better each day,” I say.
“I'm glad. I'm going grocery shopping today. Do you need anything?”
“You go out? In public?” I frown.
“Just because no one in the pack sees me doesn't mean I don't buy my own stuff. I take the back road into town to go unseen.”
“Oh, I just figured you stayed in your house all the time and had someone do errands for you.” I grab the tray and start eating.
“I used to do that but being in this house... it can drive you mad after a while,” he murmurs.
“Are you ever going to... never mind. It's not my business.” I stare down at the tray.
“Finish your question.”
“Are you ever going to go back into pack life?” I ask.
“I can't answer that.” Axe lets out a heavy breath, shakes his head, then tells me to enjoy the food before leaving the room.
Maybe he feels the same way I do, about getting away from the pack.
Why didn't Axe leave the pack when his mate died?
I guess an alpha leaving his pack would be the greatest shock in werewolf history.
He probably thought it'd be easier to go into hiding and not deal with anything than put in the effort to move into the city.
Alphas have money, though, so it wouldn't take much effort on his part.
However, for me to escape this place, it will take all my effort to succeed.
I hear doors close and then a car engine so he must have left.
I grab the remote and watch some aimless tv for a while but I kind of zone out.
I've watched tv for so long, it's kind of annoying me now.
I need to get up and do something. Leaving my room, I walk down the hall and come to the staircase.
Looking at how many stairs there are, it's daunting.
Should I even try to descend them? My foot makes the decision for me as I step down the first stair.
I need to retrain my body to move and stairs would be a good way despite the pain they're going to put me through.
I make my way down the stairs, which takes longer than I'd assumed.
When I reach the floor, I let out a sigh.
The kitchen is the first part of the house I find.
I go through the pantry and fridge, gulping down a lot of food.
Axe really only brings me toast, fruit, and whatever he lousily makes for dinner.
I don't blame him for his barely-there cooking skills, given his mate must have cooked for them.
After eating I walk around and look sadly around the house.
It's so museum-like; no personal photos, nothing out of place.
I guess this is just the place he stays.
I don't think he has an attachment to this house anymore. Much like how I feel about my house.
Opening a door I see it's a gym. Looking around at the machines my eyes notice the hand indents on the rubber part of the Powerline P2X home gym.
Clearly this is the machine he always uses.
His thick biceps are the proof. I look at the treadmill and imagine if that would be good for my body once I heal.
When I finish walking around the house, I stand back in front of the stairs.
Ugh, this is going to be more painful going up than it was coming down.
My ribs hurt each time I raise my leg for the next step, but I make it to the top after a while.
Staring down the hallways I debate going back to my room.
Upstairs there are usually just bedrooms anyway, but I find myself walking down and opening each door.
I'm surprised when I open the next door.
Because it's not like the rest of the house, it's not museum-like.
There are photo frames all over the room, the bedside tables, the shelves.
I bite my lower lip, nervous about being in this room.
To get a one hundred percent answer to my question, I open up the closet and see women's clothes hanging perfectly in place.
Shit. This is his mate's room!