ARTEMIS' POV:-

　　I was sitting on top of Elijah's lap. My head was on his chest. He had his arms wrapped around my body. And my arms were wrapped around his torso. I just didn't want to let go of him. "I just froze when I saw you. By the time I got my senses back, it was too late already. You already have left the apartment. I didn't know what to do." Elijah whispered softly in my ear. He responded to the question I had asked him.

　　I pulled away from him to look into his eyes. His eyes were filled with guilt and regret for everything that happened that night. "I was mad. I don't know if I was angry at you or at myself. I just wanted it all to end. I wanted to stop my brain from screaming at me. That I was dirty as I was a slut." I whispered softly, trying to explain why I didn't stop. I was not sure why I didn't wait longer.

　　I needed air. After seeing them both coming out of the bathroom naked, I felt like I was being suffocated. So I left. "Hey! Artemis! Don't talk like that about yourself." Elijah whispered softly as he cupped my face. He started caressing my cheeks gently.

　　Tears welled up on my eyes. I had no idea why it felt so gross. Why I still felt like I was the reason for everything that went wrong. "I still feel so dirty. I scrub myself every single day. I can't get rid of that stink that I got from that wild wolf." I added in a low tone while sobbing quietly. I wanted to tell him everything that happened to me that day. I wanted that nightmare to be over. Living without him was like being stuck in a nightmare.

　　He pulled my face towards his and placed a soft kiss on my forehead. I gasped loudly as I felt his lips on my face again. "Artemis! You are not dirty. You shouldn't be ashamed of yourself. It was not your fault. We all fucked up but you were not at fault." Elijah whispered while his lips were still on my forehead.

　　He pulled his lips away from my face. Breathing heavily, I was staring at his face. "Will you tell me now what happened that night? I need to know. Please…" I asked him in a pleading tone. For some reason, he was not telling me anything about that night. I guess that was the reason I saw guilt in his eyes.

　　"I thought you already knew. That's why you are here." Elijah asked me in a low tone. Yes, I knew he didn't cheat on me. Alisa gave that up. She had no idea I could sense her lying very easily.

　　"I want to hear your side of the story. And I want you to tell me that story. I need to know what happened to you that night. Please… tell me." I replied to him in a low tone then pleaded with him to tell me everything. Tracy was getting frustrated and I was getting anxious to know what she did to Elijah.

　　I was not sure when I started sobbing again. I had no idea why I was crying in the first place. Maybe because I missed him so much. "Shhh… don't cry, baby girl. And you certainly do not have to beg me for anything. it's your right to ask me. I will tell you that story. I will tell you everything. If that's what you want." Elijah whispered softly in my ear as he started rocking me back and forth in his arms.

　　His response made me sigh in relief. "What happened that night? Tell me everything." I asked Elijah in a low tone as I placed my head back on his chest.

　　"I don't know much. Daniel and Uncle Grey are investigating the incident." Elijah replied in a neutral tone. It felt like he was not interested in telling me anything. Or maybe, there was something that was bothering him.

　　I cupped his face and pecked his cheek. Just to let him know that I was with him. That I was not going anywhere anymore. "What happened to you?" I asked with my lips still on his cheek.

　　Elijah growled in pleasure as I gently rubbed my lips on his cheek. "I am not sure. It was all a blur." Elijah replied to me in a hush whisper. He was turned on.

　　Elijah grabbed my hips and pushed me on the bed. He pinned me on the bed and buried his face in the crock of my neck. "What can you remember?" I asked him in a low tone. I was enjoying every single stroke of his lips on my neck.

　　Elijah pulled away from me as he heard my question. He pecked my lips then laid down on the bed. "That I was at my father's death anniversary. As always, we were remembering his teachings. We were honouring him." Elijah whispered softly while staring at the ceiling. It looked like he blamed himself for everything. That's why he didn't want to look me in the eye.

　　I snuggled closer to him and placed my head on his chest. Elijah wrapped his arms around me and pecked my forehead again. "What happened then?" I asked him impatiently.

　　"You and Ryan didn't stay. You both left an hour before the honouring ceremony started. Emma tried to stop Ryan but she didn't try to stop you. Ryan just refused to listen and walked away." Elijah replied to my question in a guilty tone. I remember that time. Emma almost threatened Ryan to stay. But Ryan left saying that he had a mission and he was supposed to listen to the Alpha.

　　"Emma gave us this special margaritas, saying that dad used to have those whenever she went to live with dad. She didn't come to us until dad died." Elijah added in a low tone. That's when I remembered something. Noah and Amira were two more people who heard me howling for help. They were two more people who were not at the memorial.

　　"Ryan, Noah and Amira didn't drink the margaritas. I was not even offered. We four were the only ones who were able to use our senses that night." I whispered softly as it finally started to make some sense.

　　Elijah looked at me and nodded his head. My thoughts were going in the right way. "Did something happen after that?" I asked Elijah in a low tone. I wanted him to tell me why Alisa and Elijah were naked in his bathroom.

　　I knew she tricked him. Like she had been doing since she got here. I wanted to know what she did that night. "Yeah! I had a headache. I went to my apartment to take some time alone. And I went into my bedroom. I don't know why I felt like taking a shower. I was hot." Elijah answered my question. There was a frown on his face as he was explaining to me what actually happened.

　　"Alisa came from behind and tried to seduce me. I tried to push her but she was determined to get what she wanted." Elijah added in an angry tone. He gritted his teeth in anger as he remembered.

　　Elijah shivered in disgust. The very next moment, he was peppering wet kisses on my face. He was purposely touching his tongue on my skin. As if it could get rid of that disgust feeling inside him. "That whore didn't leave me until I threatened her with her life. I was in the shower hardly for five minutes. When I got out, I saw you standing in front of me. I froze when I saw you." Elijah growled angrily. As I had expected, Alisa tried to play a dirty trick on Elijah.

　　She had been trying to ride Elijah's cock since she got to the pack. She had been looking for ways to crawl in his bed. He didn't give up but she made me believe that Elijah was cheating on me. Tears welled up in my eyes as I buried my face in his chest while sobbing quietly. "I am so sorry, baby girl. I never wanted you to get hurt. It was unintentional but I was the reason why you got hurt." Elijah apologised for something he had no control over. But I was not sobbing because of that.

　　I couldn't hold my tears because I questioned his loyalty towards me. I didn't even let Elijah explain himself. It was understandable that he froze. "No! I am supposed to be apologising to you, Eli. I didn't trust you. I didn't ask you anything. I didn't let you explain yourself. I just assumed that you played me. I am so sorry, Eli. I should never have done that." I apologised to Elijah in a guilty tone.

　　Elijah pulled me on top of him and pecked my forehead lovingly. "Shhh… it's alright. You don't need to cry anymore. I am here for you." Elijah tried to calm me down but I couldn't stop crying. I made us both suffer because of a dirty trick Alisa played with us. And I actually let her win.

　　Elijah was gently patting my back. As if I was a baby in his arms and he was trying to calm me down. "What did he do to you, baby girl? Talk to me. What did he do?" Elijah asked me about the assault.

　　I looked up at him as I heard his questions. Fresh sets of tears welled up in my eyes as I remembered how helpless I felt that night. "They broke my limbs. They clawed my back so I wouldn't be able to move. The Alpha of the wild pack trimmed Tracy's tail and then their alpha raped me." I replied to Elijah while crying.

　　Elijah wiped my tears and placed a soft kiss on my cheek. For a while, he didn't ask me anything. He was just trying to calm me down first. "Did he finish inside you?" Elijah asked me in a hesitant tone once I stopped crying.

　　It took me a moment to realise what he was asking me. I shook my head in response. "No! He didn't. Before he could be anywhere near finishing up, Daniel pulled him off of me and Noah ripped him into shreds. I will always be indebted to them for saving me." I replied to Elijah honestly.

　　It was difficult for me to talk about it. But I knew he was asking me because he cared about me. "Did Lauren check you?" Elijah asked in a low tone. He pushed his hand inside my shirt and started tickling my back gently. It was one of his tricks to make me relax in his arms.

　　I closed my eyes as I felt his hands on my bareback. "Yes! Tracy gave me the idea to make sure there was nothing invading my insides. Lauren gave me pills so there would be nothing inside me." I replied to his question in a low tone. Knowing well what he was talking about.

　　It was not even an option for me to be a bitch for the wild wolves. Alisa was actually playing that game. I just found out that the babies in her belly belonged to a wild Wolf. "That's alright! It's over now. The bastards are dead and no one is ever going to hurt you again. I promise."Elijah whispered softly in my ear while tickling my back so gently.

　　I was trying to fight my tears again. "I feel so dirty and humiliated. I feel like I brought this upon myself." I whispered in his ear. I told him how I felt. I had been scrubbing my body harshly because I felt like the wild

　　wolf alpha left his scent on my body. And I wanted it off of my body.

　　Thankfully, I took precautions and I was not pregnant. I would have ripped my belly if I would have gotten his child inside me. "Artemis! You are innocent. Don't think rubbish about yourself. Have you been sleeping fine?" Elijah asked me in a worried tone and I shooky head.

　　"No! I can't sleep at night." I replied to Elijah while sobbing quietly.

　　Elijah sat up on the bed. He wrapped his arms around me tightly to make me feel safe. "Tell me, what is going on?" Elijah asked me in a worried tone.

　　"I am having nightmares. They are so scary and they feel so real. I can't sleep at all." I was crying as I told him about those nightmares. They were like a loop. And no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't escape those nightmares.

　　"What did you see in those nightmares?" Elijah asked me in a concerned tone.

　　"I see the wild wolf who raped me and the wild wolf who bit me, coming at me together. They take turns and rape me again and again." I replied to him in a terrified tone. Just the thought of those nightmares gave me chills. And I could stop shaking.

　　"It feels so real. I feel pain all over my body. And I couldn't wake up. Not until someone wakes me up or I hear the alarm." I added further. I was crying nonstop and my hiccups were nowhere to be stopped.

　　"Shhh… they both are dead. There is no way they can hurt you. Your inner pain and the trauma from the assault is still inside your head. You need to push it out of your system." Elijah whispered softly in my ear as he started rocking me back and forth in his arms again.

　　I looked up at him. He smiled just so I would be able to feel better. "I don't know how to do that. I am scared." I whispered softly. It was true. Those nightmares made me scared. I felt sick every time I thought about them. And I didn't know how I could forget about them.

　　"Do you want me to help you?" Elijah asked me in a low tone. He leaned in and placed a soft kiss on my neck. I curled up my toes in pleasure. I knew what I wanted.

　　I intertwined my fingers with Elijah's hair as he sucked the sensitive skin of my neck. "Yes! I want you to help me. I want you to do something so I will not feel dirty anymore." I moaned softly as he was doing his magic on my body. As always, my body responded positively to his touches. That only happened whenever I was with him.

　　Elijah suddenly pulled away from me as he heard me. He had a confused frown on his face. "Are you sure you want that? There are ways I can help you forget about that assault." Elijah asked me again and I growled in annoyance. I was frustrated and I wanted him.

　　"No! I am sure I want that. I want you to touch me and bed me. So I will forget about that nasty wild wolf." I growled at him angrily. I couldn't stop my tears as I growled at him. I was not sure if I was horny or angry or sad. I felt all three emotions at the same time.

　　Elijah pulled me to his chest as he heard me. "Artemis! Don't do this to yourself. You don't want me to do that yet." He scolded me not to say anything about myself. I didn't just feel dirty. I felt like Elijah would never touch me.

　　"Why don't you want to touch me? Do you think I am dirty?" I asked him because it started to feel that way. I knew it was not my fault. But Elijah never pulled away from me. And that made me think that he was disgusted by me.

　　"No! Not at all. Just don't push yourself to do something you wouldn't like. " Elijah tried to talk to me. He wanted to convince me to give myself some time. But at that moment, I was too emotional to understand anything he was telling me.

　　"But I want it. I want you to touch me. I want to be in bed with you." I almost yelled at him angrily while punching his chest.

　　"Please, Eli. It's been three months. You haven't touched me for three months. I have to spend my heat in the ice water to bring my temperature down." I was not sure why I would be pleading with him to do it. He was afraid that I would be traumatised for the rest of my life if he bed me that soon. He just didn't understand that I wanted it so I could move on.

　　"Shhh… you don't have to beg me. You are not my slave." Elijah whispered softly in my ear. He never once treated me like one. Yes! He had me locked inside his apartment. But he never made me think or feel that I was his slave or anything. He was the only man I had ever trusted.

　　I buried my face in the crock of his neck. I wrapped my hand around his neck and started sucking his skin. I wanted him to know that I wanted it. "Will you touch me?" I asked him in a hush whisper.

　　Elijah growled in pleasure. He pushed me away then cupped my face with both of his hands. He was staring into my eyes. "Yes! If that's what you want. But on one condition. If you feel uncomfortable, you will let me know. If you agree with this condition, I am ready to take you right now." He agreed to give me whatever I wanted from him. But with a condition.

　　I had no problems with his condition. I just wanted him to touch me again. "Okay! Now please. Touch me." I replied to him then pleaded with him to touch me.

　　Elijah growled as he heard me. He let go of my face. His hand travelled between my legs. He pushed his hand inside my pants. "Whatever you say, baby girl." Elijah whispered softly in my ear. He sealed my mouth with his mouth and pushed his fingers inside my vagina. I moaned loudly as I felt him fingering me slowly.