The Beta and His Runaway Werefox / ✔️

Her heart had exhilarated inside of her chest once they crossed the small bridge and broke through the opening of the trees, her hands gripping onto his shirt for shelter while she hid her body behind him in fear. Her eyes tossed between every unfamiliar face and smell as she whimpered and stuck to him even tighter.

A few people had stopped and stared in wonder, and she could not entirely blame them. She was dirty and covered in mud. Her clothes were worn out and covered in filth, while her hair was all mattered and covered in twigs and leaves. Compared to them, she looked like a mess and that caused her to feel insecure in her own skin as she whimpered and hid her face in his back.

“It is okay. I have got you. None of these people will hurt you.” Harvey tried to reassure her while his hands held onto her arms as best as he could. “We just need to get through the village and into the hospital.”

“What is a hospital?”

“It is a place that people go to when they are sick or injured. Women also come in here when they are having a baby, that sort of thing.” He replied, his head turning towards her while she stayed staring at everyone with wide, fearful eyes. “You do not need to be afraid; I will always be here.”

Bella felt her heart skip as her face flushed, her head slowly nodding while she decided to stay quiet. She had many more questions about hospitals, but she also wanted to know what having a baby was. She did not know how people were made or where people came from, but she did get a hint from his words, and that was; that people came from women.

Her breathing calmed down while her hands stayed on his shirt, her body close to his own as she could feel the heat of him radiating off him in waves. He was so warm, and all she wanted to do was wrap her arms around him and never let go, but she was also too embarrassed to do it at the same time.

Her bare left foot felt something stab her as she hissed and yelped in pain. Tears formed around her eyes as she pulled back from Harvey and whimpered. The smell of blood hit her nose as she checked under her foot to see that her skin was torn open from a sharp rock.

Harvey was by her side in seconds as he crouched down and took her foot into his hands, blood getting all over him while he checked it. “We need to get you cleaned up before this gets infected.” He said before he noticed her tears and growled lowly. His free hand wiped away the falling tear that had gone down her face before he suddenly stood and picked her up bridle-style. A small yelp escaped her lips as her head landed on his chest.

All she could do was stare up at his angry face. His eyes flashed from his normal brown to black while his jaw clenched. She did not know what to do, her body feeling limp but strong at the same time from his hold while she gently reached up and touched his cheek, his jaw un-clenching in seconds as he leaned into her touch and closed his eyes.

For those brief seconds, she felt like she knew what she was doing. The feeling of his beating heart slowing down and his ragged breathing had also slowed from that one simple touch as she felt sudden pride run through her. Bella knew she had a lot to learn when it came to mates, but she also wanted to figure it out all on her own, even if that meant trying out a few things that would embarrass her.

He carried her through the town with her eyes still looking up at him in amazement. The people around them seemed to disappear as she rested her head on his chest and felt her fox purr in pleasure which was an odd thing for her fox to do. Her eyes slightly frowned as she tried to think of why her fox would feel so pleased and happy just as the brightness of the world turned dark.

Her eyes moved away from his face to look around the building that they had just entered. Harvey started to talk before she realised that someone had been standing in front of them. Her eyes frantically looked around as she saw beds and people, chairs, and random items that her brain could not comprehend. There were people dressed in normal clothes and people dressed in weird, off-coloured blue outfits.

In the next room they entered, she noticed a bed as Harvey walked towards it and gently placed her down. “You have to allow them to look at you, okay?”

Bella numbly nodded her head, not understanding what was going on as two women came toward her with soft smiles on their faces. One began to flash a light in her eyes while another placed a random black thing around her arm. Pressure began to build around her arm as she panicked and tried to get it off before she felt sparks stroke her hair. Her eyes tearfully looked towards Harvey, who was now sitting on her bed next to her with his arms around her to keep her calm.

Everything was happening so quickly, her eyes blurring from her tears, but she was also curious enough to see what was going on. But that all changed when she noticed something sharp coming towards her, panic setting into her heart again as she tried to escape from his arms, but he held her down. Small sobs came out as the two women paused as if they did not know what to do, but Harvey did as he spoke again. “Bella, you are dehydrated. That sharp thing in the nurse’s hand is a needle. She is going to put it in your arm and place you on a drip so that you can get the fluids that your body needs.”

“It will hurt!” She cried, hugging his chest close to her while she smothered her face into his chest. His body seemed to stiffen as she felt his heartbeat rapidly again from her actions and words. “I just want to go home, Harvey. I want my papa!”

“You will get him back.” He stated softly while he hugged her close to him. “I have something for you. Do you want to see it?”

Bella nodded, moving her eyes towards his face while he reached out for something and grabbed it. A small rubber duck came into her line of view, and a small smile spread across her face as he handed it to her. “It is a ducky!”

“How old is this girl exactly, Beta? She is acting like a child.” One of the nurses commented while she held a scowl on her face. “Someone of her age should not be acting like this. She is pathetic!”

Harvey growled. The low rumble caused Bella to jump as she felt his grip on her tighten. “Open your mouth and disrespect your Female Beta again! Say what is on your mind again, and you will face serious consequences!”

The nurse gulped, her eyes wide while she shook with a nervous laugh. “I am so sorry, Beta. I did not know.”

“And yet, if she were not your second in commander, you still would have thrown an insult. Do you treat all of your patients that way or just her?” Harvey’s question caught her off guard while she opened and closed her mouth. His eyes moved to the older nurse with the needle in her hands. “Does she insult other patients?”

The older woman nodded. “Yes, Beta. We have told her many times that she is not supposed to, but she does anyway.”

“That was all I needed to hear.” He seethed, the door opening as she saw Byron come in. Her mind was confused as he smiled at her before he turned and looked at the scared nurse.

“Did I really just get informed? What, I think I just got informed?” Byron questioned. The sweet, childlike tone that he held when she first met him was gone and is now replaced with a tone that terrified her as she held onto Harvey in fear.

“No, it is all a misunderstanding, Alpha! I swear!” The nurse begged, but it did not matter as Byron growled to shut her up. Her body quickly ran out of the room before Byron smiled at Bella’s scared form again before leaving.

Bella felt her breath hitching with every second that passed. Her eyes darted back and forth between the remaining nurse and Harvey. She wanted to question what had just happened, but she could also feel the tension that sat in the air as she leaned forward and gained the nurse’s attention. “Does... Does it hurt?”

“Only for a few seconds, honey.” The nurse softly replied. “First, I need to tie this strap around your arm and pull it tightly so that I can access a vein. Once I have found a vein, I will put some numbing ointment on so that the pain is less than if I did not use it. After that, I will slide the needle in and keep it in with these plastered so that you can get the fluids into your system. The needle will need to stay in your arm until we allow you to go home. Did you understand all of that?”

Bella shook her head. “Kind of.” She mumbled in defeat, offering her free arm while she used the other to hug the rubber ducky close to her. “Harvey said I needed to get checked, so I will let you do it.”

The nurse smiled again, her eyes softening while she did her job. “Do you know how old you are? Who is your family?”

Bella thought for a while, Harvey watching the nurse’s every move as she felt him playing with her mattered hair. “I think I am Seventeen. My papa told me that I was turning that last year, but it has been a year since then.”

“He has been gone for a year,” Harvey spoke, rubbing his hand up and down her now-needled arm. “I found her a few months ago living in the abandoned Werefox territory.”

The nurse listened. Bella, feeling her foot sting while the nurse tended to her wound. “I see.” She mumbled as she cleaned Bella’s foot. “Have you lived there your whole life?”

Bella nodded. “Yes, I am not allowed to talk to people. I am going to get in so much trouble.”

“You are not going to get into trouble, honey.” The nurse reassured while she eyed Harvey. “But I do feel like something is off about your situation.”

“So do I.” Harvey agreed. “Why would anyone isolate their daughter from the world? Keeping her away from people and keeping her naive to everything does not make any sense.”

“Everything?” She questioned as Harvey nodded in response. “Maybe because this man was hiding more than just her.”

“What do you mean?” Bella asked. “My papa looked after me.”

Harvey shared a look with the nurse again, his hand taking Bella’s face to make her look into his eyes. “It does not matter for now. Let us just get these fluids into you, and then you can have a shower.”

Bella frowned, staring into his orbs in confusion. “What is a shower?”