Page 11 of M.A.Y.A
“At this point, we need to move forward as if we’re all believers,” Isaiah said. “Personally, since my father’s heard about the alternate dimensions project and the portal, I think there is truth to them. Also, nothing logical can explain Maya, nor can it tell us why she was randomly dropped in a field in wolf territory without any clothing.”
“What’s the game plan then?” Sonya asked. She’d always been his Beta who cut straight to the point. “Are we supposed to just watch her in the safe house until Drayden finds the portal, or we’re attacked?”
Isaiah shook his head. “We’ll need to examine the mechanics in her arm, or the chips in her body to understand her better.”And to make sure she’s safe.“I don’t know how advanced the science is from where she’s coming from, but it may be able to tell us something. Cindy and Sergei, that’s where you come in.”
“No time like the present,” Sergei said, then motioned to the front door of the safe house. “Permission to approach?”
No, Isaiah thought, already dreading the idea of letting any wolf near his mate. However, it had to be done.
“Let me go first,” he said, and turned to the safe house. His wolf was already growling deep in his chest, desperate to claim her.
ChapterFour
Isaiah reentered the house, signaling his Betas to give him a minute before they followed. He found Maya sitting on the edge of the bed, similar to the way he’d left her. Her big brown eyes looked confused and lost, and her hands clenched and unclenched at her sides. If Isaiah had it his way, he would pick her up and hold her on his lap. He’d stroke her hair, the long line of her naked thighs, and press a kiss against the curve of her neck to offer her the comfort she looked like she needed. There was so much they still had to learn about each other, but she was his mate. It was his responsibility to take care of her needs.
He may not have wanted this bond, but he’d figure out a way to make Maya feel safe, to feel wanted the way a mate should.
Right now, she was in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people. He needed to gain her trust, and he needed to trust her before they could move forward with their relationship.
“I have my Betas with me,” he said when she looked up at him. “Two of them have specializations in computer engineering. If you’re amenable to it, they can take a look at your…ah, arm to make sure you’re okay.”
“Your Betas,” she said, her voice hollow as she looked up at him. “Interesting terminology. Is your world also militarized? Is Beta another word for soldier? You know their names though. Cindy and Sergei.”
So, she had heard his conversation outside, he thought. No human had that ability as far as he knew. There was some truth to the robotic parts of her physicality.
“They’ll be gentle.”
Her head swiveled at the sound of the front door opening, and her fingers fisted in the bedsheets. “I don’t want anyone to poke and prod at me. I’ve been an experiment for long enough.”
“We have to know if you’re being tracked, Maya. If there is a way that they could hurt you from a distance.”
Seconds later, Alex, Sonya, Sergei, and Cindy filtered into the small bedroom. Their eyes widened at the remnants of the earlier tussle.
“Kinky,” Alex mused as he scanned the holes in the walls and the dented dresser.
Isaiah growled at him, snapping his jaws in reprimand. “Show some respect to my mate.”
The bastard didn’t look sorry in the least. Instead, he slid his bag off his shoulder and began setting the food on the surface of the dresser.
“I’m sorry you’ve come all this way,” Maya said, her voice strong and rigid. “But no one will be touching me today.”
Sergei and Cindy looked at Isaiah.
Damn, taking care of her was going to be infinitely harder than he thought if this was how she was reacting to basic aid.
He stepped in front of her, blocking her view to the rest of the people in the room, then crouched so they were eye level. “What would you need to feel safe enough to have someone inspect your arm?”
Her lower lip trembled. “Nothing. I don’t feel safe being touched by others.”
Isaiah looked at her white knuckles, her frantic gaze scanning each of his packmates, and the way her bandaged toes began tapping the floor in an erratic rhythm.
“What if you have control over the situation?”
She cocked her head to the left, and the tapping stilled. “How so?”
Isaiah looked over his shoulder at Sonya. “Knife.”
His Beta’s eyes widened. “Alpha?”
