Alpha Roberto

ANITA POV:

After hours of nonstop torture and pain, I drew my knees to my chest and rested my head against the glass behind me, my body physically drained and my mid-length black blonde hair soaked from sweat.

"All right, she's had enough for today. Lucia said, "We can carry on this tomorrow," as she spoke to me through the glass. Putting her pen back in her lab coat pocket, she jotted down a note on her clipboard and placed it on the big metal desk in front of her.

Gasping for air, I scowled at the scientists who were observing and examining me like a specimen in front of them.

I was thought of as though

I had no idea how long I had been stuck behind that glass, prodded and prodded by humans all the time. I'd heard them mention my age several times over the years, and they were eager to learn more about my species.

"Being a werewolf, she'll recover quickly. "We still have time for one more test," urged James as he ascended the stairs and arrived at the door of my glass container.

"No," I said, dabbing my drenched hair off my face and scurrying around until I was seated on the other side of my container from the man with the bald head who had opened the door and was now coming toward me.

"Stop it; you're scaring her." A young woman in the corner of the room said this as she observed my trembling body withdraw away from the scientist in front of me. Her face was distorted with pain.

Okay, Joana, don't get started. "As an intern, I advise you to remain silent to maintain your position," the man in front of me said, giving the young woman a menacing scowl. "Consider how terrified everyone would be if these beasts were still running around the streets! They are not humans! You have to cut all ties with them."

With an unpleasant cough, Joana sighed loudly and gazed intently into my dark brown eyes. "You can't possibly believe you have them all, can you? There must be more, probably right under your nose."

James shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Yes, and for that reason, we are studying the ones we have caught until it becomes simple to distinguish them from humans. Then their monstrosity as a race can come to an end! They don't belong here!"

"Is it possible for us to handle this a little more compassionately? "These creatures are in pain," Joana said, causing the rest of the scientists to shake their heads.They whispered to one another while casting a disapproving glance at the new intern.

I assumed she was new because I had never seen her before, but I did value her attempts to reason with the scientists. But I realized there was no use for it.

Years ago, when they rejected my repeated begs and pleas, I had given up attempting to reason with them. Eventually, I had just reduced myself to a broken shell that hardly ever talked or displayed emotion.

With a tone tinged with resentment, Lucia answered, "If you can't take what is about to happen, then I suggest you leave Miss Studdon. With this attitude, you will not last very long in this profession." "Remember, you've also signed a non-disclosure agreement, so none of this can be spoken about outside of this building."

Joana gave me a single nod, sighed, and then pointed to my big glass bottle, regretfully urging the scientists to go on.

I looked up at James in front of me, his hands raised defensively as he walked slowly toward me.

Another scientist muttered to him, "Careful James," which made me sigh inwardly. They understood that even if I were physically strong enough to fight back, I would be unable to do so because I was broken. Fighting seemed pointless to me at this point.

I used to shift all the time when I first arrived, nearly murdering a couple scientists in a panicked frenzy, but after years of research, they figured out my weakness.

Silver.

When they realized it was my weakness, they were so proud of themselves that they even poured themselves some champagne to celebrate my downfall. My zeal and all my chances of leaving this place vanished.

I would be tied down every few days and given tiny injections of silver to keep me weak and immobile, but not enough to kill me or seriously hurt me. I experienced inward burning and a gradual tearing apart of my muscles.

With an intense, hateful glare, Greg screamed, "Tell us how you heal so quickly."

Uncertain of what the man in front of me wanted me to say, I stayed silent and avoided making eye contact. As a werewolf, the reason I recovered was not a mystery; it was clear.

"Tell us, dammit!"

The loud voice echoed around me, bouncing off the glass walls and making my ears slightly ring.

I whimpered in pain as James kneeled in front of me, took out a tiny scalpel from his pocket, grabbed my arm, and yanked it towards him.

"Lucia, ready with the timer?" James asked as he pressed the knife into my arm, his eyes lingering on my already damaged wrist. He sliced into my skin and then hurried to get away, shutting the door behind him and hurrying to join the other scientists.

As I felt the blood slide down my arm and collect on the floor beneath me, I let out a painful hiss.

A scientist, observing me closely through narrowed eyes, said, "Hmm, it's taking a little longer this time."

I squeezed my eyes shut and gripped my wrist to my chest, trying to stop the tears from falling, but finally I let them fall. I wept in the back of my chamber, feeling my skin gently mending back together as the pain began to fade.

Lucia jotted down some notes on her clipboard once again. "Okay, that was fifty-eight seconds," she replied. "A normal, healthy werewolf would heal a lot quicker than that, but she's taking longer and longer to heal each time we conduct this experiment."

James shook his head and picked at his stubbled chin. "She's losing strength; for the following three days, let's increase her meals to two per day and see if that makes a difference. I'm trying to be as accurate as possible with this information."

I watched as the small group of scientists hurried out of the room, turning out the main light and shutting the door behind them, leaving me in complete darkness.

It all began to dawn on me at night, when I was completely by myself.

I could still remember turning in for the night at fifteen. Nothing appeared unusual at all.

But when I woke up, I was stuck in my massive industrial glass chamber, staring at me from all sides by a bunch of people wearing long white coats while they recorded me on tiny video cameras.

Years of painful testing had been inflicted upon me, and I was left perplexed as to why, as a harmless little girl, I had been viewed as such a monster. I had no intention of hurting anyone.

I was twenty now, or so I thought, and while I never got used to the pain, it is now part of my everyday life. It was something I was used to. I was aware that I would endure it until the day they determined they had enough data and it was time to execute me, something I was actually looking forward to.

It would be a privilege to leave this "life" of mine, knowing that everyone who had been looking for me had undoubtedly given up by now and that I was probably declared dead.

I heard the sound of the big bolted door slowly opening. My eyes flew wide, and I shook, wondering whether the scientists had decided to come back and carry out even more horrifying experiments.

I squinted through the shadows, furrowing my brows to see Joana approaching me, swatting at me to keep silent as I opened my lips to say something.

"Don't worry, but also don't say anything. He'll arrive. We are going to take care of you."

ANITA POV:

Joana had hurried out of sight, closing the door softly behind her to avoid drawing attention to anyone.

I had spent hours attempting to figure out what Joana had meant, which had left me awake for the rest of the night.

Seeing how the scientists treated me, I could understand why she didn't feel very at ease, but she was a human, and humans didn't like werewolves. I was doubtful of her genuine motives; therefore, I couldn't help but not trust her.

Who may be coming to put a stop to this whole thing? Was my suffering about to end? Was someone finally coming to kill me and save me from my misery?

The lights flickered above me, indicating that another exam day had begun, and I squinted. I watched with dispassionate eyes through the heavy metal door as James and Lucia, looking unduly happy, walked into the room.

James sighed and yanked open the door to my chamber, bringing my plate of food to me and hurrying out. "Breakfast," he said.

The sight of the big dish of food in front of me made my stomach rumble. Usually, I was fed just in the middle of the day to keep me weak, and I was always in need of additional nourishment.

Not wanting to push myself too far, I gingerly picked at the food in front of me when James took a couple of handcuffs out of his pocket. I instantly stopped chewing, and my brown eyes widened.

He laughed, "Relax, they're only silver," as a wave of sickness hit me and I almost puked up all the food I had just eaten.

"Today we are going to test how your body reacts to constant contact with silver, and if the painful side effects eventually subside," Lucia said, causing tears to drop from my eyes, knowing that I was about to endure immense pain.

James walked up the steps, pulled open the door, and stalked towards me. "You'll be chained up with these, and we will check back on you every hour to see how you are holding up," he said.

"Please, don't!" I cried. He lifted me off the ground and locked the silver handcuffs around my wrists while I sobbed. With a hard thump, I hit the ground again after he dropped me.

I groaned in pain, clamping my teeth to keep from screaming. I shook as I felt the silver slice open my skin, a burning pain spreading across my wrists.

"This is wrong!"

I turned my head in the direction of the voice and saw Lucia and James rolling their eyes at Joana, who was looking quite angry.

"You're abusing a young girl! Joana hissed, "Do you have no guilt?" I cocked my head and furrowed my brows in response. I was still trying to figure out why she was trying to help me.

Lucia turned to face Joana, her face as red as a tomato and her fists clenched. "Go now; if you don't like the work we're doing here, we're doing our jobs! You can't assist us at all!"

"I hope he kills the both of you slowly and painfully," Joana said, her voice so low I could hardly hear anything. She hurriedly left the room, giving me one more pathetic glance before slamming the door behind her.

I stared at the door, wondering why this new intern was so against my torture and why she had taken the position in the first place.

James turned to face Lucia as they turned to leave the room, but they stopped short. "We will return in an hour," Greg said. A loud blast shook the entire room, making them both gasp and the floor tremble. They squinted their eyes.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I covered my ears from the overwhelming roar and watched as the lab wall collapsed, sending bricks and debris hurtling through the air. They crashed into my strong glass chamber, breaking it and nearly puncturing me with the glass.

I screamed in terror as I cowered down in the corner and watched in dread as several men broke through the debris. Lucia and James ran out of the room in a panic, screaming so loudly that it echoed off the walls. They disappeared around the corner, a few men running after them as they stumbled over appliances and bricks.

One of the men shouted, "There's one in here!" and pointed toward me. "Check out the other rooms! I'll take this one!"

The sound of the man's booming voice, powerful and assertive in tone, made me pull back.

He came over to me and gave me a pitying look before lifting me up in his big, strong arms, making me writhe.

When Joana claimed "he" was coming, was this what she meant?

I felt a sense of success when I turned to face my ruined chamber, which now resembled me and was merely a pile of broken pieces on the ground. I glared at it with hatred.

As I was being brought from the lab room, I observed that other wolves were being hauled out of their broken chambers as well, seeming wounded and beaten. When they realized they were no longer trapped behind glass, expressions of relief were all over their faces.

"Andiamo sbrigati! Move it!"

A loud voice filled the corridor, and I felt tingles run down my body. My heart accelerated at the sound. Anxiety shot through me as I looked around, trying to figure out where the deep voice was coming from.

I twisted my head from side to side, my heart hammering against my runs as it was laced with a faint Italian accent.

The man who was holding me turned abruptly, and I was startled as I saw a very tall and strong man standing a few steps away from us. His brows wrinkled as he peered around, his hard hazel eyes softening slightly as they fell on me.

He growled, "Drop her," at the man carrying me, his chest thumping up and down as he struggled to breathe, and strode toward us.

The tall man in front of us glanced angrily at the handcuffs that were securely fastened around my wrists, leaving my skin bloody and scorched beneath. I looked up at him.

"Yes, Alpha Roberto," the man answered, immediately putting me down gently and taking a few steps back in confusion.

I stared up in wonder, my heart palpating. It felt like my world had come to an end, and everything around me had blurred.

Even though I didn't know him, I was pulled to him and felt more comfortable than I had ever been.

The man in front of me maintained eye contact and, with a clinched jaw, wrenched the handcuffs off of me, tossing them to the ground while observing my face for any sign of pain. When he saw me wince, he shook his head and muttered a curse.

With a swift motion, the godlike guy lifted me up, and I wrapped my arms around his neck to keep me from slipping as he stormed out of the lab building. He crouched down in front of me and gently placed me on the grass.

His hands trembled beneath mine as he pulled my wrists toward him, giving them a sharp look that told me he wasn't feeling happy.

"Cosa ti hanno fatto, amore mio?" He asked, and I frowned, raising my eyebrows. "I will kill whoever did this to you."

I shook my head and cradled my pulsing wrists back into my chest.

The man who had found me ran over to us, looking at me oddly as he peered between Roberto and me. "Alpha, all the lab workers are dead, and everyone has been rescued," he said.

With his hands running through his dark hair and his jaw still tense, Roberto nodded and slid his fingers down his face until they landed on his beard. "Start heading back, and get them all to the pack hospital immediately."

"Do you need help with this one, sir?"

Waving the man away, Roberto shook his head slightly but didn't take his burning eyes off of me. "No, I've got her."

I observed as the man assisted in gathering up the beaten and injured wolves, some of which were dragged off in the direction of big black cars, all of which vanished in an instant.

"We have to go now, amore mio," Roberto said, reaching out an arm to me. I gave him a suspicious look, my face masked with fear.

The other wolves-where had those men taken them? Were they merely sent to a different lab to undergo more testing? Was this all I had left to run?

"Don't even think it," Roberto said, raising one eyebrow and speaking in a low, sultry tone.

"I-I don't-" Feeling overwhelmed, I muttered as I hurriedly searched around for some kind of escape route.

With a sigh, Roberto's eyes softened, and he closed them for a brief while before pulling me into his arms and making me take a deep breath. "I will not harm you. I'll make sure nothing bad happens to you. I swear."

----

Translations:

Andiamo sbrigati- Come on, hurry up

Cosa ti hanno fatto, amore mio?- What have they done to you, my love?

Amore mio- My love

ANITA POV:

I was still scared, even though my body felt comfortable in Roberto's embrace. I had no idea who this man was or where he was taking me.

My heart skipped a beat as he wrapped his big, muscular arms around me, and I did my best to keep my head down even though I could feel my pulse in my throat.

It looked like Roberto saw it, and he gave me a tiny smile that vanished as soon as he turned his attention back to my wrists. I scowled as I looked at the gorgeous, dark gray car he was carrying me towards, muttering to himself fiercely in Italian.

He unlocked the passenger door, lowered me inside, closed it quickly, and got into the driver's side of the vehicle, turning on the engine. He watched me fidget with my thumbs in my lap, not knowing what to say or do, while he backed up and cranked the engine before turning onto the road.

"What's your name?" Roberto questioned me, bringing me back to reality.

"Anita," I murmured in response, furrowing my brows in perplexity as I saw him move in his seat in response to my words.

"Your age?"

"Um, twenty, I think," I said, trying not to let the burning sensation that was coursing down my arms distract me from the talk. The silver was making me feel dizzy.

Roberto nodded to himself, and I felt like I should have asked him the same thing, but I lacked the guts to speak. I was unsure if it was okay for me to speak.

"I'm twenty-four," he said with a small laugh, clearly observing my struggle as his brows furrowed once again as he examined every inch of me. "That human laboratory has been on our radar for a while, but we weren't sure what to expect from them or how much information they possessed about our species. We had to be certain that everyone could enter and exit without dying."

I stared at Roberto, his harsh features sharpening as he tightened and inhaled deeply. "How long were you there for?"

"Um, about five years," I muttered, observing Roberto's palms whiten and his hands gripping the steering wheel so firmly that it creaked beneath him. I freaked out, thinking we would crash because he would lose control of the vehicle.

"We're going to get you looked at as soon as we get home, va bene?"

The term 'home' made me furrow my brows. My thoughts strayed to my family's location and what they are currently doing. I had erased the memories of them after being held captive at the lab for several years, realizing that hanging on to them was more painful than being alone.

But I couldn't help but wonder if they were happy without me and if they had moved on.

The car suddenly came to a stop, and I realized that I had been daydreaming for most of the drive. Through the car's windshield, I was able to see a guarded area with tall fencing surrounding it and security at the entry.

Roberto nodded to them, and they bent their heads, opening the gates and letting us drive through. Rounding a corner, we saw a big white building with rows and rows of windows and several wolves being taken in on gurneys.

"Here we are. Roberto said, stepping out of the car, unlocking my door, and helping me out. "Let's get you taken care of." I started to breathe more heavily than I should have since I could feel his flesh against mine while his hand hovered around the small of my back in case I needed support.

He said something incoherently to one of the door guards, who nodded and hurriedly moved inside the hospital, walking with long, rapid steps.

My pulse rate increased, and my hands began to tremble as Roberto took me inside. He quickly noticed this and ushered me into a room, softly shutting the door behind us.

"Just try to stay calm, darling." Roberto smiled at me. "Doctor Mac is coming."

There was a lot of medical equipment packed on trolleys in the tiny space. A big hospital bench was positioned in the center of the space, and a computer was situated in one of the room's corners.

"Alpha Roberto, I came as quickly as I could," the doctor sighed, beaming at me as he approached me. He took his glasses from his gray hair and put them on the tip of his nose.

"Please, Anita, take a seat," said Doctor Mac, waiting for me to back up onto the hospital bed, perching myself on the edge of it slowly, my entire body shaking.

"Look at her wrists," Roberto growled, turning away from me and trying to calm himself by breathing heavily. He had his arms crossed over his broad chest, and I slowly followed my gaze down his pierced forearms.

The doctor hissed as he examined my wounds, shaking his head and turning to his alpha. "She's too weak, so her wounds aren't healing. I'm going to need to stitch them up."

The word'stitch' made my head shoot up, and I became panicked, fidgeting with my fingers in my lap, looking at Roberto almost pleadingly, my bottom lip trembling.

"Alright, Anita, I'm just going to numb the area with-"

I jumped off the bed at the sight of the needle, heading for the door, but before I got there, Roberto lifted me off the ground with his enormous arms around my waist.

"No, Anita, it's fine!"

"No, please, don't!"

I cried, wriggling in his arms. I had endured five years of agony, including frequent blood draws and injections of unidentified drugs. I was unable to repeat it.

"Anita, it's okay," Roberto said, towering over me and forcing me to gaze into his sparkling hazel eyes as he backed me up against the wall with a deep, frustrated growl in his chest. "Please, we have to do this."

"Please, don't," I begged, looking directly into Roberto's eyes, and he sighed. His jaw tightened and his teeth clenched as he swallowed harshly.

I thought for a moment that he had given in, but he ignored my cries, lifted me up in his arms, and caused me to breathe under his breath before gently setting me back down on the bed. "Just give me a look, my love. Just focus on me alone."

Roberto separated my legs, stepping in between them, caressing my cheek, looking directly into my eyes, and motioning for Doctor Mac to begin working.

Roberto gave me a little smile and stroked my hair away from my smudged face. For a moment, the sensation of his touch distracted me. "Good girl," he muttered.

While Doctor Mac stitched me up, I studied his face, taking in his smooth, tanned skin and the faint freckles that sprinkled his nose.

His brows were big and broad yet well-shaped, and he had straight, white teeth and soft, plump lips. His eyes softened as I looked into them and blinked a few times to get a better view.

"You're done," the doctor said with a smile, clapping his hands and putting down his instruments.

"Buon lavoro, amore mio," said Roberto, giving me a flashy before taking a step back and examining my freshly stitched wounds.

"I'd like to do a full body check on her, if that's okay?" The doctor said this and looked at Roberto rather than at me, making me furrow my brows and frown.

He nodded and said, "Do whatever you need to do to make sure she's okay," while observing the doctor examine me. He weighed me, tested my reflexes, and put lights in my eyes. Although I was grateful that it was brief, I didn't feel at ease in the space.

"She's obviously malnourished and will need plenty of rest, but she should make a full recovery. It's just more the mental side of her that I'm worried about," said the doctor, causing me to raise my eyebrows at him, feeling irritated that he was talking about me as if I weren't in the room. Roberto muttered, "Well, that's something we can discuss privately," as he glanced across to see my unhappy expression.

"Of course, Alpha." Doctor Mac nodded. "I'd like to see you again in a day or so to check up on you, Anita. Hopefully you'll be feeling much better, and we can do some blood tests."

I watched as the doctor excused himself, nodding at his alpha before exiting the room, leaving Roberto and me alone, both of us silent as we looked at each other. My heart was racing at the thought of having to deal with more needles, but I ignored the thought. That was a problem for another day.

"I apologize, Anita, for putting you through that. Though shame covered his face, Roberto's Italian accent thickened at the end of his statement. "I know you were scared, but I couldn't risk letting your wounds get infected when your immune system is this weak," he murmured, making my heart ache.

I didn't enjoy seeing Roberto upset, and it pained me that I was the source of it, confusing me. I barely knew this man, yet I felt like he was the only one who could offer me some form of comfort.

Translations:

Va bene?- Okay?

Buon lavoro, amore mio- Good job, my love