My gaze darted to his female and she cowered under her sister’s arm, her lips quivering as tears poured from her eyes.
Fear. Did she ever think I would whip her?
I moved forward and the female inched away, her back hitting the wall behind her, but I ignored her and went to crouch in front of Manuel.
“Look at me. If you think I enjoyed whipping you, I didn’t. But I was disappointed in you. You made my heart ache because I had too much faith in you. Do not touch your female in this manner ever again. The next time you do that, I will give you the twenty lashes you were asking for, And I will make sure you will never see your female again.”
I didn’t wait for him to respond before I got up on my feet and gave an order to my men to take Manuel to the infirmary and make sure he would be checked to make sure his wounds were not infected. And to let it heal naturally.
The silver was not enough to cause extreme damage, but it was enough for him to feel the burn. I was hoping he would learn his lesson. He was also back on probation as a warrior, but he would still be attending training, but his responsibilities would be reduced for a month.
If he were able to get back on his feet after a month, I would allow him back into the troop. But I’d keep an eye on him and make sure he never raised his hand to his female again.
I stopped in front of my mate. Her face was pale as she stared into my eyes, but before I could guide her to leave, she turned around and ran out of the cell towards the nearby toilet.
I rushed after her, making Jenny stop in her tracks as she was about to go after her as well.
I saw Nadia vomiting on the large sink, but it seemed like almost nothing was coming out except her own saliva. She probably hadn’t eaten anything, but her stomach couldn’t handle the sight of skin tearing and the blood oozing out of it.
I reached out and rubbed her back, grabbing a clean towel from the closet and cleaning the outside of her mouth. She took the towel from my hand and cleaned her face before throwing it in the hamper by the sink.
She then stood up straight in front of me. She looked as if she wanted to say something, but there was just silence.
“Talk to me.” My voice almost broke.
“You scared me.”
I let out a deep breath before my hand cupped her face. “You have to understand, Nadia, that some females would do nothing to stop their mates from beating them. They’re just accepting it, and I don’t want that.”
She took a deep breath. Her eyes were fixed on mine, but she kept her mouth shut.
“Manuel is a good warrior. I would like to believe he is a good man. But he has his own demon, and he needs to fight that or he will lose her.” I was explaining Manuel to her, but it felt like I was talking about myself.
It was only a matter of time before my own demon would come out and make himself known to Nadia. And I feared that day.
She nodded her head. Her hand clasped mine over her cheek as she closed her eyes. “Tell me, did you not inflict harm on the female because of me?”
“I had no plan to hurt her. I would never do that.” I let go of her face and grabbed another towel, wiping away the sweat and the drops of blood that were splattered on my torso. “If Manuel allowed me to hurt his female, I would have given him the whole ten lashes.”
She smiled, and my heart calmed down. She took the towel from my hand and started wiping off my sweat and the remainder of the blood.
“I’m glad you told me that. For a moment, I thought I was looking at a monster ready to beat up a female just to prove his point.”
“Nadia, I have my own demons too. One day, when I tell you about it, I hope you won’t run away and leave.”
Her eyes squinted before she smiled at me. She threw the towel in the hamper and coiled an arm around my neck while her free hand was wiping something on my cheek.
“I should be scared, but I’m not. I can’t wait to meet your demons, Riley. Maybe it will end up liking me too, and we can turn him around to be an angel…” She said playfully, but it warmed my heart that she was willing to open her mind for me.
“I think he likes you already.”
“I know. I’m not that hard to like.” She giggled as she leanedher cheek into my naked torso.
“I agree with that. But first, let’s get you something to eat. I’m sure your stomach will start making sounds soon.”
“No. I don’t think so. After what I witnessed, I don’t think I would be able to eat.”
“Okay, then we can just go back...”
