Bullied Mate Of The Lycan Kings
Chapter 125

Lily's

pov

I had seen Aiden look hurt many times in the last couple of days by my actions and words and had felt either absolutely nothing some times, or sick satisfaction other times.

Not today though. Not right now. Nothing could have prepared me for the agony in his gaze when he realized what he had done and it was that look in his eyes when I recoiled from him that made me actually realize that truly the glass shattering from everywhere had been a mistake.

I felt nothing but guilt lodge in my chest as I watched him limp out of the hall with giant glass shards stuck in his back and back of his legs, leaving a trail of blood as he exited the room.

Tears trickled down my cheeks in horror because he had taken the brunt of the glass shards to protect me. It surprised me that I was worried for him and I opened my mouth to tell him to stop, so that I could assist him to the nearest medical facility but when I opened my mouth, nothing came out and I was left to watch him disappear out of the dining room, only to be replaced by the older woman who had been standing beside the chef at the beginning of dinner.

Maya was her name, I remembered that she had said it to me once and she was the only one who had shown something different from terror and fear that I had seen in the eyes of the other servants that lives in this mansion.

"Come on, child. Let's get you on your feet." Maya said, as she quickly looked all over my body and grabbed my arm to pull me up from the ground and now that I was on my feet I could finally see the severity of the damage that had been caused by Aiden's unintentional burst of power.

The fact that Aiden had thrown himself immediately over me to protect me was still startling to me as Maya led me down the hallway to my bedroom and she rushed into my closet and came out with a first aid kit, I was yet reminded of Aiden again and wondered who was tending to him right now.

"Is Aiden going to be okay?" I asked as Maya tended to my forehead wound and the woman just let out a tired sigh and shrugged which did nothing for my anxiety. "Aiden never seeks out anybody's help even when he's standing at death's gate. He'll be fine."

Horrified, I sat up straighter and held her hand when she reached forward again to clean the cut on my forehead just above my left brow, more worried than before.

"He limped out of the dining room. Glass was embedded all over his back. You saw the blood when you came in, so please tell me that he's already receiving medical attention." Maya gave me a straight look that told me she wasn't teasing about her last statement.

Her weathered gaze was piercing with the intensity all night shade werewolves seemed to have in their eyes. "Unless we want to cart away dead bodies in body bags all night, you shouldn't make such a suggestion. Nobody tends to Aiden when he has an injury and it has been that way since I can remember. The only person he allowed the privilege to tend to his injuries used to be Ren, but he and Ren have not been on the best of terms lately." She paused and I looked away, suddenly feeling ashamed because the reason Aiden and Ren were not on good terms was because of me.

"Nevertheless, I don't think you should worry yourself to death on this issue. I have seen him in worse states than this and there were even times I thought he was going to lose his life from some of those injuries by he survived through it. It may look like I don't care but it is because I am already used to having to watch him hurt and heal without any medical assistance except he agrees for us to send for one."

My mind went back to the blood on the floor, to the agony and fear on his face and I felt sick but what else could I say when Maya seemed to be calm about the situation.

She would know better than me so I just needed to trust her word on the issue. We fell into a tense silence while she dressed the cut and placed a tiny bandage on it and when she was done, I was expecting her to put me back in the chains like the other maids usually did when I returned to the room but instead she took my hand and squeezed, her face filled with sadness.

"I am sorry for what happened tonight. Please accept my apology on his behalf. I know that I have no excuses now because for as long as I could remember I have always made excuses for Aiden's actions but now..." she shook her head, exhaling a deep breath. “I replace myself unable to do so in this situation. Still, i beg you to not judge him too harshly. Aiden had a difficult childhood that contributed in shaping him to be the man he is today. I know for a fact that it was not the most pleasant experience for you to be here against your will."

My ears perked up at that. I was suddenly curious to know anything that there was that could at least help me figure out Aiden since it was possible that he would never tell me himself. "What do you mean by he had a difficult childhood?" I asked.

Maya hesitated but I saw the change in her face when she decided to tell me and I sighed in relief.

"Aiden's mother, had a difficult pregnancy and childbirth was worse. She had delivered Aiden's twin sister, without any complications but she lost too much blood while giving birth to Aiden." I... I didn't know that.

"The alpha raged in the operation room after Aiden was delivered and the doctors erroneously declared that the luna was dead. The alpha was in pain and his own hands strangled Aiden until he was on the verge of death for taking his mate from him-" My heart clenched painfully. "How could he do that? That was his son-"

"You probably already realized that Nightshade men would do anything for their mate. Taking away their mates is practically taking away their will to live and their first instinct is to destroy anything in their paths that may be harmful to their mates. At that time, it was Aiden."

"Oh no..." I clenched a fist to my chest, my heart throbbing in pain.

"Of course, Maddox regretted his actions deeply after the rage cleared, but he never looked at Aiden the same again. I couldn't tell whether he couldn't stand the sight of him or he hated remembering what he did to his own son. You see, Maddox and Elizabeth were kind and benevolent to their subjects, but to Aiden, they weren't exactly attentive to his special needs as a child. Yes, they got him the best clothes money could buy, he was enrolled in the best schools with the best teachers, but they weren't particularly invested emotionally in him. Not the way they were with Ashley. And I think that made things worse.

"They were a lot harder on him. As the future alpha of the pack, a lot of expectations were placed on his shoulders since he could sit on his own. He was pushed to always do his best, be the best, but he received neither acknowledgement nor accolades for his achievements. That was when their issue with their son started. They doted on his sister but they wouldn't even celebrate Aiden's birthday or acknowledge him. The little boy tried everything he could to get their attention."

Her gaze drifted off, sorrow darkening her weathered gaze, as if she remembered a painful experience.

"He ran after them, came top of his class, and even hurt himself on purpose to gain their sympathy and when all of their attention kept going to his sister who didn't do half of the things he did, he grew cold, wild and stubborn and turned his rage on Ashley." My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach. This... this was the Aiden I knew.

"He threw tantrums on her birthdays. I remembered a time he ruined her birthday cake, acted like a boy possessed and lashed out at her. She got hurt and it only made his parents more wary of him and they locked him up in his room for days as punishment. The same cycle continued over and over again, I lost count."

My mouth had fallen open at some point and I wondered how little Aiden could have survived being in the shadow of his older sister and feeling like being born was a crime.

I pressed a hand to my mouth, feeling what little dinner I had coming back up my oesophagus. I had been comparing him to Ren when at least, Ren had been fortunate to replace parents that loved and cherished him

Aiden didn't have that. Not even within his own family.

I didn't realize that I was crying until Maya offered me a handkerchief.

"I should probably stop now."

"No, please. He won't tell me any of this. We both know that. I want to understand. Help me understand."

Heaving a sigh, she nodded.

"My boy... he has a strong heart. Even after everything his family did to him, Aiden had loved his family with a passion. He was ready to throw his life away for them, to save them during the m******e. As broken and fractured as his family was and as rude as he had been to his older sister, he had tried his best to protect her, only to have her torn to pieces right before his eyes."

"He was a child. There was nothing he could have done!"

"That didn't stop him from trying. He could have been happy that his parents and sister had finally been taken away since they had been nothing but unkind to him. But the day they were killed, as they were lowered into the earth, his shadows manifested and there was darkness across our pack for days. Everyone felt the brunt of his grief and I feared that he was lost forever."

I wiped my tears, swallowing the lump in my throat and she reached out and took my face in her wrinkled hands.

"Aiden is a troubled child, Lily. Sometimes, I believe that although he is a young man now, inside, he is still a little child who craves acceptance and attention and expresses his feelings in the only way he knows how to."

She took my hands, squeezed gently. "He has done a lot of wrong, I admit, but his heart, broken and cold as it is, has always been in the right place. You must tread carefully, Lily. When Aiden loves, it is with a dark, desperate and undying fire that can never be put out and I fear that you will be consumed by that fire even though that is not his intention. I hope that you can understand his heart and his fear of losing his mate and not judge him too harshly based on his actions." Speechless, I could only watch as she walked away, the weight of this revelation settling heavy on my shoulders and bringing Aiden into new light.