Don't Poke the Luna (Xena and Ryder)

Xena's POV

Ryder's patience snapped. He stormed over and slapped her hard across the face, the sound sharp and brutal. Martha hit the floor again, and Ryder began beating her mercilessly, demanding answers between each blow.

Martha screamed and cried, mumbling incoherently through her tears. The sound was pathetic and desperate.

"Ryder, stop!" I shouted, unable to watch anymore.

His black eyes flickered back to green as he looked at me, his chest heaving with rage. He grabbed Martha by her hair and

yanked her up so her battered face was level with ours.

"SPEAK UP!" he bellowed.

Martha's mouth was bloody, her face swollen and bruised. Penelope turned away, unable to look at the damage.

The room fell into heavy silence. Then Martha's weak voice drifted up from her broken form: "Kill me... just kill me..."

Tears streamed down her face as she begged for death.

We all stared in shock. Even Ryder seemed stunned by her words. After a

moment of hesitation, he slapped her again, this

time hard enough to knock out one of her teeth.

"Ryder, calm down," I said firmly, moving toward him. "Let her go."

He released Martha with disgust, spitting on her as he backed away to stand beside me. Martha collapsed to the floor like

a broken doll, her eyes empty and staring at nothing.

once terrorized my childhood-l felt that unwelcome stirring of mercy again. But then I remembered my father's death, remembered how she had driven

anymore.

"Tell me who freed you, and

dead silence. All of us waited for Martha's answer, but she remained numb, staring blankly at the bathroom light fixture. Her eyes hadn't blinked once, as if her soul had completely departed her broken body.

to deliver another punch when she spoke in

"Benedict Nash."

in shock. I had assumed Alpha Benedict was dead-this was absolutely the last answer I could have expected. The name hit me like a physical

with the same shock as she looked between Ryder ar1 me. Logan's face mirrored our expressions of complete

grabbed her by the collar, his voice cracking with rage and disbelief.

vacant and unseeing, no longer responding to anything around her.

1/3

Chapter 292

us as if we didn't

beat her, she didn't make a single sound of pain. Her body absorbed each blow like she was already dead inside. Logan finally stepped forward

to recover from my shock, my mind racing through the possibilities. Could Benedict really still be

to accept, so devastating if true. My brain fought against

forward and took Ryder's trembling hand, gently pulling him toward the door. "Tie her up and keep watching her," I commanded

and Logan to follow us into the living

alone, "did you

flushed red with anger and confusion. "I felt the connection

a comforting hand on Ryder's shoulder. "The chances of Martha lying

he said

agreement,

me that after you and Xena left the pack, dad took a team of

couldn't finish the sentence, but we all understood what he had

huge clue, but it still couldn't prove one hundred percent that Martha wasn't lying. I squeezed Ryder's hand tighter, trying to offer

possibility Martha lied or mistook someone else