Rejected

“Alpha Lynch? What are you doing here?” I let out an exasperated sigh, not in the mood to regale her with the incident yet again, but knowing I needed to.

“Nadia is in the hospital and the doctor needs you there immediately.” No further words were needed to get her moving. She flies off the couch, yanks her shoes on, grabs her purse and is out the door in less than 3 minutes. I followed behind her as we both quickly get into my car, not even taking the time to be a gentleman and open her door for her, not that she would be inclined to let me in her current state. We arrive at the hospital in under 15 minutes and she follows closely behind me as I lead her to the room where I had placed Nadia. The sight of her hooked up to so many machines, wires and tubes is more than a little unnerving and my wolf is losing it more with each passing second.

“Ms. Velross, forgive my forfeiture of pleasantries, but does Nadia have any conditions we should be aware of?” Dr. Marrow’s voice is tense and lined with hints of exhaustion.

“What do you mean? She is extremely healthy!” Her voice cracks and her eyes are brimming with tears while she stands back and watches the faint rise and fall of Nadia’s chest.

“She was attacked by a rogue and her wolf should be able to heal her, but…the wound is not improving. We were forced to cauterize the injury to staunch the bleeding. Once the alpha left her room, her condition deteriorated quickly.” I hurry to her side, take her hand in mine and stare at her, wondering how she went from smiling and worrying about her friends to a pale, lifeless vessel so quickly.

“Let me call her mother. Maybe she knows something that we don’t.” I can hear the sound of Sandy rustling through her purse, but my eyes are locked on Nadia, silently willing her condition to improve.

“Sandy? It is late, is everything alright?”

“No, it’s Nadia. She was attacked by a rogue. The wounds aren’t healing, Kayla. She…she is slipping away.”

“Where is she?!”

“She is at the pack hospital…”

“Is the moon out?”

“Yes, but…”

“Take her outside, to the forest! Go now!”

Sandy rushes to the other side of Nadia and begins unhooking the monitors and wires.

“What on earth are you doing?!” Dr. Morrow shouts as he tries to stop her.

“Her mother said she needs to be taken to the forest, so I am taking her to the damn forest!” She continues to pull at the wires, but the doctor pulls her away and is fighting to subdue her.

“She is dying Sandy! You need to stop!” My eyes lock with Sandy’s as her eyes are begging me to listen to the words of Nadia’s mother. I don’t know why, but my wolf is insisting that we do just that. While Sandy has the doctor distracted, I finish detaching the last of the hoses and wires, lift her into my arms and rush out of the building.

I hear the shouting and stampeding footsteps behind me, but I do not stop. As soon as I push through the doors and onto the sidewalk, her skin begins to glow, though faintly. My instincts are telling me that I need to keep going, so I do. I rush across the quiet street, down the alley and finally reach the tee line, stepping just beyond in before kneeling down. I am still holding her tightly when I notice her bare feet are grazing the ground and the glow on her skin becomes brighter. I gently lay her on the ground in front of me and stare in shock and awe as the glow becomes nearly blinding, the brightest of it emanating from the area where her wound lies. The doctor and Sandy catch up, both halting in their tracks when they see what has me frozen in place. After several minutes, the glow fades until it is nothing more than a dim light. Her breaths are more steady and her color is its usual color, pale, but full of life.

“How is this possible?” The doctor huffs out, still trying to catch his breath. We all stare at her still form, full of confusion, but eternally grateful for her improved state.

“I’m not sure, but it seems her mother knows something that she has neglected to share. I should call her and let her know that it worked.” Sandy makes her call while her eyes stay locked on Nadia. My ears tune out her conversation, choosing instead to remain locked onto the steady thrumming of Nadia’s heart. The doctor kneels down on the other side of her and grabs her gown, sliding it over to assess the injury that is now nonexistent. A low growl vibrates in my throat, a warning that my wolf has issued without notice. He feels protective over this little wolf and I have to wonder if it is because of her weakened state or if he feels responsible for protecting her after what she sacrificed for our pack.

“Calm down, I am simply checking the girl’s injuries.” His smirk only adds to my wolf’s irritation and I am struggling to keep him at bay.

“She is already on her way. She should be here in about 8 hours, 6 if she drives the way I think she will.” Sandy states in a soft voice. The doctor reaches to pick Nadia up and is met with another, more menacing, growl.

“She will remain here and I will remain with her. I already linked Kyle and he is bringing blankets for us. If this is where she needs to be to heal, then this is where she will remain.” The doctor opens is mouth as if to argue, but quickly closes it. He gives a stiff nod then walks away.

“I will stay with her, alpha.” Sandy offers with a tone full of shame and regret.

“It’s ok, really. I will stay with her. Link me when her mother arrives.” Sandy is clearly unsure of whether she should leave, but I know she will not dare argue with me. She kneels down, kisses Nadia gently on the forehead then stands up and walks away. 10 minutes pass before I hear Kyle approaching with the requested items, quickly setting them beside me as he takes in the strange sight on the forest floor.

“How is she?” His apprehension does not go unnoticed.

“Better, now.” I glance up to see the confusion and concern in his eyes as he stares at her.

“Um…why the ground instead of the hospital?” Ah, yes…the same question that I would like an answer to.

“I really don’t know. Hopefully her mother can shine some light on this curious development, but for now…this is where she needs to be.” I know he must think me crazy, but wisely, he grunts and walks away. I swing one of the blankets over her, make a make-shift pillow out of another and gently lift her head to slide it under her. I take the last blanket and bunch it up on the ground beside her, laying my head upon it, and stare up at the crescent moon that is now preparing to drop below the trees as it makes way for the morning sun to rise into the sky.