For five days, Joe never left her side for more than a couple minutes. Since this was a Werewolf hospital, he stayed in her room. They had detachable rollaway bed extensions to allow mates to stay together, but still get access from both sides to the patient when required. He took his meals at the bedside table, but most of his time was spent in bed with her. Most of the damage was to her left side, so he stayed to the right.
Doc allowed this because experience showed that the presence of the mate improved vitals and healing rates. It also reduced stress for the healthy mate, who sometimes was more of a pain to deal with than the patient. They wanted, no they NEEDED to be together, that was part of what it meant to have a mate.
Wendy walked in, Joe barely stirring in the bed as he cuddled up to her side. Her trends were good, she thought; another day or two and it would be time to bring her out of the coma and solve the mystery of who she was. She had topped the charts simply with "Mrs. Joseph Miller."
In pencil.
She was finishing her look at the traces on the machines when Joe looked up at her. "Good, you're awake. Have you been doing the exercises I showed you for her?"
"Of course, Doc. Every four hours, I massage her, rotate her in the bed, and move her limbs to restore her range of motion. Now that the casts are off, the swelling is almost gone and I can feel that she is recovering." Doc nodded; even before a full mating, mates could sense pain in the other, even while sleeping. It was a defense mechanism Luna had built in to allow the other to feel and protect a mate in distress. "Any progress on who she is?"
"No, I talked to Alpha Merino earlier this morning. Our contacts in the FBI tell us that her fingerprints are not on file. We notified all Packs within 500 miles, but none have reported a missing woman. We even ran her photo against missing persons reports in three states and nationally, but no one matching her age and description has been reported. It's like she dropped out of the sky or something."
"Luna's got a sense of humor, I've found out. I went fishing hoping to catch a trophy and came home with my mate!" Doc laughed along, the change in Joe had been immediate. His spirit had returned to him, he was fun to be around again, even if he was completely focused on his new mate. The entire pack seemed to be in a better mood since he found her.
"She's going to be out for another day or two. You need to take a little time for yourself, Joe, and let your wolf out. I can tell he needs it."
"I can't leave her alone, Doc."
"She won't be alone. I'll be here with her, and Maria is coming over this afternoon as well. Why don't you grab Richard and go out hunting? You can't tell me that some fresh kill wouldn't settle your beast." She could almost see the thought bubbles over his head as he talked with his wolf. In the end, his wolf's need to get out won over his need to stay close, only because he trusted Wendy with his life.
"OK, he's going to be here in a few minutes. You want us to bring you something back?"
"No, I'm good, I've got leftovers in my fridge. Take your time, get a good run in, it will help you settle down."
He got up, clad only in boxer shorts, and gave her a hug. "Take care of my love, we'll be back after dinner." He headed out just as Richard came in to give his mate a lingering kiss. "Come on, Richard, let's find some deer." They stepped out of the hospital, tossing aside their clothes and shifting smoothly into their wolf form. Joe let out a howl, celebrating the start of the hunt, and then they ran off into the nearby canyons and grasslands to start the hunt.
Five hours later the two returned, each carrying the haunch and rear leg of a large buck in their mouth. After checking again with Wendy, they carried the portions to the main hall where they were soon surrounded by a dozen hungry juvenile wolves. Leaving the portions in the grass, they watched in amusement as the young ones tore into the still warm meat and ate their fill.
"It's like a school of piranhas, isn't it?" They had been so focused on the children they didn't notice Alpha Merino had come up behind them. Nodding in respect, they laughed as two six year old girls fought over a leg bone. "You guys should go clean up. I got a call from the Alpha of the Telluride pack, they may know who your mate is, but they have to see her in person. They are coming in a few hours, so be ready to meet them."
"Yes Alpha, we will be ready. I'll wait with my mate until you call for me." Joe turned around and headed for the hospital, he used the shower in her room and Richard had brought a bag full of clothes from his room a few days ago. He had no plans to return to his room until he was carrying his mate into his bed.
A few hours later, Joe was sitting up in the bed with his mate laying back on his chest and sitting between his legs. This "conversation time" helped to reduce the chance of her getting bedsores, but it helped him at least as much. It settled his wolf to have her in his arms, the tingles between their bare skin both excited and comforted him. He rested her head against his shoulder, her nose close to his neck where she could get his scent. "I've been thinking about our home, love. I found a spot to build it, far enough from the Pack house to have some privacy but close enough to stay involved. It's on a hill, overlooking a small pond that has ducks and geese in it. I don't know what kind of house you want, but I want a big porch area, with a swing by the front door. I want to rock back and forth with you while we watch out grandchildren play in the yard, while our music plays through the open window. I'll hold you against me and tell you how much I love you, and how lucky I am to have you. I love you, my"
"JOE, GET YOUR MATE AND MEET ME OUTSIDE NOW. THEY ARE COMING TO KILL HER." He could tell the panic in Richard's voice. Jumping into action, he unhooked and turned off the monitors and the IV lines. Wrapping her in the blanket, he carefully picked her up and walked through the hospital and out the front door just as Richard was pulling up in his Expedition. "Get her in the back and buckle up, we've got to move."
"What's going on, why the rush?" Joe laid her on the back seat, using the available belts to secure her so she wouldn't roll off. He carefully moved into the front seat and buckled up as Richard left the compound area, his lights still off and as quietly as he could.
"The guys who came here from the Telluride pack aren't here to find a missing person. They want her dead. I know the leader, you don't send your expert interrogator and torturer on a missing person case. Something's fishy." Richard was focused on the road, they were pushing eighty miles an hour on the back road and they hadn't even hit pavement yet.
"I'm sure Alpha Merino will protect her, she's my mate after all." He looked back at her with concern, what the hell had she done to get a hit squad sent after her?
"Wendy was in the next room, she had the photos and medical records. They didn't care, they verified by smell she is here. They will force Alpha Merino to give her up. When I left she said he was on the phone to the Alpha Council and it isn't going well. I couldn't take the chance, I owe you my life and I won't stand by and watch them kill her, I don't care if she did that or not. That's why we have to get out of here. If I don't get outside the range of his Alpha command before he realizes we are gone, he'll order me back."
"I won't go, I'd sooner leave than give up my mate." Joe was fisting his hands, his wolf wanted out, the threat to his mate forcing his wolf forward in his mind.
"I know, but MY mate is back there with him. If between her and the Alpha she can delay them for ten more minutes we have a chance." Richard started braking hard, they made the turn onto the main road and he gunned the engine again. Soon they were running just under the hundred mile an hour, bumping up to the governor limit of the big SUV.
"Why do they want her, and why won't Alpha Merino stop them?"
"He can't, not for this. They say she snuck into their Pack house last week and poisoned their Alpha Female. They chased her but she fell into the river and when they didn't find the body, they started looking. When they heard we found a woman, they sent the men down here. They have her backpack, Joe. It's her scent. Your mate is a killer."
Joe looked out the window. He was afraid for the first time in his life- afraid for his mate, afraid for his life, afraid of his Pack and his Alpha. By now they most certainly had discovered she was gone and who had taken her.
Most likely, he could never go back. Everything he knew, everyone he cared for, all gone unless they turned around and gave her over. Then, maybe he would be punished and forgiven, but he'd still have his home and his Pack. Now? He was a rogue, loose and wandering, and a target for any Pack wolf he came across.
Yet, there was no way in HELL he was losing his mate. To hell with the Telluride pack, to hell with his Alpha, to hell with the Council. He'd gotten a second chance and by Luna he wouldn't survive another loss. He unbuckled the seat belt and moved back to his mate. She was still out, her breathing steady and her heartbeat strong by now. He knew the drugs that had been keeping her in the coma would wear off, probably in the next twelve hours. His wolf was going nuts, they were on the run, passing through other Pack territories and his mate wasn't even tied to him.
Luna forgive him because she might never. Doing this without consent was frowned upon, it was not just LIKE forcing yourself on someone, you really were. He felt his canines push through as he partially shifted his jaws, then he lunged forward and bit her at the junction of her neck and shoulder. His wolf howled in glee as his razor sharp teeth punched through her skin. He tasted her blood on his tongue, the coppery taste sweeter than anything. He would have kept his teeth in longer, tearing slightly back and forth to ensure it scarred well, except for what she did.
