"Trina, anything I should know about our patients?" Jeff hadn't been disturbed during the night so the assumption was that all was well. His staff was good. He knew he could depend on them, but he had to ask.
Trina looked up from the chart she was writing in. "Nothing much. Cheryl doesn't seem to need as much pain medication. She's having some phantom pain, but I think Kyle sitting with her is helping." Trina smiled brightly. She and Cheryl had been friends when they were cubs. She'd pretty much stopped associating with her as they got older. But now she just felt sorry for her. She hoped she and Kyle would be happy with the Wilson pack.
"Kyle has had normal vitals all night. He hasn't reverted at all, thank God. I was glad to have the security detail there with him last night even though it seemed like overkill. But better safe than sorry. If there's nothing else then I'm off to bed." Trina waited a second, but noting no further questions, waved and went on her way.
Jeff watched her walk away. She was such an amazing nurse. She always had a bright outlook on life, even amid the pain and suffering they had to deal with. He wondered when she would find her mate. He wished it was him, but his wolf wasn't interested. And he'd decided long ago that he wouldn't mix business and pleasure by having any kind of relationship with his nurse unless she was his mate. Someday.
His attention was drawn to the sounds down the hall. He could hear Kyle.
"I know you don't know me Cheryl. But I promise, you'll like the Wilson pack. Our lands are beautiful and we have plenty of game." Kyle spoke softly as he stroked her red hair. He tried to look into her eyes but she wouldn't look at him. She always escaped by closing her eyes or looking away. His wolf couldn't understand why she didn't respond to them. Kyle assured him it would just take time. She'd been through a horrible trauma. She'd come around. They had to be patient.
Cheryl's voice was so quiet, even with the enhanced hearing of a Werewolf Jeff could barely hear. "Why do you want to bother with me Kyle? I'm a Werewolf without a wolf or one of my arms. If my wolf ever does decide to join with me again, I'll be a three legged wolf. How would I hunt? You'd be a laughing stock for having a mate that was a freak." She started to almost sound hysterical.
"Cheryl, you should know, a Werewolf always knows it's mate. My wolf knows you belong to him. Your wolf will come around. She won't be able to resist for long. And you are not a freak. I'm sure your wolf will hunt just fine on three legs. You don't need four legs to run, or to love. Cheryl, you deserve to be happy. My father has welcomed both of us into the pack. Your Alpha isn't standing in our way. I won't let you make excuses. You are coming home with us and that's final." His voice hadn't raised but it was firm. His hand never left her hair, and he never looked away.
She turned to look at the male sitting at her side. He was beautiful. And he was the son of an Alpha, so he must be strong. He would make a good mate. He'd take care of her, take care of their cubs. It was faint, but her wolf was with her. She smiled weakly and looked up into the most gorgeous blue eyes. She brought her hand up to pat down a stray bit of sandy blond hair.
He took her hand in his and smiled down at her. They would help each other heal. They just had different types of wounds.
Jeff walked by the room and glanced inside. Kyle was in the exact same place he'd been last night when Jeff said goodnight, sitting at Cheryl's bedside. They couldn't take their eyes off each other. Jeff made his way to his office and waited for Xylon. The lab results were here, and now they just had to see if they were as positive as they'd hoped. Kyle certainly seemed like an everyday normal Werewolf besotted by a new mate. Jeff looked up when he heard someone walking in the door.
Xylon could barely contain himself as he sat down on the other side of the desk. "It worked! The Dire Wolf Gene is turned off. In fact, it's totally disabled. They tried to turn it back on and it was just down right dead. The antidote apparently can keep it from ever being turned on again." Xylon was grinning ear to ear. Of course, in his excitement, his Greek accent was thicker.
"Xylon, I can barely understand you. Can you slow down?" Jeff was just teasing. He'd understood every word. This was amazing, and he couldn't wait to tell Carr. At least now they knew they had a shot at fighting normal Werewolves. He shuddered to think what injuries he'd have to treat if they had to go up against Dire Wolves. "Guess we have news for the meeting then don't we?" Jeff was glad they didn't have long to wait, because he could barely keep from jumping out of his seat to find Carr.
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The group of females was chattering away but silenced when Katy walked by with Rhys. She felt their eyes on her as they walked by. "Is there something I should know? Why are they acting so weird?" Katy looked up at the strong beautiful face of the man, the Werewolf, that would be her mate in less than a week. "Did I walk out of the bathroom with toilet tissue hanging from my pants?" She whirled around to look behind her for any telltale paper.
Rhys laughed. His Katy was so sweet and innocent. He hoped she never changed, no matter how many more centuries they would have together. "They are talking about Cheryl. They probably think you'll be upset to hear that her mate has found her." He could not have been more proud of how his mate had dealt with Cheryl. He of course would have killed her if Katy had allowed it. But she was far more compassionate than he.
"She'll have reminders for the rest of her life of how she screwed up. I'm glad Kyle found her. He needs someone to care for so he can get over his guilt. And if he can get her wolf to come forward again, then they will have a chance at a good life together. Just from the way her wolf has reacted I find it hard to believe she would ever betray her pack again. And since she's going to get to start fresh at another pack, she can start a brand new life. I really wish her nothing else." Katy had a sad look on her face as she thought about Cheryl. She really meant what she said. Anyone could make bad decisions in the right, or wrong, circumstances. Katy's own mother had made horrible decisions that affected other lives. Who was she to stand in judgement over Cheryl?
Rhys saw the expression on Katy's face and reached down for her small hand. He smiled when he saw the spreading grin on her face as she held him tight. He could feel the current of energy that passed between their joined hands.
There was something about these women that was special, more than what interested Gary. It was something in their nature. Every one of the women he had met had an aura about her. Even he couldn't explain it. It wasn't something that a human would notice, or even most Werewolves. If it had been, these women would have had mates long before now in the outside world. But he had noticed the studious looks the women got from the members of the Council. They knew, they just couldn't put their fingers on it.
As much as he hated to leave her for even a second, he had a meeting to attend to. "It's time for me to go. Will you meet me when I'm done little one?" He already knew the answer but wanted her to say it anyway.
Katy loved hearing him calling her little one. She didn't know why, but it always made her heart sing. "Of course I will Rhys. I would meet you anytime and anywhere. You know that." She looked up into his face and just couldn't believe how lucky she was. Just a few weeks ago she thought her life would be over soon. And now she had a bright future ahead with the wolf of her dreams. "There's Karen and Sarah. I'm sure we can find some trouble to get into while you're in your meeting." She made him lean down and gave him a chaste peck on the cheek before running off towards her friends.
"Katy, c'mon, we're going to learn how to fight. Lila promised to give us some pointers." Sarah was practically bouncing up and down as she grabbed Katy's hands and pulled her towards the building that housed the gym.
"Fight? Why do we need to learn how to fight?" Katy looked at her two friends and observed some subtle differences from a few days ago. They both looked more muscular. They still had plenty of curves, but their bodies had changed noticeably since becoming mated Werewolves. Neither woman had looked anywhere near their real ages before, Karen was fifty two and Sarah forty seven. But now they looked even younger. The few lines she had noticed on their faces a week ago were gone. They seemed to have a new vitality. The wounds that Gary had inflicted on Karen were totally healed and most of the scars had faded to nothing, even the deep gouge on her neck.
"Because we're Werewolves now. And you will be soon. Werewolves need to know how to fight. Lee thinks we'll both be Betas so we need to be ready. And you should start learning now while you have access to someone as good as Lila. Who knows where you and Rhys will be off to next. Cole said he travels all over North America. You might never get another chance." Karen was sad as she said it. She didn't want Katy to leave. She'd really grown attached to her, and her wolf was totally over protective of her now. "You can at least watch us for now. I'm sure we'll be able to give you a big laugh as Lila throws us all over the mats."
The three women were laughing as they walked into the gym. It looked like Lila was putting on a full class. Rebecca, Danielle, and Melissa were there as well as Gina and Becky and several other female members of the pack they didn't know.
"Let's get going ladies. We have less than two days to get ready for the rescue. So I need everyone's attention." Lila stood at the front of the room eying her new pupils.
The women looked around the room astonished. "Rescue? What rescue?"
"Um, Lila, we don't know what you're talking about. Who would we be rescuing? Is it a test or something?" Rebecca thought this must be some kind of a joke.
"We're all going to help rescue the human women from Gary's pack. You are each going to have a specific job and we're going to go over every bit of it in the next two days. Those women have been brutalized, and Carr wants the males to stay away from them. That leaves it to us." She glanced at each of the human women, smiling at the surprised looks on their faces. "Female members of a pack are an integral part of the fighting force. You're all going to find that out for yourselves at some point, some sooner than others." She said the last as she looked at Karen and Sarah.
Karen felt a lump in her throat. She hadn't thought about ever having to confront Gary again. She hoped she wouldn't have to. She felt a reassuring squeeze on the arm from Katy. She looked over at the petite redhead and smiled. She'd always thought Katy was nice, but now that she knew her better, she was amazed at the strength in such a small package. Sarah looked as surprised at she, but also ready to jump into things feet first.
"Karen, you'll be coming with us to the caves. Sarah, you'll be staying here with the unmated humans." She saw Sarah about to speak up. "Sarah, I know, you want to go, but your wolf hasn't shown herself yet and until then, it's just too dangerous for you. What if you shift and can't shift back? It could be a disaster."
Sarah looked like she was going to put up an argument but realized Lila was right. She didn't want to make things harder on anyone, or more dangerous. She reluctantly nodded.
