Page 104 of Healer's Call

Another long minute of silence passes between us, but I stay quiet. Finally, he nods. “I let Cade know we’re on our way.” A feeling of warmth bubbles up inside of me at his use of the termwe. We put away our dishes and make our way over to the gym. He doesn’t say a word on the way, and I glance up at him a few times. His jaw is tight, and I know he’s not super happy about what’s coming.

When we get to the gym, he puts his hand on the small of my back and steps closer. I look around the room. He wasn’t kidding when he said almost every male shifter was here. Maverick steers me toward Cade. They close in around us, making a small circle. Cade studies my face a moment, assessing. I lift my head and push my shoulders back. “I can do this.”

“I know you can,” Cade repeats Mav’s words. “I just wish you didn’t have to.” And then, I see the change come over him. I see his acceptance of the plan. “See that wolf over in the corner?” I eye the large brown wolf by himself, surrounded by Eli, Van, andseveral other shifters. “He’s the leader of this group, from what we’ve gathered from the teen. We want you to start with him.” I nod. “Mav, Eli, and I will be right there the entire time. We’ll make sure you’re safe. But if for any reason, you feel threatened, just stop. We’ll get you away.”

“I’m not worried.” I mean that completely; I trust them implicitly. But that doesn’t mean I’m not still intimidated by the large wolf in the corner. The closer we get, the more agitated the wolf becomes. Mav puts out a hand in front of me protectively, stopping my progress forward. “It’s okay, Mav,” I say softly; but I’m not really sure it is. The wolf is aggressive and mean. His coat is dirty; I can’t tell if it’s gray or just dirty. The wolf growls low in its throat and bares its teeth.

“No.” Mav’s voice is sharp. “We’re not doing this. Whatever was left of its soul is long gone; there’s no human in him now.”

Cade and Eli stand next to us, and we all face the wolf. “Please try,” a quiet voice says from nearby. I turn my head and see Jesse, the lanky teen I healed. “He’s still in there.”

Mav shakes his head, and Cade looks back at the wolf, assessing. “Can you try to talk to him?” Cade asks in a quiet voice.

“Cade,” Mav says in a warning voice that Cade completely ignores.

The teen looks at me uncomfortably. “It’s her.”

My head rears back in shock. “What?”

Mav pins the kid with a look, but Cade gives him his full attention. “What are you talking about.”

Jesse looks at me uncertainly a moment and then drops his head. “He’s aggressive because the healer’s getting close.”

“Oh.” I look over at the wolf. “I’m sorry he doesn’t want me close, but I have to get close to heal him.”

Jesse grimaces and scratches his neck. “That’s not exactly it.”

“I’m confused,” I tell him honestly. “I’m just trying to help. I—”

“He wants you—” Jesse starts to say. And that was thewrongthing to say.

Mav growls fiercely and bristles next to me. “She’s mine.” His words are guttural, and his wolf is very present. He moves closer to me, and as much as the situation is precarious right now, I want to bask in this moment. He sends a glare at the rogue wolf. “The healer is mine.”

“Not…not like that,” the kid says nervously. And then everything goes to pieces.

The rogue wolf lets out a growl that shakes the gym and launches. Mav shifts instantly next to me and meets the rogue wolf at the same time somebody grabs me and yanks me to the floor. There’s shouting all around me, and I can’t make heads or tails of anything. “Get her out of here!” Somebody shouts, and strong arms grab me from the floor; and then I’m being ushered from the gym. I glance over my shoulder and see Mav’s huge wolf alongside Cade’s wolf fighting with the rogue wolf. It’s brutal, and I look away as I’m practically carried out of the gym. Eli’s dark eyes meet mine.

“You good, Healer?” I look back at the building. Van stands next to me; both of them are keyed up, muscles tense. “Healer?” Eli questions again.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I...” I don’t know what else to say. I want to help, but I don’t know what to do. I wrap my arms around myself and ask the question that’s pinging around in my head. “What did Jesse mean when he said the rogue wants me?”

Eli flinches just the slightest at my words, and Van turns to look at me. Neither of them say anything a moment. “I don’t know, but Mav won’t let anything happen to you.” He turns his head back to the gym. “I gotta get back in there. Van will see you to the pack house.”

The door to the gym suddenly flies open, and three wolves race out. I know instantly that they’re not in our pack. Eli and Van shift instantly and head them off. More wolves flood out of the doors, and I can’t tell fast enough who’s friend and who’s foe. Before I can get away, I’m trapped in the midst of wolves. Knowing this is a fight I can’t fight, I turn to run back to the pack house. “Rose!” I look up and see Sara running towards me, her eyes wide.

“Run!” I wave at her, but she keeps coming at me. I watch as she transforms before my eyes and jumps right past me. I stumble to the side as she clashes with a wolf that’s much bigger than she is. “Sara!” I shout. The wolf takes a bite out of her back leg, and her wolf howls in pain. And then I’m running back, back to the fight. I look around for a weapon of sorts but can’t find anything. “Maverick!” I shout as loud as I can, not knowing what else to do. I don’t even know if he’s in this fight or if he’s still inside.

Chapter 49

Maverick

Cade and I close off the wolf’s path to the front door, where Rose has disappeared. My wolf growls low and fierce as we push him back. This would be a lot easier if Cade would just let us kill him, but he’s standing his ground. My wolf can’t understand, and I’m having a hard time keeping my wolf from killing him after what the teen said about him wanting Rose. My wolf growls again, and I keep a careful tether on him so he doesn’t go against Cade’s orders and end the threat against our mate. Cade’s busy shouting orders through our pack link, trying to control the situation that is quickly escalating.

Is Rose safe? I send to the pack. I know Eli took her out, but I’m not sure who else is with her.

Van and I got her outside,Eli’s terse words come through the link, and I relax just the slightest. Until he curses through the link; he must not have realized he didn’t close the connection.

What?I demand.

---