Page 33 of The Alpha's Stolen Mate

As Axel's bite mark on her shoulder gushed with blood, Summer's eyes fluttered closed and her head lolled to the side.

Chapter Eleven: False Promises

Summer POV

I woke up to the sound of dripping water. Was there a leak in the roof? I had to look at that after my chores this morning. Mold spread quickly and could make Grayson sick. Mentally, I went over my to-do list for the day, and I opened my eyes,

But I wasn’t in my room at my aunt’s house. For the third time in my life, I woke up in a hospital bed, confused and unsure how I got here.

Where’s my son? Is he safe?

Panic threatened to overwhelm me, but I forced myself to calm down and remember how I ended up in this hospital room. After I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, an image of Gabriel and Axel crashing through a window burst into my mind. This triggered my memories to come back to me all at once: finding out about my father's attack, seeing Gabriel for the first time in six years, Gabriel and then Axel finding out about Grayson, and the three of us fighting each other in our wolf forms. The last thing I remembered was Axel biting into my shoulder.

Why had Axel been so aggressive? Sure, finding out that his brother and ex-girlfriend slept together couldn’t have been easy to hear, and in a way, I even understood him thinking he was in the right to punch Gabriel. But he didn’t even stop to talk things through with Gabriel. Axel had been the one to cheat on me, and it had been six years since we had spoken. Could he really be that mad to risk his role as Beta of the pack?

Although my father had told me that there had been a rumor floating around WaterLock that Axel wasn’t going to be named Beta, even though he was destined to inherit the role. Sometimes, rumors had no merit to them, though. I was proof of that.

I examined my body, trying to assess how badly I was hurt. I was wearing a pale pink hospital gown. Did a healer put the gown on me when I was unconscious? When I tried to move, my shoulder screamed in protest. I hissed through the pain.

The dripping sound came from my right again, and my eyes traveled to a skinny tube in my arm attached to a clear bag filled with yellow liquid. There were two chairs next to my bedside, and they were the same cream color as the ones in the lobby.

Was my dad in a room similar to mine? Had there been any change to his condition? Did he wake up and wonder why I wasn’t at his bedside?

I glanced around for a button to call a healer or one of their helpers.

But before I could, my heart began to race and my breathing became erratic.

What the hell?

Was I having a delayed reaction from waking up after I fainted? Was I having a heart attack? Why was my body so overly excited? Why did it seem like something amazing was about to happen?

“Gabriel! If you don’t get back in bed right now, I’ll tackle you,” a voice warned from outside my door.

I recognized the voice as belonging to Healer Nia.

“You wouldn’t dare tackle a patient with head trauma,” Gabriel countered.

There was a shuffling sound, and I imagined Gabriel dodging Healer Nia’s outstretched hand.

The door to my room swung open, and Gabriel rushed in with a frantic glint in his eyes.

When he saw that I was awake, he let out a deep sigh.

My skin heated when he strode to my bedside.

“Summer, I’m so glad you’re okay.” He reached for my hand but hesitated when he saw my weary expression.

“Where’s my son?” I asked.

“He’s fine. No one was injured in the fight besides you and me,” Gabriel assured me.

Some of the tension in my shoulders lessened, but my heart didn't slow down.

“Can I examine my patient now, please?” Healer Nia asked Gabriel while she crossed her arms and tapped her foot impatiently. Her tone was almost as sharp as her cheekbones.

My fondness for the healer grew.

I took a moment to study her since I hadn’t had a chance during all the chaos last night. She was gorgeous. Healer Nia had smooth, dark skin, wide brown eyes, and a confident aura about her that made me glad she was the one in charge of my father's care. She had a long, faded scar across her neck that only made her more striking.

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