“Fuck us. Gammon, you must bond to her. You said she is your true mate; she can help you heal.”
Gammon’s snarl at the suggestion didn’t do justice to the glare he sent toward Johnny. Unfortunately, Mia heard what was said and damn Johnny’s soul, she agreed.
His word, when he spoke, held the power of an Alpha, his unique power. “No.”
He saw Mia’s face as the drugs took hold. The hurt look sent a spasm of pain shooting through his heart. Just before the blackness took him, he offered the oath that would make her pack but not bind her to him as a true mate. The last words he heard was her oath to him as an Alpha.
***
The doctor looked at the chest. His life had not been dull for the last couple of decades, but he thought things were getting a bit too dangerous with these unusual people lately. The one they brought him this time was huge. The platform he used for operations didn’t hold the man, so he had shoved a small exam table under the lower part of the body. He had guessed at the drugs to use and hoped he hadn’t overdone it. Pulling on a new set of gloves, he took a sponge and wiped the blood from the chest. Lung blood, but no open wound.
He stepped back and motioned the others in the room to back up.
“Tell me what happened, quickly. I don’t see a wound and I can’t fix what I don’t see.”
“He was shot. The bullet is still in his lungs. He won’t heal as long as the bullet is there causing damage.” Mia whispered.
“Shot. all right. I need to get an X-ray to find the bullet. Shit. We can’t move him to the other room. Alright, no don’t growl at me, young man, I will fix your friend. I have a portable ultrasound machine. I should be able to locate the bullet with it.” He suited words to actions as he hurried to the side of the room and started pushing a machine back toward the patient.
“Do you expect the one who shot him to come looking for him?” he asked.
“No. Not that one, maybe others.”
“Can you hold them off long enough for me to operate? And as a side courtesy if you could keep them from killing me, I wouldn’t be opposed to that outcome. Tell your people this is the last time. My daughter has been asking me to come live in Alaska for the last few years. I think, after the dangers I have seen lately, I will be taking her up on that offer. See my grandkids and frankly put some space between me and your kind.”
The doctor kept a running monologue as he worked. By the time he had the incision to remove the bullet the others could hear several cars coming down the road. They also knew the doctor wanted to semi-retire in a place with less people to catch up on some reading he had put off for a couple of decades. They found out the doctor found their race fascinating and had enjoyed working with their kind the last two decades. They knew his daughter’s name and where she lived and numerous other facts they cared nothing about.
“Young man,” he said, pointing a bloody, glove covered finger at Johnny, “You hold that door. If you need help holding that door you open that closet beside you and pull out the weapon you see there. It has a silencer on it, so we won’t get the police called on us. But if you kill them you take care of them. Same place you always take them, I suppose. Same rules apply.”
“Uh, Doctor Ramsey? They aren’t from here.” Mia told him.
“Not from here? Then why are they in my operating room? Who has been spreading the tales of what I do? Where are they from?”
Jessica gave a snort laugh. “Alaska. Still think it is where you want to retire?”
As he slid his hand through the incision to feel for the bullet two things happened. Shouting started from outside as the newcomers threatened the ones inside and started making demands, and a moan came from the man on the table.
“Ah, shit. We are out of time. Young man, get that gun. Young lady, both of you, grab his hands. If I have noticed nothing else about your kind, and I have learned a lot over the last couple of decades, I know the males are extremely protective of the females. Do it! Now!” he barked at the two as he fished around inside for the bullet. His fingers had just touched the bullet when the patient the men had identified as Gammon’s eyes opened. A low snarl reverted through the room just as the one the others called Mia started stroking his hair and murmuring soft comforting words.
He yanked the bullet out and jumped away. If this one did like others in the past, he would change to something other almost immediately. The patient did not disappoint, and the doctor thought it a good thing he had made the decision to close down shop. He straightened his backbone and attempted to remove the bloody gloves, it took two tries, his hands were shaking so hard. Taking deep calming breaths, he reminded himself of the things he had learned over the years. Wolves can smell fear and it draws their attention. No sudden moves. Breathe normal.
The largest damn wolf he had ever seen in his life was standing in front of him. The tables he had used were upended and the small table he had his tools on was currently, he looked up, yes, stuck in the ceiling, somehow. Taking deep steading breaths, he backed up a couple more steps until he felt the wall and could go no further. Before he could start to panic the wolf shifted back into a man and he found the man had eyes only for the female Mia. He watched in wonder as the man took a couple of deep breaths and smiled. The smile caused an involuntary whimper, but no one sent so much as a glance his way. The other three men turned from the doorway to the couple as the man started speaking. He didn’t understand exactly what he was watching but it sounded somewhat like the giant of a man was asking the woman to marry him, in a roundabout way. When she gave her agreement and spoke some words back to the man, he could feel his mouth drop open.
A black shadowy wolf rose from the one they called Gammon at the same moment one rose from the female, Mia. He watched in awe as the two shadow wolves circled each other in some sort of dance before merging into one wolf. Almost immediately the single shadow split into two wolves again and sank back into the pair in front of him. He looked around the room at the others and saw their faces shone with wonder and awe, and smiles. He thought he should bring everyone’s attention back to the fact someone, or many someones were attempting to break through the door.
Before he could say anything, a slight whimper drew his attention to the young child in the corner. Gammon’s attention turned to the little boy at the same time.
“You needn’t fear I will give you to them. There won’t be enough of them left to demand your head by the time I am done.” Gammon reached out and stroked Mia’s cheek with a smile on his face before turning toward the door.
“Move!” he ordered the three men.
The doctor watched as one man reached to open the door before leaping away toward the females. Using their bodies, the three men herded the females into the same corner he and the boy were currently in and set themselves up as a living shield.
He knew the ferocity of the war waged on his steps that night would haunt him the rest of his life as he watched the one they called Gammon shift into a wolf again and charge into the crowd of men outside. Despite being a doctor for over forty years and having operated on various shifters for over twenty of those years he knew the sights, sounds, and smells of that night would linger in his mind. The two females stood tall beside him, but he could see the distress on their faces. Mia would give an occasional moan, gasp or whimper but other than that she didn’t move. The men in front of him, guarding them, never budged a muscle that he could tell. They stayed unmoving until the last gurgling scream echoed through the night.
As the night sounds returned the wolf shifted to the mountain of a man. Several deep lacerations covered his body along with the incisions of bite marks but even those healed as the doctor watched.
Gammon looked at the doctor before looking around the room. His voice, when he spoke, sent a chill down the doctor’s spine. “Pack your shit. I pay my debts. You saved my life, and I won’t forget that. But this? Others will come looking and you need to be long gone. You have five minutes to grab anything that matters to yo
u.”
Gulping in disbelief he stumbled from the room, seeing the carnage in his back yard as he ran toward the house. He could hear the sirens coming as he grabbed the lock box that held his important papers, he also grabbed his checkbook. Snatching his satchel that held a set of his tools and one change of clothing for those nights he had to stay out on a call and wanted to be able to freshen up he raced from the house. At first, he didn’t see anyone, and he briefly panicked, wondering how he would explain anything to the police. Before he could do or say anything he was snatched up by Caleb as though he weighed nothing.
“Gotta go doc and there is no way you can move as fast as us. Hang on to your shit cause if you drop it you lose it.” With that Caleb adjusted his hold on the doctor and took off at a jog that soon turned into a run. He held on as best he could to the man and his things before finally giving in and letting the wolf-man hold him while he held his things. He was certain his ribs would be bruised by the time they reached wherever they were going, and he was certain he had not one shred of dignity left slung over the man’s shoulder like a sack of potatoes. It wasn’t long before the local motel came into view and he could see the others were loading the van with things from one of the rooms. He had wondered why they didn’t take a vehicle with them instead of running. After all, the attackers had arrived in vehicles, as had the ones he was with now. But he assumed they had left while he was packing in order to get their things from the room. Another moment and he realized if he and Caleb had tried to take a vehicle the cops would have stopped them before they could get off his road.
“Get in the back of the van. We are leaving. Unless you want to stay and answer questions?” Gammon asked.
All he could do was shake his head. These people said they were from Alaska and he had decided to move there, he might as well use them to get there, he could always buy things along the way if they would let him stop at a bank for some money first. Decision made, not like he had much choice, he climbed in the van and settled into the back seat. His life as he knew it had changed and only time would tell if it was for the better.
***
Gammon took the road north out of town. He was aggravated about the situation but not overly so. He had gained a mate from the deal. He wasn’t concerned about the claims by one of the ones he had killed that the High Council would have something to say about him killing their Alpha. If the pack had been bound to the High Council, he would have felt the oath. The others hadn’t protested when he said they were heading home, not even Jessica. He could feel her shock and horror through the pack bond, and he knew the others could also. Caleb held her in his lap and rocked her for the first hundred miles before she finally fell asleep. He could feel Mia’s horror at what had happened, but he could also feel her joy at their mating. An air of excitement hung in the van despite the events of the night.
The boy had held up like a trooper, falling asleep in Mia’s arms shortly after they pulled out of the motel parking lot. Mia didn’t know much about the boy or why the previous Alpha had demanded his death but what she knew she told him. She also wanted to keep the boy with her when they got to Alaska. Gammon was slightly put out to find he would be raising a child while learning about his mate but if it made her happy then they would raise the child with all the love and attention a child deserved. His world had changed, again, and this time he would make certain that no one and nothing could get through the defenses of his pack. He sent a brief glare toward the doctor through the rear-view mirror only to have Mia slap his arm and fuss at him through their bond path. He owed the doctor his life but that didn’t mean he had to like the man. After all, the man was human, and all shifters knew how treacherous humans could be.
He and Mia talked for hours through their private bond, getting to know each other. Occasionally the others would interrupt and ask questions but for the most part they let the couple in the front of the van alone.
Gammon didn’t want to stop until they reached Alaska but even, he couldn’t drive that far without rest. For the next few days, the men took turns driving with stops at night to rest. During the day they stopped to stretch their legs and romp with the boy. As for stopping at a bank for money as the doctor requested, the answer had been a resounding no from Gammon. He wasn’t taking a chance anyone, or anything could trace him and his people. He informed the doctor that the payment for saving his life would be the gift of a home where his daughter was or in the village his pack was creating outside his territory and the money to let him retire. Gammon was determined no one would be able to trace the doctor to Alaska either.
The doctor had proven to have more of a backbone than Gammon had believed but in the end the man had given in and requested more information about the future village. By the time they reached Alaska an agreement had been formed between the two men and the doctor would have his home near his daughter with the option left open of moving to the village when it was completed.
The shock and amazement of the pack was a sight to behold with the only dark side being when Jutoh had not only refused to accept Mia but had refused to even meet her. Gammon’s heart was heavy when they pulled into his drive. He could only hope that one day soon, once Jutoh had gotten over the shock, his father by mating would accept he had found another mate. He couldn’t imagine two of the most important people in his life never being part of each other’s lives.
As for Dimitri and Nikita, they initially weren’t happy and proclaimed loudly, but only to Gammon, that if he could find a second true-mate, something believed to be impossible, then the gods were obviously having a laugh at the expense of the two men. They swore they were never leaving the pack and Gammon better not bring any unmated females into the pack. They wanted no chance the fickle gods would decide they should have a mate.
***
Gammon did have to answer to the High Council for his alleged crime against the shifter world but in the end the High Council couldn’t do anything about the situation. The deceased Alpha had refused to be oath bound to the Council and thus Gammon’s crime wasn’t much of a crime.
It was less than a decade before the High Council came to Gammon for help. They weren’t sure why the females were so rare, but they had figured out one thing, Gammon was ideally placed to keep them safe. The arguments against the plan raged for days but in the end, Gammon gave in to the request and agreed to become the Safe Haven for the females of their race.
To say Nikita and Dimitri were not pleased would be an understatement. They swore to Gammon the gods had it out for them and had found a way to bring females to the territory since it was obvious they had no plans to ever leave and take the chance of true-mating.
Introduction
In Casey, Book 8 the reader is introduced to a new character, Dacron. We begin to find out more of why Dracula and his Enforcers are on planet Earth. We learn a little more of the she-demon Dracula mated. In Fleeing Justice we get to see a brief glimpse of life from her. Fleeing Justice starts days before Dacron reaches Earth. Fleeing Justice contains no spoilers for the Safe Haven Wolves as the characters are side characters barely mentioned in some of the early books.
Fleeing Justice
Dracula’s Nightmare Mate
Catherine could not believe it. After all these centuries, she had a child. Well, she sort of had a child. She might be a vicious killer in the eyes of her husband, but that did not mean she had no feelings. Besides, it was not really murder if the ones she killed were meant to be food for her kind.
It had taken years to manipulate the DNA of these Earthlings, but she had succeeded; the technology had not existed until the last few decades. She was looking at the test from the scientist she had hired. The results brought a smile to her face.
Remembering the confusion on the scientist’s face as he had studied the blood, she had given him also brought a smile to her face. Before she had killed him, he had confirmed the two samples of blood were from the same species. She may be stuck on this backwater planet in the middle of t
he back of beyond, located in the no-one-would-ever choose-to-live-here galaxy, but finally, she had a child--a child that was probably getting hungry.
She had left enough food to last the two days she was going to be gone, but the girl was greedy. The bodies had undoubtedly been drained of blood before the sun had risen on the second day. Catherine really hoped Margo had not untied the food before she ate. She was still young and thought playing with your food was acceptable. It would be more acceptable when Margo was old enough and strong enough to actually control the food.
Catherine giggled; having a child was going to be so much fun. As least it would be, if they could stay at least one step ahead of Dracula and his thugs. Mating Dracula had proven to be a mistake. Setting him up to take the fall for her grandfather and herself had resulted in her being marooned on this backwater planet.
Growing up in a secluded area, she had not known what an Enforcer was, much less what the Hunters he commanded were capable of doing. Her grandfather had raised her to be a pilot and neglected certain portions of her learning.
Her grandfather had never told her keeping a herd penned was against the law. In fact, he was the one who provided her with her first herd. He had also never told her it was against the law to kill your herd, instead of just taking a portion of their blood. A tear slid down her cheek as she remembered the way her husband and his goons had tracked and killed her grandfather before turning their attention to her. Her plans had failed. What she knew about forcing a bond on another didn’t work the way she had intended.
She remembered draining every drop from every herd animal she had before she had fled the planet. She did not know how long she would be running, and she wanted to make sure she had a supply of blood to last until she found a safe place. She was proud of who her grandfather had raised her to be, and defiant, oh, yes, she was defiant. Food was food and was meant to be eaten—it did not matter if it was sentient or not, no matter what the law said.
Blood of the Wolf (Safe Haven Wolves Short Stories Book 1) Page 8