“I think I punctured a lung,” she replied, keeping her voice as calm as possible. On the inside, she was freaking the fuck out, because she couldn’t take a deep breath.
“Harold will fix this,” he promised. “After he does, you can shift. Shifting heals you faster now that you’re one of us.”
“Don’t hurt the boy,” she blurted, looking around when Harold and Landon came to her side, both of them wearing the special gloves. Harold tossed Storm a pair and he quickly put them on.
“I’ll deal with him later,” Storm replied, turning his head toward the healer. “How are we going to move her?”
“Savage is on his way with a backboard,” Harold began as he leaned a little closer to her protruding rib. The thought made her want to vomit. “Here he comes now.”
Another male arrived. This one was huge! She thought Storm was big…this male was twice his size.
They discussed how they would roll her body to the right, leaving the exposed rib pointing up. Yep, gonna puke. Before she had a chance to prepare herself, Harold and Landon placed their gloved hands on her body, rolling her to the side.
Where she puked right at Storm’s feet.
“Damn it,” she moaned. “I’m so sorry…oww!”
“Breathe, sweetheart,” Storm cooed, ignoring the pile at his feet while Landon and the healer worked on getting the backboard under her. “You’re strong. You can do this.”
“It hurts!” Okay, time for being tough was over. The pain was getting worse when they righted her on the makeshift gurney.
His head shot up and his eyes narrowed. “Give her something, god damn it!”
“Working on it,” Landon replied as he dug through his bag, coming out with a needle and vial.
“Oh, fuck…needles,” she moaned, wanting to puke again.
“Sorry, Amaya,” Landon chuckled. “You’re good with needles at work. I forgot you don’t like them for yourself.” He was trying to lighten the mood, and for the most part, he had.
“Just make it quick,” she said through gritted teeth as he used an alcohol pad to clean her skin. The movement made the pain flare again, and she tried to keep her breathing normal. She had enough medical knowledge to know panicking wasn’t the best thing to do during what was basically a search and rescue.
“Just a little stick,” the healer said as he gave her an injection. “We will wait a few minutes before picking you up. It will be a slow go back up the trails, but you should be relatively pain free on the way back to my clinic.”
“Relatively?” She frowned. Didn’t the pain medicine he just gave her have enough umph to make her not feel anything?
“Shifters burn off medicines a lot faster than humans,” Landon replied as he leaned over to look her in the eye. Storm growled at his closeness, but the arrival of other males took his attention away.
“Great,” she complained. “Now, I have an audience.”
“You’re a part of a very big family now,” Landon reminded her. “You’re going to have to get used to the attention.” He quickly pulled a blanket from his bag, giving her a sad nod before covering her exposed body.
“Thank you,” she choked out, her eyes filling with tears.
“We can talk about that later,” Landon whispered as Storm placed his gloved hand on the back of her hand. She immediately flipped it over and gave him a little squeeze. Now, everyone there had seen her scars.
Storm sneered at the kid when he entered Talon’s office. In his mind, he knew it was an accident, but his unmated panther did not. It wanted the young male’s throat.
“Orian,” Talon began. “This isn’t the first time you’ve been in here because you were careless around a female.”
Orian had hit his twenties hard a few months ago. The young male was lucky he wasn’t already dead after goofing off with some of the teenage panthers, causing him to touch and almost knock over Mary Grace while she held her newborn cub. The skin on skin contact was serious.
“I really didn’t mean to hit her,” Orian pled, shaking in his socks. His mother and father were waiting in the main living room of the alpha’s home. Talon wouldn’t allow them inside the meeting, because by shifter law, Orian was an of age male. He’d gone through what the species considered puberty, and from that moment on, they were responsible for themselves.
Storm doubted Talon would kill him for the incident…even if Storm wanted to give him an ass whooping of his own. Amaya was currently in surgery to get the rib back in place. After she was awake, Storm would be there to stay with her while she shifted.
He didn’t trust anyone else to be at her side. She’d done well with being undressed in front of Landon and the healer. Savage immediately gave his back the moment he had handed over the backboard. The large Guardian’s eyes flashed amber while he turned, and Storm knew he’d seen her scars, too.
Thankfully, no one had said a thing. They didn’t bring it up. She didn’t need to be reminded of her time with that human male. That was the past, and Storm wanted to be her future. He wanted her only memories to be from the moment she took Talon’s blood. The before didn’t matter to him.
“Now that you have turned twenty,” Talon began, pinning Orian with his harsh stare. Storm didn’t feel the alpha’s powers, but he knew they were being used. The kid dropped his head, looking at his feet, as a show of respect and response to the alpha’s magical connection. “There should be no excuse for not paying attention to where you are going…especially when you are out in the woods. That is a very busy place, and our mated females enjoy being able to roam freely out there. If you and your buddies are roughhousing to the point where you are only focused on yourself and not the other males and females of this pride, I will ban you until you learn your lesson.”
“You can’t ban me from shifting!” the kid exploded, jerking his head up to stare Talon directly in the eyes. Storm flinched, reaching out to stop the dumbass.
“I didn’t say I would stop you from shifting,” Talon bellowed, his canines growing thick in his mouth. The alpha’s eyes glowed a bright amber. “You know what? I know just the thing.”
“Ah, shit,” Storm whispered. He wasn’t going to need to kick the male’s ass. Talon was going to teach him a lesson the old-fashioned way.
“You will clean the old Guardian’s dorm and gym…with a toothbrush,” Talon ordered, pushing out his powers so strongly, Storm had to grab the back of the chair to steady himself. “During the time you are cleaning the dorm, a series of events will take place. You won’t know when it will happen nor will you know who will be doing it. If you can’t pay attention to your surroundings, this will teach you to watch your back. Do you understand me?”
Ah, damn. Talon was using one of his father’s tricks. That poor kid didn’t know what was about to happen to him.
Talon’s father had done the same thing to Booth way back when he was a kid, acting out. The Guardians would randomly show up at the door, moving as quietly as they could. They’d do so many things to Booth that by the time he’d cleaned the entire dorm, he was very observant of who was at his back. It was a harsh thing to do, but if this kid wanted to become a Guardian in the near future, he was going to need the lesson.
“Yes, sir,” Orian finally answered. Lucky for him, the icy blue of his eyes never changed over to that of his beast. If he’d tried to shift in reaction to the alpha…all hell would’ve broken loose.
“Get out of here, and be at the dorm at four in the morning with your toothbrush,” Talon growled, pointing toward the door.
The moment the kid was gone, Storm raised a brow, waiting for Talon’s eyes to clear and return to their human blue.
“Damn, your dad was a beast with punishments,” Storm chuckled. “I’m surprised you remembered that one.”
“How could I forget?” Talon finally smirked. “Booth didn’t shut up about it for months.”
Storm took a seat in front of Talon’s desk and slid down with exhaustion. Knowing Amaya was still in surgery kept
him from going back to the healer’s home. He needed a moment to calm down after being woken up by one of Orian’s friends beating on his door.
“You okay?” Talon asked as he leaned against his desk.
“Not in the slightest,” he replied.
“She’s going to be okay,” Talon reminded him. “Harold is very good, and Landon is there, too.”
“I know.” Storm paused. How did he tell his oldest friend about his female and her past? “There’s just a lot going on with her that I haven’t told you, and while I worry about where her head is at, I know I can make her new life so much better than her human one.”
“What are you rambling about?” Talon’s brows pinched forward with worry.
“She was married.” He swallowed the words. The thought of another male claiming her still set his panther on edge. “He tried to kill her, Talon.”
“What?” his alpha gasped and stood to his full height. “Where is this male?”
“In prison,” Storm admitted. Thankfully, for her ex, because Storm would kill him if he ever came within a mile of Amaya. “He stabbed her…multiple times.”
“Gods,” Talon breathed. “I will never understand how a human male can raise a hand to their mates. It just blows my fucking mind.”
“Oh, he raised his hand, all right,” Storm cursed and sat straighter in his chair when his panther pushed at his skin. “She has scars…stab wound scars, Talon. She’s very embarrassed by them. She wears long-sleeved shirts and jeans all year round to cover them so people won’t ask questions.”
“Our pride isn’t like that,” Talon interrupted. “They won’t gawk at her.”
“I know the pride won’t,” he admitted, “but I need to explain to her that no one here will judge her for the way she looks.”
“How many times did he stab her?” Talon wiped his hand over his face and made a fist at his side when Storm gave him a sad look.
“I haven’t counted them,” Storm answered. “Hell, I haven’t even seen her fully undressed until today. I knew the scars were on her arms and back, but I had no idea how bad it really was until I found her in the woods. He must’ve stabbed her fifty times…maybe more.”
“Fuck,” Talon barked. “And she is okay? No lasting health issues?”
“I don’t know,” he growled. “If she had some preexisting condition before her change and the wolf blood didn’t react right, she could’ve died, Talon.”
“I know, brother.” Talon gave Storm a little push of power, calming him. “But, like you said, she needs to focus on the future. A future with you. I have all the faith in the world that you will make things better for your female.”
“I plan on it.” He paused when his phone rang. He sprung to his feet when he saw it was Landon calling him. Talon shooed him out of the office without another word.
“I’m heading there now,” Storm replied when Landon said she was out of surgery. He hung up the phone and pushed through the back door to the alpha’s home. Thankfully, Harold’s place was only steps away from the main house.
“How did she do?” he asked the moment he walked in the door. The first room to the left was empty, but the door to the second room was closed.
“Really well.” Harold, keeping to his great bedside manners, jutted his chin out toward the room. “You can see her now. She’s just starting to wake up. She will need to shift in the next ten minutes or so. Get her up and moving as soon as possible. As usual, my backyard is available.”
Storm couldn’t count how many times the healer had patched up Guardians and sent them to his backyard to shift. Shifting several times over a few hours always healed the panther completely. He didn’t even know how long it took a wolf.
“How long does she need to be out there?” he asked Harold with his hand on the knob. “I don’t know anything about wolves.”
“Same as us,” Harold promised. “She should shift four or five times over the next hour to be right as rain.”
“Thank you,” Storm replied and pushed open the door.
Amaya’s eyes flickered as the medicine was wearing off. She immediately recognized him and smiled widely. “So, is my rib back in my body?”
“Yes,” he laughed, feeling a weight lift off of his chest. “I need to get you outside to shift.”
“Shift?” she balked. “Um, this hurts like hell. I can’t shift right now.”
“Amaya, shifters heal fast, but we have to help it along. Whenever you are injured, shifting to and from your animal will mend your human body. Trust me on this. You want to shift. It’s better than being in pain for the next few days.”
“So, I can heal just like that.” She snapped her fingers. “Seriously?”
“Yes,” he laughed. “Can you get up on your own?” Storm eyed the box of gloves by the bed, reaching for a pair.
“Not at all. I need some help,” she groaned when she tried sitting up to swing her legs over the edge of the bed. “I may heal fast, but the weird dizziness of coming out of a surgery hasn’t changed since I was a human.”
“Easy,” he warned when she planted her feet. He was still trying to get one of the gloves on. “Let me help you.”
“Ow,” she hissed, clutching her side.
“Yeah,” he tsked, taking her arm. He swallowed the purr his beast tried to produce. He could feel her warmth through the gloves, but the absence of touching her skin irritated him to no end. He said he’d wait for her, and he was going to try. “Come on. Let’s go out back.”
“Calla?” Talon called out as she stood at the threshold of his office door. He knew this time was coming, and he’d respected her brother’s request to keep quiet as long as possible. “Come in and have a seat. Close the door behind you, too. I have a feeling this isn’t a random visit.”
“No,” she answered and closed the door. “It’s not. I want to know where my brother is. He hasn’t answered any of my calls, and he hasn’t been home in a week. I’m worried.”
“First off, your brother is fine,” Talon promised. He clasped his hands together on top of the desk. Calla was worried, and he’d felt it coming from her over the past few days. “He’s healthy.”
“So, he’s close to the pride then?” she asked with a sigh. The relief was felt immediately. “I know he’s not himself. Hell, he hasn’t been for a while.”
“No, he hasn’t,” Talon agreed.
“Why did he leave us?” she pressed. The stress she was feeling had subsided, but the worry kept her shoulders tight, and the crease between her eyes deepened. “Is he coming home?”
“You know I don’t discuss information on my Guardians,” he began. Talon finally relaxed and leaned back in his chair, dropping his alpha magic. Calla needed him like a friend; her old guardian when she was still under the age of eighteen. Back when they first came to the pride, Talon had fake documents drawn up showing he and Liberty were adopting Calla and Malaki so no questions would be raised by the humans.
“He’s my brother, Talon,” she reminded him.
“Malaki asked me to not tell you anything directly unless you came seeking answers,” he announced, clearing his throat. “I believe your brother thought he’d be returning to the pride before you came here. It’s obvious he hasn’t.”
“I’ve been to his cabin twice a day for a week.” Calla was a good female, and she loved her brother fiercely. “He’s been gone so long that I’ve cleaned out the rotten food in his fridge and dusted his furniture. I’d been complaining to Taze about my brother disappearing, and he told me to let Malaki calm down. Well, it’s been a week, and he needs to come back. Being away too long…well, you know.”
Of course, Talon knew what would happen if Malaki didn’t return to the pride within a few weeks. He would grow week and eventually die.
“He’s close enough that he will not be affected,” Talon replied, hoping to give her some reassurance. “But he needs to work on himself before I bring him back into the pride and the Guardian program.”
“Did
you strip him of his Guardianship?” she asked with wide eyes. The female’s heartbeat accelerated and tears built in her eyes.
“Not, necessarily,” Talon replied. “In the human world, they’d call it a leave of absence. Malaki needed a break to get his life together. There were a lot of things that affected him when you and Taze mated.”
“I know.” The female’s shoulders deflated and she wrapped her arms around herself. “It affects me, too. You know?”
“I do,” Talon answered with a nod. She wasn’t going to like what he said next. “Your brother felt that protecting you was his future. Once you mated Taze, he wasn’t needed. That alone crashed his mental health. Even after everything you two went through.”
Calla began to cry at his words. She needed to know everything, because, for once, her brother wouldn’t tell her anything. He’d turned in on himself and bottled it all up.
“Is he ever going to come back?” she asked, begging him to tell her. “Please, Talon. I have to know.”
There was a lot of pain and grief between the two of them after everything that had happened. Malaki wasn’t doing well. Talon and Harold had done everything they could for him, but it wasn’t enough.
“Your brother needs to seek help,” he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I don’t know how to get through to him, and no one can. As far as I know, he’s not planning on leaving us, but you never know.”
“If he asks to go to another pride, you can’t let him go!” she barked. “Talon, you can’t!”
“Calla, I can and I will,” he replied, pushing his powers out to remind her he was the alpha. “If your brother chooses to go to another pride because it will help him heal, I won’t deny his request.”
Chapter Eleven
Every single time Amaya shifted to her human form, Storm was there with a blanket to cover her naked body. He kept his eyes on nothing but her face, and she loved him for showing her scarred body so much respect.
Storm (Rise of the Pride, Book 12) Page 10