Damaged Mate

20

The double doors crashed against the walls as I slid past rows of untouched boxes, stacked nearly to the ceiling with Halloween goodies galore. I barely had time to catch my footing as four pairs of limbs came thundering toward me, claws scraping against the linoleum floor as a much louder snarl escaped the lycanthrope’s throat. Without even thinking, I slammed into the exit, stumbling into a back alley before throwing the door shut behind me.

“Crap, crap, crap, crap.” My mind threatened to spin out with the rest of the world as my eyes darted around the alley. A huge dumpster sat against the wall, perfectly positioned to be shoved aside. Adrenaline coursed through me as I pressed my body against it, grime-encrusted wheels creaking as it slowly slid against the exit door. Just as it covered the exit, a loud bang rattled the metal exterior, followed soon after by furious snarling.

And to think, I’d only had one round of werewolf self-defense.

My first instinct was to run toward the streetlights, pooling out into the very public downtown area. If I was gonna be chased, someone would know about it. Forcing my feet to move, I hardly got into a jog before a delivery van rolled in front of the alley’s mouth. Fear froze me in place as I waited for a tidal wave of werewolves, or zombies, or whatever else existed in the shadow depths of mythology. To my relief, it was just the poor timing of some delivery guy.

Not even poor timing—the absolute worst, most inconvenient timing the world had ever seen.

“What the hell—?” The rest of my curse choked into a panicked shriek as the dumpster slammed forward, its innards spilling out across the asphalt. A flash of something shiny pulled my hand forward, fist closing around what looked to be a metal fork before I dove out of the werewolf’s way.

“Out of the lycanthrope—!” I corrected myself out loud before another scream slipped out. Not the time, Aria. Not the time.

I found myself slowly getting backed into a corner as my aggressor prowled close. They found no use for their disguise anymore, dropping the gloves and mask to the ground as the shadows of the alley overtook them. The darkened fur sent me into a tizzy—there was no way this was one of Clyde’s friends, right?

“V-Vanessa, if that’s you,” I barely got the words out; the body shape wasn’t the same as hers. On all fours, it was impossible to even discern the gender.

My back bumped against the concrete wall, fork held outright in my hand. The tip trembled terribly the closer my attacker got; they were clearly getting way too much enjoyment out of this. Without my input, I suddenly lunged out, catching the monster’s snout with my fork. It let out a pained whine, backing further into the shadow while oversized claws pawed at its nose.

“H-hah!” A well of bravado filled my chest as I held the fork outward. “You’re not getting me that easy.”

The lycanthrope responded justly by lunging forward and clamping its jaw around my shoulder. A choked scream tried clawing its way out as it shook me like a rag doll, throwing me aside with a spray of blood. Whatever gasp of air I was going for failed utterly, the entirety of my spine throbbing as I crumpled into a heap. Bloodied saliva hung over me as the beast stared me down, fangs glittering and eyes wide in anticipation; even with my fork still in hand, I couldn’t put the right command together in my head to act. The fluorescent bulb hung above us, as if the universe was throwing a spotlight to my last moments alive.

Then, the light personified, given enough physical matter to grab the wolf by the throat and chuck him aside.

I blinked furiously, trying to piece the image together. It was another lycanthrope, its fur far shorter and more lightly-colored than my attacker’s. He—it had to be a he, with that body shape—stood on his hind legs and let out a howling snarl, claws bared and chest completely exposed to the enemy.

The darker wolf scrambled to all fours, glaring at its enemy before fully charging into him. Their arms interlocked, teeth snapping and snarls escaping their chests as they wrestled across the alley. With whatever sense I had left, I managed to push myself to my feet, fork in hand, and inch slowly along the wall. The last thing I wanted to do was get in the middle of all those teeth and claws.

At least, until the fair-colored lycanthrope was clawed brutally across the face.

“H-hey—!” I suddenly charged forward, slamming all one-hundred-and-twenty pounds of myself into the attacker’s side. We both went teetering forward, the lighter wolf catching me with one arm and slashing the attacker’s stomach with the other. Dark Fur let out a pained howl, its arm covering the wound before it attempted to scramble up the side of the wall. My guy wasn’t about to let him go, though, gently setting me down before starting after him.

“Wait…” I called out weakly, watching as the fair-colored lycanthrope froze in place. “I can’t… d-don’t leave.”

He immediately turned on his heels, letting my attacker flip over the roof and vanish from sight. Carefully, he bent down, hand reaching out toward me before stopping. A low whine escaped his lips as he looked himself over, internally struggling with something.

“Don’t freak out,” he said in a familiar, if not deeper, tone. “I can’t get you help looking like this.”

All I could do was smile weakly at Aiden’s voice; he had no idea I’d been through this rodeo before. Then again, I wasn’t ready for all that fur and muscle to shed away and reveal Aiden staring at me. I squinted, trying to reach a hand up to confirm he was really there. A hot flash shot down my shoulder, causing me to let out a pained cry.

“Hang on, just—” Aiden’s eyes filled with tears as he carefully scooped me up onto his back. “I’ll drive you back to Ayersville. Just, stay awake, okay? Stay awake, Aria.”

It seemed an easy enough request, but God, as he ran out of that alleyway, it was harder and harder to keep my eyes open. A heavy cold overtook me as my arm began tingling, slowly growing numb with each second. Everything began to blur after that, melding into an incomprehensible scene.

The slamming of Aiden’s truck doors.

The wind pulling at my hair as the highway appeared in the headlights.

A dozen or so twinkling dots filling the sky as Aiden carried me off somewhere.

The sound of my dad screaming.

More sounds.

More voices.

My mom’s face.

And then, suddenly, the stabbing sensation of a needle in my skin got me fully awake. I sat up in bed, blinking furiously while the inside of my room began piecing itself together. Brief panic overtook me at the lack of Dad; I hadn’t realized how badly I wanted him here until now.

“O-ow!” My attention flipped to the side of my bed, that pricking sensation too noticeable to ignore. Nurse Aurora turned out to be the cause, a medical kit sprawled out along my nightstand while she pinched a needle between her fingers. We stared at each other for a moment, and I was unsure what to say as a small smile spread across her face.

“It’s good to see you can still feel things in that area.” She beamed. “I admit to being quite worried. I thought I warned you about the lethal nature of wolf bites?”

I blinked, brain stuttering slightly for a response. “Is… is th-that supposed to be a joke?”

Nurse Aurora’s smile persisted. “It was an attempt. Was it well received?”

Without waiting for a reply, she quickly snapped the thread off her needle and placed it into a small cup of liquid. One whiff sent my head spinning, pulling a groan from my throat as I leaned back into my pillows.

“So, who in this town isn’t in the werewolf loop?” I asked weakly. “’Cause, at this point, it feels like this should be part of the orientation packet.”

Nurse Aurora chuckled lightly, rummaging around her kit before producing a roll of gauze and a small pair of scissors. “I had warned your father about the dangers of ignorance, but he thought it would be best. And, to the credit of our lupine neighbors,” she added, “they are not ones to so willingly commit such violent acts toward humans.”

She leaned forward, gently lifting my shoulder to start wrapping a layer of gauze. Only then did I notice my lack of any upper attire, likely to make it easier on Nurse Aurora to care for me. It at least explained why it was just her and me in the room; not sure how Dad would feel about staring at his daughter’s exposed chest. “Is Dad…?”

“I had him and Aiden wait in the living room,” Nurse Aurora explained. “It is far easier to work without too many faces in my way.”

Fair enough.

“You really are a lucky young lady,” Nurse Aurora continued. “That bite could have torn straight through your tendon and bone. To still have full sensation, let alone any at all, is nothing short of a miracle.”

I knew she was being as careful as possible, but damn, every time the gauze wrapped around my shoulder, it sent a new, tingling wave of pain through my body. A few streams of light caught my attention, pulling my eyes toward my window. “Is it tomorrow?” I asked.

“Tomorrow’s tomorrow,” Nurse Aurora corrected. “You have been in bed for two days.”

Two days?! “Oh my God, Aiden’s going to freak out.” I tried pulling myself free of my covers, my hand catching against Nurse Aurora’s. The scissors and gauze went flying in the air, and I reflexively got ready to cringe at the impact.

But it never came.

“Aria, honestly,” Nurse Aurora chided. “You should know better than anyone that rest is key to recovery.” I watched her wave a hand, fingers outstretched as her supplies floated back.

I blinked, furiously rubbing my eye with my one good hand as she turned to face me. “Did—d-did you give me something? Or am I still asleep?”

Nurse Aurora beamed, twirling a finger as the scissors drifted over and snipped the gauze roll free from my arm. “Like I said, your father really has quite a bit to explain to you.”

Another flicker sent her supplies back into her kit, snapping shut entirely on its own as a robe draped itself over my chest. Oh, God, this was too much right now. “N-Nurse Aurora…?”

“While I do not think you should see Aiden just yet,” Nurse Aurora interrupted, “I would be happy to send your father in.”

A wave of relief washed over me, though I couldn’t help but stare at her medical kit. “You’re… not a werewolf too, are you?”

Nurse Aurora simply flashed a smile before slipping quietly through my door. A few beats of silence passed, followed by a loud collective of gasps and cries of relief. Thundering footsteps followed afterward and my dad practically crashed through the door, nearly tripping over himself before dropping to his knees by my bedside.

“Aria!” It took everything I had not to cry out as Dad pulled me into a tight embrace. “Aria, oh my God! I—when Aiden came through, and-and I thought—God, all of that blood on you, I really thought…”

He was in absolute hysterics, tears running down his face as his arms curled around me. So much was racing through my head at once—dozens of questions, a bubbling anger, absolute dread for what this all meant—but at that moment, all I could hear was the relief in each sob he took.

“D-Dad.” All I could do was settle my head against his chest, feeling myself begin to cry as well.

And we just sat there, taking the other in, for what felt like an absolute eternity. Part of me so badly just wanted to stay in the moment, or somehow take it all back and revert to the first time I stepped into this house with all my luggage. I knew I couldn’t, and maybe, Dad did, too.

Maybe that was why we hugged as long as we did.