The Moon's Legacy

Not Again

Damian POV

Helpless. It wasn't a feeling that I was overly familiar with, but I knew enough to recognize it. I hadn't felt like this since my parents were killed.

I watched as the doctor and the girl moved around Archer, tossing questions and answers back and forth as they worked. Archer's breathing was so faint that I found myself straining to hear him.

My beta had been my best friend since we were kids. Archer had always been there. Losing him was unacceptable.

I heard the doctor address his helper. Her name was Willow. Onyx had gone still at the sound, fully alert and focused on her. That's why I felt it when she laid a hand on Archer's neck—brief, but undeniable. A warm pulse of power. She wasn't human.

I narrowed my eyes at her, even as Caine muttered, "What the hell?" under his breath.

She carried on as if nothing had happened. "Animals do better when someone isn't panicking around them. You all smell like adrenaline and bad decisions."

If she only knew. Still, I continued watching her. She'd covered her earlier comment about shifting readily enough, but it appeared as if she knew more than she was letting on.

'Does she seem…off…to you, Damian?' Caine's voice threaded through my mind.

'Something about her, yes. I can't put my finger on it yet.'

Archer jerked on the table, causing the legs to shriek. Evander was already moving forward to steady him when Willow barked, "Back!" Steel threaded her tone, and Evander stopped in his tracks. I could feel the power underneath her word, and apparently, so could my men.

There was a tug in my chest as I watched her. Onyx was still silent, but he hadn't dropped his focus from her for a single moment. He let out a low whimper when the tug pulled again, and I snapped my gaze up to Willow's. Once again, I was struck by the thought that there was more here than met the eye.

I tried to find her scent through the antiseptic and iron, but there was nothing. It was as if she wasn't in the room with us. My eyes narrowed. That wasn't possible.

Her icy gaze met mine, a silent challenge. Onyx huffed, amused more than worried. Then Archer whined, a low, weak sound, and I switched my focus back to him.

I opened my bond with him. 'You will not die today, my friend. I need you to live. So keep fighting.' I felt his pain and exhaustion bleed through the bond. As I watched, Willow placed her hands back on him. This time, I felt the pulse moving through my bond with Archer and through the air. His breathing eased.

My mind was spinning, trying to decode what all of this meant while they continued to work on my beta. Was she a witch? A hybrid? What was she doing working here, of all places, a sleepy human town on the edges of a wolf pack?

The doctor was entirely too accepting of working on a wolf, too, come to think of it. He had barely reacted when he saw his patient on the table, just got to work.

Finally, the doc stepped back. "All right. He's stable for the moment." I listened as he told us what needed to happen next, to my men objecting, until finally I cut through it all. I wasn't risking Archer when a couple of hours here would make a difference.

"What do you need?" I asked.

The vet outlined the required care, including crating and restricted movement.

'He's going to love that,' Evander said, humor lacing his words.

'We'll torment him with it after he survives.'

Caine drifted toward Willow as she cleaned up. "You work here?" he asked her.

"No. I just like blood," she returned flatly.

'What are you doing?' I snapped at him.

'Trying to figure out what she is. She's not human.'

'I know.'

I volunteered to stay while Doc issued orders to Willow. My eyes followed her as she stepped to the door. I felt that yank in my chest again, felt Onyx sigh. I tried to catch her scent as she slipped past me. Then she was gone, and I turned back to the men in the room.

"Now that she's gone, can I expect any other wolves to show up in my clinic today?" The doctor looked at me, emphasizing the word wolves as he asked the question.

I raised an eyebrow. "This was the only one we found," I looked at the name on his lab coat, "Doctor Blake."

"And you're Alpha Damian, if I'm not mistaken."

I kept my face impassive even as the shock went through me. Caine, however, did not. "I'm sorry?"

Doctor Blake looked at each of us. "I've lived in this town my entire life, barring my time away for education. You think we don't hear the rumors? Don't know what's in the forest? Now, you show up with a wolf that's larger than he should be, in an area that hasn't seen a natural wild wolf for over one hundred years. One who had his side mangled by teeth, not an iron trap." He looked at Archer again, then back at me. "My granny told me years ago about the werewolves in the woods behind our town. Said to help them if they came, because my family owed them a debt." He shrugged. "I'd have helped anyway."

I took a moment to process the information. "How many other people know about us?"

"Most of the town thinks you are stories made up to scare children. Your secret is safe enough."

"And Willow? What is she?"

He narrowed his gaze at me. The human was brave; I'd give him that. "Special. And none of your concern."

My feet moved before I realized I was doing it. I stopped just in front of him. "I'll decide what's my concern."

He may have been brave, but I was still an alpha, and part of him recognized that. He looked away, a sigh heavy on his lips. "I don't know what she is, not for sure. She showed up a year ago with nothing but a backpack and determination. But she has a way with the animals. They respond to her, and the ones she spends time with tend to heal faster than the rest." He bit his lip. "She stays to herself, though the town has adopted her as if she were born here. We look out for her."

"What makes you think she needs it?"

"A girl, barely old enough to drink, doesn't show up one day with a backpack and nothing else unless she's running from something serious. It's not the first time our town has been a stopping point for people running from something. It just so happens that this time she stayed."

"Does she know you're aware she's something more than human?"

He shook his head. "No. I don't care what she is. She makes a difference here."

I stepped back. "Okay. Now that you're aware that Archer is not a normal wolf, are you still going to put him in the kennel?"

A brief touch of amusement sparked in his eyes. "If you want to blend, that's the best option. Though I suppose we could write off this exam room for the day, if you'd prefer."

"That's probably for the best. I'll stay with him. My men can find something else to occupy their time."

"I'd recommend the diner down the street. Sally makes a mean burger."

We stepped out of the room. Caine and Evander followed, then walked up through the lobby. I heard them talking and the sound of Willow answering, so I followed them up there.

"Go right when you leave, then in about four blocks the diner's on the right. You can't miss it," she said.

Evander smiled at her. "Thank you, Willow." They stepped out.

She turned, then jerked back, startled. "I didn't hear you come up."

I inclined my head. "Thank you for your help with the wolf."

Her eyes darted around, and she stepped back, shuffling papers on the desk. "It's no trouble. Just doing my job."

"A receptionist assists with treating wounded animals?"

"I'll do whatever is needed. If that means stepping in when Doc Blake doesn't have a tech available, then that's what I do." She shrugged. "I don't like seeing animals in pain."

I crowded into her space, breathing in. Her lack of scent was frustrating. She stepped back until she was backed up against her desk, and I kept advancing on her. She inhaled, her chest rising as she drew in air, and I felt a spark of…attraction? Onyx was practically drooling in my head. He hadn't responded to anyone like this since our mate bond broke.

"What are you?" I whispered.

Her eyes went wide. She started shaking her head. "I d-don't know what you mean." She tried to sidestep and move around me, but I blocked her. I leaned into her, taking another deep breath.

"I can't get your scent. You have none at all. That shouldn't be possible."

Her hands were trembling now. She raised them, then pushed against my chest to get me to move. As soon as she made contact, the bond snapped taut between us. My breath caught. No, that wasn't—

She closed her eyes, in defeat or something else, I didn't know. I stumbled back in shock, the tingles from her touch still there like a phantom itch, as the realization hit me.

Onyx howled. 'Mate!'

You've got to be f*****g kidding me. Not again.