Divided

Chapter 5: Out of the Woods

"Everything's going to be okay." I whispered down to the shivering girl in my arms, as we made our way back to the barracks. "We'll get you into a hot bath, and I'll ask Ryan to make you some of his tea." Her green eyes looked up at me in a daze and then she closed them slowly. The vividness of her eyes looked strange against her pale skin. She seemed past the point of exhaustion. I tried to focus on my steps, but all I could smell was her scent – or more specifically, her wolf's. It was dripping off her. It was carried on the wind into my nostrils, and it made my heart race. A strange feeling that I didn't like. Tonight was one of the seldom nights that I wanted to run alone. I wanted to get my head straight and get some distance from the drama that has recently started to fill my days. The last thing I expected to find was the girl lying motionless and naked, next to the lake.

The first traces of a new day, was beginning to show. The stars started to disappear as the sun lit the horizon ever so slightly. She jerked awake, "Shh, now. We're almost there." I tried to console her. Her wide eyes fluttered, and panic flooded her face as she looked up at me. "I found you near the lake. Everything's going to be fine." I tried again with a soft firm voice. I didn't bother finding her clothes, and just wrapped her up in a towel that was lying nearby. She looked around - her breathing, short and shallow. Her body tightened in my grip for a moment, but then exhaustion took its toll. She went limp and closed her eyes once again.

"What happened?" Ryan was in the kitchen, drinking milk out of the bottle when I burst through the door.

"I found her near the lake. She must have turned."

"And passed out?"

"I don't know, Ryan." I replied agitated, "Maybe you should get her to speak, then we'll all be enlightened."

"Relax." He threw up his hands, "Take her through to your room. I will call for Phil."

I laid her down, and fumbled around for the clothes Ryan brought from the main house. I found a couple of T-shirts and shorts and underwear. Deciding against it, I went to my cupboard and retrieved a shirt.

"He's on his way."

"Hold her up." I barked. Ryan walked to her side of the bed, and lifted her limp body. As I threw the shirt over her head, her eyes shot open. They weren't green as usual, but bright yellow. She had Ryan in her sight as she lifted her lip in a snarl, revealing nonhuman teeth. Before I knew it, I was looking at her through his eyes and a deep growl rumbled forth. I grabbed hold of Ryan's shirt and slowly pulled him in - behind me. She shifted her attention to me. 

Wolves never responded well to being talked down, which is obvious considering the fact that they aren't the most reasonable creatures on earth. So I didn't even bother using words.  He growled again and she flashed her teeth – without hesitation. I wasn't sure if it was in defense or as a challenge. The only thing I knew was that I had to make her back off, if there was any hope of a bloodless resolution. My wolf knew it too, because he let out a warning growl, so loud that it must have waken the entire barracks. The air in the room grew tight with tension. 

My hands went up, ready for anything – the growls from my wolf rumbled forth without pause. My slight movement pushed her further to the edge, and I could almost taste the warning she was sending out. It was an order: Get away. She was moments away from turning. I had to act quickly. So I did.

I grabbed her shoulders and pushed her down unto the bed. She went for my wrist, but I moved my grip to her neck, and placed my whole body on top of her. Her eyes went wide with terror and desperation. Heat was rolling off her, and the she smelled more wolf than human. She wasn't submitting. She was going into full attack mode - transforming within my grip. I did the only thing that I could think of and rammed my fist into her face. The 'yelp' she gave, would surely haunt me for days to come. It shook the wolf right out of me, and I found myself looking down at the unconscious girl, with my blue shirt still around her neck. 

Her breathing slowed down and I slowly released my grip. Involuntarily, my gaze dropped lower. To her breasts. They looked big against her bony chest, with small n*****s each displaying their own metallic ring. There were cuts on them that had healed a long time ago. I got up from the bed, but couldn't take my eyes off her. The scars were ever so slightly darker than her milky skin, and when my eyes knew what I was looking at, I saw more and more. I followed the scars and saw that she was covered in them. They continued all the way down her rib cage, stomach and legs.

"She's a Luna, Jack." I turned around and saw Ryan looking at her with glossed over eyes. He slowly lifted his gaze to me. "Right shoulder blade." I looked back down at the frail girl whose face I almost broke and turned her on her side. Sure enough, there - proudly among more bruises and scars – was the iconic marking of an alpha's mate, imprinted on her shoulder.

"What on God's green earth..." Phil's voice trailed off as he entered the room. "A Luna!?" He gasped and stepped closer, pushing past Ryan, "Well that makes sense, if the rumors regarding her size are true." He took in a deep breath, "You should let Tom have a look at that, he was obsessed with our traditional markings. See, he wanted a tattoo with meaning. So he did extensive research on the history as well as the symbolism behind all the designs of our tribes, going back decades." He took a short breath, "He eventually settled on a Australian tribal tattoo." He laughed shaking his head, "Which is funny, because his ancestors came from up North, and not down South. Which I could have told him without opening a single book." It seemed like Phil completely forgot the reason why he was called there, and he just kept going, "I must say..."

"Phil. The girl." Ryan's voice interrupted. Forcing myself to move, I covered her up as best I could and stepped back to make way for Phil. Phil - our goodhearted doctor, who also happened to be the biggest gossip on the ranch.

"Yes, of course." He cleared his throat, a little embarrassed and took a seat next to the girl on the bed. "Have you given her something?" He asked as he lifted the shirt and placed his stethoscope on her chest.

"No, she's knocked out." Ryan answered slowly.

"Ah, so I see." He inspected her cheekbone and then touched her jaw, turning her head from side to side. "Your doing I suppose?" He gave Ryan a curious glance over his glasses, as he took out his flashlight and looked into her eyes.

"It was an accident." I played it down, knowing full well he was fishing for even more information on the girl.

"Who am I to ask questions?" He said sarcastically. "It looks like she can put up a fight. I mean, just look at these." He touched one of the scars on her stomach and chuckled nervously. "Well, there's nothing to be worried about. Worse case - she'll wake up with a headache. Is that why you called?"

"We suspect she went for a run and passed out. I found her at the lake. I have no idea how long she's been lying there."

"Has she been eating?"

"Yes, I think so. Ryan?" I glanced at him, and he nodded.

"Well, she is malnourished and weak." He covered her up with the shirt again. He turned around with a smile, looking at us over his glasses. "Fainting during or after a shift is common if the condition of either man or wolf is weak. And by the looks of it, I am betting that neither of them are doing great. Sometimes we can forget how much energy it takes." He glanced back at her and stood up. "So we basically need to improve their overall health. A high protein diet with loads of vitamins, will do the job." He paused for a moment, "Has she talked yet? Do we have a name? A previous pack? I am sure that if you ask Tom to have a look at that marking, he could tell you exactly where she's from and to whom she belongs. I mean it is general knowledge that these kind of markings contain a lot of information in their small and intricate curls. I'm sure that even her name and age will be in there somewhere. I wonder what her story is." Another pause, "You should really get Tom's input. At least then we will know something about her."

"So she is fine?" I asked, ignoring his babble. Phil straightened up and gently packed everything in his bag.

"She will be, as soon as those ribs disappear." He smiled as he picked up his bag, "We need to fatten her up boys." He said and shuffled past the two of us and out of the door. "I'll check in with her in a weeks time. That is, if she'll let me."

"And that is one reason why I prefer staying up here, rather than at the pack house." Ryan said, as soon as Phil was out of earshot. "He's worse than any woman I know."

"f**k, I can't even imagine what kind of stories are going to run around." I sighed and bent down to throw a blanket over the girl. I knew full well, that the drama I was trying to get away from was going to multiply before sunset.

"I'm sure Tanya will enlighten you as soon as you get to the house." He chuckled as we walked out of the room.

"We need another doctor." I closed the door behind me, "One who's just as mute as this girl."