"And why didn't you fucking tell me?!" Kade's voice boomed as he and Logan walked the length of the healer's home.
The entire space was built many years ago by the two Alphas that preceded Alpha Kade's great-grandfather. The environment was surrounded by hills and mountains on all sides and a lonely path that led right into the village. It was built almost in the structure of a shaolin temple. The mere presence of it brought calm and tranquility though the same couldn't be said for the Alpha's raging temper.
"You had blocked us from using the mind link to get to you last night. By the time I got to you, Tampa told me you were knocked out." Logan replied. "And Tyra Moonclaw? Really?"
Kade grunted, "none of your business. How did this happen?"
Logan gave him a begrudging glare before complying. "Tyrone found her last night at the moon's peak when he was taking his new trainees on patrol."
"She was already unconscious when he found her, bleeding and covered in soot. I didn't think she would survive."
The front doors of the healer's home opened up and the pack's physician stepped out. She was an older woman with silver-streaked hair and sharp, weathered eyes but she walked with the grace of a young woman.
"Alpha Strongborne," she gave a bow. "It's unfortunate you grace the pack's healing home under such circumstances."
"I apologize Selene, pack matters have kept me occupied."
"So I hear," Selene replied a glint in her eye as she stared at Logan who stood staut behind his Alpha.
Kade realized she already knew of his activities of the previous night and it made him wonder who else knew. "Follow me."
She led the Alpha and Beta down the narrow corridor of the healing building. The scent of herbs and antiseptic hung thick in the air, and the soft hum of low conversation could be heard from the rooms they passed. But the Alpha's focus remained singular—on her, the human woman lying in confinement.
They reached the room, Selene stopping just outside the door. "She's stable now," she began, "We pulled eight bullets from her body, each one silver-tipped. Any one of them would have killed an average werewolf."
The Alpha's jaw clenched, his eyes flashing with silent rage. "Silver-tipped?" he repeated, the growl underlying his voice unmistakable.
The healer nodded. "We're not sure what happened, but her healing abilities… they're remarkable, Alpha. Even for a wolf, it would have taken weeks to recover from that kind of damage. But she's human, or at least she appears to be."
Kade frowned, his eyes narrowing in thought. He hadn't heard of humans with extraordinary abilities before. It was strange.
"She's in a coma, still fighting to heal. Her body is bruised and battered, as you'll see, but she's mending quickly. Faster than any human has a right to." She glanced up at him, her gaze steady. "It's like her body knows how to fix itself, how to survive."
"But how?" He asked.
"We don't know." She replied. There was something different, he could feel it, a tension in the air that wasn't just the scent of herbs and blood.
They reached the door to her room, and as the healer pushed it open, a scent hit him like a wave, nearly sending him reeling. It was faint at first, like a whisper, but then it swelled—familiar, yet utterly foreign. A sweetness threaded with something sharp, like rain on the wind. It coiled in his gut, igniting something primal, something instinctual. His wolf stirred, restless, alert.
He stopped dead in his tracks, nostrils flaring. No, he thought. Impossible. And yet, the scent clung to the air around him, curling in the corners of the room like smoke. It shouldn't be possible. But that scent—he could feel it deep in his bones—was unmistakable. Mate.
The healer glanced back, noticing the Alpha's hesitation. "Something wrong, Alpha?"
He swallowed hard, the intensity of the scent almost overwhelming. "No," he muttered, though his eyes were locked on the door. "Nothing."
But it was a lie. The feeling, the scent—everything in his blood told him otherwise.
Inside the room, the human woman lay unconscious, her body a study in violence and survival. Her skin, bruised and discolored in places, marred by angry red scars, the aftermath of the bullets that had torn through her. She wore a black spandex suit, torn in several places, clinging to her body like a second skin. Even in her wounded state, the material outlined her form, her muscles taut under the surface.
Her wrists were cuffed to the metal bed frame, thick leather straps holding her in place. She looked fragile, but there was something dangerous about her, he didn't know if he was speaking of how dangerous she was to him even as she lay still, unmoving.
Kade stepped closer, his keen eyes scanning her body. The suit was stained with dried blood, bruises blossoming beneath the fabric, the dark purple marks standing out against her pale skin.
Kade's gaze dropped to her face, pale and serene despite the injuries. Her lips were slightly parted, her breathing steady but slow. He couldn't tear his eyes away from her, even as his mind warred with the strange, undeniable truth.
"Her scent," Selene trailed off as though uncertain how to continue. "It's different, isn't it? I smelled it too when they brought her in. But she's human."
"That's what she appears to be," he growled softly, unable to explain the twisting sensation in his gut, the way his wolf growled in recognition, even as his mind screamed against it.
Mate. The word, the feeling, pulsed through him, leaving a bitter taste. There could be no other. But the scent… the scent did not lie.
He clenched his fists, pushing the feeling down deep. Whatever this woman was—whoever she was—there were too many questions. Too many coincidences.
For now, though, all he could do was wait. And watch.