I shifted back to my human form, so I could figure out what was going on. We couldn’t communicate with words when we were in our wolf form. And I needed words right then.
I hobbled from the porch toward Davis, my calf and neck still hurting from whatever Declan hit me with. Tommy tossed me a large shirt to throw on, which I was thankful for.
“What happened?” I snapped.
“He was tag-teamed and they got his legs. His wolf shifted back to human before he was too far gone, but he’s losing a lot of blood. We need to get him to the nearest hospital and hope they don’t ask too many questions before we can sneak him back out of there after the bleeding is under control,” Aiden said.
I took a look at each of the men before me. Every one of them had fought hard tonight and it showed. A deep gash ran across Aiden’s torso. Caleb’s arm was either out of place or broken. And Liam. I sucked in a breath. He was hunched over, and I could see the scratches on his right shoulder. I went around him and saw the gouges went most of the way down his back.
“All of you need to go to the hospital,” I demanded.
“Just surface scratches,” Liam groaned. “We’ll be fine. Though, you’re one to talk. I see several nasty burns on you.”
Burns were nowhere near the same as bleeding out. Pain-in-the-ass men. Whatever. They could suffer longer than necessary if they wanted, but Davis needed more help than his wolf healing could provide.
“Fine. Let’s use the ATV Rafe showed up in to get Davis back to the truck quicker. Aiden, where’s the closest hospital?”
He was already on his satellite GPS, typing away. “There’s a small one about ten miles out once we get to the bottom of the mountain. We’re probably thirty minutes from it.” His face was grim as he looked back at Davis. I didn’t like that face one bit.
“Make it fifteen.”
Augie finally joined us and adorned sweatpants that Rick had thrown him. Not that we hadn’t all seen each other naked on more than one occasion, but it just seemed more appropriate to be somewhat clothed when we were trying to save our friend.
“Aiden, bring the ATV closer,” I said. “Rick, Augie, and I will settle Davis in and then I want you to take off. We’ll catch up with you at the hospital with the other vehicle. I trust you to put those driving skills I’ve seen to good use.”
Aiden nodded, and everyone got to work. I snagged Tommy’s arm. “Wait, what happened with the humans?” Between the injuries and the chaos, I had forgotten entirely.
He grinned at me. “All are accounted for. Some of them were knocked out as they actually wanted to be there, but the ones who didn’t want to be there were happy to help us keep the obnoxious ones contained.”
Good. They were humans with spunk. They’d need that if we couldn’t figure out how to remove the wolf gene from their bodies.
We may not have gotten rid of Declan as we wanted, but we saved a lot of lives. The only thing that could make the day better would be to see Davis open his eyes. I kneeled down before him, placing my hand on his chest. I could still feel his heartbeat, but it was slow. Clothes had been wrapped around his legs to staunch the bleeding, but they were soaked through already.
Davis had to survive this. I couldn’t lose another part of my family. Not now.
***
Three hours later, Augie, Liam, Aiden, and I sat in the wretched hospital waiting room. We’d cleaned up as best we could with the clothes we’d stashed in the truck, but we still looked like a hot mess. Aiden had told the hospital when he arrived with Davis that there’d been a bear attack at our campsite. Thankfully, Davis’s injuries were severe enough that nobody questioned it.
Caleb and the others had already headed back to the pack. We didn’t want too many of us at the hospital making it even more suspicious.
Davis was currently in surgery and as soon as he was out, we had a plan to sneak him out of there. He couldn’t heal at the hospital. There would be too many questions. If everything went well, his regeneration would be something I didn’t think the doctors would overlook.
“Here comes the surgeon,” Augie whispered.
We all stood up and hoped for good news, but the doctor’s face was grim, and my heart constricted.
“Are you Davis Walker’s family?”
I nodded and stepped forward. “Yes, I’m his wife.” I’d seen enough movies to know they didn’t give the information we needed unless we were related. Seeing as though none of us looked like Davis, I went with wife. Liam growled behind me, but the doc either ignored it or hadn’t heard.
“Your husband came out of the surgery, Mrs. Walker, but he’s in bad shape still. We were able to stop the bleeding, but we are recommending that you allow us to remove his legs. We fear his risk of infection outweighs the likelihood of his nerves healing adequately enough to allow him to walk again.”
I stumbled, but Liam caught me. If Davis couldn’t walk again, then his wolf wouldn’t be able to either. There would be no quality of life for either of them. Wolves needed to be able to run free. If his wolf couldn’t move on his own accord, I’m not sure how long his mental capacity would stay intact. Tears trailed down my face at the pain I knew he’d feel once he woke up and learned the information. A shifter’s worst fear.
Augie stepped forward. “Can my sister have some time to process this?”
“Very well, but I don’t advise taking too much time. You’re welcome to see him while you think about it, but we have him under a heavy sedative, so he won’t wake.”
Liam guided me back to the chair. “Do you want to go see him? Maybe his wolf healing will heal the nerves and he’ll still be okay.”
Liam could be right, which brightened my spirits a little. Davis wasn’t human. Things that weren’t possible for them were feasible for us. “Let’s go get him. We need to get morphine and antibiotics, then get out of here,” I said. “Davis would never forgive us if we let them cut his legs off.”
Aiden placed his hand on my knee. “Don’t worry. Go with Liam and bring the truck back to the emergency entrance. We’ll meet you out there within ten minutes.” He grinned and added. “I’d also recommend leaving the truck running with the back doors open. Just in case we’re in a hurry.”
A small smile appeared on my face. I was thankful for his attempt at cheering me up which was a side of him I had never seen before.
Liam and I stood back up to do as requested as Augie and Aiden disappeared down the hall. Liam kept my hand tight in his grasp. He hadn’t moved more than two feet from my side since we left the mountain.
We went out into the parking lot and found the truck. I let him drive and pull around. There were other vehicles coming and going so often that nobody really paid attention when we parked just far enough out of the way.
“How are you doing?” Liam asked as he faced me.
“I’m fine. The burns don’t hurt. What about your back?”
He shook his head. “I know you’re physically fine. I meant on the inside. How are you holding up?”
“I’m a mess, but Davis is still alive and that’s something. We’ll deal with the rest later. What about you?”
“About the same.” He laughed. “My wolf went a little crazy when Declan had you in his grasp, but I couldn’t turn my back on the ones we were fighting. It killed me not to be there for you. I don’t ever want to feel that way again.”
“I understand the feeling.” I didn’t like not knowing what was happening behind me earlier, not one bit.
“Taya, I’m–”
His response was cut off by the appearance of Aiden and Augie wearing medical scrubs, rolling who I assumed to be Davis on a hospital bed toward the exit.
Augie had a grin on his face as if he was having the time of his life. Aiden was mumbling something under his breath but didn’t look happy, as was usual.
A nurse was running behind them. She stopped at the doors, bent over at the waist and yelled for them to stop, but no way was that happening. There were a couple of paramedics coming in, but they had a patient and couldn’t help her. Hopefully, it meant we were getting out of here without much fanfare.
“There’s more coming behind her. Open those doors!” Aiden yelled.
Liam and I scrambled toward the rear doors since we had forgotten the earlier request from Aiden to open them. I opened one and slid in, ready to help pull Davis up from the inside. Liam jumped back in the driver’s seat, ready to go as soon as Davis was settled.
The hospital bed slammed into the side of the truck, and I heard a few choice curse words fly out of Augie’s mouth. Thankfully, it appeared as though Davis was still unconscious from the sedatives. Aiden and Augie lifted him off the bed and slid him toward me. I put my arms under his shoulders and pulled. Augie squeezed in with Davis’s legs on top of him, while Aiden ran around the truck to get in the front.
As soon as most of Aiden’s body was in the vehicle, Liam hit the gas. I turned to glance out the back window and six more staff members were chasing after the truck. Oops. We’d have to send them a fruit basket later for their troubles.
Once we were in the clear, I turned my full attention to Davis. They’d cleaned him up really well in the hospital, washed the blood and dirt from his body and face. I ran my hands through his hair and placed my hand on his cheek.
I’m so sorry, Davis, I thought.
He was wearing one of those god-awful thin hospital gowns, so I shrugged out of my jacket and laid it over him.
“How are his legs?” I asked Augie.
He lifted up the gown, so I could see, but there wasn’t much to view. Every inch of his legs was wrapped in gauze. Blood seeped through in some areas. Hopefully, Doctor Alex back home was equipped to handle the types of injuries Davis had. If not, he’d better learn fast. I wasn’t going to worry about anything else until Davis awoke safe and sound at home.
“We gave him an injection of morphine before we grabbed him, but he’ll burn it off fast,” Aiden said. “If you hear him groan or make any noises, we need to give him another one. We can wean him off when we get home, but I questioned the nurse before we took him. He’ll be in massive pain if he wakes now.”
I nodded and went back to watching Davis. His skin was pasty instead of the golden hue I was used to. His eyes were closed, and his face was relaxed, so I tried not to worry too much.
Augie and I agreed to take shifts looking after Davis, so we could sleep. It was sometime in the middle of the night, and I was beyond exhausted. Liam and Aiden had agreed to take turns driving, as well.
We were all a mess, but we were alive, and for now, that would have to be good enough.