Twenty-Five
The hospital was small but efficient. It was the nearest werewolf friendly establishment that Mallory knew of and it had a good reputation, but even with Boris’s help it hadn’t been easy to get Alexander there. They’d done it, though. What happened next was out of their control.
She was sitting with Boris at one side of the waiting room with Samantha, Nick, Hannah and various MacTire werewolves opposite. There had been no news from the surgeon since Alexander had been wheeled into the operating theatre.
Nick couldn’t sit still. He stood up, then he sat down, then he stood up again and paced, circling the room like a caged tiger. When he sat down again, he leaned back as if to settle but started jiggling his legs. ‘He’s always telling me to think before I act,’ he said finally. ‘To consider the consequences.’
Nobody said anything.
Nick continued, although Mallory wasn’t sure if he was speaking to the room or to himself. ‘So why the fuck would he force his way into a vampire’s house? A vampire! I don’t get it.’
Samantha’s eyes flicked towards Mallory then slid away again. ‘He had his reasons,’ she said.
‘What reason could there possibly be?’ Nick’s voice grew louder with every word. ‘If he dies, Sam, if he leaves me alone after what happened to Mum and Dad and…’
‘He won’t die.’
‘You don’t know that!’
She lifted her chin. ‘I do. He’s too stubborn to die. He’s too strong.’
‘Nobody is too strong for death. My dad was strong and so was my mum, and they were both killed in a freak accident.’
‘This is different. He’ll recover.’
‘You don’t know that, Sam,’ Nick repeated. She sighed but didn’t argue. Nick raised his head, his expression ravaged. ‘Mallory, why did he go there?’
She had no idea what to say. ‘I … he … uh…’
‘Tell me!’ he demanded as anxiety got the better of him
Samantha put her hand on his arm. ‘Nicholas,’ she said sharply. ‘That’s enough.’
Mallory was already shaking her head. ‘No, it’s alright. I understand how he feels.’ She passed a hand across her face. ‘Alexander was in my flat waiting for me. He found a note from the vampire that was – threatening.’
‘Threatening?’ Nick looked confused. ‘Towards you?’
‘Yeah, but it was just bluster. The vampire was a client who was frustrated at my lack of progress. It was an old note and I’d already dealt with it, but Alexander read it and must have thought I was in danger. He went to the vampire’s house and…’ She sighed. ‘You know the rest.’
Nick stared at her. ‘No,’ he said after several long moments. ‘That doesn’t make sense. I understand that he’d want to help you if you were being threatened or hurt, but he still wouldn’t be so reckless as to burst into a vampire’s lair.’
Samantha’s expression darkened. ‘It doesn’t matter why he did it. It won’t change anything.’
Nick barely heard her. ‘Wait,’ he said suddenly. His eyes widened. ‘He was in wolf form.’
‘Yeah.’ Mallory nodded.
‘And he thoughtyouwere in danger.’
Samantha stiffened. ‘Nicholas.’ Her voice was filled with warning.
He ignored her. ‘He went to saveyou. His wolf had taken over and he went to saveyou. That means…’
‘Enough, Nick!’ Samantha snapped.
‘What?’ Mallory asked. ‘What does it mean?’
‘He thinks you’re going to be his mate.’
