The trees, benches, and lights blurred as my wolf’s paws pounded over the ground. But instead of releasing stress, he was getting more worked up and demanding we find what he was looking for.
What are you doing?
I don’t know.But he kept running.
After twenty minutes of circling the park, he hadn’t found whatever it was. A rabbit, perhaps? But he’d never been so passionate about eating a bunny in the past. I should have joined the team at the bar and had those beers instead of running around in circles.
After getting dressed, I left the park and strolled onto a side street. My mind was on my beast’s distress and the need for a beer, and I wasn’t paying attention to what was going on around me.
So many things happened at once. There was a screech of tires and a horn blared. My shifter reflexes should have had me leaping out of the way of the vehicle bearing down on me. But I was exhausted, and my wolf had retreated inside me.
The impact had pain exploding in my shoulder, ribs, and wrist, and I slammed onto the road. Someone was screaming, and it might have been me. My wolf, who should have been alert and telling me to get up, was silent. My legs wouldn’t cooperate, and I lay on the road waiting to be crushed by vehicles whizzing past.
A panicked voice in my ear said I’d just walked in front of their car and they didn’t have time to stop. A crowd gathered around, and I drifted in and out of consciousness. I remembered a siren and being hoisted up. There were bright lights, voices asking me questions, and hands touching me.
It was easier to close my eyes and sleep.
“Axel, can you hear me?”
I was dreaming that Stan and I were back in our dorm room. Maybe he had coffee for me and a sandwich.
“Mmmm.”
“Axel?”
His voice was insistent, with a hint of authority, but I didn’t recall him being like that in college. I wanted to go back to sleep, and maybe if I did what he wanted, I could.
“Stan.” But this wasn’t Stan, my dorm mate. He was older, and he was wearing scrubs and holding a tablet. There was a badge attached to his pocket. Where was his backpack? I was disappointed there was no coffee.
But his eyes were the same and so was his intoxicating scent, despite the disinfectant smell that washed over me.
“Welcome to Brookline Hospital. You picked a heck of a way to get in touch.”
Huh? I closed one eye, trying to recall what happened and why Stan was dressed as a nurse. He said hospital. That was where I was?
A car hit us. My wolf jogged my memory, or was that me reminding him? I couldn’t tell.
“How did you get here?”
“I work here as an ER nurse, and you’re my patient.”
I grinned. Stan was a nurse. That was nice. But I needed to snap out of my drug-induced haze and tell him something. I needed my wolf’s help, but he wasn’t saying much, just groaning.
“Your shoulder’s dislocated, you’ve got three broken ribs, a concussion, nasty road rash, and a broken wrist.” His detached voice reminded me of the staff in TV medical dramas when they were dealing with difficult patients. “You’re going to be admitted.”
“Okay.” My brain couldn’t fathom what happened when you were admitted, but I trusted Stan wouldn’t allow me to be hurt, or hurt more than I was.
“You were lucky you weren’t killed.”
Lucky? Meeting Stan again was sheer luck.
He told me that Coach was on his way. Great. He’d probably chew my ass for being a fool.
“Is there anyone else we can call?” His voice wavered before he cleared his throat.
Was there? Like a partner or a mate? “No. There’s no one else.”
Stan glanced away. He spoke to someone else and moved from the bed. My wolf was burbling about Stan, our roommate, and going to class, but that didn’t sound right. I needed Stan close by, but I wasn’t able to leap off the bed and restrain him.
