Page 58 of Rescued

“Not so far,” she said. “Mikey called in surgeons from somewhere. And someone who has magical healing powers?”

“Yeah, the dragons. And maybe medics from her home pack. The dragons can bring them through magical gateways or some shit.”

The dragon thing still seemed surreal. Breanna said, “Cisco’s leg is pretty bad. I hope they can help.”

“Yeah, me too. Even if he is a dick.”

She asked him, “What do you need? Is there anything I can do?”

He went very still, and then said, “Nothing. There’s nothing you can do for me.”

And still without looking at her, he pulled away and walked off across the compound into the woods, leaving her behind.

Switch didn’t come back all afternoon. Breanna ate sandwiches that someone brought, and helped clean up after the surgeries, and just rested on the porch outside the infirmary with the others. All the men that wouldn’t fit inside stayed outside, some in human form, some as wolves.

Like they couldn’t leave until everyone was okay.

Boomer had found a chair for her somewhere, and a thermos of vodka tonics. But he’d disappeared as evening approached, merging into the crowd.

And Switch still didn’t come back.

Breanna wanted to go back to the cabin, but she didn’t want to at the same time. She didn’t want to be alone, and she knew Switch wasn’t there—she hadn’t seen him come back. And anyway, she could just feel it.

He was still upset, and still somewhere in the woods.

So she sat in her chair and listened to the murmuring voices of the wolves, watching the day end and the stars come out overhead.

After a long time she saw Boomer’s brother, away by himself in the shadow of the command center. He was smoking a cigarette, the glowing orange end of it making arcs in the growing darkness.

On impulse, she got up and walked over. “Hey,” she said. “You know smoking is bad for you, right?”

That got a little huff of amusement. “You gave up your chair to tell me that? You know you’re not getting it back.”

She glanced over and saw Dealer sitting in her chair, drinking out of her vodka tonic thermos.

“I can handle Dealer.”

He shook his head. “You think you can. You think you can handle all of us.”

“But you think I can’t.”

He shrugged.

“I did okay today.”

“Not saying you didn’t. But humans aren’t meant for this kind of life. They’re soft.”

Breanna had never thought she belonged here, but that still stung. “Mikey told me about the alpha’s mate in her pack. She’s human, and she sounds pretty badass.”

“Maybe,” Boomer’s brother said. “But most humans are soft. That’s not a bad thing. It just is. It’s why we protect them.”

“So, what? You think I should just leave?”

He gave her an odd look. “Were you thinking about staying?”

“No, of course not. Only…” She broke off, not really knowing what she was trying to say.

Boomer’s brother didn’t finish her sentence like most people would have, or ask her to elaborate. He just waited, trickling smoke out of his mouth and watching it drift into the night sky.