Chapter 19 A Mates Calm
1882 Words
Chapter 19
A Mates Calm
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Joseph
The walk to the hospital took thirty minutes at most. Dynamite’s foot was completely healed when we reached the outskirts of the hospital grounds and transformed into our human forms.
I could hear Zodiac in my mind. He was calmer than he had ever been. Thanks to Kingston and Dynamite pushing us, an understanding of some sort passed between us – a connection that had been weak at best from the start. We were both stubborn and knew our connection wouldn’t be easy, but we were determined to work through it.
“We need some clothes,” Kingston laughed as we stood in the shadows of the hospital’s emergency entrance, our stark-naked bodies pressed back against the grey wall.
Thankfully, no werewolf was self-conscious about their bodies enough to care, but seeing a naked, unmated Alpha and Beta was like throwing up a neon welcome sign for unmated females.
I sniffed the air and caught a hint of Gamma Archie’s wild berry scent. “Archie’s here. I’ll mind-link him and see if he can bring us some clothes.”
“What about mind linking Tyrone?” Kingston suggested. “He’s the one who brought Louise in. He’s still here. I can smell him.”
“What!” I roared, my voice rattling the sliding doors against their rails. With my heart pumping in my ears, I stormed up to the emergency entrance just as Gamma Archie stepped outside.
I could hear Kingston chuckling behind me. “And you said Louise wasn’t your mate…”
“Joseph!” Archie greeted, handing us clothes. “You shouldn’t be here!”
“Why not!” I snarled as I slid on a pair of blue scrub pants. I glared at him. “What have you been told?”
“Levine told me to keep you away until Louise came out of surgery.”
“Is that so?” I glowered at him. “I’ll deal with my uncle.” I pushed past him and stormed into the hospital, following Louise’s scent.
In a swift move, Gamma Archie hurried to cut me off. I could see his wolf Thornton in his eyes. He was still above me in status while my dad was Alpha, but I was the Alpha’s son.
“Move Gamma Archie…” I demanded with a low snarl that was half me and half Zodiac.
“Why are you so interested in Louise?” He asked, crossing his arms, my threat ignored. “She’s like family to me, so you better have a good excuse.”
Kingston laughed again. “Oh boy, does he ever…”
Gamma Archie glanced between us, reading our expressions. His eyes flickered in understanding. “Well, that explains a lot.” He uncrossed his arms and rubbed at his face, attempting to wipe away the stress. “Do your parents know?”
“No!” I defended bluntly, “And I want to keep it that way!”
His eyebrows pinched together in surprise. “Why? Louise is a lovely girl. She has been given the rough end of the stick, but she’s surprisingly strong.”
“And she is an Omega!” I replied quietly. “She’s my Omega mate!” When the word mate rolled off my tongue, a sense of recognition flowed between Zodiac and me. “Louise is our mate…”
“Well,” shaking his head, still clouded in disbelief, Gamma Archie stood aside. “It’s not for me to stand in the way of fate... But when you see your uncle, tell him you overpowered me.” He visually shivered. “His wolf Jasper intimidates me.”
“He intimidates us all…” Kingston agreed with a chortle.
“Fine, whatever you want!” I sniffed the air and found the scent led to the floor above us. I glanced at Gamma Archie questioningly, and he nodded a yes.
As I started to walk forward, he began to speak. “I still can’t believe you found your mate, and her wolf hasn’t come of age yet,” he said, rubbing his smooth chin. “I’ve never heard of it happening before. Are you sure she is?”
I paused and sneered back at him. “I know she is!”
He scrunched up his mouth, nodding. “I wonder if the Moon Goddess has something to do with this.”
“Most definitely,” Kingston laughed whole-heartedly. “I think she’s having good fun with this one.”
“This is not the time!” I snapped at them. “I need to get to Louise!”
“I understand that.” Gamma Archie said, then paused. His breathing fastened as his eyes went blank. A second later, they returned to normal. His face had lost colour – if possible for him. He locked his eyes with mine. “Louise is out of surgery. She’s weak but stable…”
“I need to get to her!” I repeated, this time with more force.
“I know, but…” he tapped the tips of his finger against his arm. “You really should talk to your father. I’m sure he’ll welcome your mate with open arms, even an Omega mate.” He waved a hand. “It’s a link for life… And he understands that…”
“What does that…?” I sneered. He smirked back at me. A realisation dawned upon me. He’s doing this on purpose! “Are you trying to distract me?”
“I’m a Gamma, I’m good at what I do…” He gestured his head to the elevator. “It’s safe to go through now.”
“About time!” Huffing under my breath, I headed down the corridor. I paused halfway up and stared at Dad’s Gamma. “Dad does not need to know…”
“Hey,” he shrugged. “it’s not my place to say.”
On the second floor, the elevator opened to a dim corridor. Halfway down, Tyrone slumped back in a chair, his head propped against his hand, asleep. His hair was messy, as were the scrubs he was wearing.
The second Kingston and I drew near, and his eyes flew open. “Alpha Joseph… Kingston…” He stood and faced us, wiping sleep from his eyes. “What are you doing here? Dad was supposed to keep you away.”
“Yeah,” Kingston grinned coyly. “We overpowered him at the entrance…”
“I highly doubt it.” Tyrone snorted a laugh. “Dad gave into a sob story, didn’t he?”
“Maybe,” Kingston chuckled.
Tyrone rolled his eyes. “I knew as much…”
“Where’s Levine?” I snarled, making Tyrone straighten.
“Arh-umm…” he hesitated for a moment. “He just came out of surgery.”
“Louise’s surgery?”
“Yeah,” he nodded. His eyes flickered to the door behind him. “She pulled through if you wanted to know. Now she’s sleeping.”
“Good!” I hissed, flashing a sneer at him. “I’m going to see her.” I pushed past him and grabbed the handle to the room.
“Wait,” he stepped between me and the door. “Why do you want to see Louise? She means nothing to you.”
“Oh, you are mistaken there,” Kingston chuckled. He was having a grand old time. “Very mistaken…”
Tyrone tensed his shoulder, filling out his figure so it blocked the door. He was unexpectedly bulky and would have made for a great Gamma like his dad… if he didn’t stand in my way!
“Why?” He asked again. “I have no reason to let you in unless you tell me.”
I stared him down, using my Alpha aura to make him move. He shifted from one foot to the other but didn’t move. Great, I’m losing my Alpha touch!
“I’m sorry, Alpha Joseph,” Tyrone replied, his voice rough. “I’ll protect Louise if you mean her any harm. But give me a reason, and I might let you in.”
Who does this guy think he is? “Why are you so protective of her?”
He opened his mouth to reply, and then he closed it. He thought for a moment. “She’s a friend…”
“Do you have a crush on her?” Kingston teased from behind me.
He shrugged a shoulder the same carefree way his dad had. “I’ve always liked her when we were kids, but–”
“No!” I cut him off, pinning him back against the door. I pressed my face closer to his and brandished Zodiac’s teeth. “She has a mate!”
“As if!” He snickered, unfazed by my attack. “She’s only sixteen. No one gets a mate until they’re eighteen!”
I pushed him harder. But his calm deminer didn’t change. “Her mate is me!”
Something sullen changed in his demeanour. His eyes suddenly became crestfallen. He nodded in understanding.
I released him.
“I always believed she was too strong and determined to be a normal Omega.” He slowly opened the door and ushered me through. “That was something that attracted me to her.”
I glared at him over my shoulder.
He waved off the conversation. “I’m being honest. I won’t step in the middle … I’m not stupid enough to challenge the future Alpha.”
Kingston nodded at him, then closed the door between us and Tyrone. The kid is tough.
“Taking him on as a Gamma would be worthwhile,” Zodiac added.
“I’ll wait at the door,” Kingston whispered in my mind. “If you need help or Zodiac has a spaz-out moment, I’ll step in.”
“Thanks,”
Zodiac snarled a response, making Kingston roll his eyes. “I meant what I said!”
I stepped further into the dimly lit room, waiting for my wolf eyes to adjust. I could see the outline of a tiny figure in the hospital bed and knew it was her. There were two chairs beside the bed. Someone had been waiting with her and left their bag on one of the seats. Monitors were hooked up to her, with wires running down her hospital gown. My heart trembled. She was asleep, recovering from the anaesthesia. Her eyes twitched with dreams.
I sensed that pull towards her again, as strong as the first moment I saw her. I can do this.
“We can do this…” Zodiac’s calm, soft voice took me by surprise. I sniffed the air. That scent of sour caramel and vinegar was slowly dissipating. I peered over my shoulder at Kingston. “The cancer… it’s gone!”
Smiling warmly, Kingston nodded.
Settling my thudding chest, I stepped carefully over to Louise. The clamminess of her skin chilled me as I brushed the hair from her eyes. No thanks to me, Louise went through hell. I pulled the empty chair closer and fell into it. I laid my head against her bed, watching her fingers twitch. The sound of her rhythmic breathing lulled me to sleep.
- Writer
