Healing Her Wolf: Paranormal Werewolf Romance Read online

  Healing Her Wolf

  By Zoe Chant

  Copyright Zoe Chant 2015

  All rights reserved

  His mate was nearby; he could sense it with every fiber of his being. Konrad had been searching for weeks now, and he was so relieved to have finally caught her tempting scent that his guard had been lowered. He hadn’t smelled the other wolf shifter coming before he had slammed into Konrad’s right flank hard, growling and snarling. Konrad had snarled right back.

  There had been no time for niceties, no time to explain the only reason he was in the other wolf’s territory had been to find a mate, and that he hadn’t been there to take over the area. The other wolf had snapped at him, sharp fangs bared, and Konrad had had to defend himself.

  The fight had ended in a tie of sorts. Konrad hadn’t been familiar enough with the terrain, and had been distracted by the scent of his mate, but put up a good fight. He had bitten the other wolf in the shoulder and one of his hind legs, and the other wolf had growled at him before backing away and wandering off. Konrad wanted to follow and make the other wolf submit, but the scent of his mate was still in the air, tempting him. He knew where he had to go.

  The other wolf had bitten him in his right hind leg, his left front leg, and scratched across his snout, and Konrad limped his way through the undergrowth. This was not how he wanted to face his mate. He wasn’t used to such a serious fight between wolf shifters.

  He had been born and raised in Woodland Creek was a small shifter-town, with families of fox shifters, coyote shifters and bear shifters living harmoniously together for the most part. The only humans who lived there were married to shifters. Each type of shifter had an Alpha to represent them in the town’s council, and Konrad’s uncle Stephen had been the wolf shifter Alpha for the last eight years.

  Uncle Stephen, unfortunately, had been a terrible Alpha, who preferred to ignore meetings in favor of running wild as a wolf, or going out drinking. Stephen had only become Alpha due to a lack of other wolf shifters who were of age, and the consequences had been dire. The wolf shifters had been ignored when it came to important decisions, and Konrad could feel the disdain from the other inhabitants.

  Konrad wanted nothing more than to restore pride to the wolf shifter community of Woodland Creek, and when it had been only four more months until Uncle Stephen’s second and final term on the council was up, he had grabbed his chance. He had stood as an Alpha candidate, and together with his cousins Michael and Christopher were sent out to find their mates.

  It was a rule in Woodland Creek that only mated shifters could be Alphas, since unmated shifters were deemed too flighty and immature. After all, an unmated Alpha might find their mate on the other side of the country and decide to move, abandoning the community.

  The other reason a would-be Alpha had to find a mate was to prove that they were serious about wanting to be a member of the council. Konrad was only twenty nine, on the young side to be an Alpha, but he was very serious in wanting to settle down. More serious than Michael and Christopher, at any rate, who took far too much after their lazy father.

  Konrad couldn’t let them get back to Woodland Creek with a suitable mate before he did. While it wasn’t a race per se, being with his mate in Woodland Creek before Michael and Christopher would give the rest of the town a chance to get to know her. And it would give her a chance to get to know everyone else. That would make campaigning to be Alpha a lot easier.

  And finally, it seemed that in Crystal Springs, he had found her. His legs were hurting, though, and he needed somewhere to rest. He could continue his search in the morning, when the worst of his wounds had healed. He felt relief wash through him when he ducked through some bushes to find a backyard with a shed where the door was still open. Finally, a sheltered place to rest and sleep in, and tomorrow he would be refreshed and ready to explain things to his mate.

  Humans didn’t know about shifters, which would complicate things. And he would also have to find the other wolf shifter and explain things to him. Konrad was not looking forward to that, since some shifters could be very unreasonable about trespassing on their territory, but Konrad would cross that bridge when he got there.

  For now, he curled up in a corner of the shed, resting his weary paws and closing his eyes. A short rest, and then he would be back out. Any other night he would’ve headed back to where he had stashed his clothes to shift back and assess his wounds, but since it was a full moon, he would be stuck as a wolf until morning.

  *

  “There’s a giant dog hiding in our shed!”

  “Okay, Mrs. Williams, I’m on my way,” Maddy said, already grabbing the keys to her dad’s old Chevy pickup truck. “Can you start from the beginning?” From the moment she had picked up her dad’s office phone, Mrs. Williams had been talking a mile a minute and Maddy needed her to calm down. “Your husband went to the shed to get some bread from your freezer, and found a dog hiding out in it, right?”

  “A giant dog!”

  “A giant dog,” she agreed. “And wounded, your husband said?”

  She had only recently graduated as a vet, and was looking for a job. Her mother had suggested Maddy get some experience working in her father’s practice during the summer months, something that conveniently allowed her parents to take a long overdue holiday since Maddy would be able to house-sit for them as well. Her father had grumbled, too much of a workaholic to agree immediately, but currently he and her mother were on a weeklong holiday down in Florida, and when he had called her two hours ago to check in, he definitely sounded like he was enjoying himself.

  Maddy figured that a small town like Crystal Springs shouldn’t pose too much of a problem. A couple of pets who needed their vaccinations, or maybe had to be neutered, possibly some farm animals who needed help, but nothing she wouldn’t be able to handle. And now it was her third night on her own, and there was an escaped and possibly feral dog in town. Great.

  “Yes, there was blood in its fur. It’s growling like mad. Please, Maddy, you have to get it out of there before it knocks the door down!” Mrs. Williams told her.

  Maddy didn’t blame the dog for panicking in a dark, enclosed space.

  “I’m sure it won’t come to that, Mrs. Williams. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

  “Okay, but are you sure you shouldn’t call your father first?”

  Maddy took a deep breath, and counted to ten. “I can handle a grumpy dog, Mrs. Williams.” She knew that most inhabitants of Crystal Springs still saw her as the little Petersen girl, the adorable daughter of the local vet, but she was twenty seven years old, dammit, and she had trained for this. It would just take some time before other people realized it as well. “It’ll be fine, I promise. You’ll have your shed back soon enough.”

  She hung up before Mrs. Williams could make any more helpful suggestions, and then checked to see if she had everything. Going out and dealing with a possibly feral dog wasn’t how she had planned on spending her Friday evening, but then her actual plans had just involved catching up on some old TV shows on Netflix.

  She was wearing her usual comfy, baggy jeans and a faded college hoodie, and put her blonde hair in a ponytail. Her dad had some catch poles, and she grabbed one of the newer models she was comfortable using. She knew Dad would have some thick gloves in the back of the truck, the sort with padding up to the elbow, meant to protect her from scratch-happy cats and aggressive dogs, and that he would also have an emergency first-aid kit for animals in there.

  It would be enough to determine if the dog needed further treatment. Either way, the animal would be coming back home with her in an animal crate in the bed of her dad’
s pickup. He needed one often enough that the big crate had become a permanent fixture, secured and ready for use.

  With the full moon bright in the sky, Maddy made her way to Mrs. Williams’ house on the edge of town, slamming the door shut. There was no way anyone would steal her dad’s pickup, not when everyone knew who it belonged to. She made her way to the front door.

  Mrs. Williams, a friendly lady in her fifties, opened the door and eyed the catch pole in Maddy’s hands, and the thick gloves she was wearing. “Are you sure that’ll be enough?” she asked.

  “Yes, it’ll be fine,” she replied. The catch pole could look a little flimsy, but it was stronger than it looked. “So, where’s the dog?”

  Mrs. Williams told her to walk around the house to the backyard, where Mr. Williams was already waiting. The older man was standing next to his shed, which was about ten feet by five, and about seven feet high. A nice, secluded place for a wounded animal to take shelter in, if the owners were careless enough to leave the door open.

  Mr. Williams must have realized his own responsibility in the matter as well, since he looked sheepish when Maddy came walking up. “Sorry to call you out there so late,” he said, as they shook hands.

  “It’s fine, you were right to call. It definitely sounded like an emergency.” She eyed the shed, and could hear some faint whines. “That’s our patient?”

  Mr. Williams nodded. “He’s gotten quieter, though, over the past couple of minutes. What’re you gonna do?”

  “Well, we’re gonna have to open the door first,” Maddy said. She could feel a bundle of nerves in her stomach, which was entirely normal and to be expected. She started at the sound of claws scrabbling against the wall, followed by another whine. Clearly the dog had realized there was no way it could escape by itself. “Only a fraction, so we can see what state it’s in.” She needed to know how aggressive and scared the dog was, and adjust her approach accordingly.

  Mr. Williams handed her the keys, and stood back. “If I need to do anything…” he muttered, but looked like he would rather be inside the house.

  “What kind of dog did it look like?” Maddy asked, turning the key with some difficulty because of the gloves.

  “Pretty big one. Didn’t get a good look at it, though, but it was light gray, almost bordering on white. Maybe some sort of Husky mix?” he ventured.

  She opened the door a fraction of an inch, keeping her body pressed against the door in case the dog tried to slam itself against it. No response. “All right, good doggy,” she said, opening the door a little further. Still nothing. She could see a dark shape in the far corner, though, next to the big freezer that filled most of the shed. “Who’s a good doggy?” She kept her voice soft and unthreatening.

  The dog tilted its head, and then stood up on all fours. It really was a big one. The full moon only showed her so much, but she could see that its fur was indeed light gray with a few dark patches, but she couldn’t see enough to tell if Mr. Williams had been right in guessing it was a Husky of some sorts.

  “You’re a good boy,” she continued, opening the door even further. The dog still didn’t react, and as her eyes got used to the light of the moon, she could tell that some of the dark patches were actually dried-up blood. “Or girl. Have you got into a fight? Is that why you’re hiding out here?” Or maybe a car ran into it and the dog got lucky. “Come on, I’m here to help.”

  The door was open by six inches now, and the dog just stood there, perfectly still. She had never come across a dog — outside of well-trained pets — so calm when faced with a stranger, especially since it was wounded. “You’re very well-behaved, aren’t you?” She decided to take the risk, and opened the door entirely. While the dog did take two steps forward, it didn’t try to escape, instead preferring to stare up at her, its tongue lolling as it watched her. “Who do you belong to?”

  The dog stepped forward again, letting out a brief whine, and Maddy found herself kneeling down in the doorway of the shed. Since the dog wasn’t showing any signs of aggression, she took the thick gloves off.

  “What’s it doing?” Mr. Williams asked, several feet behind her.

  Not at all acting the way a wounded dog should be, Maddy thought to herself, the catch pole still in one hand. And as the animal stepped out of its shadowy corner, she wasn’t too sure about it being a dog either.

  She knew there was a wolf pack that lived in the nearby woods, but they never came near the town. And a wounded wolf especially would avoid humans like the plague. “What the hell are you doing here?” she muttered, staring as the beast stepped even closer, and wagged its tail once.

  *

  Konrad stared at her, wondering exactly the same thing. What the hell was his mate doing here? He wanted to howl with happiness, and wag his tail until it fell off, but at the same time he was mortified that this was how she first met him: a wounded wolf, hiding out in some poor couple’s shed. Damn, this was not how he had imagined things.

  In his head, his first meeting with his mate involved him rescuing her from someone like a robber, and then offering to walk her home. Or, if he fantasized about meeting his mate while shifted into his wolf, he would come across her while she was hiking in the mountains, having gotten lost or twisted her ankle. Then he would reassure her somehow even as a wolf, keep her warm during the night, and get her a rescue team in the morning.

  This gorgeous woman looked more like she would be part of a rescue team, all tall and confident, dressed practically, and didn’t even smell scared or nervous. Judging by her frown, though, she was confused. Konrad didn’t blame her, he knew that he wasn’t acting as scared like a real wolf would, but who could blame him when he had just met his mate? She was beautiful, and he couldn’t wait to get his hands on the body hiding underneath those baggy clothes, couldn’t wait to run his hands through her blonde hair and kiss her breathless.

  She smelled like other animals, and also the unwelcome sharpness of strong cleaning products, but underneath that her own natural scent was undeniable, and it made his mouth water. He didn’t just want to get his hands on her; he wanted to get his tongue on her.

  “Okay, you’re coming with me,” she said, and Konrad moved a few more steps forward, then realized he had just obeyed her command like he was her pet dog. Definitely embarrassing. At least he had his tail under control; it was hanging down and had stopped wagging. Was she with the local pound? Some sort of animal rescue society?

  She looked at the catch pole in her hand, then at him again, and Konrad stood frozen as she looped it around his neck. He let out a pitiful whine, following her after she gave a gentle tug, but hated the feeling of being restrained like this, even if it was by his mate. Perhaps he could return the favor later, with some handcuffs or scarves…

  His mate — and he really had to find out her name soon — led him to an old pickup truck. He had some trouble jumping into the back, and his humiliation was complete when she led him into the dog crate. He lay there as she unhooked the catch pole, thinking to himself that he would never ever share this part with his friends and family back home. Being wounded was bad enough, but locked up in a dog crate? Nope, that would stay between him and his mate, thankyouverymuch.

  There was nothing for now that Konrad could do. It was a full moon, and all shifters were stuck in their animal form if they had chosen to shift that night. That had been one of the sources of werewolf legends, but fortunately Konrad and his fellow shifters weren’t compelled to change into an animal under the full moon.

  The only reason he had shifted was because he knew his mate was nearby, and as a wolf his nose was much more sensitive than as a human. His plan had been to scout the area, find out where she lived, then return as a human. That other damn wolf shifter had messed up his plans.

  They finally stopped, and Konrad allowed her to lead him out, once again on the catch pole. While his wounds were a little better after resting, he was still limping after her. Intellectually he understood why his mate felt the
need to take precautions, but as a wolf he felt insulted and wanted to snarl at her for treating her mate this way. She doesn’t know, he told himself. Just wait and be patient.

  He was led into an animal clinic, and the scent of blood, cleaning alcohol, medication and yes, also death, hit him hard. He whined, tried to pull back and away from this horrifying place, but his mate kept dragging him further and further inside, his claws useless on the linoleum floor. Oh no, was his mate a vet? Not that he had anything against vets, they did great work, but he also didn’t want to be left alone with one while he was a wolf. He didn’t need any shots, and he hoped she would do nothing more than simply inspect and clean his wounds.

  “Hey, hey, behave, it’s for your own good,” she told him, eyeing him as he whimpered again. “I need to check you out, okay? Get you nice and cleaned up, see if you’ve got a chip anywhere on you.”

  He had to fight hard to conquer his wolf’s anxiety and actually listen to her. She’s our mate, we can trust her. The wolf wasn’t so sure. The wolf was tired, hurt, and just wanted to curl up, preferably at her feet while she ran her hands through his fur.

  And while his mate did do the latter, she was wearing latex gloves and using some terrible-smelling fluid on him to clean up the blood left from his fight. It stung, and he whimpered and winced as she spread it across the wounds. While he healed faster than other humans, bite wounds from other shifters healed more slowly. If it had been a regular wolf, the wound would’ve been healed by now. Fortunately, his mate deemed the wound small enough not to need stitches, which was at least something.

  There was just one thought that consoled him, and that was that since tonight had gone terribly, tomorrow could only go better for the two of them. Who knew, maybe in ten years or so they would laugh about it.

  *

  It took a while to get the animal cleaned up. Under the harsh, bright lights it was obvious that it was indeed a wolf, and Maddy still couldn’t understand how he ended up in the shed. “If only you could talk,” she muttered, wiping off some more blood.