The Last Shewolf Ch. 63-69

The woman covered her face and started to cry as she saw Adam and the blood on the sheets. "Oh god, Adam, are you all right?"

"I'll be fine, Alice," he said as he looked back towards her. "A couple days in bed and I'll be good as new."

"I'll prepare your room," she said before she rushed off.

"She gets a little upset when we get hurt because we can't go to the hospital," her husband said. "I'm Alan, Alan Johnson, I'm this guy's big brother. I keep telling him he's not as fast as he thinks he is."

"It was four on one," Adam complained. "I got away from the first two."

"Come on, let's get him inside," Meghan said as she grabbed some extra sheets and put them on his back. We lifted the stretcher, then Alan and I carried him up the stairs and into the house. It was beautiful, with an open floor plan and loft ceilings. Alice met us in the hall, leading us to his room where she had already taken off the blankets on his bed. She and Meghan laid some of the extra hospital sheets down, Meghan having told her he might still bleed until his healing kicked in. We got him in place, and he was asleep before the covers were put over him.

The four of us walked out and to the kitchen, where Alice started to make coffee for us. "Thank you for taking care of him and bringing him back to us," Alan said. "What Pack are you in?"

"We're humans," Meghan said.

"Our motorcycle club in St. Paul has known about werewolves for decades," I said. "Meghan is the only doctor left in the country who works on them. She started working with Doctor Vivian when she was thirteen."

"Doctor Vivian? Vivian DelMara?" Alan's face was shocked as I nodded. "Oh Luna, she survived."

"For a while," I said. "She was my wife. She died almost eighteen years ago in a fight with a pack in Wyoming."

He pulled his wife tight to his side. "Doc Vivian was the Pack Doctor when I was a pup here. When she was forced to run away after the Alpha threatened her, that was the beginning of the end for our Pack." As we sipped the coffee, he told Alice about the way the curse hit his Pack, but he only knew from his end. "Eventually our Alpha got greedy, went after another Pack and that is when ours was attacked and wiped out," he said as he wiped a tear away. "Adam and I were lucky, we were at our family cabin and escaped."

I then filled him in on what had happened on our side; Vivian's escape, her hiding with our Club, us falling in love. I told him about her efforts to save the women and babies, culminating in the birth of Eve eighteen years ago. Both of them were crying as I told them about how Vivian died at the hands of a thirteen-year-old Alpha widow.

"So did you come back to visit your old Pack," Alan asked.

"No, not that simple." I explained to them the prophecy and the curse, and how we had tried to find Eve's true mate in Chicago. "She was rescued by a man I thought I could trust, but he was trying to take advantage of her for himself. They ran and ended up at the old Pack House, which is where Adam found them." I paused and looked at my hands. "Adam and Eve are true mates, Alan. They are the end to the curse, their mating will save the race."

"Eve... Eve is Jessica's daughter," Alan said as he tried to process it all. "He gets to have his mate."

"If they accept each other," I said. "After their introduction, there is some work to be done there."

Alan reached over and tool Alice's hand. "I don't mean anything bad when I say this, Alice. I love you and I gave up my wolf to be with you. The mate bond, it's something far stronger. He's stubborn, but he won't be able to withstand the pull."

We talked for a while longer, but when I heard the motorcycle pulling up I knew time was up. I introduced Abaddon to them, letting them know I trusted him with my life and that of my daughter. "She's out with the Pack for a while, since her wolf won't react well to being too far away from her mate. Their wolves have recognized each other, even if the human part is resistant," he told them. He gave them a paper with his cell phone number. "I'll be setting up in town somewhere, call me if you have any problems or questions."

"What do we do about them," Alice asked.

"Let nature work its course," Abaddon said with a smile. "They are destined to be together, it will all work out."

"Well, I might have to help things along," she said. "We should pull out your old photos, find some pictures of Doctor Vivian or Jessica." The Minnesota Long Goodbye then took place, a thirty-minute evolution that began in the kitchen and ended with Alan outside my window in the ambulance, and Alice talking to Meghan on the other side. We had exchanged numbers and promised to get together again soon. I told Alan I'd bring back some of Jessica's photos of their old Pack to look at, and he'd see if they had anything of Vivian. Abaddon fired up his motorcycle and started to move out, clearly done with the whole process.

"Thank you for everything," Alan said as he shook my hand.

"Come back soon, I'll make some hotdish!" Alice gave Meghan a hug, and we finally pulled away from the two of them. I was glad we had come with the ambulance, but I realized that I had driven all the way up here to see my daughter and I'd never even seen her.

"I never hugged Eve," I said as we drove through the rutted path towards the road. Tears ran down my face as I drove. "I miss Vivian," I said, "but she isn't coming back." Meghan held my hand as I let go of her, feeling the weight lift from my soul. It was time to move on.

Ch. 68

Meghan's POV

I was so relieved to hit the pavement again, my kidneys felt like they'd done ten rounds in the Octagon. I was so glad I'd stowed everything properly in back, as the ambulance had been tossed side to side on the uneven ground. Abaddon was waiting for us at the side of the road, he pulled out ahead of us as we were making the turn. It was a short drive to Silver Bay, then we headed south towards Duluth.

The day was beautiful, the late afternoon sun was warm on my arm despite the cool breeze off the lake. I was looking at the hills to the inside, the lake to my left past Snake's head as he drove. The roads was busy, lots of tourists and bikers around. We were in a section where the road uphill had gone to two lanes, with one of oncoming traffic; our ambulance was tucked in with the old people, the trucks and the recreational vehicles. I watched the faster traffic pulling past us on the slope, listened to the rumble of a Harley as it passed. The woman driving it was grinning, her black hair blowing in the breeze. "When we've taken this beast home, you're coming back, right?" He nodded. "Want company on the trip?"

"Sure," he said. "That might help me with the ladies." He smirked a little. "I think you got the easy end of our little deal, Meghan. You're young, smart and beautiful, I bet you could line up dates for the rest of the year in an hour just off those who have already asked you."

I blushed a little, he really didn't know what it was like for me. I was the Ice Queen, the prodigy who had never been to a school dance, never asked to a sleepover with the girls my age. While the other girls my age were learning to dance and put on makeup, I was studying microbiology and taking college courses. When they were having their Proms and going to football games, I was graduating from college. While they were dating fraternity boys and partying all weekend, I was doing my residency. My entire life I had been on the outside, never dating, never having fun. It was easier to turn them down than to deal with the fact I'd never learned how to do anything. I graduated and still hadn't had my first kiss.

I looked up just in time to see a car in the right lane ahead of Abaddon suddenly change lanes to the left. The lane wasn't empty, though; the motorcycle that had just passed was in the space the big Lincoln was moving into, blissfully unaware of what he was doing.

The Harley locked its brakes, barely holding on control as the driver finally saw her and panicked. He locked his brakes up, leaving her a pair of bad choices. She chose not to risk the oncoming traffic, instead she skidded hard right and slid across the lane into the ditch. She laid it down on the pavement, sliding off just before the front wheel hit the guardrail and flipped over. I watched her head and shoulder hit the rail before she rolled to a stop.

"SNAKE!" I screamed as he laid on the brakes, the big vehicle slowing as we pulled over to the side of the road. Abaddon had stopped just ahead of us, his Harley at the edge of the road as he ran forward to the body resting against the guardrail. He hit the flashers that we had added when we made the transport company official, and in moments I was out the door and running for the back. Snake met me there, and he grabbed the backboard as I took the medical kit.

Traffic was already slowing and moving around us as we ran back up the hill to where Abaddon was kneeling next to the woman in black leather. "Stay down, the doctor is coming," he was telling her as she tried to move. I could hear her cussing up a storm that would make a drill sergeant blush, something about assholes not looking where they were going and how she'd like to stick his phone so far up his ass he'd have to use his tonsils to dial. I glanced at Snake, he was smiling a bit, knowing this meant she probably was not hurt bad.

I set the bag down, opening it up and pulling on gloves from the pouch in top. "I'm Doctor Jenkins, what is your name?"

"Mia. Mia Taylor," she said as she grimaced in pain.

"OK Miss Taylor, I'm going to examine you for injuries if you consent. I need you to relax and just listen to me, all right?"

"Yes." She relaxed back into the road. I was sure as I examined her that she'd be in bad shape if she hadn't been wearing her protective gear. Her helmet wasn't a full-faced racing helmet, but it was enough to have taken the impact of the guardrail. I could see paint where it had bounced off. She had on a heavy leather jacket, leather chaps and heavy boots, plus she had full-finger gloves. I checked her papillary response with a flashlight, they were equal and reactive.

"Any neck pain?" I gently touched down her neck and shoulders, careful not to move her.

"It's sore but not bad," she said. I continued with checks of her extremities, verifying she still had sensation and control. "My shoulder hurts a lot, though."

I had seen her bounce off the guardrail, and symptoms could be hidden. I took the neck brace and carefully fitted it around her head. "Miss Taylor, we're being careful here because we can't rule out a head or neck injury on the side of the road. I know it's not the most comfortable thing, but we're going to tape you down to the backboard for transport. It's a precaution to make sure nothing moves around."

A State Trooper pulled in near us, directing traffic around. Snake and Abaddon carefully moved her to the backboard while I stabilized her head and neck, then we used tape to fix her helmet to the board. Abaddon ran back and got the gurney, we picked her up and rolled her back to the ambulance doors. I jumped in, and the two pushed her forward. "My motorcycle," she asked as she was slid in.

"I've called for a wrecker," Abaddon told her. "We'll need a winch to get it up from there. I'll have it taken to the Harley dealer in Duluth."

"Thank you," she said. The doors closed, and with her locked in place I buckled into the jump seat for the ride.

"Ready," Snake asked.

"Go," I said. I heard the trooper pass us with lights and sirens, and felt the old ambulance accelerate as we pulled in behind him. I put on the headset that would allow me to talk to Snake while we drove.

"How is she doing," he asked me.

"Good, this is why I'm always after you guys to wear helmets and safety gear," I said. Some of the guys in the Club were old school, wanting to go without helmets because they 'interfered with me enjoying nature.' Stuff like this made my point. "Without a helmet she'd be pushing up daisies. How's that for nature?"

Once we were steady, I unbuckled and moved around to hook up monitoring equipment. The funds Vivian had poured into the Club clinic had been kept up, and werewolf medicine was a fairly lucrative private practice. The Packs paid well when they called for my services. Her vitals were good, her blood pressure and pulse were both high but that was to be expected. I got on the radio to the emergency room at the Duluth hospital, giving the attending my report. They'd have Radiology ready when we arrived, and if the scans were good, she'd probably be released tonight. I moved closer to her, so we could see each other with her head fixed towards the ceiling. "Is there anyone I can call to let you know where you are headed?"

It was only then I saw the tears start to move down her face. "No. No one."

I took her hand, having taken the gloves off earlier during my checks. I checked her nails, she wasn't painted up, they looked like Snake's with all the little cuts and the evidence of lots of cleaning. "Where do you live?"

"Nowhere right now," she said. "My divorce just became final, and I had to sell my restaurant in Chicago as part of the final settlement. I'd always wanted to spend a summer touring, so I sold my stuff and bought the Harley. I've been on the road for two months now."

"That sounds amazing," I said. "I grew up in a motorcycle club, I'm actually in it now. Snake, he's the driver and the one who was helping me, he's been in it for decades. We were actually heading down to St. Paul to drop this beast off and get our bikes to come back and ride for a few days."

"It's beautiful up here," she said. "I've been just riding until I feel like stopping, going wherever the wind blows. I didn't plan to look for a place to settle down until September."

"Meghan, we're two minutes out," Snake said over the headset. I'd left it on, so he'd heard the whole conversation.

"We're almost there," I told her. "What kind of restaurant did you have?"

"Italian, family style dishes, lots of wine and music. It was more of a place to take your mother than your business associates," she said.

The ambulance made some low-speed turns then stopped, the doors immediately opened. I had already disconnected the monitors, and so I helped them as they pulled Mia out of the back and onto the rollers. "I'll check on you soon, Mia," I said as they took her away.

I pulled off the gloves, tossing them in the small garbage compartment, as Snake came back to stand with me. "Why don't we grab some dinner, then we can get going. I can call and make sure she's all right," I told him.

He looked like I was taking away his favorite toy. "Meghan, I don't think I can do that," he said. I stared at him until he continued. "She... her eyes... when I looked at her, there was something there," he said. "I don't want to leave until I'm sure she's all right."

"You're kidding me," I laughed as he stood there, looking in the windows where they'd taken her. "You're so desperate to get a date you're ambulance chasing?"

"MEGHAN..." I just sat on the bumper and laughed, this was SO perfect. "I called the clubhouse, one of the prospects is going to ride up here with my Harley and take the ambulance back. I thought maybe you'd be all right staying here in town overnight, then you can ride back in the morning."

"I'm in no hurry to get back to the cities, Snake. Have you seen how beautiful it is up here?" I got up and closed and locked the doors. "Come on, you owe me dinner. It's the least you can do for the Doctor who found the perfect woman for you. Harley rider, hot body, talented chef, swears like a sailor, that's pretty much all the boxes for you. And the name..."

"What do you mean? Mia is a beautiful name, she's a beautiful woman."

"Yeah. Think about her name if you guys get married and tell me if this isn't God's way of saying you belong together. I mean, what is better than Willie B. Hardigan and his lovely wife, Mia Hardigan?" I busted up laughing as I walked around to the passenger door. This was the best thing since that waitress who hit on Dad during the road trip.

I was still laughing so hard I could barely breathe as we pulled out. Snake, his mind was elsewhere.

Ch. 69

Eve's POV

We were still waiting for my Dad to get here, and I saw the motorcycles coming but no ambulance. I looked up when Abaddon opened the door and slid into the seat. "What is happening," I asked.

"Your Dad and Meghan are taking care of the injured wolf," he said. "They will be a while. Gabriel and the others are coming here to protect you."

"I'm fine," I said as I sat back again. "I'm surrounded by Pack in the middle of the woods."

"Well, you gave everyone a scare these past few days, so you'll have to be a little patient with them. Word of advice, whatever your Dad or Gabriel tell you to do, do it immediately and without any sass. You have zero slack in your leash, Eve. They aren't far from locking you up until they can trust you again."

I looked up as I saw them coming, Gabriel in the lead. They parked their bikes along the road, the others coming to greet them. "Stay here," he said as he got out.

I tried to listen to what they were saying, but as werewolves they could talk softly enough I didn't overhear the conversation. Once in a while they would look over towards me, Gabriel would shake his head, then they would continue talking. I watched Gabriel take a call, when he hung up everyone was heading for their bikes. Abaddon went to his motorcycle, started it and took off. Raguel opened the door of my car and started it up. "What's happening?"

"We're moving the vehicles out of sight," he said. I watched as we moved into the middle of the guys, driving the mile or so down the road to the old Pack House road. The guys rode single file through the trail, we followed until we got to the first area where the trees stopped and we could turn around. All of the bikes were parked facing the road again, and the guys started to strip and put their clothes in their saddlebags. Figuring we were going for a run, I took the locket and necklace I'd found and put it deep in my pocket.

Gabriel opened the door and pulled me out, leading me away from the guys while they shifted. "We've talked, your father and I, about how best to handle what is happening here."

"I'm sorry, Gabriel. I really messed my life up."

He put his big hand on my shoulder. "We're going to find a way out of this, all of us. Right now, your mate isn't happy with you and I can smell why. He's gone back to his home, where he will spend a few days resting up. In the meantime, we're going to have a wolf boot camp of sorts here."

"What do you mean?"

"Part of the problem why you and your wolf aren't on the same page is that you don't spend enough time with her, she doesn't get to be in charge often. The lack of balance can affect things in human form. What did your wolf say while you were in the hotel room with Mitch?"

I thought back, my wolf had withdrawn after telling me that it was wrong. "She fought me, but I ignored her, I pushed her so far back I didn't have to listen to her tell me it was wrong." I looked at my feet. "I didn't listen to her, either."

"Exactly," he said as we turned around. The guys had all shifted, and the wolves were spreading out, some close by the clearing, others pushing out to make sure the perimeter was safe. "When you and your wolf are truly one, you listen and trust each other. That is what we are going to do while your mate is healing."

"We're going for a run?" I opened the back door, tossing my shoes in before taking off my shirts. Gabriel and all the others were looking away from me as I stripped.