Filed to story: The Healer and The Wolf PDF Free
I asked every single shifter, which took me nearly an hour. When I knocked on the door of the last RV and the shifter inside said they hadn’t seen him since the night before, I came to a truly horrifying conclusion.
No, I had to be wrong. He’d promised me he wouldn’t do it.
He promised!
Hoping against all hope that I was wrong, I ran back to the greenhouse as if I would suddenly find him there. But there was no strapping alpha waiting for me. Only my cats and my mattress.
No.
No, no,no!
It was getting harder to deny by the second, and I sank to my knees, fighting off the urge to scream. I had to be wrong. I just had to.
My cats were all over me, sensing my heightened stress levels. Mudpie was head-butting my side, demanding attention, while Fork was sniffing around, no doubt trying to figure out what had upset me. Goober caught my attention. Or rather, the folded piece of paper tied in a loose ribbon around his neck.
It was a miracle it hadn’t fallen off as it was quite slack, but I took it with trembling hands and unfolded it. I knew what it had to be, and yet I didn’t want to believe it, even as I began to read the hastily scrawled words.
My darling Ven,
I amsorry to do this. I know what I promised, but I also know what I must do. I don’t need you to understand, but I do need you to keep yourself safe.
My entire life has been one of uncertainty and violence. Even before I had to fight the usurper who orphaned so many of us, I still faced challenges no child should have to go through. My life was not meant to be an easy one, and I’ve always known that.
Meeting you changed all that, my beautiful Vanessa, and nothing will ever take that away from us. You showed me things and gave me experiences many alphas can only ever dream of. I want you to rest easy knowing how much joy you brought me.
I know you struggle to see it in yourself, but I promise you, you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I’d do everything all over again as long as it ensured I met you. Your kindness. Your smile. I love all of it. And I carry it with me in my chest as I march to my end. I wish we could spend more time together, I do, because even a hundred years wouldn’t be enough.
I am so incredibly grateful for the time we’ve had.
I am madly in love with you, and I always will be. I know you think I’m giving up, but I’m not. I’m choosing life.
I’m choosing you.
If this one small thing will buy you a life of peace and happiness, it’s worth it. You’ll have the entire pack to protect you, to give you the community, the family, you’ve always been searching for.
I love you, Vanessa. And I always will love you. I know you’ll cry for me, but don’t let the sadness overwhelm you. You’ve given me the best time of my life.
With love,
Leo
I stared at the paper,turning it front to back as if it would change the words written on it. It stayed the same, and the cold, sinking realization of what was happening washed over me with a vengeance.
Leo was gone.
I screamed. Long and loud and with a feral brokenness that could only come from utter betrayal. He had promised me he would stay, that he would fight. Lots of people had broken their word to me over the years, but I never expected Leo to be one of them. Already my mind was zooming off, imagining what horrible torture that witch was putting the love of my life through. It wasn’t fair.
It just wasn’t fair.
Naturally, the pained sound tearing from my throat drew lots of attention, and Ricky burst through the door.
“Ven, what’s wrong?”
I brandished the letter like that would inform him of what was going on, but I certainly wasn’t going to let him read it.
“He’s gone.”
“Wait, who? What’s happening?”
Admittedly, my declaration wasn’t exactly very explanatory, but my voice raised even higher in irritation-or was it desperation?-when I replied again.
“Leo’s gone! He went to that fucking witch! He’s going to sacrifice himself for us.”
“He’s not!” Ricky shot back on instinct, and honestly, I couldn’t fault him for the denial, not after I’d run up the entire river. “This whole week he’s been…” But then his eyes finally focused on the letter, and all the air left his body at once. “Son of a bitch!”
He whirled, fist raised as if to punch out one of my windows, but he seemed to realize the destruction that would cause and pulled back at the last moment. Honestly, I didn’t even care if he shattered my windows. What did a greenhouse matter when the love of my life was marching to his death? I’d give it up, and every single plant I’d ever nurtured to life, to make sure Leo was safe.
A knock sounded on the opposite door of the greenhouse, and we both turned to see Andromeda and Tabitha there with blankets over their shoulders. They were still a bit frail but had largely returned to a much healthier size, and their skin didn’t look so ashen anymore. I was getting good at caring for shifters.
“Did we hear right?” Andromeda asked wearily. Although I was utterly devastated, I felt bad for her as well. She had only just been reunited with her alpha and still didn’t have all her memories back. To have him ripped away from her had to be like reopening the wounds that were only just beginning to close. “Leo’s gone to the witch?”
“Yeah, he has,” Ricky said. God, he sounded so broken.
“What do we do now?” Tabitha asked, sounding forlorn. It was like we were all being orphaned all over again, which was a crazy shared trauma to have.
It was too much heartbreak in such a small space, and suddenly, I was done. Done having things happen that were over my head, done being a damsel. I wasn’t going to allow Leo to sacrifice himself, and that was that.
“Gather everyone up,” I said, surprised at the steel in my voice. “Get them all out front.”