AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Dr. Suzanne Olivet arrived alone two days later. She met Pat on the front porch at Pat’s insistence. She wanted Dr. Olivet to understand what she was getting into before she crossed the farmhouse threshold. She wanted to give her a chance to turn away.
Dr. Olivet was an Alpha’s mate too. She’d mated into one of the oldest original wolf packs in northern Canada. She spoke with a heavy French-Canadian accent. I watched her face go through a myriad of emotions as Pat explained our situation.
For a moment, my heart stopped as Dr. Olivet frowned. She looked back at her car. I felt certain she was about to climb back into it and drive away. But she turned to Pat, gave her a sad smile, then walked with her through the front door.
“Camilla!” she said brightly. I’d moved to the hallway, barely able to contain my agitation. She came to me and put her hands on my face, searching my eyes. Already, the clinician was here.
“Sit down,” she said. “Let me look at you in better light.”
“I’m not the one who’s sick,” I said. “My parents are upstairs. We’ve moved them into the same room. They both seem less restless when they’re together. I'm not sure it’s a good long-term solution. Every time one of them takes a turn for the worse, their link drags the other one down.”
“There’s no help for that,” Dr. Olivet said. “They are mated.”
She gently pulled my lower lids down and shined a penlight in my eyes. I tracked it for her.
“Now the wolf,” she said. I took a breath and let my eyes go silver.
“You’re able to shift?” she asked.
“Yes. I told you. It’s not me.”
“I’ll need some blood,” she said. “Only a few drops.”
She took a syringe from her black medical bag and put on a pair of latex gloves. I looked helplessly at Pat while Dr. Olivet drew blood from a vein in my left arm.
She capped the vial and put it in a small cold storage box she kept in the recesses of that bag.
“We’re wasting time,” I said. “My parents…”
“Hush,” she said. “You’ve been gone a long time, Camilla.”
“I prefer Tempest,” I said.
She waved me off. “You want my help, you’ll have it my way. You are right. We’re wasting time. Trust me. I delivered you.”
I wasn’t sure what one thing had to do with the other, but if she could help, I could hold my tongue.
“Follow me,” I said.
Dr. Olivet slung her bag over her shoulder and put up a hand to stop me.
“You wait here,” she said. “I need to examine them alone.”
“But…”
“Tem,” Pat said. “Come into the kitchen with me. Dr. Olivet will want some tea when she’s finished. She’s got a long day ahead of her if she plans on getting to all the packs today.”
“You’re going to need help,” I said. “Someone to assist you. I…”
“Not this time,” she said. “Tea is a good idea. I like it strong. And if you have some honey.”
Pat pulled my arm. Reluctantly, I went with her to the kitchen.
“She’s taking a real risk,” Pat said. She wouldn’t let me help with the tea. She had me sit at the kitchen island watching her. Even at her advanced age, she moved with quick precision once she got behind her own stove.
“She isn’t a shifter,” I said. “And her mate is miles away. Human mates don’t get sick.”
“We don’t know anything,” Pat said. “For all we know, she could walk out of here as a carrier. She’s going to have to quarantine herself as it is. Her pack took a vote. If Etienne hadn’t finally agreed, she wouldn’t have come at all. It’s why she hasn’t come sooner. They were holding her back. They’re afraid. With good reason.”
