Chapter 36: Chapter 8

DAMON

It takes three days to get the adoptees all linked to their families, but the time spent is well worth it. Finn smiles at me as the last pup leaves with her family. “I think you’re getting more members on your side.”

“I can only hope so. You ready to go back to that dungeon?”

Finn lets out a breath. “Might as well get it over with.”

~“Spencer. Bring Natalie to the Eastern border past the greenhouse.”~

~“Will do.”~

I lean against a tree and wait for them to show. I asked my dad along as well. We don’t know what we’ll find at the old dungeon. I look at the scorched bush and crack a smile. I wonder if she’s figured out other elements yet. I doubt she even knows that she’s not a healer, but something even more powerful.

“So what are we looking at?” Spencer pipes up as soon as he steps to my side.

“Nothing yet. Stay on your guard. Natalie, let us know if anything makes you uncomfortable.” She nods, and I lead the way with her by my side.

After walking outside of our territory for about half an hour, we arrive at the area. “What is this place?” Natalie asks as she holds her hands up to get a feel for the air.

“It was a dungeon from the Revolutionary War. Witches teamed up with humans to stop an alpha. They threw him in this dungeon and forced him to go rogue,” my dad answers.

“I know that story. The alpha had a daughter. When he went rogue, she was the next in line, but the wolves refused to follow a female and formed packs of their own. The people in the camp are awaiting the return of his heir.”

I look to my dad. ~“Have you ever heard that before?”~

~“No, never. What’s the camp?”~

~“It’s where the strays came from. Natalie is a runaway. She lived in the camp for three years. It’s full of women and pups. I’ve already contacted Dec about helping them out.”~ Father nods his approval.

Spencer and Natalie are talking about the upcoming party to celebrate Solstice. “I’ve never really celebrated Solstice. When I was young, we didn’t celebrate it, well not until my brother was born. He got the nice presents. It’s the only time I got new clothes, well they were hand-me-downs, but new to me.” Damn those parents of hers. I hope the Moon Goddess gave them what they deserve.

“It’s a blast, you’ll see,” Spencer says animatedly.

Natalie gasps, and I stop walking. Spencer isn’t paying attention. “Stop!” Natalie yells, but it’s too late. Spencer drops to the ground unconscious.

“Stay back.” Natalie holds her hands up until they begin to shake and a yellow glow emanates from her palms. She shakes her arms out, not knowing what to do.

“Natalie, turn it into something else. A bubble, water, ice, anything.”

She scrunches her brows and shakes out her arms. I focus on Spencer’s link. He’s weakening. “Natalie, you have to let the energy out.”

She turns toward a bush, her palms turn orange, and fire ignites over the branches. She lets out a breath then rushes to Spencer’s side.

“Pop, Finn, put that out.” Her hands glow white as she touches his head and heart.

~“Spencer. Stay with me.”~

~“It’s dark and cold.”~

~“Natalie is going to help you. Stay with me.”~ “Natalie, can you help him?”

“I’m trying, but healing isn’t working.”

~“I’m tired.”~

~“Stay with me. Don’t go to sleep. Stay awake.”~ “Try pulling the energy the same way you pulled it from the air.”

She nods, and her glow changes from white to yellow. Spencer’s life gets stronger, and his eyes begin to blink.

“It’s working.” Natalie begins to lift her hands away then directs them toward another bush. She exhales, and the bush lights on fire. She takes a few breaths then falls to the ground.

“Shit! I don’t have a connection to her. I don’t know if she’s fading or not.”

Finn pulls out a pocket knife. He cuts my hand then runs his finger inside her lip then across my cut. It heals, and I feel her strong life force snap into place. I relax and sink to my knees beside her. My dad puts out the fire.

“Dec is gonna be pissed, but I’ll deal with that later. You two help Spencer. I’ll get Natalie.”

My phone rings several times before we make it to the hospital. I’ve contacted Dec every day to keep him updated on the situation and because he’s concerned about Natalie. I haven’t quite filled him in on her power, for some reason I feel like it’s not his place to know. He’ll find out eventually if she wants to tell him.

I send the call to voicemail then get Natalie and Spencer inside. Marlena sees to both of them, and I call Dec back.

“Before you lose your shit, it was an emergency. She’s fine, but she passed out from healing one of my wolves. I swear she’s okay, and you can reset her link as soon as she gets back. She’s sleeping it off in the hospital just as a precaution.”

Dec growls, but I get everything out before he has a chance to speak. “You have to stop her before she uses too much of her energy. You should know that after seeing Kya and Doc. Healers tend to do that, they use their own energy to heal.”

“I know, but this was different. He was hit with that energy. Healing wasn’t working, so she had to pull it out of him. That’s why I linked her. I didn’t know if the energy affected her too.”

“Damon, you better take care of her. Anything else happens to her, I’ll come down there and get her myself.”

I get that he’s mad and protective, but he has no idea how important she is to me. “You won’t step one foot here without my permission. This is my pack and my territory, Dec. You know damn well I would never hurt her, she’s my m—”

I stop myself before I get carried away. “She’s in my pack for the time being. I’ll have her contact Kya when she wakes up.” I hang up before he gets even more pissy with me. We alphas don’t always play well, and I do care about his friendship. Besides, I have to check on Natalie.

“Finn, call Kya and let her know what happened so she can calm Dec down. I don’t need him storming into our territory. That was quick thinking. Good work,” I tell him as I leave him in the hallway.

“Natalie and Spencer are both sleeping,” Marlena tells me.

I nod. “I know. Thank you, Marlena.” I take the chair between the beds.

“How did three healers end up in one pack?” Marlena asks as she writes down information on her two patients.

“The doc is Alpha Redd’s father-in-law. He runs the hospital in their pack. The tiny one is the luna. When Roberts was sending rogues into their territory, he sent pups with them. Natalie was one of the pups that Alpha Redd took into his pack. It’s a good thing she ended up there because the doc and Kya helped train her. They’ve since adopted her.” I reach up and take Natalie’s hand in mine, and I begin to relax.

“It would be nice to have a natural healer here.” I agree, but she’s not ready yet. I remind Marlena to keep Natalie’s power a secret.

“Of course, Alpha, I understand. She doesn’t have any injuries. She can go when she wakes up. Spencer might take a little longer to wake up,” she informs me then leaves to check on other patients.