Chapter 16

Gabriel

Ellie was a bundle of nerves as I carried her to see Erik. I’d anticipated some anxiety, but this was more. Her body trembled, and tears streamed down her face.

Nothing I did seemed to soothe her.

“Erik, she’s scared stiff. Maybe we should do this somewhere else,” I suggested, trying to calm her down.

Erik considered it. “How about my office? You can hold her on your lap. I just need to check her arm.”

I agreed and carried her through the examination room to a small office at the back.

I settled into the chair, placing the little pup on my lap. Her tiny hands clung to my shirt, and she hid her face in my chest.

Erik frowned at me.

“I think you might be babying her too much. She needs to learn to stand on her own,” he grumbled.

I barely held back a growl, not wanting to upset Ellie more than she already was.

Instead, I shot him a glare.

“You don’t know, Erik. You have no idea what this little pup has been through. I’m just starting to uncover it.

“If babying her helps her heal from her past, then that’s exactly what I’ll do.”

Erik rolled his eyes and reached over to remove Ellie’s bandage. Her sobs intensified.

“Let me do it,” I offered.

He agreed, so I began to unwrap the bandage.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” I whispered, “I’m just taking off the bandage so Erik can look at your wound.”

Her sobs quieted to a whimper, and she nodded, her head still buried in my chest, but she seemed a bit calmer.

Once the bandage was off, Erik examined the wound. His brow furrowed as he studied it.

“Is everything okay, Erik? You look concerned,” I asked, a hint of panic in my voice.

He looked up and smiled.

“Don’t worry, Gabriel, it’s fine. Actually, it’s better than fine. I thought the stitches would need to stay in for at least a week, but it’s healing quickly.”

He scratched his head. “Can we talk...privately?”

I frowned; Ellie was already upset enough without me leaving her alone.

“I’m taking her to meet my parents. If she settles down, I’ll come back and talk to you later.”

Erik nodded and handed me a small container.

I held it up, tilting it slightly.

“What’s this?” I asked.

Erik took a deep breath. “It’s for a swab. Just use the cotton bud inside to swab the inside of her mouth, then seal it back up.

“I’d do it now, but given her current state, I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

I pocketed the container, then leaned towards Erik.

“What’s going on, Erik?” I demanded.

Erik bit his lip. “I ran some tests, but the results had...an anomaly. I want to retest to confirm my suspicions.”

I rolled my eyes, “You’re not making any sense.”

I don’t want to scare her more than she already is. That’s why I need to talk to you alone.

Erik mind-linked me.

I nodded without responding.

“Just put another bandage on then. Hopefully she’ll be okay with that,” I suggested.

She was. There were a few whimpers, and she wouldn’t look at him. But with my soothing words, we managed to redress the bullet wound.

With everything that had happened, I completely forgot to ask him about her constant fatigue. I figured I could always ask later.

I hoped she might bond with my mother, so I could slip back and discuss things.

As we left the hospital, I heard Erik’s voice again.

“Hey...Ellie? Is this yours?”

For the first time since we’d arrived, she lifted her head.

Erik held out the stuffed wolf. She must have dropped it during her panic attack.

I could tell by her expression she was torn. She desperately wanted to reach for the wolf, but was still terrified of Erik.

Erik slowly extended the wolf towards her. With one hand gripping my shirt, she reached out with the other and took the wolf.

She quickly pulled it to her chest, then held it with both hands.

“Thank you,” she mumbled, her voice barely above a whisper.

Erik smiled. I doubted she saw it.

“Next time you come, Ellie, I’ll remove the stitches, okay?”

Her head bobbed ever so slightly in a nod. If you blinked you would have missed it. We both knew it was progress. It would take time for her to trust Erik again, but we had made a start.

Once we were out of the hospital and the pack-house, she seemed to calm down considerably.

“Would you like to walk, Ellie?” I asked.

She nodded, “Yes please, daddy.”

I gently set her on the ground. With her wolf clutched tightly in one hand, she held the other one up for me to take.

I smiled down at her.

“Okay, sweetheart, let’s go meet some other people,” I suggested.

She looked up, worry in her eyes.

“Who?” she asked, her tiny voice barely audible.

I smiled, hoping this wouldn’t be too much for her.

“Your grandma and grandpa,” I said.

She looked at me, her brow furrowed in confusion.

I guessed she’d never met her birth grandparents.

“My mom and dad,” I clarified.

She thought for a moment. I could almost hear her little brain working.

“Are they... Are they nice?” she asked, her voice filled with worry.

I chuckled to myself. That was debatable. I expected my mother would give me an earful for not visiting often enough.

“They’re gonna love you, sweetheart,” I assured her with a chuckle.

That seemed to put her at ease, and we started the short stroll to my folks’ place.