Page 43 of The Alpha's Chosen Fate

“Shift so I can better see which gashes are the deepest.You’re losing a lot of blood.”

With my adrenaline dropping, the pain came fast.I didn’t know which wound was the worst so I changed back into my human skin.

“Fuck, Ivy.”Briggs reached out.

I hissed under his touch.They’d done quite a number on me.

But we gave as good as we got!Rieka lauded.

The corner of my mouth lifted.We did, didn’t we?

“I need to get you to Grace.”

A ragged gasp tore from my lungs as Briggs scooped me into his arms, ignoring my feeble protests.The world spun and pain lanced through my battered body with every jostling step.

"Put me down.”The words emerged as a thready whisper.

His grip only tightened."Not a chance."

Briggs moved swiftly through the trees, careful not to jostle me.I let myself relax in his strong embrace, too expended to care.

For the first time since I’d been back, he took me into the heart of Darkwood territory, to where members of the pack spent most of their time.

I caught glimpses of curious faces peering at me, likely drawn by traces of my blood.Embarrassment burned through me, though I had nothing to be embarrassed about.

The healer's cottage loomed ahead, a sanctuary where I’d found my calling.Where I used to spend my time, working under Grace’s tutelage.

It was next door to the larger infirmary, where I’d assumed he’d been headed.Instead, he took me into the quaint and comfy building where Grace saw patients for routine check-ups.

Briggs shouldered through the door, startling the healer.Her eyes widened at the sight of me in the Alpha's arms.

"Ivy?Goddess above, what happened to you?”

“Where should I put her?”

“Lay her there," Grace instructed, gesturing to the narrow bed in the corner.

He lowered me with a gentleness that caught me off guard.His hands lingered, brushing the tangled hair from my face.

I flinched, ignoring the flash of hurt in his gaze.

Grace bustled around the room, gathering supplies."You should go, Alpha.I need space to work."

"I'm not leaving."

Grace hesitated but didn’t fight the Alpha.Few ever did."Fine.But stay out of the way."

I grinned at how she sassed him.I missed her calming aura and frazzled face when she was puzzling over things.Even her messy light brown bun.

“Here, sweet girl, just a pinch to help with the pain.I’ll get you back in one piece before you know it.”

The drugs in the shot pulled me under, dragging me into a haze of half-formed dreams and distorted memories.Through it all, I could feel him watching.

And as I drifted in that twilight space between waking and oblivion, a traitorous part of me whispered that maybe, just maybe, his presence was nice and I could enjoy it.Briggs would keep us safe.

I ruthlessly quashed it.That line of thought would only lead to more heartbreak.After all, I couldn’t forget what I’d learned today.

I was a stand-in for a dead woman, and that was a truth I could never outrun, no matter how far I fled.

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