“Shut the fuck up!” The man yelled at her.
Audrey found herself staring at the gun barrel. She threw her body at him, hoping to knock the gun out of his hands.
The gun went off.
Searing pain coursed through Audrey’s body. She heard someone scream, but she ignored it as she tackled the man and made a grab for the gun.
They both fell hard on the wood planks of the bridge. Something skidded across the planks. Several seconds later the sound of a splash drifted up from the river.
Audrey tried to push herself up but her body refused to move. She couldn’t even feel her left arm. She tried to take a deep breath but something was wrong. Breathing through a straw would have been easier. A wave of excruciating pain rippled through her body. She tried speaking but nothing seemed to work. She couldn’t control her body. Well shit! This sucks.
She heard bits and pieces of the words the man was yelling at her. Audrey tried focusing on him as he came closer but it was difficult. The edges of her vision slowly grew black.
She stared at the man who had kidnapped her.
She prayed for Seth and Forrest to be safe.
Somewhere in the distance, she thought she heard her name, but she wasn’t sure if it was real or her imagination. Everything was growing fuzzy. Probably the lack of oxygen to your brain stupid.
The sound of a rifle shot made her body flinch. She tried blinking, but found it was too much of an effort.
Audrey watched the man jerk and stiffen. His eyes opened wide and his mouth formed an oval shape as his lower jaw dropped open. A bright red flower bloomed, soaking the shirt covering his chest. Slowly he dropped to his knees and then the rest of his body pitched forward.
Audrey watched the life fade from his eyes. A sense of peace came over her. Seth, Forrest and the others were safe, at least from this hunter.
Her vision narrowed even more.
The last thing she saw was Forrest’s face in front of hers. She tried to tell him she loved him, but everything went black before she could attempt to get the words out.
*****
Forrest’s bear was almost to Audrey when another shot rang out. The animal watched the hunter’s chest turn red just before he slumped to the planks of the bridge. The bear caught the scent of the man’s blood, but the sweet scent of its injured mate was the only thing the bear was cared about.
When the bear reached Audrey, it gave Forrest control and receded into the man though it stayed close to the surface urging the man to fix their mate.
“Audrey. Audrey can you hear me?” Forrest leaned down in front of his mate. He gently touched her cheek and tried not to wince at how cool her skin was to his touch. Her face was swollen and discolored. Fresh blood covered the front of her shirt.
Forrest watched as she struggled to say something but she was too weak. “No baby. Don’t leave me. Stay with me. I need you.”
Audrey’s good eye closed as she struggled to breathe. A gurgling noise came from her throat. Blood trickled out of the side of her mouth.
Forrest roared in frustration and grief.
He saw movement out of the corner of his eyes. He turned to the new threat to his mate and growled at it as his fingertips shifted into wicked claws.
“Forrest, retract your claws and move out of my way. Let me see what I can do. If you don’t Audrey will die.” As soon as he saw that Forrest recognized him, Hank shoved his brother out of his way and knelt in front of Audrey. He put his hands on her shoulder and closed his eyes. “Shit!” He looked at Forrest. “I need you to pull yourself together and focus.” Hank gently touched Audrey’s forehead as he closed his eyes.
“Mine!” growled Forrest. His voice was deeper than normal.
Hank looked at his brother. “She is yours. I have no desire to take her away from you, but I have to touch her to help her. Take control of your bear so we can help your mate live.”
Forrest took several deep breaths. The scent of Audrey’s blood was strong, but so was the scent of peppermint. He focused on that one scent. His bear calmed enough that he was able to shove it to the back of his mind. Hank was right. He needed to keep the bear on a leash. Forrest opened his eyes and touched Audrey’s hair. He leaned down. “You have to stay with me. You’re a fighter. You fought to keep and raise Seth. You fought the hunter to protect those you love. Now I need you to fight to stay with me. I can’t live without you. I refuse to live without you.”
Audrey’s good eye fluttered.
“That’s it. Fight baby.”
Harrison knelt next to Forrest who immediately growled at him.
“Can it Forrest! You know he’s here to help Audrey,” snapped Hank. He glared at his brother. “If you can’t control yourself, I will have Wes drag you away from here.”
Forrest nodded.
“I don’t see any blood on this side. I don’t think there’s an exit wound,” said Harrison as he scanned the back of Audrey’s shirt.
“The bullet’s lodged in the backside of her lung. She’s drowning in her own blood. She also has a broken wrist, multiple cuts and bruises, and the left side of her skull is cracked.
“Can you do anything to help her until we get her to the hospital?” asked Harrison.
“I’ll heal her skull and keep draining the blood from her lungs.”
Harrison nodded. “That will buy us some time.” He glanced at his brother and gave a slight shake of his head.
“Already on it. A med chopper will be here in about fifteen minutes. Just keep her alive until they get here.” The muscles in Todd’s jaws twitched. He knew if Audrey died, there was a really good chance Forrest would have to be put down.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Audrey glared at the doctor. “When can I go home?” The look the doctor gave her told Audrey he was really tired of the question.
But Audrey didn’t care.
She was tired of being in the hospital and wanted to go home. Until she was released she was going to ask him the same question every time he came into the room. “When can I go home?” she mumbled under her breathe. She was sure the doctor heard her.
The doctor picked up his tablet and entered some notes. He moved his hand over the screen as he skimmed through the information. After several minutes, he tucked the tablet under his arm. “The results from this morning’s blood work aren’t here. I need to call the lab and find out where they are. Once I read them, I’ll make a decision about when you’ll be released.
Audrey pressed her lips together into a thin line. She didn’t say anything as she picked up the remote and flipped through the television channels.
“I will see you later today.” He turned and walked out of the room.
Audrey wanted to throw her head back and scream. For almost two weeks she had been stuck in the hospital. There was only so much television she could stomach. But mainly, she was tired of laying in the bed and staring at the ceiling. The sad part was she had only been awake for less than a week.
Yeah, she had visitors and Forrest spent as much of his time as he could with her, but it wasn’t the same.
She wanted to go home. She dropped the remote onto the bed where she could easily pick it up.
Audrey closed her eyes. Her left eye was still swollen. Heck, the whole left side of her face was still swollen, but it was better than when she first woke up. At least she could see. The first time she opened her eyes after she was shot, she could only open one eye and everything had been blurry. The medicine-induced floating feeling didn’t help either. Audrey was so glad when the doctors decided to cut back the amount of pain meds they were giving her. It made a world of a difference when the floating feeling went away.
“Hey baby, how are you doing today?” Forrest walked into the room, closing the door behind him. He set a small suitcase on one of the chairs by the bed and walked over to her side.
“I’m better now that you’re here.” Audrey felt a little fluttering in her belly. She smiled and tilted her head up to him.
/> Forrest leaned down and gently capture her lips with his.
She felt he was holding back. It hurt but she understood why. For all intents and purposes, she was still broken and had weeks of healing facing her. “What’s the suitcase for?”
Forrest grinned. “If they don’t release you, then I’m going to break you out of here. And you need clothes for that because I don’t want anyone else seeing your gorgeous body.” He winked at her.
“Don’t make me laugh. It hurts too much. I’m far from looking like anything but something that the cat dragged in and decided to abandon.” She ached everywhere. Bruises in every color possible covered her body.
“You’re beautiful to me.” He kissed her again. “What did the doctor say today?”
“Something about checking the blood work that they did this morning. The results weren’t posted to my file yet so he said he was going to go find out where it is.” She shrugged with her good shoulder. “I think it was just a way for him to get away from me, because he’s tired of constantly hearing me ask if I’m going home yet.”
Forrest snorted. “I’m so ready to have you home and in my bed.”
“Unfortunately, there won’t be much action going on in that bed.”
“But once you’re healed…all bets are off.” Forrest grinned like a child who had found himself in the candy store.
“I miss you too. I desperately want to feel your arms wrapped around me.” Being apart from Forrest was hard, but not sleeping next to him was driving her crazy. She needed to feel his skin against hers.
The door opened and one of Audrey’s day nurses entered the room. “Looks like this is your lucky day Miss Thomas.” She set a folder and couple of other things on the table.
Audrey smiled. “Am I finally getting to bust out of this joint?” She was almost afraid to hope.
The nurse smiled. “You have a list of things you can’t do, but yes we are releasing you.” She pulled out several papers as she looked at Forrest. “I assume you will be taking responsibility for your fiancé?”
“If that means I’m going to take her home, put her to bed and not let her do anything for herself, then I’m the responsible party.” He caressed Audrey’s cheek. He grinned when she leaned into his touch.
The nurse smiled. “I could use one like him,” she said with a sigh as she turned her attention back to the paperwork. “I’ll need you to sign these release forms.”
Forrest looked at the papers the nurse held out to him. He took them and the pen she offered and signed them. “Is that it?” He handed everything back to her.
The nurse checked the papers. “Inside this folder are care instructions and a couple of prescriptions that need to be filled. If you have any questions, let me know.” She turned to Audrey. “Now, let’s see about taking out that IV so you can take a shower.”
“A shower would be really good.” Even though Forrest hadn’t said anything, Audrey knew she smelled bad. Her hair was definitely icky. A shower was a good idea before she put on clean clothes…her clean clothes.
In less than a minute, the nurse had the IV out. “The stitches are covered with a plastic bandage so you don’t have to worry about getting them wet. The cast on your wrist will have to be wrapped.” She reached for a piece of plastic. “This will help keep the cast dry,” she said as she carefully wrapped Audrey’s arm. “Do you need any help?”
Audrey shook her head. She had been out of the bed several times the past few days, but this was the first time she was being allowed to take a shower on her own. Sponge baths were not the same as standing under water. “I’m just ready for a hot shower and to feel clean.”
“If she needs any help, I’ll be here.”
The nurse looked at Forrest and rolled her eyes. “Let me know when you’re dressed. I’ll bring a wheelchair to take you out of this fine establishment. Make sure you are just helping her and not doing something she isn’t medially cleared to do.” She pointed at Forrest. “Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes ma’am,” said Forrest. A smile covered his face. “No hanky panky.”
The nurse shook her head as she left the room.
*****
Several hours later, Audrey looked around the living room. It was so much more decadent than her home. Everything was brand new. The blues, grays, and whites of the downstairs décor was beautifully done. She felt like she shouldn’t be sitting on the furniture, let alone sitting with her feet on the couch with a very cuddly blanket covering her.
“Once you’re healed, we can go shopping for a desk for the office and anything else you want.” Forrest gently picked up her legs and put them in his lap after he sat down. “Change anything in the house that you don’t like. This is your home now.”
Audrey shook her head. “You don’t need to spend any more money. I feel bad about you giving up your office.”
“I’m not giving up anything. In fact, I’ve gained much more than possessions.” He caressed her legs. “I have you and Seth. I have a family. Until now, this was just a house where I slept and sometimes ate.” He looked at her. “I almost lost you,” he softly said.
“But you didn’t. I’m alive.” Audrey tried to sound as if it was nothing, but she knew better. Somehow Hank had used his bear magic to not only heal her cracked skull, but he kept her lungs drained of blood so she could keep breathing until help arrived.
“If you ever again put yourself in danger like you did on that bridge, I am going to lock you in my bedroom for the rest of our lives,” threatened Forrest.
“I might like that.” Audrey smiled and winked at him. She pushed several strands of hair out of her face.
The doorbell rang causing Audrey to jump. She glanced at Forrest. Her hands shook. She wrapped them around her waist to hide them from him.
“Are you okay?”
Audrey nodded. “I wasn’t expecting the doorbell. It startled me. No big deal.” She forced a smile onto her face even though smiling was the last thing she felt like doing. It was ridiculous being afraid of a doorbell, but she was. Answering her door after the doorbell rang was what set events into motion. Before she could do anything, the man hit her in the face. As she stumbled backwards, he pushed his way into the house.
Audrey fought, but she had lost.
“It’s just Ivy and Ben. She’s bringing something to help with your healing. If you don’t want to see them, I’ll send them away.” Forrest put his hand on her arm.
Audrey knew she had to overcome her fear if she wanted to get back to normal. She looked at her mate. “I’m okay. I’ll see them.”
Forrest watched her carefully. “Are you sure?”
Audrey swallowed and nodded again. “I’m sure. You can let them in.”
Forest caressed her cheek. He tucked the blanket around her legs, making sure she was comfortable, before he went to the door.
Audrey hated the sudden fear that overwhelmed her. She knew she was safe. She knew Forrest would protect her. She blinked her eyes to get rid of the tears that threatened to fall.
“Audrey, how are you?” Ivy walked over to where Audrey was sitting.
She shrugged her shoulders. “Physically, I’m slowly healing. I’m still dealing with some of the mental stuff.”
Ivy sat down on the coffee table. “I’m so sorry you had to suffer through everything you did.”
“Thanks. The good thing is that it’s over.” Audrey wasn’t sure what she should or should not tell Ivy. She almost snorted. How did you tell someone you were basically okay except the doorbell terrified you? It was totally ridiculous to be scared of a doorbell, but the memories of answering the door and being attacked were too fresh. Hopefully time would help ease the fear.
“Audrey?” Ivy put her hand on Audrey’s arm causing her to jump and jerk her arm away from Ivy.
“Audrey baby.” Forrest was instantly at her side. “It’s okay. You’re safe.”
She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. “I’m sorry.”
; “There’s nothing to be sorry about,” said Ivy. “What you did was brave.”
“I don’t feel brave. I know the hunter is dead, but I’m afraid that I’m going to open a door and he’s going to be standing there. I’m terrified my parents will somehow get their hands on Seth and harm him. There’s nothing brave about that. I definitely don’t look brave. I look like I’ve been through hell.” Audrey glanced at Ivy.
“Time will help. Time and the love you and Forrest have for each other. I brought some poultices a friend of mine makes. They’re infused with her healing magic which will work much better on you than my magic will. I’m not a healer. Put them on tonight and in the morning you will be completely healed.”
Ben handed Forrest a brown paper bag.
“Thank you,” said Audrey.
“We’re going to leave so you can get some rest.” Ivy stood up. “When you’re feeling better, Seth is going to stay with us for a few days.”
Audrey looked bewildered. “Why?”
Ivy smiled. “Consider it a late mating gift.” She winked.
Audrey’s eyes widened. Her face turned a deep pink. “Oh!”
“Don’t forget to put the poultices on and leave them on all night. If you have any questions or just want to talk, call me.” She smiled at Audrey before she turned her attention to the man standing behind the couch. “Forrest, you will have to remove the cast from her wrist so the poultice can be applied to it. We’ll show ourselves out.” Ivy took Ben’s hand and they walked out of the house.
Forrest glanced at his watch. “Seth will be home in a little while. Wes is picking him up from school. They’re going to stop by the pharmacy and pick up your prescriptions before they come home. Why don’t you take a nap while I start dinner.”
Audrey nodded. “I am kind of tired.”
“Either Seth or I will wake you so you can eat.” Forrest made sure she was comfortable and kissed her before he went to the kitchen.
Audrey closed her eyes. In a few minutes, she was sleeping.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Mated Hearts (Durant Brothers Book 1) Page 10
