Chapter 265
Kasen focused intensely on his task at hand. He was one with the water, one with nature. He felt each vibration in the water, each movement to hone in on his prey. A fish was here, a big one. Waiting for dinner to come by. He stretched out his being encasing the life around him.
His muscles tightened, preparing for the catch. Then a distant gasp barely registered in his brain. He chose to ignore it, but his wolf didn’t.
Danger and the need to protect drove through him so quickly, he almost subconsciously shifted. He jumped back and looked around, trying to figure out what happened to him. Then he saw Andi’s floating body headed downstream.
He kicked into a freestyle stroke, desperate to catch her before she reached the rough water and the falls. His insides were ready to explode with fear. He’d never been this scared in his life, and it wasn’t even about him dying. But he’d prefer to be the one to go. He wouldn’t want to live without Andi in his life.
The current flowed faster than he expected. Why did it seem so lazy when watching from the shore? As the channel narrowed, the water picked up speed. In an instant, she was farther away than before.
His wolf could do nothing to help. A four-legged animal wasn’t any faster swimming than a human. Both felt helpless. Begging for strength from his wolf, Kasen was able to gain ground. He kicked furiously, driving forward. Time was running out. The rapids were approaching quickly. Hopefully a fallen tree would snag her before they got too close.
Andi slid over a shallow dip into a rockier section. No trees or logs were in the water to stop her advance. She slipped around boulders and eddies, stuck in the main current headed downstream.
He was getting closer, but with nothing to slow Andi down, he had no hope of reaching her in time. Ahead, water pushed her back onto a flat-top rock. But that wouldn’t last long with the sweeping movement dragging against her legs. But the delay let him get closer.
Reaching out, he snagged her fingers, but her hand was ripped away with a side current. He tried harder, pushing his body past physical limitations. His legs and knees smashed against boulders and debris in the water. His feet scraped and were cut from sharp rocks and sticks along the river bed shallows. He’d pay for it later, but if Andi survived, his pain would be well worth it.
The roar of water crashing at the bottom of the falls filled his ears. The water gained momentum, smoothly flowing toward the drop. He was so close to her. In one last effort, he thrust forward and tangled his hands in her hair. He pulled her to him and wrapped around her as he felt the bottom fall out from under them.
For eternity, they fell. Slamming into the pool below with such force, it took his breath away. That was fine for a second. It wasn’t like he could breathe underwater anyway. His wolf kept him from losing consciousness, driving the emotions to stay alive and save the love of his life. With Andi in his arms, he couldn’t fight the continuous press of the water coming from above. If he didn’t get out now, Andi would die.
Time passed slowly, yet in the blink of an eye. The whole terrifying journey couldn’t have been more than a couple minutes, but it took forever to live through. With determination, Kasen plowed through the water toward the bank and dragged Andi out.
He immediately began CPR, pumping her chest in a rhythmic daze. One and two and three and four and… “C’mon, cat. Don’t let her die. Bring her out of it.” He hoped her animal heard his plea, because there was nothing else he could do.
Andi’s body jerked. He rolled her onto her side and she coughed out water. Her eyes opened briefly, but rolled up after the water flowed from her mouth. He put his ear to her chest. Her heart beat and lungs expanded on their own.
Emotions so intense rocketed him, there was only one way to release. He dropped his head back and let out a howl that would carry for miles. Everyone who heard would drop what they were doing and hurry to the alpha house, including the shifter doctor.
Kasen paced his bedroom, waiting for the doctor to give his diagnosis. In the living room, several of the pack had gathered to lend support and see what the alpha needed done. Even though whispers were low, he heard conversations discussing his mate.
Some were fine with having a lioness as an alpha mate. As long as Kasen was happy. Others, mostly mothers with single daughters, weren’t so welcoming. At the moment, he didn’t care what they thought. If they didn’t like his choice, they could leave the pack to live elsewhere.
The doctor pulled his stethoscope from his ears and sighed. “All her vitals are normal. Her heart sounds good and lungs are clear. No bumps on the head. I don’t know why she’s still unconscious, Kasen. There’s more going on here than I can see without tests.”
He nodded. “Thanks for coming so quickly, Doc. I appreciate it.”
“Not a problem. If she doesn’t wake up before morning, I’d like to set up an IV to keep her from dehydrating.” Kasen paled. “No worries, son. Just precautionary. I want to keep her healthy for her body to heal itself.”
Doc patted a hand on Kasen’s shoulder then walked out. Kasen stepped out and called Spike into the room.
“Hey, what did the doctor say?” Spike asked.
Kasen shrugged. “She’s physically fine, but no reason for her to be out.”
“Have you tried talking to her cat yet?”
“No, that’s what I wanted to talk with you about. Can you keep everything under control while I shift? I’m mainly meaning my mother. I’m surprised she hasn’t shown yet. She must be in town shopping or something.”
“Yeah, sure. I’ll release everyone who’s here. I heard some of the ladies wanted to bring some food over to help out.”
“That’d be great. I’ll never turn down food.”
Spike grunted. “I know, right. I got it covered, alpha. Do what you need.”
“Thanks, man.” Kasen waited for Spike to close the door behind him before taking off his damp pants. He hadn’t taken the time to change from the river yet. He really wanted to crawl onto the bed and snuggle with his love. He needed to see if he could talk with her animal first.
Quickly morphing onto four legs, he padded up to the bed and laid his head on her arm. His tongue snaked out for a fast kiss on her hand. He took a deep breath and relaxed, opening himself to her. Her cat was there but sluggish. Images of Andi’s last seconds flashed in his head: her slapping at a bug on her back, that wasn’t a bug. He saw fingers from her point of view pull out the cause of the sting. He glimpsed a little red feather before she blacked out. The little red feather of a tranq dart.
Anger and hatred coursed through him. Someone purposely endangered her. They intentionally wanted his mate to drown. He was going to explode if he didn’t get out of there. He let out another howl and Spike came running. When the door opened, Kasen ran out. One of the members on their way out the front door stepped back and held it open. He slashed past, almost a blur.
Run, run, more. He needed to wear himself down before the animal got it in his mind to kill everyone in the pack to make sure the person who attacked his mate was killed. He headed toward their picnic spot. Maybe he could sniff out the soon-to-be dead man.
Panting heavily, Kasen’s wolf slowed to a trot along the river’s side. He looked for the tree roots past the beach where they stood before Andi floated away. He sniffed the area for clues. Her scent with a touch of fear was all that remained. Either the culprit used a block or had no smell, which wasn’t possible. Carefully searching the ground, he found a place where the leaves were particularly disturbed, like someone had stood and moved around the tree. It had a clear view to the roots.
Fuck. No smell. No way to ID the guy. Frustration mounted again. He wanted to tear something apart. Rip it from limb to limb until the anger in him faded. The wolf took off at high speed again. Run, run, more.
Finally wore down, the wolf dragged home through the backyard, around the pool and gardens to the front. The sun was almost down, bringing in cool night air. Spike jumped up from the porch swing and opened the unlocked front door. Kasen chuffed, remembering the fiasco only a few hours ago.
Inside, Kasen shifted to two feet, walked into his bedroom, closed the door behind him, and crawled behind Andi and snuggled her closely. He would never let her go, no matter how stubborn she was against him. She was his.
He must’ve fallen asleep because he suddenly woke up. He looked around to get his bearings. Voices came from the other room. One voice in particular was his mother’s. Fuck. He slipped on a pair of sweatpants and an old T-shirt. Ready to get this confrontation over with, he schlepped out the door.
“Hello, Mom. What do you want?” His mother and Spike quieted their argument.
She gasped, lifting a brow and pursing her lips. “Well, that’s not a polite way to greet your mother.”
He wanted to disagree, but kept his mouth closed and lumbered to the fridge for food. When he didn’t reply, she huffed.
“Kasen, I heard you were on a date with that cat woman again.”
He straightened with a container of orange juice in his hand. He twisted the lid off and tipped back the plastic gallon jug. After a few chugs, giving him time to think, he put the lid back on and stuck the juice in the refrigerator. His mother grimaced.
“Mother, look at me.” He gestured to his shabby clothes. “Does it look like I’m on a date?”
Her reply bumbled. “Why didn’t you answer your phone?” He looked around the counters.
“Spike, you see my phone anywhere?”
“Not me. I will do my best to keep up with myself.”
Kasen shrugged. “Must’ve left it somewhere, Mom. Sorry.” His indignation at his mother’s constant intrusion into his life was starting to get to him. “You know, Mom, who I date and socialize with are not your concern. I’m more than capable of picking out who I want to be with.”
Her eyes narrowed. This was the first time she’d shown outright hostility. “I am aware you are capable of finding a mate. I’m concerned about it being the best choice for this pack. Docile, domestic, baby driven.”
“Well, concern yourself no more, Mother. I have it under control. I’ve made a decision.”
Surprise covered her face. “You have? Who is it?”
“Yeah,” he’d forgotten Spike was there, “who is it?”
His frown turned to his beta. “I will announce it tomorrow night at dinner.” He turned to his mother. “That is still on, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it is. Tell me who, so I can make sure she’s there,” his mother demanded. He wasn’t about to be cowed into submission.
“Don’t worry about her.” He patted his mother on the back and aimed her toward the door. “She knows who she is, and she will be there. I may even pick her up myself and bring her with me. Yes, I think I’ll do that.”
Kasen opened the door and nicely pushed her out before she could say anything. “I’ll see you tomorrow night at your and Dad’s house. Okay? Goodnight, Mother.”
He closed the door and blew out a breath. Now he just needed to convince Andi to go with him tomorrow night.