Page 27 of Guarding the Runaway Omega

When the one Nic had referred to as Jackson paused, not appearing as if he was going to obey his Alpha’s command, Nic arched his eyebrows and gave the man a steely glare. Jackson pressed his lips together then nodded.

“Yes, Alpha. I’ll be nearby if you need my help.”

Nic ran a hand across his short-cropped platinum hair. “Thank you.” He turned to Asha as the other pack members left. “Should I wait outside?”

She chuckled. “Oh my, no. You’ll need to bear witness.”

Nic and Hawk exchanged glances.

Bear witness to what?

Asha rose slowly from her rocking chair then gestured to a blanket-covered mat in the corner of the tiny room. The stone fireplace had a comfortable blaze going and the small space was quite warm. Hawk had only been able to grab the coat he’d given Jasper so he could wrap his naked form when he’d retrieved him from the truck. As he carried Jasper to the makeshift bed, he pondered whether it was where Asha slept. He couldn’t tell whether there was a bedroom in the cottage, or if the arched door in the back shielded a bathroom. A small wood stove with an iron kettle set on top and a mini fridge were located on the other side of the front entrance, so he imagined that the open area was the majority of the home’s square footage.

Hawk squatted so he could lay Jasper down gently, his body so limp he seemed boneless. The moaning had ceased but Hawk wasn’t sure if that was a good thing. He rose then stepped away to allow Asha room. He rubbed his chest with one hand as he and Nic stood side by side, observing the Healer’s actions.

She began by kneeling next to the mat, then ran a palm about an inch or two above Jasper’s body as if scanning him. Hawk recognized the gesture as something his grandmother used to do when checking the energy of sick villagers. While he’d learned many herbal recipes from both his mother and grandmother, he wished he’d paid better attention, wished he knew more. He’d been too concerned about his shifter side that he hadn’t placed as much value on what he could’ve gleaned from them.

She cocked her head and smiled up at him. “It’s not too late, Hawk. I have much to teach if you have an ear to listen.”

Hawk gasped as she returned to tending to Jasper.

Nic leaned in and whispered next to his ear, “She does that. It’s jarring at first, but you get used to it.”

Asha rested her hand on Jasper’s abdomen, right over his navel where Jasper had told him he’d been operated on. Hawk’s stomach had already twisted into a million knots and he thought he might go crazy from how scared he was for Jasper. She closed her eyes, not moving, and the minutes seemed to stretch into hours. He bit his lip, barely able to keep still when she laid her other palm on Jasper’s forehead.

The compulsion to badger her with questions, to insist on knowing what was wrong with Jasper immediately, was powerful enough that it required every ounce of strength he had not to blurt out a demand for answers. Asha lifted her gaze to meet his again.

“He’s not dying, but he needs a lot of care to get the remaining poison they filled him with out of his system. Otherwise, he won’t be strong enough to shift normally and that will cause him health troubles for the rest of his life.” She shook her head. “And he’ll need his strength.” She extended her hand, chuckling. “Help me up, Hawk. I’m afraid I’m not as spry as I once was.”

Hawk rushed to help her, and as soon as she was upright, she patted his arm. “Would you like to have your first lesson, my dear?”

“Thank you.” He lowered his head. “I’d appreciate it very much.”

He spent the next few minutes learning the right combinations of herbs, along with an important essential oil, that would make up the concoction that would draw the poison from Jasper’s body.

The water-filled kettle Asha had set to boil on the stove began to steam and she instructed Hawk to remove it from the heat. She then placed the carefully prepared mixture into a mug and offered it to Hawk so he could pour the water on top.

“Now we let it steep for four minutes. After that, he’ll be ready to take a few sips.” She glanced in Jasper’s direction. “Only a small amount at first, so his system doesn’t go into shock. We have to be careful.”

Hawk nodded. “Okay. Whatever I need to do. If you don’t mind writing down the schedule and amounts, I’ll watch over him around the clock.”

She grinned, her eyes crinkling with deep lines at the corners. “Oh, you can visit as often as you like, but he must stay here until I’m sure there are no setbacks.” She tsked. “I’m afraid these poisons are not of our people. They’re chemicals I’ve never come across before, modern aberrations meant to control something that should never be controlled.”

Nic interjected. “The ability to shift.”

Asha sighed. “Oh yes, there’s that too. So unnatural and dangerous for our kind. That’s what makes it so ironic.” She chuckled. “They tried to dictate the entire process, not realizing that the prophecy from our ancient texts indicated that our men would evolve to that state again naturally. Hurrying things along then suppressing the shift created a dangerous situation.” Asha smiled up at Hawk. “But you got him here in time. The baby won’t be harmed.”

Hawk choked on his own spit. Clearly, he’d missed something. Or did I simply refuse to see? Nic let out a low whistle and Hawk found himself trembling uncontrollably. His ravenous hunger for sex, the natural lubrication, the knot… He swallowed hard. The operation.

“Uh, he’s…I mean, they’re going to be all right?”

“Yes, my dear, they’ll be fine.” She gestured to an arm chair. “But you might need to sit down and have some calming tea.” She chuckled again. “Or perhaps some brandy?”

Hawk ran both palms down his face, his thoughts jumbled. As long as they’re okay, that’s what matters. Everything else can be figured out later.

Nic cleared his throat. “Hmm. This sheds a new light on things. Asha? Would you permit me to stay and ask Hawk some questions? The councils from the Alliance, sans the Yukon Deltas, held an emergency meeting here last night. Based on the interrogation of two Delta shifters who were captured in Guardian territory, we’d planned on invading a facility about two hundred miles northwest of here. We’d assumed it was a military base of some sort, a weapons stash and possibly a hideout for planning a war against the Alliance. But now I’m seeing there’s something more sinister to it than that.”

Asha grinned. “For such intrigues, we should stick to tea.” She guided Nic to her rocking chair. “I’ll fix the tea. Then if you could grab my footstool so I can tend to Jasper, you gentleman can carry on with what you need to do.”