Chapter 5

Rhett

Fuck.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.

This wasn't good.

This so wasn't good.

Levi was trembling, his teeth chattering, heart beating erratically in his chest.

He probably hadn't noticed, but during the past hour, his steps had gotten progressively slower while putting more and more weight on me. I honestly wasn't sure if he was still really walking or if I was dragging him through the woods.

Please let us reach the ATV soon , I thought, internally thanking Grayson for insisting on placing one a couple of miles away from the cabin in case of emergency.

I'd laughed at him, told him I wouldn't need an ATV, I'd manage to get Levi out of there myself.

Now dread was filling my stomach like lead as my mate stumbled clumsily, his arm desperately grabbing at my fur to stay upright, his heart rate picking up a notch. I smelled his fear, smelled his desperation; the sour scent was a permanent reminder I needed to hurry the fuck up.

Levi stumbled again, a sob ripping from his throat as his whole body sagged against me.

Mate, safe , my wolf spurred me on, demanding I get Levi to safety now. He wasn't happy with me. In his opinion, I should've gotten our mate out of that cabin yesterday evening, when he'd started trembling and shivering nonstop.

But, stubborn as I was, I had insisted on waiting another day, deciding to head back to our pack and give Grayson a heads up about me bringing Levi home the next day.

I should've just said sorry for turning up with my mate out of the blue.

Instead, the storm picking up and changing its course had surprised me, leaving me sprinting through the woods, a race against time to get to my mate before anything happened to him or he did something stupid.

But he hadn't done anything stupid at all. I was the one to blame. After all, I was the one who'd known about the weather forecast, and still, I'd made the decision to leave him out there, thinking the weather wouldn't get that bad. I mean… a thunderstorm? Those were rare here, especially in fall. Something about temperatures not being high enough for cold and warm air to meet.

But of course, this had to be one of the rare times this weather phenomenon actually worked after the extraordinarily warm past few days.

I didn't see the lightning through the thick canopies, but I did hear the rolling thunder. It was loud, but not as loud as my mate's sobs next to my ear. His salty tears were a constant reminder of how badly I'd screwed up.

In wanting to buy a little time to figure out all the eventualities, think about all the possible scenarios of how Levi would react to his Wolfie being a shifter—and his soulmate at that—I'd gotten lost. I'd risked his health. And now I wouldn't even have a great conversation to make up for it.

"Please, Wolfie, I'm… I can't keep going like this," Levi whispered, his voice hoarse from crying; his words were shaky, as if speaking even that one sentence was taking more energy than he had left.

Just a little further , I wanted to tell him. Just a couple more minutes. We'd almost reached the ATV.

I owed Grayson big time.

Instead of answering like I wanted to, I turned my head and licked his cheek, flinching internally at the coldness of his skin, my wolf howling in despair.

Automatically, I started walking faster, dragging Levi through the forest. He wasn't walking anymore, his feet shuffling and dragging through the wet mud, arms desperately wrapped around me, clinging to me with all he had left.

Which wasn't much.

His grip was slipping as a fresh wave of fear soured his scent.

There!

Even from afar, I saw the glow sticks, their pale green light shining like a guiding star.

"What…" Levi whispered. Hope, or maybe desperation, helped him back on his feet, stumbling the last bit towards the lightly illuminated ATV while still clinging to me.

Those sticks had been another one of Gray's amazing ideas. I'd have found the damn thing on my own since my vision as a wolf was a lot better than the vision of a human, but for Levi, they were a desperately needed lifeline.

Entering the clearing, the wind gripped at us with fresh energy, dragging Levi back a step. He leaned against the wind, fought to get to the ATV, then fell to the ground next to it. Turning his head, he looked at me; the hope on his face shattering as he studied me.

"I… I can't drive that… that thing," he said, but his words were barely audible. Wiping at his eyes, he frantically shook his head. "You… I…"

With two steps, I was at his side, nudging against him, but he didn't react to me at all; he just curled into a ball next to the damn ATV, his whole body trembling.

Fuck.

Shift, my wolf demanded. Shift, now!

I knew what I had to do; the fear of losing my mate by far outweighed the possibility of him hating me or freaking out.

Right there, right in front of him, I took a deep breath and willed my body to shift. It wasn't hard, and my wolf was all too happy to comply and take a step back.

I heard Levi scream, saw him scrambling backwards, eyes huge as saucers, arms protectively raised in front of him. "What the fuck?"

My heart lurched inside my chest. This reaction, the fear emanating off of him, was the exact reason why I'd been dragging my feet. It was just the thing I'd been trying to prevent.

And now I'd gone and made it infinitely worse.

"Don't be afraid," I told Levi, crouching down in front of him. It was a stupid thing to say. Probably the stupidest thing I could've said. No one had ever stopped being afraid because someone had told them to. "I'm here to help."

"You… but… you…" Levi pointed at me, then wildly waved his arms. "Wolf," he finally managed to whisper.

"Yes," I said, carefully extending my hand, hoping like hell he'd take it. "I'm so sorry you had to find out like this. I had a whole plan of how to tell you, but I screwed up."

Levi eyed my hand suspiciously and shook his head.

That fucking hurt. Oh, I definitely deserved that reaction— and worse— but it still hurt.

"I'm hallucinating," he mumbled, voice barely there. "Definitely hallucinating. I probably got hit in the head by a falling branch. Or I got crushed beneath a tree. Or the cabin collapsed with me inside…"

He was still huddled against the ATV, curled up into a ball, frantically shaking his head.

I wanted to cry, wanted to slap myself for not talking to him earlier.

But I didn't have time. He didn't have time. His lips were turning blue, he was blinking more and more as if it was hard for him to keep his eyes open, and the shivering lessened.

"Listen, we need to get you out of here," I said, got up on my feet and stuck out my hand again, more adamantly this time. "I'll explain everything to you once we're safe. I promise."

He still didn't take my hand. Instead, he studied me, his eyes still wide open in disbelief.

"You're naked," he whispered, eyebrows raising until they disappeared beneath his hair.

"Shit. I mean… yeah. But fuck." I'd forgotten about that part. "There's a backpack on the handle of the ATV. I need to get it; my clothes are in there."

Once again, Grayson was saving my ass.

Sure, the clothes were probably soaking wet, but at least I had something to wear.

Levi buried his face in his hands. "I'm hallucinating," he repeated. "This is all just a bad dream."

I wanted to tell him he was, in fact, not hallucinating, but decided against it. The wind was picking up even more, and the rain soaking us thoroughly, washing away all the warmth our bodies tried to come up with. It was uncomfortable for me, but I was a shifter, and we ran warm. For us to die of hypothermia, we'd have to lie in this weather for days— and even then, it was unlikely we'd die unless we were previously injured or severely malnourished.

But for a human? Dangerous.

Get going, my wolf snarled. I complied, carefully walked around Levi— making sure to keep a couple of steps between us so as to not spook him— grabbed the backpack, and put on the sweatpants and shirt.

That done, I crouched down in front of him again.

His face was pale, almost ashen, the bluish-purple lips a stark contrast to his light skin. He blinked at me slowly, eyes closing for almost a second before he opened them again.

"We need to get going," I told him, extending my hand one last time, praying to the goddess he'd take it. I didn't want to manhandle him, didn't want to pick him up without his consent, but if he didn't take my hand now, I wouldn't have a choice. He could be mad at me later—but he needed to be alive for that. "Please take my hand. Let me help you. You're hypothermic."

"Tired," he slurred.

"I know. But you need to stay awake for me. Please ."

Levi blinked sluggishly, eyes wandering to my hand.

"Wolfie?"

Was he hallucinating now? I was currently all human, no wolf. Still, I decided to play along. We didn't have time for discussions. "Yes, that's right, I'm your Wolfie. Do you remember how I helped you find freshwater and shelter? I'm trying to help you right now. I need you to trust me. You're in danger."

As if the weather had just been waiting for me to say that a branch came crashing down a couple of feet away from us, hitting the ground with a dull thump, drops of mud hitting us with a splash.

Levi flinched, his eyes staring at the almost thigh-thick branch in horror. After a couple of seconds, his eyes wandered back to me and he finally, finally grabbed my hand. His skin was cold as ice. I shivered and pulled him to his feet.

"Can you hold on to me?" I asked.

"Hmm?"

"On the ATV. If I sit in front of you, can you hold on to me?"

He shrugged, eyes falling closed again.

Dammit.

I lifted up the seat to get to the hidden compartment beneath and grabbed one of the ropes we stashed in there. Usually, we used it for deer or to mark trees. I'd never used it to tie someone up. I'd definitely never imagined using it to tie my mate to me.

But nothing about meeting my mate and telling him about shifters had gone the way I'd expected, so adding this was just another point on the long list of my screw ups.

I don't think me holding a rope even registered with my mate. Upon closing the compartment box, I found him clinging to the handle of the ATV, swaying on his feet, his face scrunched up in concentration—probably to stay upright.

"Okay, let's go," I said. I didn't want to spook him, so I walked around him and made sure he could actually see me before reaching for him.

I helped him onto the ATV, climbed up in front of him, wrapped his arms around me and told him to hold on to me. Then I started wrapping the rope around his shoulders crossing it behind his back like one would do with a baby sling—at least that was what I was aiming for—and twisted and turned until I was sure I had my mate securely tied to me in a way that wouldn't strangle him or let him fall off if he lost consciousness.

Then, I started the ATV, thanking the goddess and Grayson when it rumbled to life, the headlights illuminating the thick branch laying across what was supposed to be our path.

Go , my wolf urged.

Carefully, I manoeuvred us around the branch, going slowly at first. The ground was a soggy, muddy mess, making it hard for the wheels to get traction, and harder to spot the firm roots of the trees—even with my shifter vision and the headlights illuminating our way.

Levi's ragged, warm breaths hit my neck, constantly reminding me of what was at stake; my mate's health. His life. Failure was not an option. I needed to get us out of here right now—but I also needed to be careful. Humans were painfully fragile. Having an accident now could be fatal for him.

Fortunately, the nearest road was only a couple of miles away. It was a little detour, but I figured it'd be worth it. Driving on asphalt would definitely allow me to go faster than driving through the mud, manoeuvring around fallen trees and branches, evading raised roots and huge puddles.

Upon reaching the road, I felt my mate go slack against me. My heart lurched, my wolf howled pitifully, and I wasn't ashamed to feel tears burning in my eyes.

Turning right, I sped up as much as I dared, hoping to hell the road wouldn't be blocked by too many trees.

I needed to get my mate to safety. To get him warm. To make sure he was okay. And then I'd never let him out of my sight again—not even for a second.

My wolf whined in agreement. He wanted our mate in our bed, tucked beneath my thick down comforter, with him curled up next to our mate, giving him a little extra warmth.

We can't go home , I told him, regret filling my chest. My heart was hammering, fear for my mate pulsing through my veins. The only thing that kept my panic at bay was his breath against my neck.

Why? My wolf pawed at my chest.

Too far away.

Unfortunately, that was the truth.

While I would love nothing more than to tuck my mate into my bed, keep him safe in my cabin, it wasn't the sensible thing to do.

No, the only sensible thing to do was to get him to warmth as soon as possible and seeing that our packhouse was closest to my current location, that was where we were going. Also, my mate needed a doctor. Desperately.

The pack had a doctor. And knowing Jasper, he was probably staying in the packhouse for the night. If he wasn't, he'd be in his apartment over his clinic in town, which was also closer than my cabin in the woods.

Why had I felt the need to buy a cabin so far away from everyone?

By the time I finally turned the ATV into the long driveway to our packhouse, I'd lost every sense of time. I couldn't hear anything above the blood rushing in my ears, the heavy pour of rain and the howling winds.

My mate was frighteningly cold against me, his breath the only source of warmth.

He couldn't die.

He couldn't die on me now.

He just couldn't.

The packhouse came into view, a huge wooden lodge that not only held our communal spaces but housed quite a few of the younger or newer pack members as well.

Relief flooded me upon seeing the windows on the first floor lit up, shadows moving behind the drawn curtains.

"We're here," I told my mate, even though I knew he couldn't hear me. "You're safe."

I hadn't even reached the parking spaces in front of the building when the door was ripped open. Gray's imposing figure stood in the doorway, all six and a half feet of him illuminated by the lights behind him, his almost waist long black hair whipping in the wind.

"Get Jasper!" I heard him shouting just as I killed the engine.

The next moment, he was at my side, steadying me and my mate.

"What the fuck did you do?" he shouted, tugging at the rope connecting me to my mate.

"He was losing consciousness." We had no time for me to explain my whole thought process. Fortunately, Gray seemed to understand what was going on without more words. He gripped the ropes and ripped them apart, catching my unconscious mate before he could slide off the vehicle.

Cradling Levi against his chest, Gray waited until I'd gotten off the ATV, then handed my mate over. Together, we ran back inside, where more than ten people were already waiting for us. Some had blankets in their hands, others were equipped with towels, and I even saw Jeanne holding what looked like mugs filled with tea and cocoa. All in all, we barely managed to get through the door and lock it behind us.

"Let them through!" a firm voice bellowed and the crowd parted for us, forming a path. At the end of said path, right in the middle of the big foyer, Jasper was waiting for me, his doctor's bag in hand.

Relief filled me upon seeing him.

"Get him upstairs," he said, nodding towards the stairs.

"We have one of the guest rooms ready," Grayson added. "I had a feeling you might need it. Third floor, the last room on the right side."

Gratitude flooded my system, combined with a whole lot of shame because dammit, I should've never let it come this far. I should've listened to Gray. In failing to listen to my Alpha, I'd risked my mate.

Even though my mate's clothes were soaked with water, he barely weighed anything, his slender body no match for my shifter strength, so running up the stairs with him in my arms was no problem. I'd take care of the wet trail we were leaving behind later.

Jasper and Gray followed suit as did a couple other packmates, especially those I worked with closely. However, once we entered the room, Jasper grabbed all the blankets and towels, then firmly shut the door in everyone's faces.

"You need to get him out of his clothes," he told me.

Hesitating for a second, I looked at my packmate. "All his clothes?"

Gray snorted, but Jasper just gave a grim nod. "Everything that's wet. Considering how long the two of you have been out there, I'd guess everything is wet. Now is not the time for modesty, Rhett. Get him out of his clothes and place him on the bed, please. Then get rid of your own clothes."

I carried Levi into the en-suite bathroom, laid him down on a bathmat, and started carefully removing layer upon layer of soaking wet, cold fabric. Jacket, sweater, shirt, undershirt, shoes, socks, jeans, and boxers, until he was lying in front of me completely bare, and the only sign he was still alive was the even rise and fall of his chest.

Not wanting to miss even a second, I covered Levi with a towel, then got up and ripped my clothes to shreds without hesitation. I could replace them. Hell, the pack basically had a standing order on sweatpants and shirts because those got shredded on a regular basis.

Gently, I tried drying Levi with the towel, then picked him up, cradled him in my arms, and carried him back to the guest room where I placed him on the bed just as Jasper had ordered me to do.

He didn't waste a second.

Immediately after I'd laid my mate down, Jasper shoved me aside and got to work. He covered my mate with one of those foil blankets, then placed the comforter over it before getting his stethoscope out.

My irritation grew upon seeing someone else caring for my mate when I should be the one providing for him. My wolf was pissed. He didn't get why I was being shoved aside.

I did get it, but I didn't like it.

The worry swirling in my gut mixed with my wolf's anger, the guilt I was feeling and the utter fear of losing my mate before I'd even really had a chance to get to know him.

"Hey." Gray placed a hand on my shoulder and turned me around so I could face him. "Take a deep breath, okay?" He stared at me, his warm, brown—almost black—eyes firmly trained on me until I followed his advice and inhaled slowly and deeply. The corner of his mouth twitched. "Again." I did, and he smiled at me, his hand still firmly on my shoulder, keeping me from turning back around to my mate.

I hated not being able to see him. My instincts were screaming at me to get my eyes back on him so I could make sure he was fine.

"Your mate is in good hands," Gray said, his rough voice unusually gentle. "Jasper will help him, but you need to give him room to do so, okay? You did a good job, Rhett."

I wanted to protest because no, I really hadn't done a good job at all, but Gray levelled me with a stare and shook his head. "You did," he reiterated, squeezing my shoulder a little. "You were trying not to overwhelm him. I admire your willingness to put your mate's comfort first. Did it work out? No. But you didn't know the storm would change directions or pick up speed, and neither did I. If I had known the weather would turn this badly, I'd have ordered you to bring your mate. But I didn't."

"Because you trusted me not to endanger him." I laughed hollowly, my throat constricting. Who willingly put his mate in this much danger?

"Because you're a good judge of character. Because out of the two of us, you're the one that's levelheaded. You're the one who thinks things through before acting. You were willing to put your mate first and to wait until you'd formed a solid plan, even though I know not barging in and taking control over the situation must've killed you and your wolf."

"Yeah… and what good did it do?"

Gray placed both hands on my shoulders, shaking me. "You're not a freaking god, okay? You're not responsible for the fucking weather taking a turn for the worst, so get that through your thick head! Stop beating yourself up for what went wrong and focus on what's important; you got your mate out. You brought him here, Jasper's taking care of him, and I need you to focus because when Jasper is done with his examination, he'll need you to take over. And you can't do that if you don't get it together. Now, put on some clothes and listen to what our good doctor here tells you."

Nodding, I walked over to the closet and blindly reached for a shirt and sweatpants.

Get it together , I told myself, brushing a hand through my wet hair. You need to get it together. For your mate.

Easier said than done.