Painted Scars

DAISY

April 2015

Lumen, Oregon

Being the head healer was usually a whirlwind, but today was a full-blown storm.

“Grace!” I hollered, pushing the door open to the Pack House’s emergency room. “Where the hell is Mae, and why did she let Kaylon get away?!”

Grace, one of my fellow healers, looked like a deer in headlights as she worked on an unconscious female soldier, trying to heal her wounds.

“I—I’m not sure, ma’am,” she stammered, her eyes never leaving the injured wolf. “M-Mae said Kaylon was okay.”

“Okay? With two broken legs and a twisted arm?!”

I was stunned. Sure, werewolves had impressive healing abilities, but even the strongest couldn’t just walk off injuries like that.

Seeing Grace already stressed, I bit back further anger and moved on, checking on the other wounded in the ER.

Then it was time to find Kaylon, who couldn’t have gotten far.

I found the stubborn wolf in the backyard of the Pack House, nearly unconscious.

“Can someone help me get this idiot back to his room!” I snapped.

Claire Hill, a sweet girl with soft chestnut hair and striking hazel eyes, appeared in the backyard. She was curvy and beautiful, and had Zachary Greyson completely smitten.

Over the past few weeks, since Chloe Danes’ death, she’d become a sort of friend to me.

But that’s a story for another time.

Claire gave me a small smile and silently helped me carry the twenty-year-old soldier back inside.

“Wow, he’s heavy,” she grunted, her face strained.

I grunted back. “Thanks for the help. I can’t believe he’s this reckless.”

She chuckled as we dragged him along.

Now a werewolf herself, Claire was stronger, but still adjusting to her new abilities and everything else the world now offered her.

“Zack would say it’s good exercise,” she said, her voice filled with affection. “He’s been trying to get me to lift weights. I told him if I did, he’d end up mated to a wrestler.”

Despite the situation, I couldn’t help but laugh. “Screw men,” I said, and Claire joined in my laughter.

Our laughter faded as we reached Kaylon’s room and dropped him on the bed. He groaned in pain.

I sighed. “Thanks again, Claire. I can handle it from here.”

She looked at me, concerned. “Are you sure? You look really pale. Should I get Daphne?”

People often assumed Daphne was the older sister between us.

She was tall, with a mature, beautiful face, and part of the Millennium Wolves crew.

She carried a confidence I didn’t have, probably because she was much prettier than me.

She had soft, wavy brown hair, smoky blue eyes, and a slender yet curvy figure with a beautiful, natural tan.

In contrast, I was pale, with dark brown hair. My eyes were blue, but a dull blue. I was pretty enough, but short and slim, and practically flat-chested.

I was so petite, people often thought I was five years younger than I actually was.

But that was beside the point.

“Daphne’s exhausted,” I told her, starting to check Kaylon for other injuries.

“She’s been healing the injured non-stop since they arrived. She needs a few hours to rest and recharge before she can continue,” I said.

Claire didn’t seem satisfied. “What about you, Daisy?” she asked. “Aren’t you getting tired too?”

That was my secret, one I hadn’t shared with anyone. When it came to healing, it took a lot more to wear me out.

“Don’t worry about me.” I dismissed her concern. “But, if you’re free, could you help me get updates on everyone who’s wounded, or no longer injured?”

“You got it,” she said, and left the room.

As she left, I started transferring healing energy from my skin to Kaylon’s. Then the fool opened his eyes and gave me a lazy grin.

I shot him a stern look. “Don’t give me that look, Kaylon.”

“Hmm…” He propped himself up on his elbows and I almost slapped him for using his twisted arm.

“Having you fuss over me like this…I can’t say it’s not a dream come true,” he said.

Ignoring him, I started bandaging a bullet wound in his waist.

But Kaylon seemed determined to push his luck.

“Rumor has it the season's just around the corner, Daze,” he murmured in what I think was supposed to be a seductive voice, “I want to have fun with you again.”

I wrapped the bandage so tightly around his waist that he grunted. Then I looked at him. “I’m not sleeping with you again, Kaylon.”

It had been a mistake a year ago, when I’d let him sweet-talk me into being his lover for that season.

He’d been good, but not enough to satisfy the intense desire all werewolves felt during the Haze.

Now Kaylon had it in his head that he had another chance with me.

No way. Not happening.

He sighed. “You’re breaking my heart.”

I hummed my healing magic to speed up the mending of his broken bones. “You’ll get over it.”

“But you’re so pretty,” he pouted.

“You’ll deal,” I said again.

“But—”

“Kaylon!” I barked, shooting him a stern look. He seemed taken aback.

On days like this, I had a tendency to get a bit sharp. Most people knew that, and Kaylon quickly figured out he’d crossed a line.

“Our pack just got hit by the Divine Hunters. While you’re busy talking nonsense, our soldiers are out there dying. So shut the fuck up and let me do my job!” I shot him a glare.

Kaylon finally got the message and clamped his mouth shut.

Once I was done with the young soldier, Claire filled me in on the others and I went to check in with my healers.

“Eliza,” I said to the newest member of our team, who was only seventeen, “do you think you can hold down the fort for a bit?”

Eliza needed to learn how to handle situations like this. She was an intern, after all.

I might be the youngest head healer in the history of the West Coast Pack, but I’d been training for this kind of situation long before Eliza even discovered her healing powers.

She gave a jerky nod. “Most of the injured here aren’t critical anymore. The rest of us can handle them, if you need to rest.”

I trusted her, but I decided to check with Iris too. The older healer confirmed Eliza’s assessment, even though new lines of worry creased her face.

All the healers were nearing their limit, but Daphne needed to recharge, and they’d said no one was critical anymore.

I knew they could handle things for now. There were more pressing matters to attend to.

Without wasting any more time, I headed to Gabe’s office and knocked.

“Come in, Daisy,” he called, and I stepped inside.

Gabe was on the phone, a serious look on his face. Zavier was pacing, eyes glued to the video on his phone.

I’d already seen it a few hours ago. It had gone viral worldwide—the brazen attack the Hunters had launched.

This day was anything but normal.

I tapped my foot impatiently on the floor, arms crossed, waiting for Gabe to finish his call.

Zavier glanced at me, and I shot him my best annoyed look. He scowled. I scowled back.

He sighed and resumed his pacing, smart enough not to provoke me further in my current mood.

Gabe finally hung up and turned to me. He had short, dark brown hair, and golden eyes a shade darker than his “brother”, Rafe.

He was tall and lean, more like a dancer than a muscular fighter, unlike most of the other alphas.

Next to him, Zavier looked like a Hollywood heartthrob, with long dirty-blonde hair, the greenish-blue eyes that were a Greyson family trademark, and a tall, ripped body with sun-kissed skin.

He was good-looking, I supposed, just like Gabe was attractive, but I was so close to them that I couldn’t see them as anything more than comrades.

That is, if I didn’t think about what happened last mating season. Which I didn’t.

Even though Gabe sometimes tried to remind me.

Luckily, Gabe seemed to sense my mood and decided not to push my buttons today.

“How are the injured, Daisy?” he asked, his eyes serious.

I could handle him when he was serious. It was when he tried to sweep me off my feet that I wanted to strangle him.

“No one is critical anymore,” I said. Both Zavier and Gabe visibly relaxed. “But the fight’s still going on. I need to go there.”

Gabe’s eyes hardened. “No.”

“This isn’t up for debate, Gabriel,” I said. “The Hunters, for whatever fucking reason, are attacking all of our sentries just outside the forest.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Eve and Raphael are halfway across the ocean, Jed’s in Texas, and our numbers have been significantly reduced in preparation for the Solstice Assembly.”

The Solstice Assembly, unlike the Yule Ball, was more of a family gathering.

Families visited their relatives in different packs, single werewolves went to roam in groups, and so on.

Since the Solstice was only a couple of months away, Gabe had allowed many families, and even soldiers, to leave the territory to visit their families.

And then today, without warning, a group of cloaked figures claiming to be the infamous Hunters attacked the sentries of Lumen.

A battle broke out.

Some wolves were killed. The injured were brought here to the Pack House.

But some were still fighting. It was almost evening now, and the surprise attack was still ongoing.

With Raphael and Eve visiting the Shanghai Pack, Jed at his post in Texas, Daphne out of commission, and our numbers dwindling, I needed to step in.

I hated when my people died, just like Gabe did, and I wanted to save whoever I could. We could sort out the details later.

“No.” Gabe’s voice was final, his eyes flashing wolf-gold. “You’re not going into that war zone. You’re the head healer, and you’re staying here. Everyone else will be fine.”

“You’re being an idiot, Gabriel,” I snapped, letting my own wolf surface, my eyes glowing a brilliant sky-blue.

“People, your people are dying because of the Hunters. I need to be out there, taking care of them. What do you think Raphael would say if Shade, or Zack, or Omar died?”

“He’d say they died fighting for what’s right,” Gabriel snapped back.

“Don’t give me cliched lines!” I shot back, feeling my wolf bristle under my skin. “I need to be out there, helping. That’s my job. My real job. You know it, and so do I.”

He stood up and fixed me with his alpha stare. I flinched, my wolf instinctively wanting to back down, despite my determination.

Sometimes, when Gabriel was being stubborn, I forgot that he was truly an alpha.

But when he gave me that look, I remembered.

“No,” he growled. “My decision is final. You’re too important. If something happened to you, all those people would think they got wounded for nothing. You’re staying here, Daisy, even if I have to lock you up in a cellar.”

A growl rose in my throat at his threat, but Gabriel was unyielding. He simply crossed his arms and dared me to argue with him.

The whole situation just made me angrier, and I found myself touching on a topic I’d sworn never to revisit.

“Is it because it’s me?” I questioned, my pride stinging at the idea that Gabe’s feelings for me might be influencing his decisions.

“If Flora or Celia were the head healer and asked you the same thing, would you still refuse?”

It seemed I’d overstepped. He let out a deep growl, and I instinctively stepped back.

“You’re staying here,” he declared. I could finally hear it in his tone—his concern, his near fear for me. “Now go back to where you belong, Daisy.”

I shot him a resentful glare, then stormed out of his office, slamming the door behind me.

Damn him. Damn him.

This wasn’t over. It was rare for our pack to face a direct threat. It had been years since the last time someone dared to encroach on our territory.

We were the most powerful pack in North America, and the largest. No one dared to cross us.

But now, this had happened. The Hunters, who usually kept a low profile and only targeted small groups of werewolves, were launching a full-scale attack on us.

I felt a heightened sense of responsibility to my people. The burden of my role weighed heavily on my slender shoulders.

My wolf needed me to step up. We shared our healing nature.

We had to help. I was determined to help.

For the first time in my life, I was going to defy a direct order from the alpha.

I wouldn’t let Gabriel make choices just because he had feelings for me.

Not if I had anything to say about it.