Pretty Baby(22)

Tommy glanced at the two bloody men lying on the ground several feet  from him then back to his own mate. "No, I know how dangerous this is,  Joe. My mate is lying here, bleeding all over the place, possibly dying.  I don't think it gets more dangerous than that."

Joe didn't answer, but Tommy heard a car screech to a stop. He looked to  the entrance of the alleyway and saw Joe climb out of his SUV. Before  he had even closed the door and walked around to the front of his  vehicle, Daniel and Ben walked around the corner. All three men hurried  down the alley.

Tommy watched his father squat down next to Elliot and run his hands  over the wolf's bloody fur. His face was morose, the corner of his lips  pulled down in a deep frown. Tommy could feel the vibes of anger coming  off his father and swallowed.

"I'm sorry, Dad," he said quietly, his fingers clenching in Elliot's fur.

Daniel looked up, surprise making his eyebrows shoot up. "I know, son,  but let's not worry about that right now. Our first priority needs to be  Elliot. We'll deal with this other stuff after we know he's safe."                       
       
           



       

Tommy nodded. That pretty much summed up where his thoughts were. "If  you can get the back hatch, I'm going to put him in Joe's SUV. That way I  can climb in with him."

"Can you lift him on your own or do you need help?"

"I can get him." He didn't want anyone else touching his mate.

Tommy carefully slid his hands under Elliot and lifted the wolf into his  arms. He grunted a little at his mate's weight when he stood to his  feet, then carried Elliot toward the truck.

"Let me get a blanket spread out for him."

Tommy waited for his father to open the back hatch then spread out a  blanket before gently lying Elliot down inside the vehicle. He quickly  climbed in beside Elliot and lifted the wolf's head onto his lap.

Elliot still hadn't woken up and Tommy was beginning to become very  concerned. He didn't know what he would do if Elliot was seriously  injured. He'd be lost without Elliot now that he had found him and they  hadn't even completed the mating yet.

"Dad, I-" Tommy pressed his lips together and shook his head. He just  couldn't imagine life without Elliot, even if they had only known each  other for a couple of days. He'd never have another connection with  someone like he did Elliot.

"We'll figure this out, Thomas."

Tommy nodded, but he wasn't sure he believed the man. Everything in the  world seemed to be conspiring to keep him and Elliot apart, and he just  didn't understand that. Mates were supposed be destined by fate. So, why  was fate fucking with them?

Tommy leaned back against the side of the SUV and cradled Elliot's  muzzle in his lap. He gently stroked the side of his face as he waited  for them to arrive at Joe's house and the doctor. It couldn't happen  fast enough for him. He heaved a sigh of relief when he spotted the  doc's car sitting in the driveway as they drove up.

"Doc's here, Elliot. He'll make you all better." Tommy knew Elliot  couldn't understand him, maybe didn't even hear him, but he had to try.  There had to be some way to reach Elliot. Tommy refused to give up.  Elliot was just too important.

The moment the hatch opened up, Tommy scooted to the edge and climbed  out. He reached back inside and carefully lifted Elliot into his arms.  Elliot's chest was still moving so Tommy knew he was alive, but he was  worried that the man hadn't opened his eyes, well, the wolf anyway. He  would deal with the whole man versus wolf thing after he knew Elliot  would live.

The trip inside of the house was quick. Doc Jones was waiting in the  kitchen with Nate and Maryann. The small kitchen table had been covered  with a blanket and Tommy quickly laid Elliot down on that. He stepped to  the side but refused to move away from Elliot even when the doctor  arched an eyebrow at him.

"He's my mate. I'm not leaving."

"Just stand out of my way then."

Tommy nodded and stepped to the end of the table near Elliot's back  paws. He gently stroked his hand over Elliot's hindquarter as he watched  Doc Jones work on his mate. It seemed to take forever. There was so  much blood.

By the time the doc had cleaned off the blood, Elliot's injuries became  more visible. He had several long scratches down his torso and one deep  stab wound between his shoulder blades. It was the injuries Tommy  couldn't see that concerned him. He distinctly remembered one of the men  attacking them kicking Elliot in the side.

"Doc, one of the guys that attacked us kicked Elliot in the side several times."

Doc nodded as he felt along Elliot's side. "Yes, I believe he might have  a few broken or fractured ribs, nothing that won't heal over time. It's  this stab wound between his shoulders that concerns me the most. It's  pretty deep."

Tommy winced when the doc probed at the wound with his fingers and a  bunch of blood welled up from the injury and dripped down through  Elliot's white fur. There was a part of him that was grateful that  Elliot was unaware of what was happening right now. The thought of his  little mate in pain was unacceptable to Tommy.

"Will he be okay, doc?"

"Well, that's hard to say, Tommy. It would be better if he just shifted. He would heal much faster that way."

"I don't know if he can shift back, doc." Tommy waved one hand at Nate,  who stood near the sink. "Nate says Elliot's human side is gone."

Doc Jones frowned and paused to look over at Tommy. "Is that even possible?"

"I don't know. I'm not sure I know anything anymore. Nate says Elliot's  human side is gone. If that's true, I … " Tommy shook his head. "I just  don't think that's possible. You've never met Elliot, so you wouldn't be  able to understand how special he is, how much life is in him. I just  don't see him going away and leaving me like that."                       
       
           



       

"I've never heard of something like this happening, so I couldn't say  one way or another." Doc Jones pointed to the gaping wound in Elliot's  back. "I do know that if he doesn't shift, he might bleed to death. His  wolf form is not strong enough to heal this injury. He needs to shift."

Tommy began to shake as fearful images of life without Elliot began to  form in his mind. It just didn't seem possible to just find his mate and  then lose him, all in a matter of hours. He hadn't even been able to  complete the mating. Between Joe trying to arrest him, his father  interrupting them, and the trip to Joe's house to discuss Elliot's  father, there had been too many interruptions and not enough time to  complete the mating.

"No," Tommy said as he shook his head, "I refuse to give up on Elliot. I  know he's in here somewhere." Tommy suddenly remembered Roane and the  dream walking. He snapped his fingers. "And I think I know how to do  it."

Tommy pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed the bar where  he worked. He tapped his fingers anxiously against the table as he  waited for his boss to pick up the phone. "Bishop?"

"Yeah."

"It's Tommy, is Levi still there?"

"Yeah, sure, he's right here."

"I need to talk to him."

Tommy heard a small rustling sound then Levi's slow easy drawl. "Yo."

"Levi, I need your help. Elliot's been hurt and I need to reach him  really fast. Doc says if he doesn't shift, he could die. Can you talk to  your friend for me? I think I need to do that dream walking thing you  told me about."

"Roane? Yes, I suppose I can do that."

"Thanks, that would be great. You can reach me at this number or at  Nate's house." Tommy let out a sigh of relief. "And Levi, time is of the  essence. Elliot is fading with every passing minute."

"Yeah, I hear you, man. I'll get in touch with Roane and get back to you as soon as I can."

"Thanks, Levi."

Tommy snapped his phone closed and shoved it back in his pocket. He  leaned on the counter and tried to calm his racing heart. He hoped that  this dream walking thing would help him reach his mate because Tommy was  out of ideas.

He finally looked up at the faces watching him. "Levi and Nate have this  friend, Roane, who knows how to dream walk. He thinks he might be able  to lead me to Elliot's human side."

Nate smacked himself in the forehead. "Damn! I should have thought of  Roane. That makes perfect sense. Does Levi know where Roane is hiding  these days?"

"He says he has a few ideas, but his main concern is getting Roane to help us."

Nate grimaced. "Yeah, that part might not be so easy."

"How bad were things for Roane?"

"Worse than mine."