The Solitary Mate

Chapter 22

The room moved around me in a blur for the first five minutes. By the time it came into focus I realized Don had been talking but his voiced sounded like he was trapped in a fishbowl. I felt baffled by his words and found myself stating so, "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"Oh sorry, I know it's a lot of information at once." I had no idea what information he was referring to but nodded in agreement hoping that would get me through the interaction. I glanced around the room once more, taking the time to focus on little details and things began to fall into focus.

Beakers, microscopes, operation tables, a wall of herbs, surgical equipment, diagrams of the body in both human and wolf form. Everything and more surrounded me all for the purpose of saving lives after battle. If Don had truly established all this himself, I could tell he was a very thorough man.

"The way we just came is where we take in patients. Some cases are worse than others, but we do what we can. We have a wall of herbs and books passed down by my mother containing antidotes for a variety of poisons and ailments."

My eyes found their way to the worn pages of a collection of books on a nearby shelf. It was clear they had been used many times before. The lives saved from those pages alone most be astronomical. "If you don't mind, I'd like to look through those later and possibly contribute some antidotes of my own. My family has been caring for our pack for generations and we have a similar tradition." Don smiled at me like an old friend.

"I would be honored to have your contributions. And please, feel free to take from us as well if it suits your needs." I nodded and made a mental note to return to this shelf later. I could tell I would be spending a wealth of time there.

Don showed us around the remainder of the facility and I took note of a few things as we walked through the facility. It was a controlled chaos. Everyone clearly had a job and there was much to do. Patients being wheeled back and forth, medical supplies being dropped off at various rooms, bodies switching in and out of rooms taking turns to rest. There was a flow, but it was busy like a river in spring. Bustling with movement and life.

"How can I help?" Don smiled and threw me in headfirst to my new role.

---

"Thank you, Grace." I nodded to Don in acknowledgement unable to fully catch my breath to respond with words. I had been shadowing him the entirety of the day and the controlled chaos I had witnessed earlier was difficult to enter into. The usual slow and steady work I had been doing at our pack wouldn't cut it around here. I needed to be better. I had so much to learn.

"May I?" I looked up to see Don's hand hovering slightly over my head.

"Pardon?" I didn't understand his gesture and did the only thing I could think of. I raised my hand and slapped it against his own in a solid high five. "Great work today!" I sat back in my chair and took deep breaths trying to regain some strength. Don released a low chuckle.

"Great work to you too. Let me help you out a bit." Don raised his hand in my direction again and this time placed it atop my head. I sat still searching his eyes, my uncertainty palpable in the air, and then I felt it. A surge of warmth streamed its way down my body from my head to my toes. Aches that had found their way into my shoulders disappeared and the fatigue that had begun to plague my eyes dissipated. The feeling suddenly stopped.