Page 228 of Wicked Savage Wolves
Desmond reaches out, but I slap his hand away. I need to find my brother. I need… I drop my phone and shove past him. My skin ripples with the urge to shift, my tiger wanting to protect me from the whirlwind of emotions trying to slam into me. “Meiying, stop.”
I don’t. I move for my car. I need to get away. I need a minute to just think. Strong arms band around me, turning me until we’re face to face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know how else to tell you.”
I shove against his chest, my tiger’s claws piercing my fingertips and sinking into his flesh. He winces, but he doesn’t budge. Instead, he holds me tighter against his chest, one hand cupping the back of my head and his wolf thick in his voice. “I’m sorry, kitten. I’m so fucking sorry.”
I shake my head. “No!” My vision blurs, but I blink back the tears. “Never let them see you cry, sweetheart.”Mom’s words echo in my head.
I sniff and pull away using every ounce of shifter strength in me. This time, he’s forced to let me go. “She’s fine though, right? She’s at a hospital or whatever? The Florida Pack healers got to her in time, right?” I rub my eyes with the backs of my hands.
He doesn’t say anything. He just stands there looking at me with eyes full of what ...regret?
“Well?” I shout. “You can talk now. That’s why you’re here, right? Is she going to be okay?” I need to talk to my teachers. If Mom is hurt, she’ll need someone to look after her. The lycanthropy virus in her veins should help heal up any of the major damage, but with it focused on that, her smaller injuries will be ignored, so she’ll be sore. She’ll want help, at least until she’s back to feeling one hundred percent. I don’t know how much time I can miss from school, but I’ll figure that out later. Zheng will—shit.I need to talk to my brother. Does he know Mom was in an accident?
“Where’s Zheng?”
“He’s at home.”
I frown. “Does he know Mom was hurt? I have to call him.”
“He knows,” Desmond says. “The hospital called him.”
Okay. Good. She’s at a hospital. That’s good. But... “Why isn’t he here? Why are you here telling me about my mom instead of him?” Anger floods my system and I latch onto it.
A tormented look flashes across his face. “He’s having a hard time with the news. I don’t...” he takes a deep breath, “he didn’t know how to tell you.”
“Is he packing at least?” I run through my mental to-do list. Pack some clothes. Notify my teachers that I have a family emergency. Book a flight to Florida. Shit.I don’t even have the new address.
I’ll figure that out once I talk to Zheng. I whirl around to go back inside. “Where are you going?”
“I need to pack.”
“Meiying!”
“Desmond. I don’t have time. If Mom is hurt, I need—”
“She didn’t make it.”
Something squeezes my chest and all the air whooshes out of my lungs. “W…what?” That’s not possible. She’s a shifter. We’re tough. Hard to kill. A little accident should have been nothing. I mean, sure she’d have injuries, but to die from them ...
My knees shake and everything suddenly sounds far away.
Desmond steps toward me, but it’s almost like he’s out of focus. My vision is dark along the edges.
“What do you mean, she didn’t make it?” My voice is quiet, almost like if I say the words too loud it will make them real. But they can’t be real. Mom is fine. She has to be fine.
“I’m so sorry,” he tells me. This time, I believe him. “Her car was crushed between two semi-trucks. The truck drivers were human and died on impact so there was no one to call for help. She …” He hesitates. “She couldn’t heal the damage before bleeding out. She was pinned and …” He shakes his head.
“No.” I press the palm of my hand to my chest. “She can’t … no. She can’t just be gone. My mom,” I choke back a sob. “No. She can’t!”
Desmond steps closer, his hands reaching out almost like I’m a wild animal he’s afraid to spook.
“It’s going to be okay.”
“No, it’s not. It is not going to be okay. This is not okay!”
“Fuck. I know. I’m sorry. That was the wrong thing to say.”
I can’t breathe. I’m opening and closing my mouth, trying to suck in air, but it’s like my lungs have stopped working. I’m like a fish stuck on shore and I can’t fucking breath.
