My Convicted Wife is My Mate (Bella and Kane) novel Chapter 2

chapter 2

KANE’S POV

I had survived worse than this.

I told myself that as I moved through the dark between the buildings, one hand pressed hard against my side where the deepest wound was.

The assassination attempt had come at the worst possible moment.

I had returned to the Ashveil Pack incognito. No guards. No convoy. No official announcement of presence.

I had come alone and in disguise, under a borrowed name, using access channels that only three living people knew about, because what I was looking for required silence - The White Wolf.

The legend that had been circulating through underground pack intelligence for the better part of a year.

So I had come myself.

And the rebel faction within Ashveil, the wolves who had been biding their time and building their numbers, waiting for an opportunity that would not come twice - they had decided tonight was finally the night.

There were twelve of them that attacked.

I had killed eight of them. The other four had run when the odds shifted.

But one against twelve, in the dark, with no backup, was tough.

My wolf had taken a hit meant for me. One of them had used a dampening spike, a piece of suppression tech that should not have been in the hands of a small rebel faction. The spike had landed, and my wolf had gone down inside me. He was unconscious now.

I did not let myself think too carefully about this.

I needed to get clear of Ashveil Pack. I needed my wolf to wake up, because without him my healing was a fraction of what it should have been.

What I didn’t need was a commotion in the alley directly in my path.

I heard it before I saw it - raised voices, a crash, the s sounds of a struggle.

I came around the corner of the building then I stopped.

Pathetic. They fled from a single glance. Worthless.

I almost smiled. Almost.

Then I looked down.

She was on the ground at my feet. Her shirt was torn nearly in half. Most of her chest was exposed, her skin covered in scars.

Something in my chest pulled sharp for a reason I couldn't name. It didn't make sense. I didn't feel things like that. I'd seen worse. I'd caused worse. She was just a stranger.

I didn't have time for this.

I stepped past her.

BELLA’S POV

He was moving to walk past me.

This man was walking away, as if he hadn’t just saved my life.

I got up. That was when I got my first real look at him, and what I saw stopped me where I stood.

He was handsome, devilishly handsome. He had dark hair, deep green eyes and a perfect build.

But he was falling apart.

The blood was the obvious part. His shirt was soaked through in multiple places - the worst on his left side, where it was still spreading, still fresh, which meant still bleeding, which meant the wound had not clotted and was not going to clot on its own.

I felt something too - death.

If I was reading this right, this man had perhaps two hours before his body gave up.

"Wait," I said.

He didn’t wait.

I stepped in front of him.

"You need help," I said, "That wound in your side is still bleeding. You have a joint injury in your right shoulder that's been compensating for at least an hour, which means the surrounding tissue is fatigued and will give out sooner than you think. And whatever happened to your wolf-" I paused. "Your healing is less than a third of what it should be”

Silence.

"I can help you," I said. "I'm a healer”

His hand shot out, grabbing my wrist. He was weak. I could feel the weakness in his grip. But even weakened, the aura that came off him in that direct contact was extraordinary.

I held my ground.

“Get out of my way." he snarled.

It was the voice of an injured animal. I recognized it because I had spent years treating injured animals.

"I know," I said. "I know you don't trust me. You have no reason to trust me. But I'm the only one here, and I can help you."

He looked at me.

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