Revocation (The Canyon Wolves) (2 page)

Conner
was the one who answered her, but she wished he hadn’t. “Because you’re a
werewolf.”

 Harper
spit her mouthful of water, and it went everywhere. Luckily, her mother was far
enough away to remain dry. Otherwise, she would have had a fit.

“Umm,
no I’m not. I’m no werewolf, Conner. I have no fur, I do not go bump in the
night. Sorry.”

Her
mom was standing like a deer in the headlights, looking from Conner to her
daughter.

Harper
was tired of listening to these crazy beliefs. “Mom? I think Conner needs to
leave.”

All
of a sudden, Conner began stripping. He was stripping
in her hospital room.

Harper
couldn’t even admire his chest because she was too busy freaking. “Oh my gosh!
Get out! What do you think you’re doing?” Harper hid her eyes under the sheets.

She
peeked out and saw him standing there in his grey underwear. Before her eyes, he
began shimmering like a mirage on a hot summer road. Conner fell to the floor.
He was growing fur. He was- Oh God. There was a giant black wolf in her room.

Harper
screamed.

Chapter
2

Axel
had returned to pacing the hallways, trying to figure out how to handle this
situation. Harper’s mom had been right; he never should have broken down in
public like that. Very few alphas trusted their betas enough to show even the
slightest weakness, but he hadn’t been thinking clearly a few minutes ago.
Hearing Harper address Axel like a stranger had completely derailed him. His
wolf was just as bewildered and hurt, although it wasn’t Harper’s fault.

Axel
punched the wall before sliding down to the floor. He put his head in his
hands. She didn't know him. She didn't even recognize his face. Her confusion
pulsed clearly through the bond, distressing his wolf further. The pack could
feel their alpha’s worry, but they keep their distance from the hospital.

He
felt the steady flow of Harper’s bewilderment and disbelief as she tried to
wrap her mind around her memory loss. Suddenly, her emotions spiked. He heard
Harper scream, and Axel was bursting into her room within seconds.

||||

“Oh,
man. Oh my. Wolf. You are a wolf.” Harper had leapt out of bed and was standing
on her pillow, pressed against the wall. She probably shouldn’t be doing
something so active after waking up with amnesia, but the rational part of her
brain wasn’t exactly working well. “I am so crazy. My brain is so screwed. Oh.
My. Goodness.”

“Harper,”
Axel said, attempting to calm her. He would have to deal with Conner later. The
giant black wolf sat on his haunches and yawned, showing off every sharp tooth
to the frantic girl on the bed.

“There’s
a wolf in here!” Harper shouted.

“Yes,
we know there’s a wolf. It’s just Conner.”

“Just-
just
Conner?” she spluttered.

The
wolf grinned at her shock, and Axel decided he couldn’t stand seeing her so
upset. “Conner,
out,
” he commanded.

Immediately,
the big wolf padded out of the room and into the hallway. They were in the
unofficially designated werewolf section of the hospital, so his presence
wouldn’t be surprising. Harper’s mom smartly followed Conner into the hallway.
Harper glanced at her mother with an
I-can’t-believe-you’re-leaving-me-with-this-man look.

“Harper,
come down from there,” Axel told her after the door shut. He didn’t want to
spook her further by forcing compliance with pack magic. They were finally
alone together, but this was nothing like the reunion he had planned only hours
before.

“Get
away from me!” She pressed herself harder against the wall.

Harper,
I am not going to hurt you. Come on, get down from there.

“Stop
talking to me like that.”

Wolf,
some help here?
He asked her.
Harper’s wolf side could hear their conversations as well, but he was willing
to bet her wolf hadn’t spoken in order to keep her calm.

Axel
didn’t know if Harper’s amnesia affected her wolf’s memories also, but he was
willing to give it a shot. The bond suddenly shifted as Harper’s wolf took
control, and Axel breathed a sigh of relief.

Harper
had felt the change, but she was now a powerless bystander while Wolf took the
lead. It was akin to the feeling of déjà vu, where she could see but not move
or think clearly. Immediately, she felt power being drawn in from Axel and
Conner.
Pack,
Wolf explained. The power twisted around her body,
shifting and bending. It was uncomfortable, but not painful.

Before
she knew it, Harper was gazing at Axel through the sharp eyes of a predator. By
this time, she had stopped vying for control and simply let Wolf take command. Her
clothing was now scattered around the bed in tatters. She padded over to her
mate and butted a comforting head against his leg.

Axel
relaxed immensely at her contact, dropping to the floor and wrapping his arms
around her. Harper felt uncomfortable at being so close to a practical
stranger, but Wolf thought differently. She rumbled contentedly and then
whined.

Axel’s
eyes shifted into a deep yellow, and he thought at her,
mate. 

The
voice in her head was different somehow, with more rumbles. He hadn’t spoken
with words, either, more like feelings. Regardless, Harper understood him, and
it didn’t sit well with her at all. Mate or no, he needed to give her some
space.

She
fought her wolf for control, using anger and fear as weapons. Wolf mentally
snapped at her, but Harper was able to use her emotions as leverage. As soon as
she won the mental battle, Harper unconsciously shifted back to human.

Axel’s
arms were still wrapped around her, so when she shifted he was left holding
her. For the second time that day, Harper yelped. She shoved Axel and dashed
for the hospital bed, wrapping the blanket around herself.

“I
just- I can’t. You- I” Harper sputtered.

“We
have a lot to discuss. Hear me out?” Axel held his hands out, palms facing her.

She
froze, watching him warily. Her voice was refusing to work. After a moment Harper
nodded and perched on the edge of the bed.

“I’m
the leader of the Canyon Wolf Pack, and you are my mate. Now I know that you’re
scared right now, and that’s expected, but when we leave the hospital I need
you to try to stay calm. Wolves will take any chance at becoming alpha, and
that includes hurting you. I need you to be strong, Harper. Can you do that?”

“Yes,”
she whispered, her mind reeling. Alpha? She was a werewolf. “When did I become
a- a werewolf?”

Axel
folded his tall frame in the hospital chair. “You were the child of two born
werewolves, so you first shifted at eighteen.”

“How
else do you become one?”

“After
getting bitten and surviving the change.”

“Oh.”
Harper was speechless. “When will I leave the hospital?”

He
looked pleased at her improving mental health. Not too long ago she was
shouting and jumping on the bed. “Technically, you can leave right now. You’re
able to heal quickly, and the doctor knows what we are, so she has already
dismissed you.”

“Good.
I want to go home and sleep in my own bed.” She needed to curl up under the
sheets and watch old movies for therapy to ease this crazy day.

“Harper,
you’re going home with me.” Axel’s voice told her there would be no bargaining.

“Excuse
me?” She was not accustomed to being ordered.

He
sighed and changed his tone. “Harper, I think it would be best if you returned
to your home with me.”

She
could tell it pained him to state his request like that, but she still appreciated
the effort. “No, thank you. I want to stay with my parents.”

“Harper,
you belong home with me.” His voice had returned to being forceful.

She
scowled at him. “I don’t belong anywhere!”

“You’re
being unreasonable.”

“No,
you’re
being unreasonable. You expect me to just come live with you even
though it’s like you’re a stranger? You have no idea what it feels like to wake
up in a hospital room and have somebody tell you that your memories from the
last two years are gone!”

She
could no longer hold back the tears, and they poured down her face in
frustration.

“Harper,”
Axel said, reaching out to her.

“Don’t
touch me.” She felt sick. He was the cause of her mixed emotions, and Harper
couldn’t handle it all. “Please leave. I need some time to think.”

To
her shock (and maybe small disappointment) Axel stood and immediately left her
alone. The door closed with a finalizing click.

||||

Harper
located some spare clothes as soon as Axel left, and before long she was fast asleep.
Her dreams were wild, but not unpleasant. When she awoke, her mom was beside the
bed staring down with worry.

“Honey,
I think it would be best if you stayed with Axel,” she told her softly after Harper’s
eyes fluttered open.

“What?
Mom, not you too.” She held back a moan.

“We
talked about it, and we are in agreement. Even your father thinks it’ll be
best,” she admitted, looking guilty.

“Axel
is forcing you to say that, isn’t he?” Harper wasn’t sure how she knew exactly,
but she chalked it up to intuition.

“Honey,
why would you ever-” her mom started.

“Isn’t
he?” she half-yelled.

“Well,
baby, Axel is a very powerful man. He has a lot of influence.” Her mother said
the words with pride, but the sounded poisonous to Harper.

“I
can’t believe this. I don’t care how much influence he has! I barely know him.”

“Oh,
darling, you know him. You’ll remember soon enough, I promise.”

“Where
is dad?” Harper asked, changing the subject before she got too upset.

“He’s
on his way to the hospital. He was in Washington for a meeting and flew down as
soon as he heard.”

“There’s
no point in him coming. I’m leaving,” Harper said, getting out of bed. She was
going to her childhood home whether her mom liked it or not.

“I
don’t think tha-” her mom began protesting.

“But
werewolves heal faster, right mom? Oh yeah, and you’ll have to explain to me
again
why you didn’t tell me you and dad could grow fur. That should have been
something you had explained when I turned, like, four. Not eighteen.”

Harper
shoved the door open, only to find Axel standing guard outside.

“Not
you again,” Harper muttered.

“Where
are you going?” Axel asked, not at all surprised to see her dressed and ready
to leave.

Harper
said as she brushed passed him, “I’m ditching this place, going home.” She had
no idea which way the exit was, but she didn’t really care as long as she left
her hospital room. Upon walking, it didn’t feel like she had been kidnapped. No
muscles ached and no bones hurt.

“How
do you plan on getting home?” Axel asked, easily catching up with her.

“I’ll
walk if I have to, it doesn’t matter.”

Before
he could respond, his cell phone rang. Axel answered it, and Harper listened to
his conversation curiously. Who knew having improved hearing would come in
handy so soon?

He
snapped, “What?”

The
man calling responded, “We found another one. An older man on 38
^th
and Copper. Found dead in his garage.”

“I’m
busy now, Doug,” Axel said, glancing at Harper.

She
had slowed down after hearing the call, looking stricken. “Someone died?” she
whispered.

“Doug,
you’ll have to take care of it without me,” Axel said impatiently into the
phone.

Harper
didn’t want Axel to waste his time chasing her when he had more important matters
to address. She felt guilty. Someone had died recently and she was wasting her
time moping around the hospital because she lost a couple years of her memory.
She could have died like that man, but she was lucky enough to be alive.

“No,
you should go. I’ll go with you,” Harper suggested.

Axel
paused, watching her for a moment. He didn’t want to take his mate to a murder
scene, but she had just agreed to go with him willingly.

Making
a quick decision, he said, “Doug, we’ll be there in ten.” After snapping the
phone shut, Axel led Harper out the hospital doors and into a shiny black car.
Harper climbed inside after he politely opened the door for her.

Her
mom had followed them to the exit hospital and gave Harper a wave as they drove
away from Canyon Hospital. The scene seemed oddly strange to Harper, but that
was probably just because she had lost her memories. What had her mother said
about getting into the car with a stranger? Something about not doing it if she
wanted to stay alive. Luckily, Axel was only a half stranger.

Just
moments ago she had been standing on her bed and screeching at Conner. He must
have taken off after she was awake and in Axel’s care.

Harper
distracted her tireless thoughts with small talk. “How many people are in your
pack?”

“Over
ninety, not including rouges under our protection,” he replied casually.

She
ran her hand over the black interior leather nervously. Wow, this car was
really
nice. Sleek and sophisticated and powerful.
Just like someone else we
know,
her wolf thought.

She
ignored Wolf and asked, “Isn’t that a lot? How big are packs usually?”

“Ours
is the second largest in the States, leaving me the second most powerful
werewolf in the nation,” Axel said, keeping the smugness out of his voice.

Regardless,
he was trying to impress her, and it worked. She could feel his pride when he
spoke, could feel the cockiness. Harper jumped slightly when she felt her wolf
rumble with contentment at his rank in the pack.
Shut it, Wolf,
she
thought at herself.
I’m freaked out enough as it is.
Wolf simply growled
and fell once more into silence, frustrated with her human half.