Chapter Five
“You’re an Animal Rescuer”
Cal was having trouble falling asleep.
It was not unusual. Usually, he’d spent the late hours tending to animals at the clinic or, more recently, keeping a close eye on Paradise Woods.
More than once tonight, he’d contemplated shifting into bear form and trudging around the woods, both to clear his head and to make sure there weren’t any new attacks.
Instead, he sat in bed, his mind wandering by the minute.
His bedroom in the big house wasn’t very large, but it was comfortable.
It was dimly lit, the walls a dark green.
A few boxes sat in a corner of the room, a lone self-portrait hung on the wall to his left.
He shifted in bed, glancing out the window.
Outside, the dark sky was dotted with hundreds of glittering stars.
He could climb out his window and shift, or at least take a walk around the property.
As of late, he’d been doing a lot of patrolling anyway.
And for good reason. There hadn’t been any more attacks since he’d buried the doe in the woods, but how much longer would it be before even more deer turned up dead?
Not to mention the woods were just as dangerous for humans these days. What if someone got hurt, or worse?
Even then, said a voice in his head, patrolling the woods isn’t going to be of much help. You were patrolling when you found that doe. It didn’t save her life, did it?
The fact remained that Green Sanctuary needed a vet. Too bad the only person willing to fill the position was the last person Cal needed to see.
He dropped his gaze, staring at the small photo in his hand.
It had slightly yellowed over the years, but even in the dim lighting, the details were clear as day.
It was a photo of him and Melissa at a picnic.
She looked years younger than she did now, but just as beautiful, laughing as he tried to stuff a whole sandwich into his mouth.
Looking at the photo, Cal felt his gut clench slightly. That photo was taken over twelve years ago, but he could remember the exact moment, like it had happened just yesterday.
“You are such a big goof—you know that, right?” she’d said, putting the camera down.
Cal had grinned at her, half a sandwich sticking out of his mouth. “Mmm.”
Melissa had shaken her head and smiled. “That’s only one of the million reasons why I love you.”
He’d swallowed as much of the sandwich as he could and taken out the rest. “Only a million reasons? That’s pretty low.”
The remark had been met with a playful punch in the shoulder. “One million. Take it or leave it.”
“Fine, fine.”
They’d both chuckled at that. Then Melissa brought a hand to his cheek. “I know we’ve been together only two years, but sometimes, I can’t imagine life without you.”
Well, you spent the last ten years without me. And now you’re back.
Of all places in the entire country, she’d come to Sylva.
Cal almost laughed at the thought. The odds of that happening were one in a million, but somehow she’d managed it.
He set the photo on his bedside table. He’d been doing okay by himself for the most part.
And now that she was back, it felt like the progress he’d made over the years since her disappearance was coming apart.
It had been four days since he’d laid eyes on her, and the thought of Melissa Kinley continued to pop up in his mind every few minutes, like a YouTube ad.
That wasn’t exactly helpful, considering he had other pressing concerns.
He shook his head, let out a sigh, and lied back against his pillows, staring up at the ceiling.
It was almost odd the way their relationship had ended.
Cal had never been unfaithful to Melissa, nor had he treated her poorly.
No, she’d simply rejected him because he’d made the mistake of revealing his supernatural side to her.
She’d rejected him because she figured he was some kind of monster.
That’s what you get for falling in love with a human.
He could’ve dated a fellow shifter or even a witch.
At least then, he wouldn’t have had to worry about them abandoning him for who he was.
Sure, not all humans feared or disliked the supernatural.
Some were surprisingly accepting of it. Just not Melissa.
Maybe he should’ve kept his shifter side a secret.
What she didn’t know couldn’t possibly hurt her, could it?
Too late for that now.
What had happened, had happened, and there was little he could do about it.
The most he could hope for was that she wouldn’t raise an alarm here in Sylva.
There were many shifters in this town, but there were just as many humans if not more.
The last thing anyone needed was widespread panic, especially with everything already going on.
Then again, she hadn’t raised any alarms when she found out what he was ten years ago. It was one of the things he respected about her. Despite everything, despite how much her disappearance had hurt him, she’d kept his secret—as far as he knew, anyway.
He glanced at the photo on the bedside table, a gnawing sensation in his gut. Until she showed up at the sanctuary’s doorstep, he hadn’t realized just how badly he missed her.
It’s over between you and Melissa, he chided himself. Everything ended a decade ago.
And good riddance. Anyone who’d leave him on his own wedding day couldn’t possibly be for him anyway. If she wanted to live in Sylva, that was up to her. She could do whatever she wanted. But she sure as hell wasn’t setting foot in the sanctuary anytime soon. Not while he was there.
You’re going to have to find a replacement, or learn to become a vet—and fast, Bryon had said the other day.
He’d have to find another vet. That was the only option.
Cal closed his eyes, forcing the thought of Melissa out of his mind. He sucked in a deep breath, trying once again to get some sleep. But hours passed before he finally began to drift off.
***
To his mild surprise and relief, Cal didn’t dream of Melissa. He woke up the next morning feeling partially rested but immediately pulled himself out of bed. Just another day at the sanctuary. He hit the shower, got dressed, and headed downstairs for breakfast.
Unsurprisingly, Henry and Bryon were already seated at the table when he stepped into the kitchen. They both glanced up as he appeared, solemn looks on their faces.
Cal frowned. “Bit early for the long faces, don’t you think?”
The other men exchanged a glance. On the table, Bryon’s hand twitched. Cal saw that his fingertips were red. The front of his shirt was covered with dry red stains as well.
Blood?
“What’s going on, guys?” he wanted to know.
Bryon sighed. “What do you think?”
It didn’t take Cal more than a few seconds to put two and two together. His heart almost skipped a beat. “There was another attack in the woods, wasn’t there?”
Henry nodded. “It’s worse this time, Cal. We found five different animals this morning. Three of them were dead by the time we found them, entrails scattered everywhere. The other two bled to death an hour after we found them.”
Cal’s jaw clenched. Dammit. Why hadn’t he gone into Paradise Woods last night? He’d been awake for long enough. If he hadn’t been lying in bed, thinking about Melissa, he might’ve been able to prevent it from happening.
He reached out, gripping the edge of the nearest chair. Five dead animals. The attacks were getting worse. “Did you find anything else? Any sign of who—or what—might’ve killed those animals?”
Bryon shook his head. “We didn’t. But that’s not the problem, Cal. We might’ve saved two of those animals if we had a vet on-site.” The wolf-shifter shot him a pointed look. “If you didn’t send Dr. Kinley away, we wouldn’t have so much blood on our hands.”
“I—”
“Regardless of your feelings, we need a vet, and we need one now. You’re an animal rescuer. How many more animals must die needlessly before you do what needs to be done?”