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12
Greta was on her feet and out of the tent faster than I expected for someone of her age. I followed, chasing the child and Greta down the pathways, past the clusters of tents, until we reached the woods near where I’d entered when I’d arrived.
A male with sandy-blonde hair was laying on the ground, blood pouring from his nose and mouth. His clothes were torn and his shirt was bloody. He was moaning in pain, his hands gripping for the ground and finding no purchase.
“What happened to him?” Had someone attacked him in the camp?
“Why isn’t he healing?” The child asked. “He should be healing. Shift, Daddy. You need to heal.”
She ran forward and Greta caught her, then passed her to me. On instinct, I reached for the girl and pulled her into my arms.
“Get the child out of here and keep her away,” Greta ordered.
I looked down at the kid. The little girl had the same blonde hair as the fallen man. She was trying to stay strong but I could almost feel her fear.
“Go, now,” Greta barked.
I grabbed the child’s hand. “Come on, I need your help.”
“What’s wrong with my dad?” she asked, her eyes glued to him.
I guided her away, leading her back toward the common area of camp. “I’m new here. Can you give me a tour while Greta helps your dad?”
The child finally looked up at me. “He’s dying.”
“Greta will help him,” I assured her.
“He should be healing,” she said.
I tried to hide my concern. Wolves healed fast. Even a major injury didn’t linger long but not everything could be healed with wolf strength. Some things were too serious. I couldn’t imagine what happened to him here to make him that injured but I needed to stay strong for the girl. “It’ll be okay.”
She shook her head. “I’m almost eleven. I don’t need you to lie to me.”
“Alright,” I said. “I don’t know what happened to your dad but I know Greta will do her best.”
“What if they can’t fix him?” she asked.
I didn’t have an answer for her. “Come on, let’s find something we can do while we wait. What’s your name?”
“Megan,” she said.
“Megan, I’m Lola.” I smiled. “Tell me, is there any place we can find something to eat?” Most of the shifters I grew up with would jump at the chance to eat something when they were stressed. I wasn’t sure if it would help distract her, but it was worth a try.
“Sure,” she said. “I’ll show you.”
Megan led me back to the common area where several people were out cooking various foods. She introduced me to people and it didn’t take long before I had a cup of coffee and a bowl of oatmeal. I ate the food as quickly as possible. I was starving, but my new charge wasn’t interested in eating. I knew I needed to find another way to distract her.
“What’s your favorite way to cheer up when you’re having a bad day?” I asked.
“I guess I like to go for a swim,” she said. “But I don’t feel like swimming now. I want to see my dad.”
“Greta needs to concentrate on helping him. We’re going to help him by giving her some time to focus. Do you understand?” I asked.
She nodded. “I’m scared.”
“I know. We’ll check on him soon, I promise,” I said. “Can you show me where you swim? We don’t have to get in the water. We’ll look and then we can go check in on your dad.”
“I can do that,” she agreed.
