The Kiss of life

Kael's POV

The bond frayed like a rope snapping strand by strand, each break a white-hot blade in Kael's chest. His mate's heartbeat—her faint, stubborn pulse—had been his lifeline, but now it was gone, a void clawing at his soul. The world he'd fought for crumbled. He'd found her, bruised and broken, only to lose her now, the bond unraveling as her heart stilled.In the stronghold's makeshift ER, shouts blurred into chaos.

"She's flatlining!" a doctor yelled, the defibrillator's hum a mocking rhythm as they pumped her chest. Flickering fluorescent lights cast stark shadows over her frail form, her skin pale beneath a jagged gash across her temple, her lips parted, lifeless. Kael thrashed against the wolves restraining him, their grips iron-tight. His silver eyes burned, locked on her, each fading pulse a fresh wound. He couldn't fail her—not like his father had failed their pack, leaving them to burn under a rival's claws.With a primal roar, Kael tore free, claws slashing, muscles surging with desperate strength. The wolves staggered back, Holt's shout—

"Kael, stop!"—lost in the din. Kael barreled through the ER door, the antiseptic stench hitting like a wall.

He shoved a doctor aside, hands trembling as he cupped her face, her skin cold under his fingers."No," he whispered, voice cracking, the bond a dying ember. "You don't get to leave me." Driven by instinct, he crashed his lips against hers, fierce and desperate, pouring his will, his heart, his claim into the act. Her lips were unyielding, but he pressed harder, his beast howling, begging the bond to hold. A faint warmth sparked beneath his touch, her scent—sweet, wild, laced with something ancient—stirring his senses. The bond flared, a spark in the void. A gasp tore from her throat, her chest heaving under the doctors' hands, the monitor beeping as her heart stuttered back to life.Kael pulled back, breath ragged, silver eyes wide as the pain in his chest eased, the bond knitting together, fragile but alive. Her eyelids fluttered, her pulse weak but there, her scent flooding him. Her fingers twitched toward him, as if reaching for the bond, sending a jolt through his heart. The doctors froze, one muttering, "That's impossible," but Kael didn't care, his thumb brushing her cheek, tears burning his eyes. She was alive. His mate was alive.The moment shattered as Holt stormed in, face a mask of fury and fear, flanked by wolves. Kael's beast surged, claws flexing, but he stayed by her side, eyes locked on her. The air was thick with blood and antiseptic, the creak of rusted cots underscoring the tension.A wiry doctor, glasses slipping, stepped forward, voice low with unease. "Jason's fixation—alpha wolves don't lose their minds over a human. Her scent, those bonds—Jason's mark, your imprint... She's a vessel, carrying the Moon's Gift, the old magic that united the packs."Kael's chest tightened with dread, the doctor's words echoing his own sense of her—something dangerous. Holt cut in, voice sharp. "A vessel for what, doc? We don't have time for myths." His eyes, hard but flickering with dread, met Kael's. "I won't make you give her up, but get her out of here. Now."Kael's grip splintered the bedframe. "How long?" His voice cracked. "She's barely holding on, Holt. What if I can't—?"Holt's jaw clenched. "Jason's pack razed two outposts. Thomas held him back, so they're planning something worse. Take her to the northern ranger cabin—its wards mask scents. Drive, don't shift. Confuse them."Kael nodded, heart pounding as he lifted her limp form, her scent—tinged with that ancient edge—anchoring him. He grabbed a blanket soaked in wolfsbane tincture from the ER's supply, wrapping her tightly to dull her scent. The hall stretched endlessly, each step heavy with her fragility. Outside, the night was too quiet, the air thick with the scent of approaching wolves. His beast growled, senses sharp, catching the distant rustle of leaves—Jason's pack was closing in.He slipped into the stronghold's garage, choosing a battered truck, its engine low and unremarkable. No GPS, no tech—Jason's scouts could track those. He laid her across the backseat, her faint pulse thrumming through the bond, and slid into the driver's seat, heart hammering. The truck rumbled to life, and he peeled out, tires crunching gravel, veering onto a logging trail to avoid the main road. Pine and damp earth flooded the cab, masking their scent. He glanced at her in the rearview mirror, her face pale, her breathing shallow. What was she?To lose the trackers, he'd planned decoys—Holt's men driving other vehicles, scattering his scent on clothes left at crossroads. He took a winding path, crossing a shallow stream, the water's chill seeping through the tires. Every sound—a twig snapping, the wind's howl—set his nerves ablaze, his beast clawing to fight, not flee. The bond pulsed, fragile, urging him north to the warded cabin, a sanctuary hidden in the mountains.The forest closed in, trees clawing at the sky, their shadows dancing across the truck's hood. Hours bled together, the trail narrowing to a rutted path that jolted the truck, each bump jarring her frail form. Kael's eyes darted between the mirror and the darkness, catching glints of movement—wolf eyes, or just his fear? A distant howl pierced the night, too close, and his grip tightened on the wheel, knuckles white. He veered through a bog, mud splattering the windows, the stench of decay drowning their scent. The bond flickered, her pulse stuttering, and he whispered, "Hold on," as much to himself as to her.He doubled back once, tires skidding on pine needles, to confuse the trail, then pushed deeper into the wilderness. The forest grew denser, the air colder, the bond his only guide as the trail vanished into a tangle of roots and frost. A rustle in the underbrush made him slam the brakes, heart pounding, but it was only a deer, its eyes glowing in the headlights. He exhaled, driving on, the night stretching endless.After hours of twisting paths and heart-stopping false alarms, the cabin emerged from the mist, a squat shadow nestled in a clearing. Its wards—runes carved into the logs—hummed faintly, promising safety. Kael parked the truck in a thicket, half-hidden by ferns, and carried her through the trees, her weight light but grounding. The air was sharp with pine and frost, masking their scent as he crossed the ward line, a tingle of magic brushing his skin. Inside, he secured the door, checking the runes, their glow steady. He laid her on a cot, her pulse faint but holding, the bond a fragile thread.Sunlight crept through the truck's window, now parked outside, its golden rays slicing through the dawn mist. Kael exhaled, tension easing for the first time in hours, but then her eyes fluttered open, wide and terrified, her gaze darting around the unfamiliar truck before locking on him—a stranger. Her voice, weak and trembling with fear, cut through the bond. "Who are you?"