Chapter Four

Thessara's Pov

“wife?" I asked, growing increasingly  confused. “Me?” I asked again.

"Yes," he said calmly nodding. "I'm Dr. Kieran Hale.

“Dr Kieran Hale….?”

“Yes, a Neurosurgeon. We were married two years ago. We live together…."

A sour laugh bubbled up in my throat, as I shook my head. "Married?…..No... No, no no, this has to be a jest. I mean, that can't be true right. I'm already married." I answered my heart going fast and immediately overwhelmed.

Hold on…could I be dead?  And has somehow ended up in the afterlife? The thought sent a shiver down my spine. But wouldn't I know if I was dead? Or maybe it's a total joke, maybe the moon gods themselves have played me, considering that humans and werewolves would never co-exist. It was the pack's rule. A human must never even learn we existed.

That's why we always stayed hidden, apart from their roads, their cities, their satellites. We traveled only under total cover. That is why we constructed our lives in the world's overlooked places by them, where no equipment like their drone or camera would intrude.

Or could he be a human physician? He said he was. Gods. The council often spoke of how they test for werewolves if they can catch one. Open them up, study their blood, figure out what enables us to have mysterious powers.

Fear slid up my spine. Was this what this was? Had he trapped me… after I died? Was he going to cut me open, study me, imprison me like some sort of animal?

I shot a ruffled glance at him. But he didn't appear bad even if he had a cold demure, and he called my wife. Actually, his face was that kind of sweet cold gentleness you'd find hard to fake. That one council member claimed humans never possessed. But how by the moon, still I'm married to him.

"July?" I said, pushing the name I heard him call earlier “who's July?” I asked.

"My daughter… ours now, she is….."

"Stop… please stop.” I said to him, cutting him off while shaking my head. I was now convinced this was all a terrible joke. And that I needed to get away from this maniac human.

“You're wrong. I don't know you, and I'm certainly not your wife, that by the moon can't be possible. And my child is dead, he was murdered by those council monsters.."I pursed sorrow consuming me. “I didn't even get the chance to meet him…”

His brow creased, a deep line as his eyes narrowed in concern as I went on. "Look… thanks for looking out for me. For treating me. I appreciate it, really."

I kicked my legs out from the bed, trying to stand, but I realized it was a terrible mistake as pain traveled through my belly and a wave of dizziness overcame me.

I was pulled into strong arms before I could tumble sideways into the floor.

Water flooded my eyes from the dull misery, as I sensed my mind begin to disassemble with jumbled snippets of talk and voices.

‘July, will you help me set the dinner table?’  

‘Sweetheart, where is your homework? Let's do it together.’

‘Be careful, it's hot.’

‘Come on July, let's read your bedtime story.’

I pushed my hands against my head as the voices did a knot together, becoming loud and confusing, like a cyclone. I strained to pick out the words, my head groggily from the volume of the speech.

‘Claire ma, may I have more syrup?’

‘July, that's your third spoon already. You'll turn into a pancake one day.’

"Half is still too much, July.’

"But frosting is the best part.’

‘Claire, don't tell Daddy, but I think I love you more than him.”

‘Claire, go tell him you like him,’

‘Claire, why don't you find someone else, you can't keep chasing him.’

‘She cheated on me,’

We promised, years ago… Claire will marry Kieran.’

‘Yes, I'm already on my way to get her… no, I won't be late."

’That's July. Always impatient.’

’Drive carefully, Claire. The weather looks….’

A deafening crash drowns out the voice on the phone, as glass shatters in my head.

I held my hand unto my hair as it felt like it would explode anytime soon.

“Claire…..hey, Claire…." a voice persisted in my mind, the Neurosurgeon I think, as he tries to get to me but his voice soon  faded away as the whining in my ears grew louder and louder, mounting, until it was all I could hear, and then, nothing at all before darkness overtook me.

——

"CT scans show no appreciable damage. most likely psychological. Recommend psychiatric evaluation."

I pushed my eyes apart, as Dr. Kieran Hale's concerned face came to view. He was standing and backing me by my bed, talking to another human man.

I tried to sit up, but the room whirled about me, rocking my stomach again into that rebellious turmoil earlier.

"Could it be because she's been under so long?" I heard Dr Kieran said.

"Possible," the human man replied. "Long-term coma can cause disorientation, misplaced memories… even identity confusion. We need to monitor her before we make any conclusions."

"Hmm cause I've seen such cases before, but never to this, perhaps the trauma from the accident caused a dissociative fugue state.”

“Perhaps…” the human man said, while

a small groan slipped from my throat before I could still it as I tried to sit up again. The sound must have been loud as Dr. Hale stops whatever response he had to say to the human man as he turned his head around, a weak smile and concerned look immediately playing on his face when he saw that I was awake and was fighting to sit up.

"Claire?" He said moving closer to my bed, then bringing his hands out to lift me up.

“How are you feeling? You were out for hours.”

I tried to respond, but winced at the pain.

The other human man approached, introducing himself as Dr. Smith.

"We've been monitoring your condition, Mrs. Claire. You're in Maplewood medical center, and you've been comatose for some time. A strange animal ran into the road, right in front of your car. You swerved. There was a crash involving two other vehicles. You’re the only one who survived...”

I stared at Dr. Smith for some seconds, his words echoing in my mind before my gaze had a will of its own and wandered back to Dr Kieran.

A place inside of me rattled, not excerptly from the worried look he gave me but from the deluge of visions that washed over me as I stared at him.

His fingers roaming over me slowly tracing the contours of my waist and hips while his mouth devoured mine hungrily and possessively sucking the very breath from my body.

The memory was so clear and real, that a tiny shocked noise escaped before I could catch it.

Kieran's face became concerning again. "Claire?" He said moving closer.

"I…" I croaked, my throat burning as I pointed to the table beside him.

He nodded immediately, understanding what I wanted and reached for the glass on the bedside table, gently pushing it into my hands. I lifted it to my lips for a drink but tensed, as the hand around the glass didn't look like our blue lupines kind.

They were bony, and white…and nearly the same tone as the human man Kieran and Dr Smith.

My chest felt tight, as fear traveled down my body. Could my suspicion be right, could I possibly be in some human body.

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