August
August pushed through the door of the Health Center, coming as soon as his mother had let him know that the girl was awake and talking. He’d been in such a rush to get over to see her, he hadn’t let Isabella tell him much. For some reason he couldn't explain, the urge to see her for himself had compelled him to hang up the phone and jump up from his desk. Now, he did his best to slow his steps as he walked into the room, trying not to look like he was in such a rush, even though his heart was hammering in his chest.
The curtain around the bed was pulled back so that as soon as he stepped through the door, his eyes met the large blue ones staring at him from across the room. Her black hair stuck out around her pale face, and an inquisitive expression let him know she wasn’t sure what to think of him. His mother was standing at the foot of the bed, a smile on her face.
Words lodged in his throat as he wasn’t sure who to speak to first or what to say. The girl set a bowl and spoon she’d been holding on a tray next to the bed, the spoon clattering against the glass bowl as her hand quivered slightly. Was she… frightened? Of him?
“August,” his mother said. “Thanks for coming over.”
“Of course,” he said, glad that his voice didn’t expose the raw feelings that were churning inside of him. Whatever it was about this girl that had him all worked up, he couldn’t say, but it was uncomfortable in the same way swallowing a large pill as a child had been. Even though he didn’t particularly like it, he knew it was for the best.
“Mercy, dear, this is my son. August.”
“H-hi,” she said as he took a few steps over toward the bed.
August was about to say he was glad to meet her when his mother added, “The Alpha.”
Immediately, the girl’s posture changed. Despite the IV in her arm and the blanket on her lap, she swiftly moved into a crouching position on the bed, her knees bent beneath her slender form, and her head touching the bed, as if it were the floor and she was cowering before him.
His mom reacted more quickly than he did. “Oh, honey, you don’t need to do that,” she assured the girl, helping her back beneath the blanket and checking the IV. “Sweetheart, please be careful. We don’t need to pull this loose.”
“I’m… sorry,” she said, her eyes flickering from his mother to him. “It’s just… you said Alpha. Aren’t Alphas revered?”
August let a nervous chuckle slip from between his lips. “Not like that,” he said, approaching her bed. She didn’t move this time, but then, his mother still had a hand on her shoulder. August extended his hand. “Hi. It’s nice to meet you. What’s your name?” He thought his mother had called her something, but he wasn’t sure.
“I don’t know,” she said, her tiny hand touching his, sending a spark of electricity all the way to his elbow.
“You don’t know?” he asked, puzzled.
She shook her head as she released his hand, leaving his palm cold. “I don’t remember.”
“August, she doesn’t remember anything,” his mother explained.
His eyes widened slightly but then he caught himself and lowered his eyebrows. No need to make a big deal out of it.”That’s okay,” he said with a shrug. “It’s probably temporary.”
His mother agreed. “I’m sure it is. We’ve decided to call her Mercy.” She smiled at the girl, and the corners of her mouth upturned slightly in response. Isabella picked up the bowl which contained just a small amount of soup in the bottom and patted Mercy’s shoulder. “I’ll let you two talk.”
August waited for his mom to walk out of the room before the awkward silence that invaded the space overcame him, compelling him to talk. He cleared his throat and asked, “How are you?”
“Fine,” she said, not meeting his eyes. “Thank you.”
She was clearly terrified of him, and he had no idea why that would be. But then, if she didn’t remember anything, he might never find out. All of the questions he’d been preparing to ask her since she’d been brought in were pointless now. Where had she come from? Why was she running? Was she safe? Did she want to go back or was there somewhere else they could take her? Hell, she didn’t even know the basic, first question he wanted to ask--what was her name?
“How are you feeling?” He realized as soon as the words came out of his mouth it was essentially the same question he’d already asked. He tried to hide the embarrassment that threatened to redden his face.
“I’m okay.” At least she hadn’t said the same thing in response to the similar question as she’d said before. “Tired.”
“Oh,” he said, assuming that meant she wanted to go to sleep. “Well, I won’t keep you up.”
“No, it’s fine!” she said, looking a little embarrassed herself. “I didn’t mean…. It’s fine.”
“Okay, well, uh, you can stay here as long as you need to. I mean not here--in the Health Center. Well, you can stay here. But I meant in the pack.” August rubbed the back of his neck. Why in the world did he sound like a tongue-tied prepubescent boy who’d never spoken to a girl before? This should be easy for him! He talked to pretty girls all the time.
Did he think she was pretty? She was unusual looking, and her hair didn’t look natural. But yes, she was pretty. More than that, there was just something about her that made him want to protect her from the world.
“Thank you,” she said, her smile wider than before. “I appreciate your hospitality, Alpha August.”
The way her lips formed his name made it sound sweeter than it ever had before. Again, his face threatened to turn red. “Of course,” he said. “I’ll let you get some rest now.”
“All right,” she said, looking up at him between her eyelashes before dropping her eyes again. “Thanks.”
“Have a good night.” He gave her an awkward wave and then headed for the door, knowing he was going to go back over this conversation a million times and kick himself for sounding like a big dork.
Maybe when she woke up again, she wouldn’t remember how silly he’d sounded during their first conversation. Did amnesia work that way? He didn’t think so.
As he walked back toward his office, one thing was for sure: he was never going to forget Mercy.
MercyThe ceiling above her bed was painted bright white, and with the moonlight filtering in through the small window above the door, one that wasn’t covered with curtains, it reflected the light, giving Mercy something to stare at as she lay on her back, alone with her thoughts.She had met the Alpha. August, that was his name. He was handsome and strong, and the moment she saw him, she felt at peace and safe. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. When she’d first met him, she’d heard that word--Alpha--and immediately flipped out. What had caused her to react that way, she wasn’t sure, but there was clearly something buried deep in her mind that made her fear the Alpha.She hadn’t reacted that way when she’d learned that Isabella was the Luna of this pack, but then, she’d known Isabella was kind before she knew her station. Mercy had to wonder how she might’ve reacted if she had heard she was in the presence of the Luna before she knew Isabella was so kind.Her arm was a little sore wher
AugustSitting alone in his office until late in the night, August did some research on surrounding packs, which was difficult because most of the Alphas and their families didn’t post their business on social media for everyone in the world to see. For the most part, shifters tended to keep to themselves, completely cut off from the human world. That being said, there were some younger members of the packs who kept up on that sort of thing. It was a crime punishable by death to post any information to the outside world about the existence of shifters, so no one would be foolish enough to post anything about what they were, but some of the teens and young adults posted pictures of themselves and their friends on social media apps.August turned his computer on and flipped through a few of the apps, looking for pictures that were readily accessible to anyone. Some of them, he searched by hashtags he thought might be relevant to the youth of the surrounding packs. The rest of the world
August“Honey, I know how angry you are, and I don’t blame you. I feel the same way,” Isabella was saying, sitting next to August on the couch in the home they shared together. “But, baby, I have to tell you, I just don’t think it’s a good idea.”August was stunned to hear his mother’s words. She’d already said the same thing several times since he’d shown her the pictures he’d found online. While only one of them showed Mercy, the one where she was on her knees in the background, crying, he’d printed that one off along with several others, ones that showed the faces of key players from Black Hole Moon, including the Alpha’s sister, Stephanie, and the Alpha himself, Rider. His plan had been to take the pictures in to Mercy and show them to her to see if it jarred any of her memories.Isabella clearly didn’t think that was a good idea.“Mom, she needs to remember. If she doesn’t remember, we can’t help her,” he explained--again.“No, dear, not right now. That’s not what she needs at al
MercyMercy was glad to see Isabella. She was so kind and refreshing. She’d brought Mercy some clean clothes and made sure she was able to take a shower without any help. She’d also brought her a snack, which was great, even though Cleo had brought her a full breakfast. Mercy felt like her stomach was turning inside out, she was so hungry. Now, she was sitting on the bed, feeling comfy in a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt. They smelled like flowers and fresh cotton and made her skin feel all soft and snuggly. There was something going on with her hair, though, and it was bothering her almost as much as the fact that she couldn’t remember anything. The urge to flip her hair back over her shoulder was driving her mad, but every time she went to move it, there was nothing there.“Would you like to watch some television?” Isabella asked, once Mercy was settled in.‘What’s that?” she asked. It seemed like it was something she should’ve known--the way she knew what clothes, food, and showe
August“Mercy? Are you all right?” The sound of the television exploding behind August was alarming, but he was more concerned about the girl in front of him. She was shaking like a leaf, her eyes closed, her face turning pale. “Mercy, please, open your eyes!”“What’s going on?” Isabella demanded as she came into the room.August glanced at her but then returned his gaze to Mercy. “I don’t know. She just…” He shook his head, not sure how to put it. He didn’t want to tell his mom that this was his fault, that he’d jarred this reaction from her when he’d said Black Hole Moon, but he’d have to. Not now, though. Now, they needed to help her.“Mercy, honey, open your eyes,” Isabella said in a calm, soothing voice as she sat on the bed next to the girl, her arms fixed on Mercy’s face. “Look at me. You’re safe. It’s me. Isabella. Look in my eyes, honey.”Slowly, Mercy’s eyes opened, and she looked at Isabella.“Good, good. Take some deep breaths. Try to calm down, sweet girl.” Isabella mimic
August“What did you say to that woman?” Isabella asked as they stood outside of the healing center. “Really, August! The television exploded!”“I know, Mother. I was there.” He tried to keep his tone light because he didn’t want to upset her anymore than she already was. Clearly, he was good at upsetting women. “I made a mistake, all right?”“Did you try asking her about her past? You didn’t show her those damn pictures did you?”“No, and no. Not exactly, anyway. On the first one.”“What’s that now?” Isabella folded her hands beneath her bosom and waited for an answer that made sense.August wasn’t sure he had an answer that made sense. “Mom, I just said she’d never have to go back. That’s all!” More or less, that was true. Did his mom really need to know where he’d said Mercy didn’t need to go back to?“That’s all?” she repeated. “Are you sure about that, son? Because that doesn’t seem like the sort of thing a person would say that would make a television explode. I’ve never seen an
The shell of the tell vision on the wall was haunting as Mercy sat in her bed, trying to figure out what had happened. Even after the mess on the floor was cleaned up, her mind wouldn’t stop focusing on how she’d made the tell vision do that--and why.Black Hole Moon--those were the words that Alpha August had said. They’d made her lose control. She didn’t know why. When she tried to remember what those words meant, nothing came to mind. She wasn’t even sure what a blackhole was.She did know what the moon was, though. She didn’t have a lot of memories, but she could remember a window, similar to the one near her bed now, with a large, glowing orb situated right outside of it, so large and bright… it was the only thing that made her feel calm, made her feel connected to the rest of the world.But that was it. She couldn’t even remember where that room was or why she was in it.Cleo came in from one of the other rooms, walking slowly, as if she was afraid she might say something to mak
The look on Mercy’s face before she’d turned to acknowledge him was haunting. August wasn’t sure what to make of it. She was just staring at the wall, as if she was watching television, but since he hadn’t replaced the broken one yet, that wasn’t what was happening.What was she looking at?When she turned to acknowledge him, the vacant look faded, and a smile came to her lips. She was so beautiful. He couldn’t imagine why anyone would ever want to hurt her.Sitting the pizza on the tray next to her bed, he went to the supply closet and got a couple of paper plates and napkins. He almost asked her if she wanted a soda, but then he realized she wouldn’t know what that was. “I’ve got a couple of cans of Coke in the refrigerator. Do you want to try that, or would you rather just have water?”“Coke?” Mercy repeated. “What is that?”“Tell you what. You can try it. If you don’t like it, no big deal. Okay?”She nodded, and he went into the other room to grab the drinks. When he came back, sh