Free Mistakenly Mated by Sonnet O'Dell Page A

Dick asked, already running for the side of the house and his car. “Run.”
    * * * *
    When Kerry awoke again she was completely alert. Neither Caleb or Dick were there. Kerry looked sadly around her bedroom, she wasn’t in a hospital. Surely Dick would take her to a hospital. How did Caleb convince him not to?
    Her mother came bustling in with a bowl of water, a terry cloth, and some fresh bandages. She smiled at Kerry.
    “Oh, honey, you’re awake. I’m so glad.” Her mother put everything down on the table by her bed and gave her a gentle hug. “How you feelin?”
    “Alright. Where’s Daddy?”
    Her mother turned to the bowl, dropped the cloth in it, and then wrung it back out.
    “He’s digging a hole in the yard.”
    “Why?”
    “It gives him something to do with his anger. I figure if he actually does kill either of your young men, we’ll have a nice place to put them out of the way.”
    “Momma!”
    Her mother flashed Kerry a wicked grin. “I came up to put a fresh dressing on.”
    Kerry shuffled closer to the edge of the bed to give her better access.
    “You’re very lucky, sweetheart. It looks like the bullet just creased your side.”
    Kerry gave a little grunt and then a hiss as air hit the wound. She’d been shot at but who would do such a thing and to her?
    “Where are Caleb and Dick?” she asked, unable to let her mind wander over the darker questions, like who wanted her dead?
    “They’ve both gone home for now. They made a little mess, fighting in the back yard. It was just safer if they left. Caleb says he’ll come by tomorrow…” her mother chuckled softly “Once your daddy goes to work.”
    The cloth felt cool as it glided over Kerry’s skin. She felt the pain the second it touched the wound and had to look at the long gash in her side which ran from the front of her body to the back. It would heal but it would be a nasty pink scar—even her healing couldn’t prevent that.
    “It’s not that bad so why did I pass out?”
    “Shock and blood loss. I don’t know what they teach you nowadays but we are still mostly human.” Her mother re-covered the wound with fresh gauze and bandages, easing Kerry down onto her back so that she could see her face.
    “You scared us, honey. You have to be really careful until the moon. We don’t want to lose you.”
    Kerry closed her eyes. “I don’t remember much of what happened. Dick and Caleb were fighting. I broke them apart and then bam I was hit. How did I get home?”
    The phone rang on her night stand. Kerry’s mother looked at the caller ID before picking it up.
    “Hello Paulie. Yes, yes. She’s awake now. I’ll let you talk to her if she’s up to it.”
    Kerry looked at her mother and gently nodded her head.
    Her mother covered the mouthpiece with her palm. “He and Susan have been alternating calling every two hours since last night. Try to sit up and I will let you have the phone.”
    Kerry pushed herself up, wincing a little. When she was up enough, her mother passed over the phone and gave her some privacy by taking the bloodied water to be drained.
    “Kerry. O.M.G. Are you alright? Tell me you’re alright. Talk to me. Kerry?”
    “Sorry. I was waiting for you to take a breath so I could get a word in,” she said with a smile.
    He huffed. “Well, you sound just fine.”
    “I’m doing alright. Momma says it’s not that bad, just creased my side. I’m so sorry to scare you guys. What happened after I passed out?”
    “Susan and I came out to check on things and found Caleb and Dick leaning over you. We thought they’d killed you. Caleb lifted you up—all dashing prince style,” he said. There was a note of disdain in his voice. “Carried you to his car, and laid you out on the back seat. Susan went back to get Luka and we all followed him back to your house. Your daddy threw a shit fit when Caleb carried you in. Dick went running in after. Your Momma carried you upstairs and your daddy laid both of them out on