A Love That Lasts Forever

Chapter Two

Caleb took a moment to allow his eyes to focus in the darkness. He'd woken up in bed, in a strange room, and no memory of how he'd gotten there. What was worse, he was alone. Where was Rhys? Where was their pup? Terrified, he pushed himself up, threw the thin covering back, and slid out of the bed. His bare feet hit a cold, tiled floor. When Caleb looked down he realized that he was dressed in a white robe that resembled the kind of hospital gown humans wore.

This was all very strange. How had he even ended up there? Wherever 'there' was. He remembered running towards the guard house, his pup clutched to his chest, frantic to get help for Rhys. The Silver Moon betas had been following them and Rhys had been shot. Caleb was scared. Scared for his life and his child's but also scared for Rhys, his mate.

He remembered seeing the guard house and he ran towards it, yelling for someone to come out and help him. He was out of breath and shaking. Two betas and an alpha came out, charging towards him. Relief settled over him. Thank Wolf God, he whispered to himself. We're safe. Caleb sank to his knees, too exhausted to run anymore. His head was swimming and that's when he'd remembered how much blood he'd lost that night. He must have been running on pure adrenaline at this point.

Within seconds he was surrounded. An alarm must have been sounded because more wolves began to run out from the cover of the trees. "You have to help." He pleaded with them, breathlessly. "In the woods." He pointed back to where he'd come from. "Rhys, he's been shot. They're after us. Please, help us."

The sound of a gun shot sliced through the trees, followed by the sounds of howls and growling. Caleb shivered and the babe in his arms cried.

"Who are you?" The alpha who appeared to be in charge demanded. His grabbed a fist full of Caleb's long, auburn, hair and jerked his head back, painfully. Caleb yelped. "I repeat, who are you?" The alpha demanded, this time his voice angry and full of distrust.

"Please help us." Caleb said again, tears streaming down his face. It had taken every last ounce of strength he'd had just to make it to the guard house but that strength was depleted now. The last thing Caleb could recall was the face of the shocked but concerned beta who reached out and grabbed him, keeping him from hitting the ground as he collapsed against the man. The sounds, smells, and sights around him faded into nothingness and Caleb realized that he must have passed out at some point because the next time he'd opened his eyes was when he'd found himself in this strange room.

He pushed himself off the bed and, with shaky legs, managed to stumble across the room, feeling around on the wall until he found a light switch. Once the room was illuminated by the ceiling light, he was able to see that he was inside a small room with limited furnishings and no windows. Straight ahead was the only door and he moved to it carefully.

He'd almost expected the door to be locked as the room looked more like a cell than an actual bedroom what with the grey walls, hospital like bed with a metal frame, and the glaringly white sheets and blanket. There was absolutely no warmth in the room what so ever which told him it wasn't meant for comfort.

The door, oddly enough, was not locked though. Caleb reached out and gently pushed the handle down then eased the door open as quietly as he could before stopping, halfway open, and peering out into the empty hall. Was he in the clinic that Rhys had told him about? It didn't look like any clinic he'd ever seen before. In fact, the building he was in seemed more like a bunker or military base. Was he a prisoner? Was Rhys somewhere in this strange place too and if so, where?

He tried not to panic but in that moment he just wanted to find Rhys, and then find his pup, and find out just what the hell was going on.

Caleb pushed the door the rest of the way open then stepped out into the more brightly lit hallway. Aside from the hum of the overhead lights the place was quiet. Caleb moved further down the hall, passing door after closed door. Each door looked similar to the one he'd stepped though. Grey, probably metal, and each brandishing only a number. His room was marked as 10, he noted. He followed the numbered doors to the end of the hall. Nine, eight, seven... Coming up on the last door he found himself looking down another corridor that turned to the right.