Dr. Wolf, the Fae Rift Series Book 1- Shockwave by Cheree Alsop Read Free Book Online

I’m taking care of myself by taking care of others.” He met Aleric’s gaze. “It’s a very selfless thing to do.”
    Aleric nodded. “So I’m finding out. It’s going to kill me if I keep doing it.”
    “Probably,” the doctor replied. “Your patients are a bit more volatile than mine. Given your current reaction to the boy, I think I’ll handle that one. Do you want a place to rest for a while?”
    Aleric shook his head. “No. I need to get the demon set up and take blood to appease our hemoglobin-challenged friend before he eats everyone else in the D Wing. The fairy is attempting to take over the place, and the selkie feels like she can just sleep her life away. There’s no time for rest.”
    “Now you sound like Dr. Worthen,” Nurse Eastwick pointed out.
    The orderly with the red hair met them at the next section. “Uh, Dr. Worthen, Dr. Wolf, we have another patient.”
    Aleric exchanged a glance with Dr. Worthen. The orderly looked close to panic.
    “Who is it?” the doctor asked.
    “What if the patient is less of who and more of what?” the orderly replied.
    Aleric tipped his head to one side. “Do you take animals here?”
    “I let you stay, didn’t I?” Dr. Worthen replied.
    Aleric rolled his eyes. “You let me stay so that I’d take all the patients you don’t know how to handle.”
    “True,” Dr. Worthen said. “Sounds like there’s another for you. I’m hoping it’s the last because I don’t know how much more my staff can handle.”
    They followed the orderly to another set of curtains. Moans of pain came from behind it.
    “Don’t tell me you’re giving a fairy liquid again,” Aleric said.
    The orderly shook his head and wordlessly pulled aside the curtain.
    Aleric heard surprised gasps from the others at the sight on the bed. His heart went out to the fae.
    “What is it?” Nurse Eastwick asked.
    “It?” the young man repeated, taking a moment to stop moaning and stare at her. “I’m an ‘It’?”
    The pain in the young man’s face showed that he was on the edge of losing control. Finding out the chaotic whirlwind the fae had found himself in might be enough to push him over the edge.
    Aleric took charge of the situation.
    “He’s a faun, half goat, half man.” He crossed to the bed. “Hello, sir. I’m Dr. Wolf. What is your name?”
    “Braum.” He eyed Aleric with uncertainty. “You look young to be a doctor.”
    “I got bonus points with experience rather than schooling,” Aleric replied. Braum was clutching one of his hooved legs in both hands. Aleric motioned to the leg. “May I?”
    At Braum’s nod, he carefully slid up the pants on that side. He gritted his teeth at the sight of bones poking through the skin halfway down.
    “What happened?” he asked, keeping his voice level. Fauns were known for their high pain thresholds, but this was a serious injury.
    Blood dripped from the wound that should have at least been wrapped before the faun was brought in. The EMTs might have been taken for a loop with the amount of fae creatures they were dealing with, but he would have a word with them about taking standard emergency precautions when bringing a patient in so he or she didn’t bleed to death.
    A wry voice in the back of Aleric’s mind mentioned that he was starting to think like a doctor. He shook his head and turned his attention back to the patient.
    “I was running from the Brighton wolf pack.”
    “The werewolves?” Aleric said in surprise. “Why were they chasing you?”
    “Well, I….” Braum paused and met his gaze. “Does it really matter? I was running, then all the sudden I was falling. Before I hit the ground, it felt like a force threw me down through it. I slammed into something hard. When I awoke, there were buildings I didn’t recognize in a city I had never been in. Some woman saw me when she was going into her apartment and screamed. I heard her call the police from inside.” He waved a bloody hand. “That takes us to