With Caution

fields on the reservation. Turning onto the road behind the Lassiter house, Rhys rolled down all his windows and slowed. He concentrated on making his eyes shift so he could see better.
    Taking a deep breath, he pulled the outside air in through his nose and made his voice calm and stern. “Keep talking to me, kid. Are you walking in the field?”
    There was more coughing.
    A wave of nausea hit Rhys. Hang in there, kid. “Sterling! Where are you? Are you in a field? Can you see your house from where you are?” He hated sounding so rough, but he had to get Sterling to answer him.
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    With Caution
    “In the field. I can’t see the house, I’m lying down.” His voice was so slight Rhys wouldn’t have been able to hear it without his sensitive hearing.
    “Can you hear any cars?”
    “No.”
    Damn, damn, damn. He gripped the steering wheel harder to keep his hands from shaking. He couldn’t remember ever being this unnerved. Rhys honked his horn. He was directly behind Sterling’s house, overlooking a field he himself crossed in wolf form to check on the kid. “Can you hear a horn?”
    There was no answer.
    “Sterling?” Rhys stopped the car and pulled over to the side. God, please let him be right. Please let this be the field Sterling was crossing. He got out, taking his phone with him. “Sterling?” Why wasn’t he answering? Lifting his face, Rhys scented the air. Blood.
    His fangs dropped. He sniffed again and took off toward the appealing aroma. His heart pounded so fast and hard he could hear it. Scanning the ground, he didn’t see the kid anywhere but the scent was getting stronger. Sterling was here in this field…somewhere.
    Closing his eyes, Rhys stopped and listened. To his left there was the sound of labored breathing. He turned and ran.
    Sterling lay on his back in the tall grass.
    The picture of Remi flashed through Rhys’ mind, making him shiver. The similarities were staggering. Dropping the phone, Rhys fell to his knees, already reaching for Sterling.
    Sterling was still. Even the rise and fall of his chest was faint and shallow. Rhys couldn’t see color, but he knew Sterling’s was off. His lips were the wrong tint and dark splotches of liquid dotted and ran down his face. He’d been coughing up blood. He was bleeding internally.
    Tears gathered in Rhys’ eyes, making him blink them away. Ingesting blood helped heal human mates, but there was no way Sterling could swallow anything. Scrambling for his back pocket, he retrieved his pocketknife and opened it. God, please let this work. It worked for Remi. Maybe because Sterling was his mate, it would work for them to.

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    He’d never been so afraid in his life. He slashed his wrist with the knife, then cut open Sterling’s shirt and cut a gash on his slim chest above his heart. As quickly as Rhys’
    pulse raced, his arm was already dripping at a rapid rate. He held it over Sterling’s cut, getting in as much as he could. When his incision closed he cut it again and repeated the process.
    It seemed to take forever.
    Glancing down, Rhys noticed the phone on the ground next to Sterling, still clutched in his hand. His hands were almost elegant, with long slender fingers. No wonder he was so good at catching a football. Closing his eyes, Rhys let go and allowed himself to cry.
    He’d learned quite a lot about the kid by watching him. The name Sterling fit him, he was so vibrant and full of life. He truly never stopped talking. It was like he had way too much energy and excitement to contain. It bubbled over by means of singing or carrying on a conversation with himself. Hell, not just himself, he talked to inanimate objects, strays, insects, everything.
    Rhys had found himself enchanted.
    Feeling the cut on his hand heal, he turned his attention back to his mate.
    The cut on Sterling’s chest closed. Please, let that mean it worked. Rhys dropped to sit on the ground and pulled Sterling into his arms.
    Sterling coughed and blood flew out of his mouth onto Rhys’ face and shirt. He turned his mate’s head, trying to help him get the blood up.
    While Sterling heaved the last of the blood from his lungs, Rhys took a deep breath and let relief wash through him. Sterling smelled like pack now. Like a wolf.
    Finally, Sterling stopped coughing and fell into a peaceful sleep. Cuddling him closer, Rhys held him, listening to the sound of his breathing. It was calm