Shaping Destiny by Hmonroe

left his unconscious
friend behind, found his car, and headed back the way he had
come.
    Max ran to his truck,
found some extra clothes, and came back on two legs.
    “ Now would be a good time
to use your healing talents.” He touched my leg. “It would be best
to get you to human form so we can wrap this better.” He held up a
blanket and piled some clothes next to me.
    I transformed easily and
struggled to get dressed.
    “ I need a hospital.” Blood
flowed onto the pavement.
    “ I know. But we need to
stop the bleeding first. You dressed?” I could hear the urgency in
Max’s voice.
    “ Just about.”
    “ Well, ready or not, your
leg needs attention.”
    Max let the blanket fall
just as I finished pulling up my shorts. He wasted no time wiping
away the blood.
    “ How bad is it?” I groaned
in pain.
    “ It could be worse. The
bullet isn’t in your leg, which is good, but you need stitches.”
Max tightly wrapped my leg and swiftly carried me over to his
truck. He suddenly stopped, staring at his truck.
    “ I don’t know if it’ll
even start.” He grabbed a pillow, placed it in the truck over the
shattered glass, and then set me down in the passenger’s seat. I
gently closed the door, hoping it wouldn’t break off as Max got
into the driver’s seat.
    A shuddering sound came
from the truck as Max turned the key. “Come on. Start!”
    “ Where do you think we’re
going anyway? We can’t go forward.”
    Max continued turning the
key. “We’ll go back, find another way around.”
    I nodded.
    “ Yes!” The engine roared
to life. He quickly put it in drive and headed back the way we had
come.
    ***
    We pulled into the
emergency room. Max jumped out and ran over to the passenger’s
side. He whisked me up in his arms and ran into the emergency room.
A doctor noticed our entrance and the bloody wrap that encircled my
leg.
    “ What happened?” the man
in scrubs asked.
    He started to unravel the
wrap as we contemplated what to say.
    “ Whose blood is
this?”
    I looked at him confused.
“What do you mean whose blood? Mine, of course.”
    Max looked down at my
blood covered leg, then looked into my eyes. I knew then I had no
pain.
    “ Is this a joke?” the
doctor said.
    Max looked back at the
doctor. “We're sorry to waste your time. I guess it wasn't as bad
as I thought.” He swiftly turned with me still in his grasp. “You
healed.”
    I glanced down at his
ankle. “You don't seem to have a problem walking
either.”
     

CHAPTER FOURTEEN
    We were off again, driving
in his beat-up truck that he hoped would make it all the way home.
Shape shifting still definitely wiped me out, yet I felt powerful
to have been able to stand up to that man. It was going to be
midnight before we would reach home. I sat close to Max as the wind
from the open windshield blew a chill through me. I snuggled into
Max's side. It wasn't long until my eyes started to feel heavy, and
sleep took over.
    Goosebumps made me start
to stir. I folded both arms under Max’s one, trying to use him as a
blanket. I felt the truck start to slow and pull to the side. My
curiosity got the best of me and I started to wonder if we were
home already. After sitting up and looking out, I realized I didn't
recognize the area.
    “You're freezing.” He
rushed around the back of his truck to get a blanket.
    “Thank you.” As we started
up again I remained awake. My mind started to wander, recalling how
fast Max and I had developed a relationship. It was so wonderful,
but unnatural. A bond that would have taken years to form had
formed in only a few months. Was this the way it was supposed to
feel when you find your soul mate, or was it this gift that drew us
together? I looked over toward Max.
    “Tell me more about
yourself.”
    “What do you want to
know?” He smiled, trying to keep an eye on the road.
    “Anything.”
    “Okay . . . umm . . . I'm
from New York. I’m adopted. I have wonderful parents, who I can't
wait for you to