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This was my girl trying to heal me.
She sobbed. “It’s poisoned. The knife was poisoned. Ander!”
Heavy footsteps clobbered over to us. People talked above me in hurried whispers. I was fading fast. Someone was crying nearby, calling out for me, calling me sweet names. My alpha came to my side. I knew because of his calm and commanding presence, the comfort he brought with a few kind words.
“Hang in there, Captain,” he said, “we’ll get you fixed up in no time.”
Then, I passed out.
Chapter 22 - Regina
Eric was in and out of a coma for two days. Those were the most grueling two days of my life that left me attached to my best friend at every waking second. By Friday afternoon, I had taken several naps in the same bed as Kiki, just like we used to as teenagers whenever we were having a party weekend.
Shoot, I practically felt the same exhaustion from it, too. I checked my phone and found a text from Blake about Eric starting to show signs of waking up. Without wasting a breath, I shook Kiki out of her sleep and rushed her from the house. We were in shorts and loose t-shirts with slippers on when we walked a short walk away into the medical building.
I pushed through the crowd that had formed in the hallway just outside Eric’s door. It wasn’t every day that a wolf suffered wolfsbane poisoning around here. The poison had largely been banned since the war ended. Too many vampires had utilized the plant to fight against their wolf enemies.
It made sense that it was rarely used now. But it still got sold or traded around underground markets, criminal circles, and the few remaining vampire clans that had it out for wolves. Though the animosity was understandable, I hated the practice.
I hated seeing my man laid up in bed with his side bandaged and his face paler than the full moon. Once I breached the small crowd, I stumbled up to the side of the bed and gently caressed his face. “Captain?”
Blake touched my upper back, nearly giving me a heartache. “Sorry, I was just making sure you’re okay. Did your injuries heal? Your memory?”
“I’m fine. I’m more worried about my baby.”
Kiara sat tentatively on the left side of the bed, being easy about her father’s injured side. “Is he in pain?”
Blake briskly walked to the door. “Dismissed.”
The miniature crowd dispersed at his command, revealing a serene Alpha Troy. The co-alpha walked into the room and shut the door calmly behind him.
When he reached the end of the bed, he nodded at me and then at Kiara respectfully. “We’re doing everything we can to keep him comfortable.”
“That makes it terminal,” Kiara said worriedly. She focused on her father and lifted his hand. “But he’s going to live, right?”
“We were able to isolate the poison and remove it from the bloodstream in time,” Blake explained. “Dr. Windsor is one of the most brilliant shifter doctors in the state.”
“We’re grateful,” I blurted, “for everything. We haven’t figured anything out, but—” I spared my best friend a concerned glance. “Thank you for everything.”
Kiara nodded in agreement. Both alphas bowed their heads before leaving the room, keeping the door closed so we could have our privacy.
A great sigh burst from Eric, then his eyelids fluttered. Kiara and I hovered over him as he slowly came back to us, little by little. I was crying by the time he focused on me with a loving gaze.
He swallowed a few times before whispering in a cracked voice, “What’s the occasion?”
“You jerk,” I snapped. Then, he kissed his forehead. “I’m sorry. I was just worried. That wound was bad, and you had wolfsbane in your blood from the dagger.”
Eric huffed roughly. “That scheming bitch…”
Kiara snorted. “Yeah, she really pulled out the stops on that one.”
“Kiki?” He lifted his head with a frown. “Didn’t think you two would be in the same room after…” He let the sentence fall.
Yeah, I wouldn’t have finished that statement if it had been me. Things weren’t exactly fixed, but they weren’t destroyed either. Kiara and I hadn’t spoken a word about our little argument, and yet we couldn’t be apart for longer than the amount of time it took to use the toilet and shower.
I chewed my lower lip as Kiara crossed her arms over her chest. No eye contact. It was like this when we initially got Eric into this room. That grueling drive back had been tumultuous, with us arguing over his unconscious body and Blake demanding us to shut up. It wasn’t until Troy eloquently recognized our harm and faults that we were able to sit quietly.
And that was the power of having two alphas.
