Page 74 of Flawed Revenge

“Always when it comes to your safety or your comfort.” Lion slipped an arm around Kate’s shoulders and lifted her, wincing as she did when the movement caused pain to her neck and ribs. She took the pills from Voodoo and placed them in her mouth, then took the uncapped bottle and washed them down.

“I'm ready to see Ariella now,” she said as soon as she’d swallowed and passed the bottle back.

“Cass, Maya, can you bring Ariella over?” he called out, shifting slightly so he had Kate propped up against his knee.

A second later, the little girl, teddy bear still gripped in her hand, flung herself into her mother’s arms.

“Careful,” he reminded the child, but Kate didn't seem to care. She’d wrapped her arms tightly around her daughter and pulled her close.

“Did anyone hurt you, sweetie-pie?” she asked.

“No, the man tried to pull me out of the wardrobe, but Daddy killed him,” Ariella said with a ferocity that surprised him. His angelic-looking nine-year-old had a bloodthirsty streak, and he loved it. She was a little warrior in the making, and no matter what path in life she chose, he intended to make sure she knew how to defend herself.

Kate’s gaze met his, and he saw satisfaction. “Good. I'm glad.”

“Did the bad lady hurt you, Mom?” Ariella asked, eyeing the bandage.

“A little scratch, but the bad lady is dead now,” Kate assured her daughter. “That means we can all go home.”

“Our home, or Daddy’s home?” Ariella asked, looking between them.

Once again, his girl met his gaze, and he saw absolute certainty shining in the blue depths. Whatever answer she gave, she was confident it was the right one. “If he’ll have us, then your dad’s home.”

“Yay,” Ariella squealed.

Moving so he was sitting on the floor, his legs on either side of Kate, her propped up against his chest, their daughter between Kate’s legs, Lion wrapped his arms around both of his girls. “You two are always welcome to stay with me. I hope that it will become our home, not just mine.” And that his daughter spent many happy years growing up there.

They might all have survived this ordeal, and River Gardner might be dead, ending the threat against him and his teammates, but that didn't mean Ariella would be healed. He was a match, and hopefully Whitney would find something that would help, but there were no guarantees.

“I think I got it,” Whitney suddenly called out, rushing into the room, Blade and Thunder on her heels.

“Got what?” Kate asked, tentative hope in her tone.

“Exactly what I was looking for. River was right, she had every single version of the drug I ever worked on, and they’re all labeled, so I was able to find the one I thought would work the best,” Whitney explained.

“So you think you have something that will boost Ariella’s immune system and make it more likely that the bone marrow transplant will be a success?” Lion asked, that same tentative hope flickering to life inside him, but he needed it spelled out for him.

“That’s exactly what I think I have,” Whitney replied.

“What happens now?” Kate asked.

“I inject Ariella with this, then we harvest bone marrow from Lion, and do the transplant,” Whitney answered.

“Then we hope for a miracle,” Lion added.

March 20th

9:54 P.M.

“You need a distraction,” Leo announced as he stood, bent, and scooped her into his arms.

Kate squeaked in surprise at suddenly being lifted off the couch she’d been curled up on, her head on Leo’s shoulder, watching a movie with the others.

Well, watching was probably the wrong word. There was a movie playing on the TV, sure. But she’d forgotten what it was, couldn’t even give a genre, hadn't been paying attention to a single second of it. The others were all coupled up as well, and despite the mansion’s enormous size, the media room had a cozy feel to it that should have relaxed her.

But how could she relax when her nerves were all strung out?

Earlier today, Leo had donated bone marrow to Ariella. Now there was nothing left to do but sit back and wait to see if it was going to work. The boost to Ariella’s immune system from the drugs they’d found in River Gardner’s lab should help her, but it was no guarantee.