Page 153 of A Wild Darkness

Dr. Charles braces me with a quick grab of my forearm. “You should lie back down.”

He’s right, but I still have more questions to be answered. “Where are we?”

“At Thornfell Lodge,” he answers, as if I should already know. “On the Thompson property.”

Oh, thank god, we’re home. I let out a sigh of relief, gently freeing myself from his grasp. “Okay.”

“I’ll be back in the morning to check on Sebastian.”

He’s leaving? He can’t leave while Sebastian is in this state. “You can’t leave him! What if he⁠—”

Dr. Charles smiles warmly. “Don’t worry. I’m staying on the third floor here at the lodge until he’s out of the woods.”

Another sigh of relief. “Okay. Thank you.”

“Get some sleep,” he instructs, then leaves the room and closes the door behind him.

I squeeze my eyelids together, wishing this was a horrible nightmare, but my body betrays me, swaying in place and reminding me I should be lying down. Dr. Charles is right—I need to rest, but refuse to be far from Sebastian. If he wakes, he needs to feel me there.

Lifting one leg, I swing it over the rail, climbing into the hospital bed next to him. After sliding some of the cords out of the way, I curl myself into his right side.

“I’m right here, Sebastian. I won’t leave you.” My throat muscles constrict, more sobs break, and my stomach clenches with each labored breath. “I’m so sorry.” I sniff and tuck my head into the crook of his arm, burying my nose into his skin. “Please don’t break your promise and leave me.”

I’m not sure how long I’m asleep for, but the sound of a familiar whisper wakes me. I peel my eyes open and lift my head up to see my sister and River lying together on the four-post bed across the room.

“Stevie?” she breathes out my name in desperation.

The sight of her is enough to bring me to tears. “Lux?”

My heart swells seeing my sister, even though our last conversation ended contentiously, mostly because of my own demons—she is still my best friend. And the only other person in this world besides Sebastian who sees the real me.

Lux hops off the bed and bolts over, wrapping her arms around my body and hugging me tightly. “I’m so glad you’re all right.”

I pull back. “You’re back early?”

“As soon as Christian told us what happened, we packed up and came home,” she replies.

I glance at River, who is now at her side. “So, you and Sebastian, huh? Didn’t see that coming,” he deadpans. “I thought you two hated each other.”

A blush heats my cheeks. “I guess not.”

Lux giggles. “I mean…they hated each other, but clearly it was sexual tension.”

The fleeting moment of erratic flutters fills my stomach, ending as quickly as it came, because the second my eyes land back on Sebastian, asleep and in rough condition, my heart aches again.

“He’s going to be all right, Stevie,” River reassures me with a friendly pat on my arm. “Dr. Charles is the best. He’s been with our family since we were kids.”

“Are you sure?”

He looks over at his cousin. “Yeah. And Sebastian’s a tough motherfucker anyway.”

River’s confident, level demeanor eases my nerves. But there are too many what-ifs in this scenario, plaguing my mind.

“Why don’t we get you in the shower?” Lux gently pushes my hair aside. “Get you feeling like yourself again, and River can stay here with Sebastian.”

The thought of leaving him cuts my insides. “I don’t want to leave him. What if he wakes up and I’m not there?”

“I know, but you’ll feel better after a good shower. It looks like you haven’t taken one in a while.” She grimaces. “And River’s here.”