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"Just breath, Kai. You're going to be okay," Rosie assured me as she rubbed my back.
"Roxanne's right, what are we going to do?" Rowan asked.
"We can take him out of town like he and Kai have been doing?"
"I don't think so. Not while Pierce is still out there. Remember, he and his army may come after Kai for his powers," Joaquin countered.
"Then what do we do?" Kao asked, sounding worried.
There was only one thing I could think of, but I knew Kao and Rosie weren't going to like it. I wasn't a big fan of it either, but I'd rather suffer through it for a night than risk the safety of anybody here. "You can lock me in one of the basement cellars."
"Absolutely not!" Rosie protested immediately. "We're not going to cage you like some animal."
"We don't have much of a choice," I got out through gritted teeth as the pain started to rise again. "If I'm in one of the cellars, the silver bars should keep me from breaking out."
"Kai, it's not safe down there," Kao said frantically.
"Just do it!" I ended up shouting right as red flooded my vision.
Joaquin and Rowan quickly came to the rescue and held me down until I could reign in the rage. "Just... do it. It's only... for the night."
"I agree with Kai," Joaquin said. "You guys know I have more reason to hate it down there than anyone else, but it's the only place that Kai can shift and not run amok."
Rosie looked as if she still wanted to argue, but I begged her with my eyes. "Rosie, please. It'll be okay, I promise. We’re running out of time."
Rosie's body visibly shook, her lips pressed to a firm line, and she tried mulling over the options in her head. I wasn't kidding when I said we were running out of time. If she couldn't decide soon, I was going to run into the lodge and go down to one of the cellars myself.
"Fine," she growled. "Fine, we'll do it."
I sighed in relief before feeling another stab of pain in my gut. Joaquin and Rowan helped me to my feet.
"Come on, we need to get him inside now. Are you okay to walk, Kai?" Rowan asked me.
I nodded and let both of them hold me up as we walked inside. A couple of the betas were inside, watching us with curious glances, but we didn't bother to stop and explain. Byron ran ahead of us, punching in the passcode to the basement. Once the door was unlocked, he opened the door, holding it open so we could get down. We stopped at the first cellar on our left. With a pair of rubber gloves on, Byron opened the cellar. The door swung open with a rusted creaking sound. I hobbled inside and collapsed on the floor just as I heard the cellar close. My body was boiling from the inside, my skin covered in sweat. I went into a mental battle for control. I managed to keep my vision clear and saw Rosie and Kao standing on the other side, careful not to touch the bars as they watched with pain-stricken expressions.
"I'm so sorry," Rosie whispered, her helplessness could be read through our mental connection. "I hate that you have to go through this."
She wasn't the only one, but if it had to be between me and her, I was glad it was me who had to suffer through it. "I-I'll be fine," I managed to get out. "Don't worry. By tomorrow, I'll be myself again."
"I wish there was a better way to handle this," Kao muttered in protest.
"Me too," I agreed.
"Rosie." Rowan came back to join us, his attention set on my mate. "Let's leave him be. We should do some training to get your mind off of Kai's predicament."
Rosie whipped in his direction, gaping in horror. "Are you fucking kidding me right now?¿Eres estúpido o qué? You can't expect me to leave my mate right now. Look at him!"
Rowan grumbled but didn't seem offended by Rosie's outburst. "I know you're worried about him, but there's nothing you can do for him right now."
"Sure, there is! I can make sure he doesn't lose his mind to this berserker rage or whatever the hell it's called."
"Rosie." Kao stepped in and rested a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. I can stay with him. Rowan's right, you'll need all the training you can get."
If I was in better condition, I would've agreed with Kao. The only thing that could be done for me right now was just to wait it out until morning. Especially if I was caged up, something my Berserker Wolf noticed and wasn't happy about.
Rosie looked ready to argue that she wasn't going anywhere, but someone else stepped down to the basement to meet us. It was Joaquin. "Kao's right, cariño. I already talked it over with Byron. We're going to take shifts to keep an eye on Kai to make sure he'll be okay."
"Except he's not okay," Rosie snapped, backing away from everyone and gripping her beautiful hair in frustration. I'd given anything in that moment to go to her. To hold her and let her know I'd be okay. I hated how my situation right now.
