Chapter 26

I woke up, my eyes blinking rapidly. A loud buzzing echoed in my head, and everything around me was hazy and indistinct. It felt like my head was filled with lead.

I tried to make sense of my surroundings. It seemed like a hospital, but not the one I was familiar with, not the one I worked at. This was a different hospital, yet eerily similar.

To my left, Christopher sat, clad in scrubs, his elbows resting on his knees and his head bowed. He looked utterly devastated, but his face was hidden from me.

I attempted to speak, but my mouth was parched. I tried to move, and a sharp pain shot through my shoulder. A groan slipped past my lips, causing him to instantly spring from his chair and rush to my side.

“Dr. Hint, she’s awake,” he called out into the hallway.

“Scarlett, are you okay?” he asked, his eyes darting to my shoulder. He froze, his gaze darkening and his shoulders tensing, as if he’d been physically hurt.

“I am now. I need some water,” I managed to say, attempting to sit up slowly.

He handed me a glass of water.

“Easy, Scarlett,” he cautioned, trying to assist me.

A doctor with curly brown hair and kind blue eyes appeared at the door.

“Miss Byron, you need to rest,” he began, approaching me.

I reclined back onto the bed, instinctively placing my hand on my stomach.

“The baby?” I asked, my gaze shifting from Christopher to the doctor.

“The baby is fine. We heard the heartbeat while you were still unconscious. I ran some additional tests, and everything looks good,” Dr. Hint reassured me, moving to my right to examine my shoulder.

A wave of relief washed over me knowing the baby was safe. Only then did I notice my arm, completely wrapped in bandages.

“Why is this? Couldn’t I heal?” I asked, but Dr. Hint simply ignored my question and began to remove the bandages.

I sensed something was off, but it wasn’t until the last bandage was removed that I saw my thin, newly healed skin, still pink and tender, marred by a massive scar.

Wolves didn’t scar unless the wound was inflicted by silver, or it was a near-death injury.

This was a near-death scar.

That’s when I looked at Christopher. He swallowed hard, quickly turned, and began to walk toward the door.

“Christopher, where are you going?” I asked, disbelief coloring my voice.

“I can’t stay here,” he muttered, his voice thick with emotion.

“You’re not leaving me here alone.”

He didn’t respond.

“If you walk out that door, I’ll come after you,” I warned, my voice firm. That made him stop. “You know I will.”

I saw his shoulders relax. I understood the burden he was carrying and why he was reacting this way.

“It wasn’t your fault, and there was nothing you could have done to prevent it,” I said. “Don’t blame yourself for something that’s not your fault.”

“You can’t say that. You were unconscious. You didn’t see two wolves tearing at your shoulder, another at your leg. I couldn’t keep you safe; I failed to protect you. I promised myself I would shield you, but I failed when you needed me most. You were being torn apart, and I could only watch.”

“You watched? Really? You think I’m going to believe that you weren’t doing everything in your power to protect me? You think I don’t know that beneath your clothes there must be bandages from a wolf who was desperately trying to protect everyone? Tell me you weren’t trying?”

“But I couldn’t do it, Scarlett. You almost died. My mate, pregnant with my child, almost died in front of me, again,” he said. And then he let out a roar, loud and clear, as if it was torn from his very soul.

The next few seconds were filled with a silence so profound you could hear a pin drop.

“Feel better? Can we continue? I have a lot to tell you,” I said.

He turned to me, curiosity etched on his face.

“Dr. Hint, may I see my medical chart? And Christopher’s too?”

He looked at me, his face a mask of confusion.

“Which hospital are we at?” I asked.

“We’re at the hospital in the north,” Dr. Hint informed me, handing me my chart slowly.

“She’s also a doctor,” Christopher added, almost apologetically, as I skimmed through the charts to get a sense of what had transpired.

I saw that I had been brought in in critical condition. But when I read Christopher’s chart, I saw that he had arrived in a similar state, with a massive bite on his abdomen.

Looking at the medical records, it was clear that our survival was nothing short of a miracle; perhaps it was ~her~ answering my prayers.

“Let me see your stomach,” I said to Christopher as I handed the charts back to Dr. Hint.

Christopher hesitated, then closed his eyes and approached the bed. He slowly lifted his shirt, revealing a near-death scar.

My gaze met his, and I didn’t need to say anything.

But he had blamed himself for not protecting me, even though he had nearly died too.

“I’ve only seen three near-death scars in my entire career, and two were today,” Dr. Hint said, reminding me of something the Goddess had said.

“When it comes to my will, all kinds of miracles can happen,” I whispered.

“What’s wrong, Scarlett?” Christopher asked, but I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts.

“Well, you were reborn today,” Dr. Hint said. “I’ll leave you two alone to talk, but promise me you’ll rest.”

Christopher sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the wall.

“I thought I had known fear; I thought I had experienced everything, but nothing compares to what I felt today,” he confessed. “I fought with all my might; I bit, scratched, gutted, and tore apart all the wolves I could, but it wasn’t enough; there were too many of them. They killed Neil.”

His voice was filled with such pain; I felt a chill thinking about the friend he had lost. “And they hurt you. I wanted to take your place; I wanted to feel your pain and spare you from it all, but I failed to protect you.”

Each word was heavier than the last.

“You didn’t fail. If you weren’t there, I would have died. I’m alive because you always put yourself in front of me,” I said calmly, my hands moving to rub his back.

Christopher turned, and when our eyes met, it seemed to click; he seemed to finally understand that he hadn’t failed; he had protected me. “And everything happened exactly as it was supposed to. We may not understand it fully now, but soon it will all make sense.”

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“I saw her,” I said.

“Who did you see?” he asked.

“The Moon Goddess,” I replied, my voice trembling slightly. “The most perfect being that exists.”

I paused, worried he might think I’d lost my mind. “I know it sounds insane, but she appeared to me. She told me that everything happens for a reason—even the sad parts.”

“She said that Violet made you stronger, a better leader,” I continued. “And for me, I had to move on from Mathew. I had to see you in the hospital, and you had to be the one to join me on the dance floor. We had to mend our broken hearts together. But it was always meant to be us—just the two of us. Well, actually, the three of us,” I added, placing my hand on my belly.

“Three?” Christopher asked, his voice barely a whisper.

His lips parted in surprise, and I could almost feel his heart pounding. He let out a heavy sigh, and I saw a tear glisten in his eye.

“The Moon Goddess told me it’s a boy,” I said softly. “She said we should name him Anthony, which means ‘of inestimable value.’ In some languages, it also signifies courage, intelligence, and strength. She said he’s going to be a great leader.”

Christopher’s hand found its way to my belly, his tears falling freely now. “So, the prophecies were right? They were all about us?” he asked.

I nodded in affirmation.

Christopher moved to sit next to me on the stretcher. He wrapped his arms around me, laying down beside me. He inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of my hair, and let out a contented sigh.

“God, it feels so good to have you safe in my arms,” he murmured.

We stayed there for a while, just enjoying each other’s presence. We took the time to process everything that had happened, grateful to be alive.

After a couple of hours, we were discharged, dressed in hospital scrubs. Just as we were about to leave, two knocks on the door caught our attention.

A tall man with dark blond hair and green eyes stepped into the room.

“Alpha Brennon,” Christopher greeted, opening his arms to welcome his friend.

“Alpha Christopher,” Brennon replied.

“Thank you for your help. Your hospital was the closest, and my guards weren’t sure where else to go,” Christopher said.

“No need to thank me. I know you’d do the same for me. I’m glad I could help,” Brennon replied, his gaze shifting to me.

“Nice to meet you, Alpha,” I said, extending my hand.

He returned the firm handshake.

“This is Scarlett, my mate,” Christopher introduced me quickly, and Brennon smiled.

“Nice to meet you, Scarlett,” Brennon said.

He then turned back to Christopher. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”

“You’ve already done so much by taking care of us and our guards,” Christopher replied. “But I suspect we have some challenging days ahead. Can we count on your alliance?”

Brennon squeezed Christopher’s shoulder in response.

“Always. You can count on me,” Brennon assured him, patting Christopher on the back before they shared a hug.

“Are our guards here, too?” I asked, fearing the answer.

“They heard the screams and came, along with some council guards. They saved us. Some were injured, but there were no fatalities,” Christopher explained, and I felt a wave of relief wash over me.

“Just Neil, and that’s going to involve a lengthy legal process. We need to return to the Council and figure out our next steps.”

“You mean ~we~ need to go back,” I corrected him.

“Scarlett, don’t make this any harder. I need you to be safe, especially after what happened,” Christopher pleaded.

“You don’t understand, Christopher. They’re not just threatening me—they’re threatening our son,” I said, shaking my head and taking a deep breath.

The thought of anyone threatening my child ignited a fierce protectiveness within me.

“I won’t let anything happen to him. I’ll fight to the end to keep him safe, and I can’t do that locked in a room. I won’t stop until all these wolves responsible for this are either locked up or dead.” My words came out with a force I didn’t know I possessed.

Christopher’s eyes widened, and he was silent for a few moments.

“Put guards at my side twenty-four seven. I don’t care. But I’m going with you.”

He kissed me on the forehead. “All right, let’s go then.”