She shivered against me. Her hands slowly slid up my chest to grip my shoulders. I waited for her to answer, but she didn’t. Her hands were trembling as were her body. My frown deepened. It was clear that something shook her up otherwise she wouldn’t have been here in my bedroom.
“Val? What are you doing here?” I asked again. “Did something happen?”
“I had a bad dream,” she whispered. “I needed to see that you’re okay.”
I moved slightly to free my hand. Cupping her cheek, I stroked her skin with my thumb. Her temperature was higher than it was earlier. Worry filled me. Maybe we should call the doctor again. My eyes darted over to the clock on my nightstand. It was almost two o’clock in the morning. I glanced down at her again.
“We should get you back to bed, little dove. It’s okay. It was just a bad dream.”
I carefully sat up. My hands reached for the sheets to cover my nakedness. Valeria wasn’t ready for that step yet—especially after what happened between her and David in the pool. We needed to take things slow no matter how badly we wanted her.
I reached for her and pulled her up into a sitting position. She scooted closer to the edge of the bed. I hesitated and then stood, taking the sheets with me. I wrapped it around my waist before turning back to her. She made a strange sound at the back of her throat and then doubled over. Something hot and wet splashed against my feet and legs. The smell of vomit made me wince. Shit! I stepped aside and reached out to move her hair out of the way.
“S-sorry,” she croaked as she sat up.
“It’s okay,” I muttered.
I hooked my hands under her armpits and picked her up. Placing her on my hip, I walked towards the bathroom. The light blinded me for a few seconds once I found the light switch. Carrying her over to the faucet, I slowly lowered her to her feet and then turned her around. I reached around her to open the tap. She leaned forward to rinse her mouth. Our eyes locked in the mirror. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes teary. She had a fever.
“Are you okay now?” She shook her head. “What’s wrong? How are you feeling?”
“My head hurts. I’m cold but so hot. I f-feel strange,” she whispered.
“I’ll call the doctor, baby. Let’s get you into bed first.”
I moved her over to the toilet. Closing the lid, I guided her so she could sit down. I walked back into my bedroom and grabbed a clean shirt for her and some clean shorts for me. Valeria was still seated on the toilet when I entered the bathroom again. I grabbed the washcloth and wet it before kneeling in front of her. Gripping the hem of her soiled shirt, I tugged it up and over her head.
“I wanna take a shower,” she mumbled.
“You can’t get your hair wet. I don’t think we have any shower caps for you to use.”
“Then a bath.”
I hesitated and then gave her a nod. A few minutes later that bathtub was filled half with lukewarm water. I lowered her into the water and moved back. Her eyes darted up to mine. She gave me a small smile and then raised her arm to hold her hand up to me with her palm up.
“Get in with me?” I shook my head. “Please?”
Her bottom lip started to tremble. I sighed and turned around. Dropping the sheet on the floor, I stepped into the shower to wash away the vomit. I watched the dirty water go down the drain as I weighed the pros and cons of getting into the bath with her. Water splashed. It was enough to break me out of my thoughts. My eyes darted over to the bathtub the moment I stepped out of the shower. She was leaning back with her eyes closed. My eyes dropped to her chest. She was almost panting.
“It hurts,” she suddenly whimpered.
I moved forward and kneeled next to the bath. Valeria turned onto her side and opened her eyes to stare at me. “What hurts?”
“Everything.”
Her eyes started to droop. I caught her before she could slip beneath the water when her arms gave way under her weight. Something was seriously wrong with her.
The fear inside me continued to rise as I lifted her out of the bathtub. I quickly dried her and slipped the shirt over her head before carrying her out of the room and down the hall. This wasn’t normal. She was sick because I gave her some of my blood. If she died because of it, I would never forgive myself.
***
I leaned back in the chair as I watch my enforcers enter the office. The last man to enter closed the door softly behind him and then leaned back against it. They all waited in silence for me to acknowledge them. I waited for a heartbeat more before turning my attention towards Green, my lead enforcer. He instantly straightened and gave me a grim smile.
“We found twenty-five more traps hidden. They hid them in well-traveled places. With the snow building up from the snowstorms it would not have been easily seen,” he muttered. “We also located five smaller traps near the park for the children.”
Parker stepped forward. “We already warned the caretakers to be on the lookout and to keep the children within sight at all times.”
I nodded and sat forward. “What about the rogues?”
Green hesitated. “They got away before we could catch them. One of the men managed to injure one but he died as he was being transported to the basement.”
I run a hand down my face. The headache was making it hard for me to think. I had a duty towards my pack—I had to protect from the impending danger—but all I could think about was Valeria.
We had no idea what was happening to her. It’s been two weeks since she had walked right into that trap. The wound on her leg had healed, but she still had a fever. She was still unconscious, and when she woke up, it was only for a few seconds before she fell unconscious again. But in those moments between consciousness and unconsciousness, she was really confused.
“Alpha?”
I sat up straighter and glanced at every one of them. “I don’t want any of the children outside playing in the woods. Set the curfew for everyone like we planned.”
“But Alpha Christmas is next week. The Christmas party is on Saturday.”
I growled and slammed my fist down on the desk. They jumped in fright. I had forgotten about it. Lately, I’ve been forgetting about a lot of things.
My mind trailed back to Valeria. Doc Ali had taken some more blood this morning. David was sitting with Valeria. He said that he would call me if she woke up. What if she never woke up again? The thought of losing her made pain fill me. I clenched my fists and tried to even my breathing. It was hard to breathe. The urge to shift was enough to make me stumble out of the house. I welcomed the pain that came with shifting forms. Bones cracked as they rearranged to my new form.
I dropped to the ground and dug my paws into the cold snow. Throwing my head back, I howled. It was long and sorrowful. Everyone could hear the pain I suffered from. A howl in the distance answered mine. I shook out my fur and then took off. I didn’t know where I was going but I just needed to run. I needed to clear my mind.
Valeria hasn’t even agreed to be our mate yet, but I was already attached to her. I would do anything to save her, even if it meant changing her.
The thought made me stop cold. It was unheard of. Just like you giving her your blood to heal. I growled.
They made us like this! They wanted animals they could control. They turned us into fucking monsters. But they weren’t ready for the consequences.
Another growl filled the air. I needed to kill, to hunt something. I needed to let out aggression before I could think clearly. The mating heat wasn’t making it any damn easier.
I ached.
Along with the constant worry about Valeria, the aggression, and the urge to fuck was driving me out of my fucking mind. Her smell was driving me crazy too. She might be sick and unconscious but her body was being affected by the heat.
I needed to get away and clear my mind. Maybe a few days in the forest would do me good.
David would take care of her. He’ll be there when she wakes up. With my mind made up, I turned and ran back towards the house. I’ll tell him where he could reach me before I leave.