Chapter 155 155
Aurélie POV
Blind panic and crushing guilt drove my legs as I tore toward Émilie and Theo’s home. I pushed my body harder than I had in a long time, forcing speed from muscles already screaming in protest.
The entire way, I prayed.
Please, Moon Goddess. Please let her and the baby be alright.
I heard the screams before I reached the front door raw, terrified, soaked in pain. There was no mistaking them. No room for doubt.
I didn’t hesitate. I slammed the door open.
Émilie lay at the bottom of the stairs, her body twisted unnaturally, Roland crouched beside her with tears streaking his face, clutching her hand in both of his.
“What’s happened?”
“Alpha help!” Roland sobbed, panic choking his words. “She fell down the stairs. It was my fault.”
“Fabrice!” I roared through the mind-link, urgency ripping through the bond. Blood was already spreading across Émilie’s skirt, dark and unforgiving. I knew he was on his way but she was in a terrible state.
I’m coming. I’m coming, he panted back, breathless. He was running flat out, pushing himself just as hard as I had.
“It’s all my fault,” Roland whispered, over and over, rocking back and forth on the floor. “It’s all my fault…”
I gently lifted Émilie’s skirt, my hands steady despite the fear tearing through me. The sight beneath made my stomach drop. Blood streamed down her thighs.
She screamed again, clutching her stomach in terror, as though she could physically hold the pregnancy in place.
“Alpha…” Her eyes met mine, wide with devastation and fear.
“Émilie, try to stay calm,” I murmured, releasing soothing emotions through my alpha bond, wrapping her in what comfort I could give.
“Help me…” she whispered.
The plea pierced straight through my heart, sharp as a perfectly aimed arrow.
“The baby…” The horror in her eyes shook me to my core.
“Sshh, Émilie. Stay still.”
“Émilie?” Fabrice’s voice came from behind me as he dropped to her side. By the time he reached her, his hands were already assessing, his focus razor sharp.
“What happened, Roland?” Fabrice asked gently, pressing against Émilie’s abdomen, trying to feel for the child.
“It’s my fault,” Roland sobbed. “I left a toy on the stairs and she fell.”
“Did you see how she fell?” Fabrice asked. “Did she land on her stomach?”
Roland shook his head frantically. “I—I don’t know. It happened so fast.”
“The baby?” Émilie cried out as Fabrice pressed against her pelvic bone, pain wracking her body.
“I need to get her to the hospital,” Fabrice said immediately. “Aurélie, we need an ambulance.”
Through the mind-link, I issued the command an ambulance to Theo and Émilie’s house, immediately. Theo’s absence hadn’t gone unnoticed, and this would already be rippling through the pack.
“Theo…” Émilie sobbed. “I need him.”
The sound of her voice mate and mother, desperate and broken twisted something deep inside me. I couldn’t forgive myself if Theo wasn’t there for her when she needed him most.
Another scream tore from her throat as Fabrice scooped her into his arms, worry etched into his face. He didn’t wait for the ambulance.
Time mattered more than protocol.
Cradling her carefully, he ran toward the hospital. Roland and I ran beside him, refusing to fall behind.
“Get a gurney ready at the entrance,” I commanded through the mind-link to the hospital staff.
We arrived within minutes. The staff were already waiting. Émilie’s cries had faded into quiet, broken sobs and I could feel it in her bond.
She had already given up.
She already knew.
No, I thought fiercely. This cannot happen.
“Fabrice,” I said quietly, gripping his arm. “Do what you can.”
“Where are you going?” he asked as they wheeled her away.
“He needs to be here.”
That was all I said.
I guided Roland into the waiting room, then pulled out my phone.
“Alpha?” Theo answered instantly.
“Theo,” I said, forcing steadiness into my voice. “Something’s happened. I need you to come home.”
“Roland?” Panic edged his tone.
“He’s fine.” I heard Theo groan as he dropped the block on his mate bond, reopening it fully. The impact hit him immediately Émilie’s pain, fear, and grief crashing into him in relentless waves.
“Theo,” I said firmly. “She fell down the stairs. It’s not looking good. You need to come back. She needs you.”
“I’m not alone, Alpha.”
The careful phrasing told me everything.
The rogue the one who insisted on remaining anonymous was with him.
Did I want to bring him onto pack lands?
No. Not particularly.
But if I let him go now, there was a chance he’d run straight back to Geneviève. He’d said he wanted a fresh start. Freedom.
And I knew better than most there’s a vast difference between what people say and what they actually do.
That difference is how the world keeps breaking.