Chapter 65 Only Chance At Survival

Chapter 65 Only Chance At Survival
REIKA'S POV

Beta Orion was fast, almost like lightning. Before Apollo’s body could hit the ground, Orion caught him midair with his strong arms. My heart dropped at the sight.

“Apollo?” I cried out, rushing toward them, my voice breaking. My hands trembled as I touched his face, brushing away strands of hair that had fallen over his forehead. His skin felt clammy, his breathing shallow. 

“Apollo, wake up!” I pleaded, shaking him gently, but he didn’t stir. He was slipping further into unconsciousness, and the terror inside me swelled.

Orion’s expression was grim, his jaw tight as he lifted Apollo effortlessly into his arms. “We need to get him to his chambers,” he said firmly. 

Without waiting for me to respond, he carried him swiftly through the halls, the pack members parting in stunned silence as we passed. Some whispered, others bowed their heads, but I barely noticed them. My world was collapsing with every second Apollo didn’t wake.

We reached our bedroom, and Orion lay him gently upon the bed. I stayed by his side, clutching his hand as though the warmth of my touch alone might anchor him back to me. Tears blurred my vision, but I forced myself not to break down completely. He needed me to be strong.

"Apollo, I am here," I muttered. "Orion, what is happening? I don't understand."

Orion was as puzzled as I was. "I don't understand, too, Reika. I have suspicions, but it's better if we wait for the doctor to examine the Alpha. I have asked Dr. Jade to come here through mind-link."

Time blurred, but eventually, the door opened, and Jade entered. Apollo’s sister, one of the most skilled healers in our pack, carried herself with calm precision despite the worry in her eyes. Her presence alone gave me a sliver of hope. She wasted no time, setting down her satchel of herbs and instruments before kneeling beside Apollo.

Her fingers moved deftly, checking his pulse, his breathing, and then examining faint markings on his skin. She whispered words I didn’t understand under her breath, ancient techniques passed down through healers of the pack. Finally, she drew in a sharp breath.

“He was poisoned,” Jade announced, her voice low but certain.

“Poisoned?” I echoed, my voice shaking. I felt anger and fear mixing like fire in my chest. “That explains why Apollo seemed weaker during the fight,” I continued. “It wasn’t just the battle itself. If our pup hadn’t given him strength when it did, he would never have defeated Jupiter.”

Hearing that truth tore at me. My hands tightened around Apollo’s. He had fought bravely, and yet Jupiter had dared to use poison? Fury ripped through me. “He should have killed Jupiter,” I spat, unable to hold back. 

“Jupiter was a traitor! He didn’t fight fairly. He doesn’t deserve to live after what he’s done to Apollo.” My voice rose with every word, trembling with the rage I could no longer contain.

Jade looked at me firmly, her healer’s composure unshaken by my outburst. “Reika, calm yourself. Anger will not help him. Panic will not bring him back faster.” She placed a hand on my shoulder, steady and grounding. “I promise you, I will do everything in my power to create an antidote.”

I took a shaky breath, trying to calm the storm inside me, though it wasn’t easy. “What poison did Jupiter use?” I asked, my voice lower now, though it trembled with restrained fury.

Jade’s expression darkened. “It might be wolfsbane.”

At that, Orion, who had been standing silently at the side of the room, met my eyes. We both knew the danger of wolfsbane. It was more than a poison; it was death itself to wolves, eating away at them from within, burning through their veins until nothing remained but weakness and darkness.

The room grew unbearably quiet. My hand remained locked with Apollo’s, my tears now falling silently. Wolfsbane was nearly impossible to cure. 

And yet, I couldn’t let go of him. I wouldn’t. Apollo is my mate, my Alpha, the father of my child. And I would not let him die.

When Jade left to begin working on an antidote, the room felt emptier, quieter, like the air itself had been drained of life. Orion lingered for a moment longer, his steady gaze fixed on Apollo, before he placed a hand on my shoulder.

“I’ll be right outside,” he promised. His voice was calm, solid, the way only Orion could be. “If you need me, call through the link, or shout. I’ll hear you.”

I nodded, grateful but unable to speak. My voice was caught somewhere between a sob and a whisper. Then the door closed, and I was left alone with Apollo.

I sat at his bedside, my hands trembling as I brushed his hair back from his forehead. His face was pale, not the kind of pale from exhaustion, but the sickly pallor of poison. His lips were faintly tinted purple, and beads of sweat clung to his skin despite the cold chill in the room. His breathing was uneven, shallow, as though each inhale cost him more strength than he had left to give.

Wolfsbane. The cruelest weapon against our kind. I had only ever read about what it did to a wolf’s body, but seeing it in Apollo made the knowledge real and horrifying. It was said to burn from within, searing through the blood, weakening the muscles until even the strongest Alpha felt like a pup. That was what I saw now, my Alpha, my mate, lying defenseless.

My chest ached as tears filled my eyes. I pressed my palm against his cheek, desperate to feel warmth, desperate to feel him. “I don’t know what to do without you,” I whispered, my voice breaking. “Our pup and I need you, Apollo. Please, fight. Please stay with us.”

For a moment, I swore I felt something. A flicker. A pull deep in my chest that didn’t come from me alone. I stilled, focusing, and realized I was sensing… a bond. Stronger than the mate bond I already shared with Apollo, yet familiar, like a thread pulling at me from afar. I couldn’t tell where it came from, but it hummed faintly in my veins, a comfort and a mystery all at once.

Before I could linger on it, commotion erupted outside the door. Voices rose in alarm, and the faint sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the hallway. I stiffened, clutching Apollo’s hand tightly as though protecting him from the chaos beyond.

“Someone is looking for Alpha Apollo!” a voice rang out, talking to Beta Orion. “He… he seemed like the Lycan King.”

The words struck me like lightning. Lycan King. The words repeated in my head, echoing louder with every heartbeat. My breath caught in my throat as realization dawned on me. Could it be? Was he here, my father?

I froze, my mind spinning, my heart hammering in my chest. If the Lycan King was here, then he was looking for me. And if he truly was my father…
A rush of emotions swept through me. Fear. Excitement. Longing. Confusion.

But above all, hope. If he is truly the Lycan King, then surely he has the power to heal Apollo. Surely he could undo the wolfsbane’s damage. Maybe this was the bond I had felt moments ago, calling me to him, reminding me of who I really was.

I pressed Apollo’s hand to my lips, whispering against his skin. “Hold on, my love. If he is truly here, if my father is the Lycan King, then I’ll bring him to you. He’ll save you.”

Then Orion’s deep voice pulled me from my thoughts. “I will talk to him since Alpha cannot talk to him now.”

My heart was racing with excitement. My father, the Lycan King, was here. And with him, perhaps, Apollo’s only chance at survival.