Chapter thirty-three

Keagan's P.O.V

"Sylvia is very ill!" Hector said, his voice heavy with concern. "I visited her, and she's in a terrible state. I hope she recovers soon."

I tensed, turning to stare fully at Hector, searching his expression to see if he was serious. My heart sank as I saw not a trace of playfulness in his face.

Next, jealousy engulfed me. How did Hector know about her condition before me? My eyes narrowed. Could he have feelings for Sylvia that I didn't know about?

"I'm going to the hospital," I announced abruptly, rising to my feet and shutting off my laptop.

Hector gave me a bewildered look. "Right now? Should I follow you?" he asked, standing up.

I pinned him with a look. "Take care of everything while I'm away." With that, I hurried out of my office.

Upon arriving at the hospital, two nurses eagerly led me to Sylvia's room, doing their best to entice me. They only left me alone after I informed them I was married, but they mumbled their thanks before scurrying away.

I slowly stepped into the wardroom, my eyes gliding to the figure with wires taped to her skin, her eyes closed. My heart gave a painful squeeze.

I softly closed the door behind me, gently making my way toward her, taking care not to wake her. The pungent smell of disinfectant hit me, and I scrunched my nose in irritation.

As I moved closer to her bed, I stopped to examine her still, frail figure.

Her face was ashen and drawn, her once vibrant and glowing skin now seemed almost translucent, marred by dark circles under her sunken eyes.

Her lips were chapped and pale, and an IV line ran from her arm to a bag of clear liquid hanging on a metal stand beside the bed.

I gently moved my hand to caress her hair but stopped, realizing what I was about to do. I clenched my fists in frustration before sliding into one of the chairs and staring at her.

Earlier, the doctor had informed me that Sylvia had caught the plague spreading through the city, known as Estrus fever and it had no cure. The doctor said it had a death poll of five thousand people in just three days of it's breakout. It was a cause for alarm and I felt fucking useless that I couldn't do anything to help Sylvia. 

I refused to let myself think of her death. I didn't know this woman, nor did she mean anything to me but I didn't think I would be able to move on if she died.

My wolf ached for her.

Only one thing was strange about this. The Estrus fever, a plague that had swept across the city almost a century ago ONLY affected omegas. Barely a few hundred omegas were left alive and most turned out barren. That may be why Jessica had been barren because if she were a descendant of any of the Omegas that had been affected by the estrus fever, even if it was decades later, her fertility would be affected.

My heart did that painful squeeze it does whenever Jessica crossed my mind.

Shaking my head to block out the pain, I tried to figure everything out. Unless Sylvia had a dormant Omega gene, there was no reason she should be in this hospital bed.

Fuck, why did I even give a shit?"

Suddenly, I was filled with an overwhelming urge to feel Sylvia and I couldn't fucking hold it back anymore. My hands itched, and I slowly moved to hold her limp left hand, which was free of wires. The instant our hands touched, it felt like my veins had been shocked with electric livewires, and my skeleton seemed to lock into place as if the very foundations of my being had been petrified--turned into stone.

My wolf growled, a violent tearing sound erupting from his throat, as I felt a strange, unsettling sensation spreading through me. It was like a dark, living entity as if a swarm of tiny insects were crawling beneath my skin, their tiny legs tickling my veins as they marched inexorably towards my heart. 

Another growled bubbled in my lungs and a terrible pain shot through me so intense I had to slam my eyes shut, clenching my hands so tight around hers. And instantly, it was as if I could see the insides of my veins. I could see the tiny ant-like insects I'd felt crawling inside my heart. What the fuck?

Once they got to the center, it parted open to the dead, ugly-looking tree that had once been beautiful and glorious. It was me and Jessica's mate bond that had shattered and shriveled the day she died.

There, they began to gnaw and feast on the withered dead roots of the mate bond as if clearing all proof that it ever existed. I wanted them to stop. My eyes stung with the need to stop them but I was powerless. I could only watch as they removed the evidence of the pain and heartache Jessica left me with.

No! I yelled, feeling my eyes burn. It was all I fucking had of Jessica. The only tangible thing because even her body hadn't survived the fire. Don't take this from me!

Suddenly, I saw a glow from my inner eyes. Squinting, I realized they were golden roots, emerging from the ruins, like a phoenix rising from ashes. The insects gnawing grew fiercer and so did the terrible pain slicing through me from the tip of my toes to the hair on my scalp. I vibrated from the agony. But it was something worth it for I could feel a new mate bond taking hold. It was mine and Jessica's--I could never forget the glorious luscious golden leaves, but it also felt new. Its tendrils wrapped around my heart and the pain exploded into a blinding, ecstatic pleasure that felt like a white burst of light detonating inside me.

The intensity was so overwhelming that my eyes snapped open, and I was flung across the hospital room with a force that left me reeling.

I crashed into the wall, the impact sending shockwaves through my body, and i felt myself teetering on the edge of consciousness.

The room spun around me, s swirl of colors and lights, as the pleasure continued to course through my veins like liquid fire.

When it finally abated, I sucked in a long breath and staggered back onto my feet.

The moment my wide, shocked eyes glanced at the still-unconscious Sylvia, my canines began to elongate, a primal hunger consuming my senses and i moved in a flash to her side.

"MATE!" My wolf growled through my lips and my steps faltered in absolute shock.

His mate?

Fucking how?

My heart constricted. 

What on earth was going on?

I backed away from the bed in terror, shivers pouring down my spine in buckets. Another scent hit me and this was unmistakably Jessica's omega slick! It was coming from the bed!

Jessica!

Jessica?

How was this fucking possible?

I swore it was the same scent. The same way my wolf reacted to her. He never does this to anyone. Want anyone! And what i had seen earlier! The mate bond between my dead Luna and I had been fucking rekindled!

A lump formed in my throat as intense dizziness gripped me. Perhaps I was insane from the stress! Perhaps my brain wasn't functioning because I hadn't drowned in liquor.

The terror that engulfed me seized my heart, and I found my heavy legs leading me out of the ward.

I knew if I didn't leave, I would do something I'd regret for the rest of my life.

As for answers, I swear to fucking hell! I'm getting all of it.