Chapter 142 The Bond

Chapter 142 The Bond
The Bond

Liam’s POV

The pain finally became too much.

No matter how hard I fought it, my legs gave out beneath me. My knees slammed into the dirt, and the whole world seemed to tilt. My vision blurred as five men slowly circled me, closing in from every direction.

I’d fought with everything I had. Bodies were scattered across the forest behind me.. I’d lost count somewhere in the middle of the fight.

But none of that mattered anymore.

The wound across my back burned like fire, and every breath felt harder than the last. My strength was gone. I couldn’t even force myself back to my feet.

This is it, I thought. This is how I die.

I lifted my head, wanting to see who would strike the final blow.

Then I saw her.

“Rosalie…”

She burst through the trees like a storm, with several others right behind her. They moved with the speed and confidence that only centuries of experience could give. Before the men surrounding me even realized what was happening, Rosalie was already on them.

She didn’t hesitate.

Every movement was fast, precise, and deadly. She tore through them one after another, clearing a path toward me as if she’d done this countless times before. The others fought beside her, leaving the attackers with no chance to recover.

Relief washed over me, but it came too late.

I wanted to call her name. I wanted to tell her I was sorry for the things I’d said before I left. I’d been angry, frustrated, and I’d taken it out on her when she had only been trying to help.

But my lips barely moved.

No sound came out.

The blood pouring from my body made me weaker with every second. My eyelids grew heavier, and the sounds of the fight around me became distant, fading until they were nothing more than muffled echoes.

The last thing I felt was myself falling forward.

Then everything disappeared.

When I opened my eyes again, the first thing I saw was a white ceiling.

I frowned, blinking several times as I tried to clear my head. It took a moment for my vision to focus.

This wasn’t the forest.

It wasn’t the warehouse either.

I was lying in a bed inside a clean medical room. The air smelled faintly of antiseptic, and a small lamp beside the bed filled the room with a soft, warm light.

I tried to sit up, but a sharp pain shot through my back and forced me to stop.

“You’re awake.”

I turned my head slowly.

Rosalie stood near the door with her arms folded across her chest. She looked exhausted, but her eyes were fixed on me. There was relief in them, though it was buried beneath a layer of anger she wasn’t even trying to hide.

“Where am I?” I asked. My throat felt dry, and my voice came out rough.

“My clinic,” she answered. “It’s where I brought you after you almost got yourself killed.”

I let out a slow breath and opened my mouth to explain.

I wanted to tell her I hadn’t had a choice. That Dylan was still out there somewhere, and there was no way I could sit around doing nothing while he was in danger.

But she didn’t let me say a single word.

“Do you have any idea how reckless that was?” she snapped, her voice echoing through the room. “You went after them by yourself, Liam. No backup or plan.”

She took a few steps closer, shaking her head in disbelief.

“You could have died tonight.” Her voice trembled despite her anger. “In fact, you almost did.”

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

She stared at me with tears threatening to gather in her eyes, while I looked back at her, suddenly realizing that the anger on her face wasn’t because she was disappointed in me.

It was because she’d been terrified of losing me.

I opened my mouth, ready to defend myself again, but before I could say anything, Vivian reached over from the chair beside my bed and gently placed a hand on my arm.

“She’s been angry since you left,” she said softly. “Just let her finish.”

I looked at her for a second, then sighed and closed my mouth.

Rosalie kept going, and this time I didn’t interrupt. Every word she said carried the fear and frustration she’d been holding inside since she’d found me. She wasn’t angry just for the sake of it. She’d been scared. 

By the time she finally stopped talking, I didn’t have the strength left to argue.

“I’m sorry,” I said quietly. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have gone alone.”

For a long moment, Rosalie simply looked at me.

Some of the anger faded from her face, replaced by relief and lingering worry. She still looked upset, but the hard edge in her eyes had softened.

“Focus on getting better,” she said at last. “After that, we’re going to sit down and figure out how to deal with Ethan the right way.”

She pointed a finger at me, making sure I understood.

“Together this time. No more disappearing on your own or trying to carry everything by yourself.”

I gave her a small nod.

“I promise.”

It was all I could manage. I felt pain all over my body, and every movement reminded me of the deep wound across my back.

Over the next few hours, Vivian barely left my side.

Whenever the pain became too much, she was already there, adjusting the pillow behind me, helping me sit up, or handing me a glass of water before I even had to ask. She spoke quietly, filling the silence with small conversations that kept my mind from settling on the pain.

At one point, she watched me for a long moment before shaking her head.

“You’re stronger than I thought,” she admitted. “Most people wouldn’t have survived what you did. You fought all of those men while you were already badly injured.”

I let out a quiet laugh that quickly turned into a wince.

“It doesn’t feel that way.”

She smiled faintly.

“It will. You’re still alive, Liam. That’s what matters. The rest will come with time.”

I looked at her, unsure what to say.

Her kindness caught me completely off guard.

She'd stayed beside me for hours, making sure I was comfortable, checking my bandages, and watching over me as though none of the past had happened.

It made me wonder if Rosalie had been right.

Maybe Vivian really was trying to change and the guilt she’d been carrying all this time wasn’t an act after all.

My eyes slowly drifted shut. Pain followed me even in my dreams.

When I opened my eyes again sometime later, my whole body was burning.

I woke with a violent shiver.

My whole body felt like it was on fire. Sweat had soaked through the sheets beneath me, leaving them damp against my skin, yet I couldn’t stop shaking. Every breath scraped painfully against my throat, and my head throbbed so hard it felt like it might split open.

I tried to focus on the room around me, but everything kept spinning. The walls blurred together, and even the light from the lamp hurt my eyes.

“Rosalie…”

My voice came out as nothing more than a weak whisper.

I wasn’t even sure she’d heard me.

A second later, the door opened, and she hurried over to the bed. The moment her hand touched my forehead, her expression changed. She pulled it away quickly, her eyes widening with alarm.

“He’s burning up,” she said, already turning toward the door. “Get the doctor. Now!”

Whoever was outside didn’t waste a second.

Footsteps echoed down the hallway, and moments later the doctor rushed into the room carrying a medical bag. She came straight to my bedside, checking my pulse before placing a thermometer under my tongue. She listened to my heartbeat, examined the wound on my back, and asked me a few questions that I could barely understand, let alone answer.

The room was filled with quiet voices, but they all sounded distant, as though I were underwater.

I struggled to keep my eyes open.

Every time I blinked, it felt like I might lose consciousness again.

After several long minutes, the doctor finally stepped away from the bed.

The worried look on her face made my stomach sink.

Rosalie noticed it too.

“What is it?” she asked immediately. “What’s wrong with him?”

The doctor let out a slow breath before answering.

“I’ve treated vampires all my life but this is something else. He has a rare blood type,” she said. “That alone makes treating him more complicated.”

Rosalie frowned.

“What does that mean? Is he going to be okay?”

“If he gets enough rest and his body responds well to the treatment, there’s a chance he’ll recover.” The doctor paused, choosing her words carefully. “But it won’t happen overnight. His recovery is going to be slow, and we have to be extremely careful.”

Rosalie folded her arms tightly across her chest.

“What rare blood type are you talking about?”

The doctor didn’t answer right away.

Instead, she glanced at me lying on the bed before looking back at Rosalie. There was hesitation in her eyes, as if she wasn’t sure whether she should say it out loud.

Finally, she spoke.

“His blood isn’t normal anymore.”

Rosalie stared at her. “What do you mean?”

The doctor drew in a quiet breath.

“His blood changed after he drank a certain blood. More like his own blood evolved and formed a bond with the other party.”

The room fell silent.

“Too much of his blood is flowing through his body now,” the doctor continued. “His system is still trying to adjust to it. Do you understand? He can’t be separated from the other person for too long.”

Rosalie’s face paled. “What happens when they’re separated for long?”

The doctor lowered her eyes.

“It’s already happening and he might end up dying.”