Chapter 170 Healing daphne
Chapter 170: healing daphne
James pov
The medical wing was a place of barely contained death. I always hated hospitals. Or anything related to it. But today, it seemed to be even glimmer than before.
The smell hit me first… decay being held at bay by medicine and herbs magic, that were quickly losing ground. Daphne lay in the center bed, so still I had to watch for the rise and fall of her chest to be sure she was breathing. Her skin was translucent, showing the blue veins beneath. Her red hair, once vibrant as fire, lay limp and dull against the white pillows.
In short, she was worse than before.
"Hey, little warrior." Damon's voice was so gentle it hurt to hear, He took her hand carefully, like she might shatter if he held too tightly.
Her weak eyes fluttered open, and for a moment, confusion clouded them. Then recognition sparked, followed by shock "Alpha?" Her voice was barely a whisper. "You are... you're you again."
"Yes daphne, i am me again, Thanks to Milo." Damon glanced back at his mate, who stood in the doorway like he was afraid to come closer.
Daphne's gaze found Milo, and she smiled weakly, despite her situation. "Knew you were special. You are even glowing Milo."
"Side effect of saving stubborn alphas," Milo replied, but his voice was thick with emotion. The purple light around him pulsed brighter for a moment, and I felt it wash over Daphne like a gentle wave. Some of the tension in her face eased at a visible rate.
I observed the trio at a distance, Damon's still holding Daphne's hands, while clutching Milo's own unconsciously, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Memories flooded my brain, a weak dying woman that was barely breathing, beside her was a young boy, clutching her hands hard, tears streaming down his eyes.
“Your mother is weak and deserves what is coming her way.” the smiling warriors armed to the teeth, mocked them, clutching their stomach in hard laughter. Their eyes flashing with amusement and killing intents.
“We should probably finish them off, before the beast's kings find out.”
“Please, save my mother,” the boy continued to beg the warriors who advanced wickedly, drawing their swords, followed by the wailing of the little boy, who backs away in horror.
“Go and join your weak mother in hell. This is the price of disobeying the council. The only sovereign power that…”
“ I am the only power that rules you!" A thick voice suddenly entered the fray. The warrior who'd been speaking fell silent, his head now separated from his body.
The world blurred around the horror-stricken small boy, followed by creeping darkness and a voice that seemed to reach his very soul.
"You can sleep now, my boy."
"James, are you okay?"
I snapped back to reality, finding Sarah watching me with concern. That's when I realized I'd zoned out completely.
"Sorry. I was just thinking." I cleared my throat, pushing the memories back down where they belonged. The boy in that memory felt like someone else entirely. Seeing Daphne dying had brought out the dark memory.
Milo suddenly stepped forward, his purple aura flaring brighter. "I can help her."
Every head turned toward him.
"My blood." He moved closer to the bed, his glow casting strange shadows across Daphne's pale face. "If it could bring Damon back from being feral, maybe it can help her fight this infection."
"Milo, no." Damon grabbed his arm. "We don't know what sharing your blood might do, now that you have awakened, you might be doing her more harm than good, besides you are still trying to understand your new self...”
"I know what not trying will do." Milo gently removed Damon's hand, mirroring the alpha's earlier tenderness. "If I don't do anything, she dies.
“We don't know Milo, I strongly disagree.”
“We won't know if we don't try it.” Milo insisted, finally looking at me for assistance.
Damon's jaw clenched, and I saw the war playing out behind his eyes. His mate versus his pack member. The risk versus the certainty of loss.
"It's his choice, mate," I said softly. "We all know about his healing powers, Damon. Let him use it."
“Bullshit,” Damon snarled, looking at the nurse that stood at the wall.
Sarah stepped forward, her medical training warring with the unprecedented situation. "We don't know the effects of... whatever you are now. Your blood could heal her or it could…"
"Or it could save her life," Milo interrupted. He looked down at Daphne, whose breathing had grown even more labored in the last few minutes. "She took a blade for the pack. She has put her life in danger for me. The least I could do for her is to try."
“And the guilt”
“It's mine to worry”
Damon studied his mate with an expression caught between pride and terror, then looked at Daphne who was shaking uncontrollably.
Her eyes found Milo's glowing form, and despite her pain, warmth filled her gaze.
Milo laughed, though it came out shaky. "That's me. Weird and glowing." He took a deep breath, and the purple light around him intensified. "This might feel strange."
He bit into his wrist without hesitation, and I watched in fascination as his blood welled up. It wasn't the dark red of normal blood… it shimmered with the same purple luminescence that surrounded him, like liquid starlight.
My eyes widened like saucers. Even his blood has changed also.
Milo pressed his wrist to Daphne's lips. "Drink."
She was too weak to take anything more than a few sips, her throat working slowly to swallow. But the effect was immediate and spectacular. Faster than I have ever seen.
The purple light seemed to flow from Milo's wrist directly into Daphne's body, traveling through her veins like streams of living energy. Color flooded back into her cheeks, chasing away the deathly pallor. Her breathing deepened, steadied, the terrible rattle in her chest disappearing. Her eyes brightened, becoming clear and focused for the first time in days.
But the cost was just as immediate.
Milo swayed, his glow flickering like a candle in the wind. Damon caught him before he could fall, pulling him away from Daphne and into his arms.
"Enough," Damon commanded
"Is it working?" Milo asked weakly, his head against Damon's chest.
Sarah was already checking Daphne's vitals, her hands moving quickly across the monitoring equipment. "Her heart rate is stabilizing. Temperature rising to normal range. The infection markers are dropping… rapidly. Milo, what did you just do?"
"What needed to be done," Milo whispered, echoing my earlier thought. The purple glow around him had dimmed to a soft shimmer, barely visible now.
"Thank you," Daphne tried to say, her voice already stronger. She looked at Milo with wonder in her eyes.
"Rest now," Damon commanded with alpha authority, and she obeyed, her eyes closing as she fell into what looked like genuine, healing sleep.
"Will she fully recover?" I asked, watching the monitors show steadily improving numbers.
Sarah nodded slowly, still looking amazed. "If these readings are accurate? Yes. Complete recovery. It's like Milo's blood is teaching her immune system how to fight properly, giving it the blueprint for healing."
"Then we owe you a debt," Damon said, looking down at Milo in his arms.
"You owe me nothing. We are pack," Milo said, though his eyes were already closing. The healing had clearly taken more out of him than he had let on.
"Get him to bed," Sarah ordered. "He needs rest and food. Lots of both."
Damon hesitated, but a quick eye signal made him change his mind. He finally lifted Milo easily, cradling him like he weighed nothing. "I have got him."
As they headed for the door, I called out, "Milo?"
He opened one eye. "Yeah?"
"That was brave. Stupid, but brave."
He smiled faintly. "Story of my life."
After they left, I stood beside Daphne's bed, watching her sleep peacefully. The memory of that young boy watching his mother die flickered through my mind again. Sometimes we couldn't save the people we loved. But sometimes, if we were lucky, we got the chance to save someone else's person.
"She's really going to be okay?" Sarah asked like she couldn't believe it.
"Yeah," I said, watching the steady rise and fall of her chest. "She really is."
Sarah was still monitoring the equipment, shaking her head in disbelief. "I've never seen anything like this. The infection is just... gone. And her life energy is coming back to life, like it was never there."
"Milo's special," I said, my mind elsewhere. "We all knew that. Now we know just how special and dangerous he might be.”
" dangerous?" Sarah asked,
"Yes, that much power in one person? Every feral in the region probably felt that. And not just ferals… anyone with supernatural senses would have noticed."
Sarah's eyes widened with realization.
Milo had just announced his presence to the world like a beacon in the darkness. And I had a feeling that was going to bring trouble to our doorstep sooner rather than later.
But for now, Daphne was alive. Damon was human again. And Milo had proven that sometimes the weird ones really were the ones worth trusting.
I just hoped it wouldn't cost us more than we could offer.