\[Denali’s POV\]
“He’ll be okay.”
I don’t know how many times I’ve said these words since Hamilton’s departure, but each time they leave my lips, they do nothing to calm the tense woman beside me. Honestly, I couldn’t blame Naomi for how afraid she was for her husband since I too carried that same amount of fear for my own while he lay helpless in his bed in the infirmary.
“Hamilton is strong and wouldn’t let anything take him away from you.” I continue, gently passing Naomi’s leg.
“I know.” She whispers, though it is clear that she doesn’t quite believe it. “I know he wouldn’t, but what if...”
“No what ifs.” I say sternly.
No. We couldn’t let those what-ifs get the best of us, not at a time like this. We both needed to be strong and ready for anything, even if that anything wasn’t something we wanted.
“Should I make you something for your anxiety?” I ask, wanting to have something to do. “Maybe some tea?”
"No, thank you, dear.” Naomi says. “I’m okay, really.”
Frowning, I examine her face, trying to find exactly where it showed she was okay. She was pale, and she had dark circles under her eyes, which I was sure were due to knowing that Emerald Moon was dealing with so much. I feared that if she pushed herself too much, she would end up collapsing.
“I’m really fine,” she repeats, trying to force a smile. “I’m just…”
She doesn’t finish the rest of her words as her eyes grow wide and an agonized groan escapes her. And before I can even ask what is happening, she clutches at her chest and leans forward.
“No!” She wails, lifting her crazed gaze toward me. “No!”
“Naomi!” I gasp, dropping to the floor in front of her and trying to get her to look at me. “What is it? What happened?”
As the words leave my lips, I begin to get an idea of what it is that could be happening, but I just can’t accept something like that. There was no way. This had to all be a bad dream or something.
“Hamilton,” she whispers, her voice cracking as another painful groan escapes her. “He’s…”
“Naomi!” I gasp as she falls forward, crashing into me. “Hey! Naomi!”
Panic rising, I try to rouse the woman who now lays motionless on me, but she doesn’t move and doesn’t make a sound, aside from shaky breaths that sound like she is trying to say something but can’t quite form words.
“SOMEONE!” I scream, knowing I need to get her to the infirmary. “ANYBODY! I NEED HELP!”
If I didn’t get her to the infirmary soon, there was a chance that she would die, just like any other wolf who lost their mate. That was the one thing about our bonds: we were so connected with the ones we chose to mark and mate with that if they were to die, we too could suffer from the devastation and the heartbreak. However, I couldn’t let that happen to Naomi, not when there was a very strong chance. All this was a sign that Hamilton didn’t succeed in stopping Jaxon.
“PLEASE!” I continue, attempting to get to my feet while cradling Naomi against me. “SOMEONE!”
“Denali!”
Eyes widening, I snap my gaze toward the door where Rosco stands, clinging to the frame to remain upright.
“Rosco.” I whisper, taking in his weak form and the blood that is quickly staining the bandages around his body. “Why are you…”
“I felt your panic.” He responds, attempting to move forward. “It…”
He doesn’t finish his words before he is coughing, and blood is erupting from his lips.
“Stop!” I plead as he works to calm the fit so he can help me. “You’re too weak; you can’t…”
“I can.” He growls, closing the distance and grabbing his mother. “This is nothing.”
This was nothing? How was this nothing when he was in a coma for a few days and still suffering? If he pushed himself too hard, I truly feared that he would be taken from me, and I couldn’t allow that.
“Stop.” I say slowly, knowing that he would hate me for doing what I was. “You can’t…”
“Don’t you dare.” Rosco snarls, shooting me a glare. “You know what doing that will do…”
“Like you know what pushing yourself right now will do!” I snap. “Stop it! Leave this to me; I can...”
“DENALI!” He roars, cutting me off. “Now isn’t the time to be arguing! We need to get her to the infirmary. Once that is done, you can tell me everything.”
For a moment, I don’t speak as I take Rosco in. Although he looks weak from the illness that has been slowly eating away at him, he looks so strong due to his resolve to help not only me but also his mother.
“Okay.” I whisper, coming up beside him. “Let’s get her there.”
Neither Rosco nor I speak as we slowly carry Naomi to the infirmary, where Olga is on a rampage over Rosco’s escape. Only when she has wrangled him back into a bed and begun to work on Naomi do I finally let out a breath while knowing I was going to be the one to break the news to Rosco.
“Where is he?” He asks before I can say anything.
“Who?” I ask, though I have an idea who he means.
“My father. Where the hell is he?”
“He’s…” I begin, worrying about what will happen when he knows the whole story. “He went back to Crystal Fang to try to help William.”
“Then that means,” Rosco continues, putting the pieces together. “‘He didn’t succeed.”
Opening my mouth, I prepare to confirm just that, but stop as I realize that it doesn’t need to be confirmed or denied due to how badly Naomi was suffering. She was the screaming image of a wolf who lost the one who meant the most to her, and that alone confirmed that Hamilton was no longer with us.
“Since he didn’t succeed, I will have to be the one to end things.” Rosco continues, causing my heart to drop.
“You can’t!” I gasp, knowing good and well he was in no condition for fighting. “There’s no way that you...”
“We can’t let him continue with what he is doing.” Rosco counters. “Even if it kills me, I’m going to kill that bastard Jaxon with my own hands.”
“You won’t.” I snap, unwilling to let him do something stupid. “You will stay here and continue to get better. I’ll get a group together to go to Crystal Fang and end things.”
"You won't..." Rosco tries, but stops as I shake my head.
"We are a team, and when one of us is incapable of doing something, it is up to the other to take control." I point out. "Have some faith in not only me, but the pack that you have sworn to protect. We will take down your uncle and make sure that your father didn't die in vain."