\[Denalie’s POV\]
“Take me to prison.”
Elise’s words reach me through the chaos that has begun to erupt around me, and when I snap my gaze in her direction, I watch one of the police officers place cuffs around her wrists.
“No!” I gasp, attempting to get up only to fall. “Wait.”
“What’s wrong with you?” Rosco hisses, not missing this action. “Are you hurt? Let me see!”
“I’m fine!” I insist, keeping my gaze fixed on Elise. “I need…”
“To focus on yourself,” Rosco finishes for me, beginning to examine my body until his gaze comes to rest on my legs. “Fuck! What happened here?”
“It doesn’t matter!”
"Yes, it does!” He snarls, causing me to freeze completely. “You’ve been hurt this whole time, and I didn’t even notice.”
Flinching, I feel my heart constrict painfully due to the guilt and hurt that radiate from Rosco’s voice. He was clearly blaming himself when all of this had nothing to do with him.
“It’s my fault,” he continues, reaching out a shaky hand to gingerly touch my leg. “If it wasn’t for me, you..."
“Would still be here,” I finish for him. “Listen to me,” I continue, grabbing his cheeks and making him look at me. “None of this is your fault. There’s something you should know, and I will tell you later, but right now we need to stop them from taking Elise to prison!”
“She’s a criminal,” Rosco counters. “Prison is where she belongs.”
“She was being manipulated!” I counter. “I understand that she needs to be punished, but she has been through a lot and had no choice but to do what she did.”
“Are you suggesting she walk free after everything?”
“I am.”
I was. Even if she did many things that truly made her deserve to be punished, she was also similar to me in so many ways.
“Can’t she come back with us?” I push. “So that we can keep an eye on her and help rehabilitate her into society?”
Growing quiet, I wait as Rosco examines me. From the way his face shifts to pity, I know that he doesn’t think I’m thinking straight and that I’m basing this decision and request simply because Elise is my sister, but that wasn’t it. Even if she did all those things, she helped us get rid of Alexander. That had to count for something, right?
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Rosco says slowly, his expression steeling. “And I don’t want to sit here and argue this when you clearly need medical attention.”
“But…”
“No, buts,” he snaps, lifting me into his arms and beginning to move.
“No!” I gasp, turning my attention to Elise once more, who is beginning to be led away by two officers. “Wait! Rosco!”
“Later.” He snaps, ignoring my squirming and carrying me up a flight of stairs. “Once you’ve been treated, we can discuss this further.”
Opening my mouth, I prepare to protest, but I snap it shut again as I know that nothing I say right now is going to get through to him, not when I was in this bad of condition.
Later, I sit in a hospital bed while Rosco sits beside me, holding me close while we wait for the doctor to come in with the results of all the tests that have been run on me. Even if he isn’t saying it, I know that Rosco is nervous, and that causes me to be more concerned.
When the doctor finally arrives, he gives me a look that screams bad news, and I brace myself for whatever is about to come.
“Miss Ozera,” he begins, flipping through the papers on his clipboard. “There isn’t an easy way to say this…”
“Then say it,” Rosco growls.
“Rosco," I hiss, shooting him a glare. “Let the man speak.”
For a moment, Rosco doesn’t respond as he examines me as if looking for some sign of distress, and when he doesn’t find it, he simply nods.
“Sorry,” he huffs.
“It’s alright,” the doctor responds, closing the distance between himself and me. “Miss Ozera, the damage to your legs was extensive, and because you didn’t get immediate attention, there has been irreparable damage done to your muscles and tissue.”
“What does that mean, doc?” I ask quietly, though I have an idea.
“You’ll be lucky if you’re ever able to walk again,” he admits. “We will of course work with you by providing physical therapy, but I can’t say that it will do any good.”
Nodding, I process his words as my heart sinks. There was a chance I would never walk again. Something so simple could become a memory. I didn’t know how I should take that, but I wouldn’t let this get me down, not when there was so much I still had to do.
“But there is good news,” the doctor continues, clearly noticing the shift in atmosphere in the room.
“And what is that?” Rosco asks slowly.
“You’re going to be parents.”
Eyes widening, I take in what I’m being told while my gaze shifts to my stomach. Beside me, I can feel Rosco’s eyes coming to rest on me, and through our bond, I feel his sense of wonder and excitement.
“Denali’s pregnant?” He asks slowly, shifting his gaze to the doctor. “And the baby... it’s alright?”
“Her hormones indicate that she is about four weeks pregnant. As for the condition of the baby, we can run some more tests.”
“Yes,” Rosco says immediately. “Do that immediately.”
“Yes, sir,” the doctor nods before turning and making his way out of the room so that Rosco and I are alone.
“Parents,” Rosco murmurs when silence settles around us. “We’re going to be parents.”
“Yeah,” I murmur, still in shock. “That’s…”
What was it exactly? I was going to be a mother, but there was a chance I wouldn’t be able to run around with my child. How was it possible that I could be so happy and so sad at the same time?
“You’ll walk again,” Rosco says, reading my mind. “No matter what it takes, we will make sure that you get use of your legs again.”
“And if we can’t?” I ask, unable to hide my fear. “What if I’m stuck in a wheelchair? I’ll be even more of a burden to you than I already am.”
“Hey!” Rosco hisses as I begin to spiral. “You are not and never have been a burden to me. If anything, you’ve been a blessing and continue to give me so many things. And since the beginning, you’ve been my reason to push forward.”
“You mean since we married?” I ask.
“Before that,” he admits, beginning to dig in his back pocket so he can pull out his wallet. “There’s something I want to show you.”
As he speaks, he opens the wallet and then pulls out what looks like a photo. For a moment, he keeps his gaze fixed on me as if reading my mood, and when he feels that I’m capable of handling whatever it is he is about to show, he passes me the photo.
Eyes widening, I take in the girl in the picture who is crying as many memories begin to flood through me.
“This…” I whisper, feeling tears prick at the corners of my eyes. “This was…”
“Taken the day I lost my friend,” Rosco explains. “You can’t imagine how lonely I felt at that time while the world around me was still fine and going about their days, but then I saw this girl crying alone and staring at the heavens, and all I could think was that in that moment I was so alone in my sorrow. I think this was the moment that I fell in love with you,” he continues, looking slightly sheepish. “You were so broken, and despite my own sorrow, I wanted to save you.”
“Then why didn’t you…” I push, lifting my gaze to his.
“Because my father threatened to kill you if I tried.” He responds, his expression hardening. “That was the day that our relationship shattered and the day that my world truly became dark, but then this bright light came into it and everything changed."