by Charlie Tran
“I'm serious. But he's dead now-both of them. There's nothing else to worry about.”
“Yeah, except your shoulder. What if it's infected? What did he do to you?!”
“Jude sewed it up.” I grabbed my shoulder again. “He cleaned it too. It'll be fine. I got shot.”
“You got shot?!” Silver's mouth fell agape, but I reached forward to cover it.
“Shhh. Not so loud.” I grinned at him, leaning forward to try and place a kiss on his forehead, but he moved away, dodging my attempts easily.
“I can't believe you'd risk your life like that! Over some stupid revenge, and without backup?” He pulled my hand away from his mouth by the wrist to let him speak.
'Here we go,' I thought to myself with a sigh. I was gonna be just fine, and he was freaking out, overreacting as usual.
“Hey, don't roll your eyes at me. I'm worried about you.” Silver's tone was calmer, and the volume of his voice went down a few notches, thankfully.
“Well, what do you want me to do about it now? It's too late. It happened. And it's over with.”
“Yeah but...”
I knew he was concerned, but I really was fine. There was no need for him to freak out even more. The damage was done, so I changed the subject.
“What about Alfie? How is he doing? Any good signs?” I asked, turning over to look at my pack mate. I couldn't hold my eyes on him for too long, a shiver running down my spine. It was not out of fear but a wave of creeping anger I could feel within the pit of my stomach.
Just thinking about what those Brotherhood fucks had done to him was pissing me off already. And even after having Evan's blood pour down my throat, I realized it wasn't enough to keep that anger away. I don't think I could rest until Leon was dead too.
I was rarely an angry man, and the only thing that could turn me into a monster was anyone messing with the ones I cared for. I took a deep breath, letting that seething rage slowly fade out of me, now realizing that I hadn't been listening to anything Silver was saying.
“...And so far, he's still in need of the breathing machine. Otherwise, no improvement. At least he's not getting worse though, right?”
“Yeah, that's right. All we can hope for is that he'll recover one of these days. We'll wait for him as long as we need to.” I smiled, turning on my heel to partially face toward the door. “Wanna go ahead and leave? I know the rest of the pack will be waiting for us and wanna see you too.”
“Leave? You just got here. Don't you wanna wait and see what happens?”
“What are you talking about?”
“What if he wakes up and none of us are around?”
I ran a hand over my face. Silver was always like that. Always waiting and hoping that one of the nights he was here was gonna be the night Alfie woke up. He cared a lot about Alfie, almost more than he cared about me sometimes.
“I don't think tonight's gonna be different from any other. We should go home, get you some proper rest in bed. Don't you wanna check on the rest of the pack? Hear what we all went through tonight?”
“No. If you're fine, then they're definitely okay. You're the one that drags the rest of them down.” He tried to take a jab at me just for not wanting to stick around. Joking or not, it kind of stung.
“Why are you being so bitchy?” I asked, tilting my head to the side as though I was genuinely curious.
“I'm not! But you guys don't come here nearly as much as I do.”
“Because there's no point! We're just gonna sit around and stare at our friend, knowing he's never gonna wake up again?!”
“You can't be serious. How could you say something like that!” he shouted again. I went to cover his mouth to make him be quiet once more, but he slapped it away, his brows furrowed in genuine anger.
“Silver, come on and be quiet. Let's go home already, I don't wanna sleep alone again.”
“You go! I'm staying right here!”
“Fine!”
“Fine!”
I stormed out, slamming the door of Alfie's room behind me, realizing that I had pulled the gaze of the nursing staff within the ICU. I made a face at them, my cheeks flushing in embarrassment as I made my way out of there, heading straight toward the same elevators I had used to get up there.
After entering the elevator, I stared at my reflection in the mirrored walls. Damn, did I look tired, and my hair was flopping into my face. I probably looked crazy, especially since I smelled like blood. No wonder the guards had thought me suspicious. I hadn't really looked at myself on the way out the door of Jude's place.
But was I really going to leave, give up like that?
No.
No, of course not. I wasn't so much angry as I was frustrated with Silver's unruly attitude. Maybe he would calm down. I'd give him time and just hang out in the waiting room until he was ready to come down and then we'd go home together. Yeah, he would come home with me in the end and stop acting childish. He just needed some personal space, and when I took him home, he could coddle me to his heart’s desire.
The frown on my face faded into a smile at the thought.
3
Silver
I sat back down in my seat next to Alfie, wiping away the building tears in my eyes. I was such a crybaby lately! Why would I be so upset over Lucas and his stupid attitude? He’d put himself in danger knowing that I would be extremely worried about him, and of course, didn't even tell me what he and the rest of the pack were going off to do. Exacting their so-called revenge. What was I going to do if he didn't come home? He had even gotten shot and acted like that wasn't a big deal!
Or maybe I was just being selfish. Maybe it wasn't just Jason's revenge plot but a means to protect our pack from the Grey Brotherhood. No, I wasn't wrong. Either way, they should have at least told me about it before they went off. They could have been killed, and then what would I have left? A wolf is nothing without his pack. And not only myself but Forest and Willow too! Did they even think about what could have happened if they didn't return home when they were out sneaking around this Declan's home?
I punched into the side of Alfie's bed, frustrated. I was torn about the situation and felt worse that I had let Lucas storm out on his own. He wasn't usually so hot-headed, and he was butting heads with me too. I knew I'd been overreacting, but I couldn't bring it upon myself to admit that I was wrong. Whatever.
As I continued to rant and rave inside my head, there was a bit of rustling in front of me. The sounds of sheets moving around made me turn my attention where the sound was coming from. The door? No one was coming in. Through what I could see beyond the windows, the few nurses staffing the graveyard shift were still glued to their computer screens. And I couldn't even hear the footsteps of the ones walking around, much less their scrubs rustling against one another. So, where the hell was the sound coming from?
The noise persisted, and I glanced around the room trying to discern where it was coming from, but there was nothing. Absolutely nothing. That is, until I finally turned back to Alfie when the sound came again. And I realized, finally, what it was.
Alfie's head shifted ever so slightly to the left and then to the right, his long, unruly hair scraping against the fabric of his pillowcase. I stood up out of my chair so fast that the seat went clattering down to the floor. I leaned over my pack mate, grabbing his shoulder and shaking it roughly, trying not to pull at any of the tubes in his body.
“Alfie? Alfie, are you moving?” All the negativity I had felt was melting away. I had to make a conscious effort to keep my mouth shut rather than allowing it to fall agape. Again, his head began to move, and I could see the rapid movement of his eyes beneath his closed lids. I leaned over him even further, staring right down into his face, gulping. Was I hallucinating?
“Are... are you awake?” I whispered, and I jumped back as his eyes suddenly flew open, the motion causing me to pull back in shock.
“He's awake... He's awake! Oh, my Gods!” I started to scream, watching as Alfie's eyes d
arted rapidly around the room, the alarms on the machines he was hooked up to starting to blare loudly with continuous beeping.
In no time, nurses came bolting into the room, one rushing over to the side of the bed to mess with the various machines keeping Alfie alive and another one going to Alfie directly, running different tests, shining a light in his eye, and calling out for someone to get Dr. Clark. But I needed to get other people here too!!
I grabbed my phone out of my pocket, dialed Forest, and brought it up to my ear. It rang and rang. For a moment, I thought I was going to have to call Jude instead, but before the phone could go to voicemail, I heard my friend's voice on the other end of the line sounding somewhat raspy and out of breath.
I didn't even let him start talking before I blurted out, “Alfie is awake! He's awake! Get your asses over here! He just opened his eyes!” I was practically crying with joy, and I hung up the phone, my hands shaking at the sudden rush of adrenaline, an overwhelming feeling of pure joy and relief.
“Oh, my Gods, I can't believe this,” I said, my voice trembling, watching the nurses carry on with their duties.
“I can't believe this,” I heard Doctor Clark say as he entered the room. I smiled at him while he gently ushered a nurse out of his way, going straight to Alfie and speaking to him.
“Alfie? Do you know where you are right now? Can you nod for me?” he questioned emphatically. Alfie didn't move his head anymore. He only blinked up at the doctor with his eyes wide and continuing to dart around.
“Hey, focus for me. It's okay. I'm here to help you. I need you to relax a bit,” he said, glancing over his shoulder at the heart monitor that showed Alfie’s pulse starting to speed up a bit.
“He was moving his head earlier,” I said eagerly, clasping my hands together in front of my chest and continuing to watch the staff work.
“That's good. Alfie,” Dr. Clark said, ignoring my comment. “If you know where you are, blink once for me. Blink twice if you don't.”
He stared at the doctor for a long time before blinking twice in a row.
“That's all right. You're at the hospital. You've been in a coma for months now. We're gonna take good care of you.”
I just stared, watching them and trying to stay out of the way.
“It's a miracle,” I mumbled to myself, but Dr. Clark had heard me. He had a bright smile on his face, his amazement obvious at the awakening of his patient.
"It is."
The nurses and Dr. Clark came and went after an hour. I didn't know where my pack was and why they were taking so long to get down here! I was hoping they would arrive soon so they could see him, see that I was right that Alfie was gonna wake up. And he didn't wake up alone. I was here.
I was holding onto his hand again, watching him with a smile that wouldn’t fade away from my face. Alfie was staring at me, his golden eyes burrowing into mine. I felt like he was asking me questions in his head with the way his eyes were darting around my face, scanning me as I droned on and on, rehashing everything that I had told him already now that I knew for sure he could hear me. I wished he could say something back, but at least he was alive. And awake. Even if he couldn't move much.
He was finally starting to move his head around again, able to slowly slide his head left and right in a bit of a response to my yes and no questions.
“Can you believe it?” I said with a grin. “We're all uncles now. You gotta see him; he's so adorable. He does look a lot like Jason though.”
Alfie didn't reply, of course, his eyes only slightly squinting in what I assumed was a smile in his own way.
“The rest of them are gonna be here soon, like I said. They're gonna be so happy!”
There was a knock at the door, drawing our attention toward it, but it was only a nurse walking in. Or perhaps a surgeon with how they were dressed. The man's face was covered with a surgical mask, and his hair was tucked underneath some type of hat I'd only seen doctors wear on television.
He looked at me strangely, pulling at the cuff of his latex glove as he watched the two of us.
“Yes? Can I help you?” I asked curiously, my smile slowly becoming forced as I sensed a strange tension fill the room when he entered.
The doctor shook his head, shut the door behind him and fiddled with the knob. He drew the curtains closer together until all of the glass was covered.
What was he doing? Whatever it was, it was making me uncomfortable.
I was confused but didn't say anything more as he walked around the edge of the bed opposite where I was sitting and began examining Alfie. Did he need more privacy to do so?
“Interesting,” the doctor growled, throwing me a strange look before he did something I wasn't expecting. He rushed me.
“Hey!” I exclaimed, of course not expecting his sudden movement. I held my arms up to defend myself from his sudden attack, he sent me to the floor, grappling me in the process. Before I could react, he grabbed the back of my head by the hair, slamming it into the linoleum floor twice. I was dazed, totally stunned, the pain not completely registering just from the shock of it all.
He then scrambled off me and went straight for the plug of Alfie's breathing machine, the plug that was helping him survive. If he pulled out even just one of those cords, it could kill him. That's when I was able to move, when I saw him trying to kill Alfie, and for what reason?
“Stop it! Help!” I shouted, feeling myself sway to and fro, vertigo preventing me from standing upright. I moved to my knees, and I didn't need perfect coordination to grab him by the ankles. I extended my claws, sinking them into the man's right calf and dragging him down. I felt his chin smack roughly into the ground, and I heard him curse. As I tried to drag him, he kicked me square in the face. I didn't let go, but damn did it hurt, and I could feel warm blood beginning to pour out of both of my nostrils.
“What are you doing?!” I screamed at him. “Who are you?”
“Fuck off!” he growled, trying to kick at me again, but I turned my head far enough to the side to avoid the assault, instead pushing myself across the floor until I was almost on top of his body, grabbing at his head as he had done to me. I managed to rip off his hat and saw bright shocks of blue covering his head, falling down nearly to his shoulders. In my stupidity, I froze, finally realizing who it was.
“Vik?” I said quietly, my jaw falling slack as he slashed at my arm.
He took the opportunity to send another kick, this time to my chest, sending me onto my back. He crawled on top of me, taking another fistful of my hair and lifting my head up and back to stare at him.
“I didn't want you to get involved with this, y'know. Just let me do what I need to do and you can walk away from this alive.”
“Why? Why are you doing this?” I whimpered, his hands tightening against strands of my hair, making me wince.
“I have to,” he said, and I could swear I almost heard a bit of pain in his voice. “I owe Declan a favor, and he sent me here. I can't stop unless he calls me off.”
“Declan is dead!” I shouted and twisted my head to the side. I bit my lip, squinting my eyes through the hurt and lowered my voice. “You don't have to listen to him. Please, stop.”
“Dead?” I could feel his grip slacken slightly, but it was still firm enough that if I tried to do anything to get out of his grasp, he could still slam my head back into the ground.
“He is. You don't have to obey him.”
“No. I do. It doesn't matter if Declan is dead or not. Leon is still out there. And... I owe them a favor for my life. I have to take one of your lives. And if you want to die instead of your friend here, I'll gladly be the one to put you out of your misery.”
I was no martyr. I didn't want to die. I looked up to the side and could see Alfie staring at us, his face expressionless. I wanted to know what he was thinking about the situation, what he would want me to do.
“Then... Then take me instead. Please don't hurt him.”
“Really? You're gonna give up
your life for a fucking vegetable?” he spat, his brief spell of pity turning back into persistent rage.
“Yes. I-I don't want to die, but spare him.”
He sat on top of me for a few more moments. Waiting. Making a decision perhaps, and when he had come to his conclusion, he got up off me.
“Fine. Get up.” He yanked me to my feet by the collar of my shirt, and I was still feeling dizzy from having my skull slammed into the floor. I stumbled into the wall while he readjusted his hat, placing it back on and tucking his hair underneath.
“We're gonna go for a ride.”
4
Lucas
I fiddled my thumbs, hunched over in the chair, and tapped my heel against the floor as I sat there, waiting and waiting. I couldn't muster up the courage to go back up just yet to tell Silver once again that I wanted him to come home with me for fear of rejection. Why was I acting so stupid? I should march up there and kiss his stupid face. Get on my knees and beg him to come home. He got so embarrassed about anything involving public displays of affection.
I stood abruptly, nodding to myself to reinforce my plan of action. Yeah, I was gonna embarrass him so much with overwhelming mushiness that he would have to come home!
Wait, no. That's stupid. I couldn't do that.
The sliding doors to the main entrance of the hospital opened again. I had seen a few people coming in and out, but at this time of the night, there weren’t that many people coming to visit. And there was definitely no one out here eating or shopping for gifts since it was way past their open hours.
However, it wasn't just random strangers for me to people watch. It was my pack.
“Lucas? Why aren’t you up in the ICU?” Jude asked as he came closer, extending his hand out to me in greeting. I grabbed it, returning the clasp before pulling away.
“What are you all doing at the hospital anyway? I figured you'd all still be at home together. And is it a good idea to bring your baby out at all hours of the night?” I smirked at Forest, who humphed, turning to his mate with an unamused look.
