My fingers tighten around the phone 144

Ethan’s POV
“Per your request, we’ve relocated Aria to a private suite,” the doctor said as we left the emergency area behind us.
Throughout the night, Aria had hovered between life and death, with the medical team only briefly appearing to deliver
terse updates. I was hanging on by a thread, maintaining composure solely because Lucas needed a pillar of strength. He
padded alongside me now, fingers wrapped tightly around mine, pressing himself against my side with each step we
took.
“I appreciate that. I’ve positioned guards throughout that wing. She’ll be better protected there,” I responded, steering
Lucas toward the bank of elevators. Beneath my outwardly calm exterior, my wolf paced anxiously, desperate to be at
Aria’s side, to shield what belonged to me from further harm.
Once the elevator doors slid shut, the doctor wasted no time delivering her assessment: “Aria’s condition has finally
stabilized. Traces of wolfsbane continue circulating in her bloodstream, but the concentration has decreased to less
dangerous levels. Her heartbeat remains irregular, and she hasn’t regained consciousness, but her overall indicators show
marked improvement since our last discussion.”
Lucas tugged at my sleeve, his eyes wide with worry. “What about my sisters?” he asked, his voice small but insistent. My
heart clenched at the reminder that not only was Aria fighting for her life, but so were our unborn children.
“I was just getting to that,” the doctor responded, her expression softening as she addressed Lucas directly. “I’m going to
check on them once we reach your mother’s room.”
We entered Aria’s room, and my breath caught in my throat. She lay motionless on the hospital bed, impossibly small
amidst a tangle of tubes and wires. Her skin remained ashen, dark circles shadowing her closed eyes. The steady beep of
the heart monitor offered the only reassurance that she still fought to stay with us.
I moved to her bedside, gently brushing a strand of hair from her face before pressing my lips to her forehead. “Hey,
sweetheart,” I whispered against her skin, hoping some part of her could hear me. “We’re here. Lucas and I are right here with you.”
“Mommy,” Lucas whimpered, climbing onto the chair beside her bed to grasp her limp hand. His tiny fingers traced the
IV line with a child’s curiosity.
Suddenly, a faint but rapid pulsing sound filled the room. The doctor had positioned the ultrasound wand on Aria’s
abdomen and was studying the screen with intense concentration. After several agonizing moments, her lips curved into
a small smile.
“The twins survived?” I asked incredulously, barely daring to hope.
“Yes,” she confirmed, adjusting a dial that amplified the rhythmic swooshing sounds. “I still can’t visualize them on the
monitor—which is consistent with Aria’s previous ultrasounds—but I can detect two distinct heartbeats. Both appear
strong and regular, which is remarkable considering the concentration of toxin.”
Relief crashed through me like a physical force, my knees nearly buckling as I gripped the edge of Aria’s bed for support.
“I can smell them more clearly now,” I confessed, my fingers hovering over Aria’s skin, afraid to touch her but desperate
for connection. “Aria’s scent has changed—it’s sweeter, more pronounced.”
“Did you hear that, love?” I whispered to Aria, leaning close to her ear. “Our little ones are still fighting. They’re tough, just
like their mother.” My voice broke on the last word, and I had to swallow hard against the lump forming in my throat.
Lucas leaned over his mother’s abdomen, his nose wrinkling as he inhaled deeply. “She does smell different,” he
confirmed with childlike certainty. “Sweeter. I can fell that, too.”
I raised an eyebrow at his unexpected observation. “Have you been noticing different scents a lot lately?”
Lucas nodded enthusiastically, momentarily distracted from his worry. “Mom says my wolf senses are waking up. She says
I’m precocious.” He pronounced the last word carefully, clearly proud of his vocabulary.
The harsh ring of my phone shattered the moment. David’s name flashed across the screen. “I need to take this,” I told
Lucas, giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “I’ll be right outside the door, okay? The doctor will stay with you and
your mom.”
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1/2
I stepped into the hallway, maintaining visual contact with Aria’s room as I answered. “David?”
“Alpha,” his voice carried a note of grim satisfaction. “We’ve detained Alpha Marcus and Bella.”
“And?” I pressed, my voice dropping to a dangerous register that made a passing nurse quicken her steps.
“They’re not talking. Bella keeps trying to flirt with Leo and deflect any questions. Alpha Marcus is demanding legal
representation and claiming diplomatic immunity as a visiting pack leader.”
My fingers tightened around the phone until the plastic creaked in protest. “So it was definitely the cider?”
“Yes. The forensics team found enough wolfsbane residue in what remained of the bottle to kill someone with a single
sip. It’s a miracle Aria survived at all.” David hesitated before continuing. “We haven’t located Emma yet, but the blood
analysis confirms it’s hers. The volume suggests a significant altercation occurred.”
“The woman I saw leaving was definitely Emma. She was injured—badly from the look of it.” I recalled the unsteady gait,
the bloodstained clothing. “Ask Bella where Emma would go to get patched up. She must have needed immediate medical attention.”
“Boss…” David’s voice dropped to a near whisper. “Was Aria injured in the fight? The blood spatter patterns suggest—”
“No,” I interrupted, the knot in my stomach tightening. “No visible wounds, just the systemic damage from the poison.” I
glanced through the window of Aria’s room, watching Lucas speak animatedly to his unconscious mother. “Aria hasn’t
regained consciousness yet, but we heard the twins’ heartbeats. They’re still alive, though the ultrasound can’t visualize
them for some reason.”
“They survived?” The smile in David’s voice was audible, his usual stoicism cracking with genuine relief.
Before I could respond, a piercing alarm split the air, and the light above Aria’s door began flashing ominously. My heart
lurched into my throat as I ended the call without another word, watching in horror as Lucas was hurriedly ushered out of
the room by the doctor. I barely caught him before a team of medical personnel rushed past us into Aria’s room, their
urgent commands overlapping in a cacophony of medical jargon.
“Code blue, cardiac arrest!”
“Push one of epi!”
“Begin chest compressions!”
“Get the crash cart in here, now!”
I clutched Lucas to my chest, his small body trembling against mine as he buried his face in my shoulder. “What’s
happening?” he whispered, his voice thick with tears. “Is Mommy dying?”
The raw fear in his question threatened to shatter the fragile control I’d maintained through this nightmare. I wanted to
roar, to tear apart the walls, to challenge death itself for daring to threaten what was mine. Instead, I forced my voice to
remain steady as I stroked Lucas’s hair.
“The doctors are helping her,” I murmured against his temple, my lips pressed to his soft hair in a gesture that felt
instinctively parental. “Your mom is the strongest person I know, buddy. She’s fighting hard to come ba