Three hours later, Adrian’s private jet had already passed beyond the Central Territories.
I’d been resting against my pillows with my eyes closed.
Suddenly, severe pain gripped me.
I doubled over and screamed. Deep within my mind, my wolf shuddered and let out a muffled whimper. I tried to summon her healing strength, but there was only emptiness. With every wave of pain, her presence grew weaker.
Within moments, my condition deteriorated rapidly. My wolf struggled desperately to steady us, but her silver form swayed inside my mind. She could barely stand.
An alarm shrieked.
The Senior Pack Healer rushed in with several nurses. One look at me drained the color from his face.
“The Luna is in critical condition! She needs immediate treatment!”
His voice shook. “Prepare emergency treatment, now!”
“Get her Silver Moon Healing Reserves from the sanctuary’s storage! Hurry!”
Several nurses raced out with the emergency cart.
Less than five minutes later, the head nurse returned empty-handed, looking close to tears.
“It’s gone! All of it!”
“The Moonroot Coagulant and Silver Moon Healing Reserves set aside for the Luna were removed under Alpha Adrian’s special authorization!”
“There are no compatible emergency reserves left!”
The room went still. I tried to call my wolf. She managed to lift her head before collapsing again. Without the Silver Moon Healing Reserves, my wolf’s healing power could no longer sustain me.
“Then what are you waiting for?” the Senior Pack Healer shouted, his eyes red with panic.
“Get an ambulance! Transfer her to the High Moon Medical Citadel for emergency treatment immediately! If we wait any longer, both the Luna and her pup are in danger!”
The nurses hurried to wheel my bed into the hallway.
Bang!
An arm slammed across the doorway.
Beta Derek stood there, expressionless.
“What are you doing? Get out of the way!” the healer shouted.
Derek pulled the Sanctuary Lockdown Scroll, activated with the Alpha Seal, from his bag and thrust it in front of the healer.
“Read it.”
“Alpha Adrian activated this order with his own Alpha Seal. Unless he personally breaks the Alpha Seal, no one is taking the Luna one step outside Blackthorn Healing Sanctuary!”
“Rival packs are watching our borders! If the Luna leaves and falls into enemy hands, the safety of all Blackthorn territory could be threatened. Who’s going to take responsibility for that?”
The healer broke into a sweat. His hands trembled.
He lunged toward the nurses’ station and called Adrian on the sanctuary’s internal phone line.
He turned on the speaker.
As soon as the call connected, everyone heard Serena Vale whining sweetly.
“Adrian, the pup just kicked me. It hurts so much I can’t even sleep.”
The healer shouted into the phone.
“Alpha Adrian! The Luna has a critical complication and needs immediate treatment! She needs an emergency transfer and specialized care! Break the Alpha Seal immediately!”
Silence lasted two seconds.
Then Adrian’s impatient voice came through.
“Tell Elena to stop pretending she’s in danger! Can’t she be reasonable for once?”
“Keep her in that room until I’m done with the territorial expansion pact meeting!”
Click.
The call ended. Instinctively, I reached through our mate bond, trying to make Adrian feel my pain.
But the moment I touched the connection, I realized what he’d done.
He’d shut me out.
He had deliberately blocked my pain and every desperate call for help.
Deep within me, my weakened wolf let out a broken whimper.
Our bond was still there.
Adrian had simply chosen not to listen.
My weakened wolf whimpered, waiting for a response that never came.
Derek snorted beside me.
“So what if she’s expecting a pup? If she can’t keep her Alpha interested, she picked a stupid time to play the victim.”
I lay on the bed, the pain making the room spin. My wolf curled deep within my mind. Even her faintest calls were fading.
Cold sweat drenched my treatment gown.
Red warning lights flashed wildly.
Ding.
My backup phone lit up beside my pillow.
Somehow, Serena had gotten my number.
She’d sent a photograph.
It showed her in a suite in Frostvale Territory. Adrian bent over her, kissing the back of her hand, his face full of concern.
The caption read:
[In the end, I’m the one he truly cares about.]
My body curled inward as another wave of pain stole my breath.