Allison's POV Aria glanced at me worriedly. She rubbed my legs repeatedly to restore my circulation, as she had said. I pulled my legs away from her and shifted in bed, a little out of her reach. "Stop fussing, Aria," I snapped. "I am not a baby, you know? So kindly stop treating me like one." "But-" I fixed her with a glare, wishing that she would shut up this once. Her lips trembled a little, but she pressed on. "But Luna, are you really sure you are okay?" "Of course I am o-" My words were cut off as I winced. As I attempted to sit up, I felt a pang of pain. Aria's eyes widened. "I am okay," I insisted. Unfortunately, my words did not carry a ring of conviction. Instantly, Aria was on her feet. She straightened the pillows at my back, made a grab at a glass of water by my side, hesitated, and did not offer it to me. Not knowing what else you do, her hands fluttered over me helplessly, while I glared at them with my most threatening expression on, giving the impressio
Allison's POV What was Dante thinking, sending the warriors home where he remained absent? Wasn't he as eager to see me as I was to see him? More cars drove in and more maids spilled out to assist the men. Some of the men seemed very weak, while others were injured. "Most of them seem to need urgent medical attention," I said to the guard. "Yes, the battle was a tough one. We held on for a very long time. The war told on each one of us." "Where is Lucius? I can't seem to find him too." "He er- he is with Alpha Dante." While the guard talked, he shifted impatiently from one foot to the other as though eager to be gone. With a wave of my hand, I dismissed him and he ran in the direction of the pack house. I went into the lobby of the clinic. The clinic was completely filled up. A lot of men were in the lobby with varying degrees of injuries, some of which looked pretty bad. The warriors with the serious-looking wounds were taken by a nurse right into the clinic for immediate
Allison's POV The pain I felt in my lower abdomen was excruciating. It was as though a fire had been lit down there. Against my wish, the pain urged me towards consciousness. I did not want to regain consciousness just yet. I wanted the oblivion of not knowing what was happening. For a moment, I floated between the two conscious and unconsciousness and then there was another cramp. Someone screamed piercingly. After some seconds, I realized that it was me. Slowly, I opened my eyes and saw that I was in my room. The pack doctor was leaning over me, his face lined with worry. The frown line smoothed out when he realized that I was awake. "She's awake," he informed the nurses who sighed in relief. It was a struggle to keep my eyes open as it felt like steel pennies had been laid on them. "Luna, are you feeling okay? Don't bother talking if you feel that you are not up to it, okay? Now, take a moment to observe your body. Are you alright?" I nodded weakly. The doctor continued
Aria's POV I was working at a manic pace. Already I felt a slight ache in the region of my waist, from bending and supporting the injured men. I did not really mind. It was fortunate that I had knowledge of how to dress wounds as the pack was currently short of helping hands. The injured men kept arriving, and some of them had wounds that needed to have been treated days ago. I was glad to be of help though. Having the men back at the pack was what we all had been hoping for for a long while now. Watching the Luna pine away right before my eyes because of the absence of the Alpha had been slow torture. A smile curved my lips as I imagined how happy she would be at the news of the return. "Is that smile for me, beautiful?" asked the guard whose wound I was putting a bandage on. I snorted. "You wish." I wrapped the bandage tightly around his arm and ran my eyes over him. "You seem to be alright," I said. "I can't find any more bleeding or broken bones. You'll live." My eyes
Maddox's POV I stared at the men, hanging on to my every word, and felt the crushing weight of responsibility Dante's death had occasioned. I did not want to be here, in his study, giving orders to the warriors, just hours after the news of his death. I still could not make sense of it all. I supposed that I was still in shock. The warriors assembled shifted uneasily as the silence lengthened. I had just filled them in on the details of what had happened to the Alpha and Lucius. The whole room was gloomy and tense. Every warrior in the room hung their head, refusing to meet my eyes. Most of their faces worked, and I could see that they were desperately trying to keep a hold on their emotions, and not break down. Their slumped shoulders indicated defeat. I could relate. I felt the same way at this moment. I sighed and continued talking. "Now that you know the situation of things, we need to find out what exactly happened to the Alpha and Lucius." I looked at each of the men i
Aria's POV I stared at the door to the Emergency room where the Luna had been taken minutes ago. They had whisked her away so fast that I had gotten just a brief glimpse of her. She had looked so frail and helpless as she had been wheeled in there, dressed in a shapeless, blue hospital gown. Only the steady rise and fall of her chest told me that she was still breathing. She had been unconscious and I guessed she had been sedated. Slowly, I sank into the chair in the waiting area. As agreed, she had not been informed of the surgery. Reluctantly, I admitted that was the right decision to have been taken. I wondered how she would feel when she woke up to discover that she had been cut open, that the decision to save her and not her baby had been taken without her consent. All those considerations were secondary now though. What everyone wanted was for her to make it out of this alive. I did not need to be a doctor to know that she was fast losing the will to fight for her life.
Allison's POV The first person I saw when I opened my eyes was Dante, sitting on the bed beside me. I gaped at him. My first thought was that I had died and gone to whatever paradise the Moon goddess provided for my kind. While I had been semi-conscious after giving birth, I had thought I heard his voice in my room. But I had dismissed the evidence of my ears, tagging it to be a product of my overactive imagination. Now here he was, right before me. When I blinked, his form did not waver or turn to smoke like it had in my dream. I did not want to get my hopes up, but I gradually started to believe that it was Dante I saw. He saw me looking and gave me his familiar lopsided grin. "Dante," I croaked. "Is- it really you?" He looked at me with such love and longing that I felt my insides melt. I put out a hand and touched his warm flesh. "Yes, it is me, my love. I am here with you." I took a deep, shuddering breath. The sound of his voice drove home the fact that I was not dream
Allison's POV Aria stood at the entrance of my room. She walked further into the room, her flowing, black velvet dress rippling as she moved. She stopped beside my bed and regarded me closely. "Well, I don't believe it!" she exclaimed. "Luna, I can't believe that you are not dressed yet." I yawned and stretched. "I will get dressed... eventually." Aria gaped and shook her head. "The time is 6 pm. 6 pm!" she repeated when I said nothing. "The ball is due to start anytime from now. Your hair and makeup aren't even done yet. Luna, you should have been ready hours ago." I grimaced at the word make-up. "Who needs make-up anyway?" I grumbled. "It even wastes time. I have an idea, Aria. How about I go downstairs with no make-up on? I will just er- try to fix my hair up a little." Tria looked scandalized at the very idea. "Definitely not, Luna. What would people say? You are one of the reasons why this ball is holding. You have to be perfect for tonight. A lot of people from other