Page 142 of The Heat of Us

“She doesn’t want to get in.” I looked down at her clinging to me. At least she’s not trying to run.

Ben took a deep breath and assessed the situation. “Aleks, get in the backseat first and see if she’ll follow you in then. I’ll call the police while I drive but Hazel comes first.”

Hazel was quiet against me as we sped off, Remy close behind in his own car. The green blanket Hazel had purchased on our road trip was still in the back and it had helped settle her when I threw it around her shoulders. I looked down to see it had slipped off and readjusted it.

She didn’t react.

That was how it had been the entire drive. Unfocused eyes staring out the window, completely unresponsive.

Hearing her name did not even elicit a flicker of recognition.

“Are you sure you don’t want to switch?” I asked Ben as he drove. “You’re her scent match. I don’t know…it might…”

“She’s calm with you, Aleks.” I don’t know how he kept his voice so level and reasonable.

We debated over where to take her. St Elizabeth’s seemed like the obvious choice but it was a general hospital. Eden Women’s Hospital was further away but they had an entire omega specialist wing and worked closely with the National Omega Commission.

We chose Eden in the end.

Ben pulled what strings he could, calling ahead so Eden knew we were on the way. The vials from the house — one empty and one full — rattled in the centre console, ready to be handed over. He also requested a physician who specialised in treating feral omegas.

Hearing Hazel referred to that way broke my fucking heart.

I kissed her forehead and kept my lips against her skin, hating that her scent was almost undetectable.

Despite her initial reluctance to get in the car, Hazel refused to leave it once we arrived. The three of us looked like we’d been besieged by an army of angry cats and she was no closer to getting anywhere near the hospital entrance.

Dr. Marshall was kind enough to come out to the parking lot to see her. She had a wild, bouncy mane of ringlets that felt at odds with her relaxed disposition.

What I didn’t expect was her immediate recognition followed by pity when she caught sight of Hazel.

“Hazel is a patient of mine,” Dr. Marshall informed us. “I treated her several years ago. Are you her pack? She’s in no state to advocate for herself right now.”

Fuck, I didn’t even think about that. We had no paperwork, no proof that we were together.

I wasn’t sure how to explain that all we had was a very stupidly named group chat to show that we were a pack.

“We’re not bonded but we’re living together,” Ben thankfully stepped in. “She’s ours.”

Dr. Marshall seemed to accept this but her lips pursed regardless. “I will still need to check who her emergency contact is.”

Remy gripped my shoulder. “What if it’s her parents?” he said agitatedly.

The thought of Hazel’s mother striding into Eden ready to make decisions on behalf of her daughter absolutely incensed me.

“It won’t be.”

Hazel hasn’t been in contact with her parents in years, I reminded myself. Willing my blood to cease boiling my veins.

Dr. Marshall put us out of our misery quite quickly, making a call to have a nurse check Hazel’s files. “Hazel’s emergency contact is Juno Liu. Does the name ring a bell?”

Ben exhaled loudly, his relief palpable. “That’s my sister.”

“Call her and have her come down. We just need to talk to her briefly and then we can make sure you three are her support people.” Dr. Marshall eyed the car where Hazel was still curled up. “Let’s get her inside first so we can run some tests and monitor her.”

I already knew how they were going to get her inside.

I couldn’t look when they sedated her, placed her on a stretcher and carted her inside the hospital. That was not who she was. She was vibrance and starlight. She should’ve been annoying me, keeping me on my toes. Making me fall in love with her in new ways every day.

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