Page 73 of Fate Awakened

Dante: Let him. Go help Pres.

Cain tenderly grabs one side of the slit, exposing the blood-stained skin beneath. My eyes catch on what appears to be a bite on her shoulder, and I have to school my expression to keep from bringing attention to it. I turn my head to avert my eyes after glancing quickly to see none of the red looks fresh or wet.

So it was all Hudson’s.

“In the side pouch of the bag at the front should be a gown you can place over her now that we know her torso is clear,” Jay instructs Cain.

“Pres set some clothes by the bag for you too,” I add, knowing he could care less, but Keith will undoubtedly have questions if he’s walking around naked, bleeding from his side. Admittedly his cuts aren’t life-threatening, but the fact that they will be completely healed in twenty-four hours without so much as a scar means we should still be careful. Cain takes off at a run.

Jay: I’m giving her a mild sedative to ensure she won’t wake up in this condition. Her numbers don’t look good. We must get her some blood and ensure she has no more internal injuries. With these levels, if she flatlines, we may not get her back.

Dante: Plane’s ready when we get there. We move on your call.

“This is finished, but she’ll need scans and some blood. Do we know her type?” Jay asks, turning to Cain as he returns, still pulling his arm through a shirt.

“B positive,” he responds robotically while covering her with the gown.

“Great. Now we need to move quickly to get her the care she needs. I’ll call Radolf to have the operating room prepped before we arrive so there's no delay. Let's go.”

Mason and Jake jump into the front seat of the vehicle that carries Bri in the back. The middle seat is dropped, and Cain climbs in with his Mate. Jay rides on the other side of her, monitoring her numbers.

I shut the back doors and contact the other teams to check in.

Dante: Jess, what’s the blue team status?

Jess: Wyatt and I are secure in the red team vehicle.

Dante: Carter, what’s the red team’s status?

Carter: Colt and I are with the blue team in our vehicle. Colt’s driving to the meet.

Dante: Ryder, what’s the black team’s status?

Ryder: All secure and en route.

Dante: How are Max and Gabe’s injuries?

Ryder: We had to reset Max’s hip, which sounded like it hurt like a bitch. Gabe shifted, so he’s all clear.

I jump into the passenger seat and signal Pres to follow Mason onto the highway.

“What the fuck happened to her? Is she going to be okay? Let me see her. Let me help,” I hear Keith snap, desperate to get to her.

“The best thing you can do right now is let us get her to our facility to determine the extent of her injuries. We know she’s important to you. We’re doing everything we can. Please,” Presley’s voice carries emotion I hadn’t noticed, and I turn to see a tear falling from her eye. I send her a mind-link.

Dante: I’m sorry about Hudson.

Pres: At least it wasn’t Cain.

It’s all she says, but I can tell she’s struggling. I open the bond and allow her pain to wash into me. Taking it on like a penance.

Hudson was mine to protect. It’s my fault.

“Don’t,” she says, feeling the weight of her grief lightened. “Let me carry it,” she finishes, sitting up straighter as she focuses on the road.

“Don’t what? I just need to know if she’s ok,” Keith asks, unsure who Pres is talking to with his blindfold back in place.

“The 'don’t' was for me, not you,” I answer over my shoulder at him. “And for now, she’s stable, but she’s lost a lot of blood. We need to get her home to ensure we’ve caught all her injuries. I have a team waiting to treat her. We will do everything we can,” I say confidently, hoping she's as strong as I think she is because she’s in for a hell of a recovery.

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