Page 157 of Citius

It was padded—just like the vault.

“I don’t know!”

“Okay, it’s okay.” Cal took a fortifying breath that seemed to steady us both. “Wyatt, we’re going to hang up now. You need to call anambulance. Go to the Harborview ER. I’ll meet you there. Understand?”

“Y-yeah. Got it.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Call an ambulance. Harborview ER.”

“Good. Keep me posted.”

Adrenaline kicked in, strong enough to shred my stomach lining, forcing me to act. Time blurred into a chaotic haze—paramedics asking me questions I couldn’t answer, disorienting medical jargon, sirens, and flashing lights. Before I knew it, I was in the back of an ambulance, holding Morgan’s hand as we sped across town.

Her fingers were too cold. Face bloodless. Shallow breaths coming in uneven spurts. Overlapping with my worst nightmare—which I’d already suffered through once. We’d only just reconnected. I couldn’t lose her again.

Why was I such a fucking coward?

I should have told her we were scent matches when I found out. No—long before that. I should have told her that day in Arizona. Because I knew it then, on some level, even though I didn’t fully understand that she was my other half.

I should have kicked Ethan in the shin, grabbed her, and ran off together. Should have never let her go.

My mother’s endless disapproval echoed through my head, urging me to admit I was nothing more than a fuck-up—who didn’t deserve a second chance.

For once, I didn’t listen. Morgan needed me.

“Wake up, Morgan. You’ve got to wake up. Or I’ll call Kelsey. You don’t want that, do you?”

She could curse me, rip into me, tell me I didn’t care about her enough, to fuck off forever. I could survive that. Ihadsurvived that.

But she had to wake up first.

Morgan had to wake up.

A nasty bump in the road jostled her, and my hand shot out instinctively to cradle her head—but I was too afraid to touch her. Terrified that the slightest touch could break her.

That the damage had already been done.

“Please, please…” My voice cracked as I threaded our fingers together.

Pressing my forehead against our joined hands, I whispered, “Baby, you’re scaring me.”

***

“They won’t talk to me, Kelsey, but I think she had a seizure.” Cal stood outside Morgan’s room in the ER, watching her through the glass while repeatedly clicking a retractable pen, every muscle in his large frame wound too tight.

I sat on a bench across the hall, trying to make myself as compact as possible so I wouldn’t bother anyone. All the focus needed to be on Morgan right now.

“There’s no chance of you getting a flight back tonight,” Cal continued. “Joaquin will bring Piper over as soon as possible, but she’s still in rehearsal. It could take a few hours. So, I need you to sign the proxy authorization. Please.”

I couldn’t distinguish the words, but Kelsey’s tone was even and measured. She was the only person I knew with more grace than Morgan under pressure.

They exchanged terse but respectful words for a few minutes. Then, Cal finally played his ace.

“There’s a chance one of her medications had a bad reaction to her new suppressant. If you want to be certain, there’s no one better than me. No one.”

Game, set, match. All Kelsey could do was agree.

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