Page 24 of Victorious: Part I

Wait to see if Livvy pulls through.

Wait to see if I can forgive myself for not being able to help her sooner.

Time loses meaning as I sit here, my body a strange combination of numb and hyperaware. Every footstep in the hallway makes me tense. Every voice has me looking up, expecting either news of Livvy or the arrival of the club.

It’s the latter that comes first.

The waiting room door bursts open, and Alpha fills the frame, his massive presence seeming to suck all the air from the room. And I’m not sure if it is because I’m so fucking relieved he’s finally here, or if it is because I am so damn concerned about how he’s going to react when he hears about what went down and the people involved in the treatment of his ex-wife.

Behind him, I catch glimpses of club cuts. South, Loki, Maverick, Phoenix, Montana, and the rest—a sea of leather backing their president.

But it’s Alpha’s face that stops my heart.

I’ve seen him angry, seen him in battle mode, seen him devastated when he told me the story of when he thought Poppy was dead years ago.

This is something else entirely—grief, rage, and fear distilled into something almost inhuman.

His eyes find mine, and for a heartbeat, neither of us move.

All the love and adoration I feel for this man hits me like a fucking freight train, slamming into me so fucking hard I can’t breathe.

I can’t speak.

I literally can’t move.

All I can do is stare at him in my frozen state when suddenly, Poppy steps into view from behind him, her face tear-streaked but composed. And I don’t know why, but something about seeing her, about seeing the young girl I trained at The Nest to be strong, to fight back, and to never show her emotions is losing that fight right now, completely breaks my walls.

We’re both free of The Nest. We have been for a while, but I’ve maintained my no-emotion façade.

But right now, I simply can’t.

And I break.

Completely and utterly.

“I’m s-so s-sorry,” I whisper, rising on shaky legs. “I t-tried—” I can’t finish my sentence before my legs give out.

I feel myself falling.

My head is swirling with emotions I’ve blocked for so many years that are now rampaging through me so intensely. Alpha crosses the room in three long strides and catches me before I hit the floor, pulling me tightly against his chest. His arms wrap around me with desperate strength, his breath ragged against my hair. His body trembling—the invincible club president, the man everyone fears, shaking with emotion he can barely contain.

“It’s okay, Little Lamb. I’ve got you,” he murmurs, his voice thick with concern.

I cling to him, drawing strength from his solid presence, my watering eyes meeting his, regret flowing through me with brutal intensity. “I should have rallied the club when I got the call. I was too cocky. I thought I could handle it. Livvy was already there when I arrived. It was a goddamn trap.I should have known better.Idoknow fucking better! I was on a high from the win with the Governor, and now?Oh God, Alpha,”I whimper.

Alpha pulls back, cupping my face in his hands. His eyes are red-rimmed, haunted. “You got her out. That’s what matters.” He studies my face, taking in every detail like he’s memorizing it all over again. “How badly are you hurt?” His eyes shift to the obvious injury on my shoulder.

“Nothing serious,” I shake my head, but even that movement makes my body ache.

Poppy steps out from behind her father, her resemblance to Livvy striking even through her fear. “Haven?” She throws her arms around me, sending another jolt through my muscles, but I hold onto her as tight as possible. This girl—she became my family through the strangest of circumstances. “Where’s my mama? Is she gonna be okay?”

My stomach falls through the floor as I exchange a glance with Alpha, neither of us wanting to be the one to shatter her world further. “She’s in surgery,” I reply carefully. “The doctors are doing everything they can.”

“But she’ll make it.Right?”Poppy pulls back, searching my face desperately for an answer I simply cannot give her.

Before I can form a response that won’t crush her or give false hope, the door opens again. A young, roguishly handsome doctor in surgical scrubs enters, his mask pulled down to reveal a grim expression. Blood stains the front of his gown—Livvy’s blood.

“Family of Olivia Landry?” he calls, eyes scanning the room full of bikers before settling on Alpha, a look of recognition and what can only be described as anguish.

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