Page 146 of Alpha-Ex Wedding Ruse
My handsand shirt were covered in blood. Luca’s blood. My Mate’s blood. I couldn’t escape the image etched into my mind—Luca bleeding out in my arms, his face growing pale as paper while he still managed to give me that reassuring smile, whispering that all would be well. Even as his life leaked away beneath my trembling fingers. The despair of that moment still crawled through my veins like ice, cold and unforgiving.
He hadn’t been shot with just any bullet—that would have almost been merciful. His wolf shifter healing ability would have kicked in, expelled the foreign metal, and since he was an Alpha, complete recovery shouldn’t take more than a few hours.
But this was silver. Silver was almost akin to aconite. Deadly. Poisonous. And Luca had been shot right in the chest, inches from his heart.
My eyes fluttered closed and tears streamed down my cheeks as I held Ollie’s whimpering frame in the back seat of the car.
Charles was driving us to the hospital where Luca had been taken. A medical team had stormed Dock Street less than ten minutes afterthe shooting, whisking him away in a blur of sirens while I waited agonizing extra minutes for a useless conversation with the police.
Meanwhile, Luca’s men had dragged Victor away like the gutter rat he was, shoving him into a Vaughn SUV and hauling him to their precinct to be locked up until Luca could decide what was to be done with him. He showed no sign of guilt, not even a flicker of remorse as his own brother bled out in front of him. If anything, I could swear I caught the ghost of a smirk when the medics carried Luca into the ambulance.
“We’re here,” Charles said as he pulled into the hospital driveway. I was out of the car before he’d fully stopped, racing toward the reception despite the sea of media outlets already crowding the entrance. News of what happened on Dock Street had already traveled across the city. Headlines were already calling Luca a hero, praising him for jumping in front of a bullet to save his family.
“Any news?” I asked a nurse frantically, gripping the reception desk as tears blurred my vision.
The woman looked at me with pity that made my stomach drop. “Mr. Vaughn is in surgery now. We have our very best doctors operating on the Alpha. I assure you, we’ll do everything we can.”
That was all she said. And it wasn’t enough. I needed to hear the words, “He’s going to be fine. You’ll see him again.”
But for now, all I could do was wait.
I led Ollie to the elevator and then to a waiting area near the OR. I knelt to look at him. His eyes were swollen and red, his cheeks stained with dried tears. My little boy, who was always radiant with infectious joy, looked broken. I’d never seen him this sad, and it shattered what remained of my heart.
“Mommy, is Daddy going to be okay?” His little voice cracked.
A tear escaped before I could stop it. I quickly wiped it away. “You know your Daddy is a strong man. He’s an Alpha, and Alphas are fighters.”
He didn’t look convinced, not with the amount of blood still coating my hands and clothes. His gaze lingered on the crimson stains,and I had to gently guide his chin up to meet my eyes. “Hey,” I said, firmer this time, “Daddy is going to be fine, Ollie.”
But even as I said it, doubt clawed at my insides.
I tried to ignore the pounding in my chest, the voice in the back of my head whispering that I might never see him again, never hold him, never kiss him. I needed to remain strong for Ollie.
“I’m going to call Valerie to take you home,” I said, already reaching for my phone, but his small hand covered mine, shaking his head furiously.
“No. I want to be here when Daddy wakes up.”
“That could take a while, baby. You need to shower, change into clean clothes, eat—”
He was still shaking his head with the stubborn determination he’d inherited from his father. This gruesome waiting, the uncertainty—this was no place for a four-year-old. Especially when I didn’t know what news the doctors would emerge with.
“Okay,” I said, wiping fresh tears from his face. “How about this—Valerie takes you home to change and eat something, and once you’re done, she can bring you right back. I’ll be waiting here for you, and your Daddy will, too.”
That seemed to lift his expression slightly. “You promise, Mom?”
“I promise.”
I gestured to Charles to watch Ollie while I went to the bathroom to scrub the blood from my hands and call Valerie.
When I emerged from the restroom, I saw Isabelle rushing toward the OR, her face etched with pure anguish, her usually perfect hair disheveled like she’d been yanked from bed when someone delivered the devastating news.
“How is he?” she asked, gripping my hand so tight I felt her nails bite into my skin. “How’s my son?”
“Mrs. Vaughn,” my voice was steadier now, though it cost me everything to maintain that composure, “Luca is in surgery. The doctors haven’t said anything yet. But please, you have to remain calm.” My gaze shifted to Ollie, who was watching us with wide, frightened eyes.I’d managed to keep him positive. I couldn’t let anything shatter that fragile peace. “Please.”
Isabelle’s eyes followed mine, and when they landed on Ollie, she went completely still. She stared at him for a heartbeat too long before turning back to me with wonder warring in her expression. “Is that…” Her voice faltered.
I nodded. “That’s Luca’s son.”
