Page 59 of Haze

Chapter 19

Finn

It’s been over an hour since Deacon came back to sit with us. The instant Dinah comes into the office the four of us have taken to sitting in, I know something is wrong.

“Lena’s fever spiked suddenly. She’s had a seizure.” The words come out of Dinah’s mouth, and it feels surreal.

Dinah’s hand touches my shoulder. “She’s stable, awake, speaking. We were with her when it happened and drew blood right away for analysis. We’re running an EEG. Her vitals are all over the place. Some of her discomfort and the inability to rest we believe to be coming from her wolf. She’s scared and volatile.” Dinah pauses, waiting for me to catch up with all she’s said before continuing. “I’ve been commanding her steady. It helps, but it’s not enough. I don’t think Cade’s command would be any more effective. We can try having you sit with her and steady her wolf, but realistically it might not be enough. I’ve come to ask if you’d give us permission to give her a sedative. I’d like to put her completely out for a little. Or, if you’d prefer, we can do a mild sedative, and it’ll tuck her wolf away. She needs time to let her body do some healing.”

What does she fucking mean commanding her? I want to ask but now isn’t the time. I’ll have to sort out what is and isn’t true about the Ardelean gifts. Right now, what Dinah needs is a decision. My gut instinct is to agree.

Cade starts, “Then, absolu—”

Dinah’s eyes dart to Cade, and she hits him with a stern look.

“What you see fit.” I nod and clear my throat, trying to make it easier to swallow. What I wouldn’t do for a bottle of whiskey.

“Do you want to see her before we sedate her?” Dinah shifts her weight, beckoning me to go with her with a heavy-handed suggestion.

I follow Dinah back into the lab and the room they have Lena in. Things are stuck to her head, and wires are sticking out from underneath the blankets draped down her body. They’ve dressed her in a hospital gown that covers the mark I’ve left on her shoulder. She looks so tiny in the hospital bed. Lazily her eyes open, hearing us approach.

“Do you ever go away?” Lena growls, but it’s half-hearted.

Beeping on the monitor picks up, and I look at Dinah. She pushes a button on it with a scowl.

I crouch down next to the bed and take Lena’s hand in my own. “It’s not that easy with me. You’ll come around to the fact I’m never going away. Kathleen, did Dinah tell you what she asked me to do?”

“No, she didn’t. Apparently my lucidity is being called into question?” My fierce little mate narrows her brows at Dinah, who, in turn, rolls her eyes.

The tight muscles in my back relax slowly. The dread I’ve been fighting back and my fears for her safety have been a constant barrage I’ve tried to tame. It warms my heart to see she has at least that much fighting fire within her. Hearing these medical terms thrown around, I didn’t know what to expect, but the high-spirited remarks give me some semblance of hope that she’ll be okay.

I stroke Lena’s hand, knowing it won’t matter in a minute. Once her wolf is under, Lena won’t be able to feel anything through our bond.

“I gave her the okay to give you a sedative, but if you’re adamant that you don’t want it, I’ll tell her no. But it sounds like, regardless of your wakefulness, they can get the data you need for your study. There’s no reason for you to hurt like this.”

“I don’t like it,” she whines, and it’s laced with fear.

She squeezes my hand. Her eyes pleading with me add a pain in my chest that I can only equate with being stabbed.

“I understand. I won’t make you do this. But you’re giving us all a scare.” I try to coax her into it. I know, and so does she, that ultimately it’ll come down to her safety. I’m willing to risk her hating me for it. I’d rather her be angry at me than burying her. It’s my job as her mate, and Dominant, to do what’s right for her, even if that makes her upset with me. “Will you let them sedate you?”

Her legs and feet squirm. My heart aches knowing how stressed she is.

She gives a small nod.

I squeeze her hand. “Good, faolan.”

Dinah doesn’t wait. She plunges a needle into the junction of the IV.

I stay at Lena’s bedside until her eyes drift shut. I kiss her forehead, then look at Dinah.

Before I speak, Dinah does. “Not me. Cade.”

“Take care of her?” I pull myself from Lena’s side.

My wolf whines, not wanting to leave her like this, vulnerable. But I need answers as to why an Alpha wolf is being commanded by another, and I won’t get it from her bedside.

“I promise.” Dinah nods. “If anything changes, you’ll be the first to know.”

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