Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Louis

My heart broke into a million pieces as I stood beside the hospital bed.

Looking at Elara hurt me more than any physical pain ever could. She looked so small and pale under the heavy white blankets.

And watch time, her chest rose and fell in slow, weak movements, it made my pulse race.

Suddenly, her eyes fluttered open and she blinked a few times to get used to the bright hospital lights overhead.

When she saw me and the guys standing around her, she tried to smile but her face felt completely locked in place.

She could not move her lips into a real smile. Instead, she slowly opened her mouth and mouthed a quiet "thank you" to us.

Tears started to flow down my face but I didn't make a sound, I didn't want the guys to see me sobbing but I couldn't help it.

I just cried quietly because seeing my little sister like this felt like someone was squeezing my chest with a heavy iron hand.

Every breath she took felt like a knife twisting inside my own heart. I hated myself for not being there when she needed me most.

I leaned in closer to her face and whispered softly, "Elara... are you in pain?"

She gave a very small nod with her head.

Ronan crossed his arms and looked down at the cold floor. "Now would be a good time to take her to the private clinic in Eldermore," Ronan said in a low voice. "We can run the proper blood tests for silver root there where we have full equipment."

Jace shook his head right away. "We cannot move her in this condition, Ronan," Jace warned. "It is way too risky. She has not healed from that stab wound yet, and because her wolf is so weak from whatever Damien gave her, her body cannot heal fast like a normal werewolf. Driving her across town right now could kill her."

I wiped the tears from my cheeks with the back of my hand. We could not take her to the clinic, so we had to bring the clinic to her.

"I will handle it," I said, pulling out my phone.

I called the medical center right away. "Send a representative to the central hospital immediately," I demanded into the receiver. "Bring every piece of testing equipment you need to check a wolf's blood. Meet us in private ward four right now."

Twenty minutes later, the door opened and the medical representative walked into the room carrying a heavy metallic case.

As soon as he saw Elara lying in the bed covered in bandages, the shock on his face was clear. He almost dropped his silver case right onto the floor.

He stared at us with wide eyes and asked, "Is... is she going to be okay?"

Nobody answered him for a long moment.

The room was totally quiet as Elara slowly turned her head a tiny bit and shook it. She was definitely not okay.

Jace broke the heavy silence. "She was attacked by rogues," he explained coldly. "Just do the tests."

The representative nodded quickly. "Right. I was told to check her blood for silver root," he said as he opened his case. He frowned deeply as he looked down at her pale skin. "However, her blood could be laced with something else entirely. I need to run a full panel and check for other forms of poison too, just in case."

He set up his machines on the table and looked at us politely. "I must ask you all to step outside and excuse me while I do my job."

"We're not leaving," I snapped, standing firmly beside my sister's bed. "I am staying right here with my sister."

The representative looked at my face. I could tell he saw the fire and the deep pain in my eyes, "Very well," he murmured. "You may stay."

The hours crawled by like snails. Ten whole hours passed while the representative drew blood and ran test after test on his monitors. We sat on the hard chairs and waited in silence.

When the ten hours finally ended, the testing process was completed. But the work was still not done. The representative had to wait another two hours for his machine to print out the final report. Those two hours felt like years of pure torture.

Finally, the representative picked up the paper report. He looked extremely serious as he turned to face us.

"I was right about her blood," the representative stated in a grim voice. "She has indeed been laced with silver root for years. But that is not all. I found another poison mixed into her system called crimson nightshade. It has been building up in her body alongside the silver root for a very long time."

Then his face turned even paler. "I also found a third poison in her bloodstream," he added. "This one just entered her body recently, and it is settling deep inside her abdomen."

"It was the stab wound!" I growled, clenching my fists until my knuckles turned white. "The rogue's blade was poisoned!"

Anger flared up inside me like a raging fire. I felt even more sick to my stomach knowing that Damien and his rogues did not just want to drag her back. Their main aim was to kill her all along.

"She was very lucky to survive the blade strike," the representative continued, scanning the paper closely. "However, the poison laced on that blade is not strong enough to kill a werewolf on its own."

He paused and swallowed hard, looking genuinely confused. "There is something else on that report. The blade contained another strange substance, but my equipment cannot identify it at all. It acts almost as though it does not even exist."

"What do you mean it does not exist?" I demanded. "How can a poison be there if your machines cannot..."

Before I could finish my sentence or demand another answer, a soft, ragged sound broke through the room.

Cough! Cough!

We all turned our heads fast. Elara started coughing weakly on the bed, distracting us all and drawing every single one of our eyes straight back to her.