Chapter 41

Lucas' POV

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In the chaos and aftermath of the brutal attack, the air is thick with the stench of blood and fear. Bodies lay scattered on the ground, some groaning in pain, and other eerily silent. The survivors are hastily gathered and taken to the pack hospital and the doctors and medics are tending to them with a sense of urgency.

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The lights flicker in the hallways as I enter, carrying Leo in my arms as Roman follows behind me with Aria. Elise is limping beside us, covered in blood, but she won't leave Leo's side and Anna is begging her to stop so she can be taken care of.

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I look into one of the rooms and see Echo and Tai laying Jack down, who still hasn't moved since the witch retaliated against us. My heart sickens when I think of Jack and the devastation of this battle hits me hard.

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"In here, lay him down," a doctor calls out to us. She looks gaunt and pale. She is one of Eric's pack members and you can see that she is malnourished and exhausted. "Roman you can put Luna Aria on that bed over there."

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"Carefully now," she says and once Leo is down she starts connecting wires and IVs to him. "Are you his mate?" she says to Elise who is gripping onto Anna.

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"Y-yes, is he going to be okay?" she says tearfully and the doctor turns her attention to us as the nurses continue to attend to Leo intensely.

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"My name is Dr. Caritas, but you can call me Mia. You're Elise?" she says sympathetically and Elise nods. "You can stay, the mate bond could help him try and heal. I'll have a nurse come and tend to your wounds," she inspects Elise's face and body and she doesn't seem overly concerned.

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"The rest of you need to leave, I'll come find you as soon as we get things under control, okay?"

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"I'm not leaving my daughter," Anna says and the doctor nods and knows that Anna is a Luna as well, and a queen, and she doesn't challenge her. She just smiles and directs Roman and I out of the room.

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I leave and walk back to Jack, a second doctor is there and is yelling instructions as he moves around the boy.

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"Doc, is he gonna be okay?" I ask and he looks at me and doesn't say anything at all, but his face is somber.

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"We're gonna do everything we can," he says and Echo and Tai are holding on to one another watching over their friend.

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"Echo, where's Leia?" I ask and he comes out of Jack's room and walks further down the hallway with me.

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"She was in medic training, so she is out there helping triage the wounded. I can join her, we both were in the same program." he says and we go back out to the scene of the battle.

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The night is still and haunted, the moon casting an eerie glow over the scene of devastation. We tend to the wounded and in the middle of it all a man sits alone amidst the wreckage and devastation.

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"Stefan," I walk to him and sit beside him, "are you hurt?" I ask and he looks at me with a heavy heart and guilt in his eyes.

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"I could have prevented all of this," he says. "I'm sorry, Lucas. I'm sorry I didn't come to you as soon as Eric started his reign of terror. I don't know why I didn't do more, how could I let this happen?" He says and he looks up into the night sky. "How can I be forgiven for this? I don't deserve it." We sit silently for a few more minutes and then he turns to me and begins again.

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"Take care of Sadia for me okay? Her and Ben? After what I've done I don't know if I can face them," he says and I know that I will never understand the feelings he went through when he thought he lost them both forever.

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"Stefan, you will need accept whatever fate Alpha Leo deems appropriate for your actions, but you will never stop being Ben's father. You need to show him how to be a man, even if that means accepting the punishment for what you've done."

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He nods and stands up, and I stand with him.

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"I'm sorry Lucas, I truly am," he says and I know that he means it.

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"I know you are," I return a sad smile, "I do look forward to meeting my nephew. I think he and Teddy will be great friends, and Miri is desperate to see Sadia. I'll send for them in the morning." I say and I leave him to continue to help with the wounded. It is going to be a long night.

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Elise's POV

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I flinch as another stitch is put into my cheek.

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"Are you alright?" Mia asks and I nod.

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"Why isn't Lily able to heal me?" I ask, and the doctor takes off her gloves and puts down the scissors after she finishes her last stitch.

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"I think the dark magic that Eric invoked with that witch has something to do with it. It is taking far longer for us to react, so we need to treat the wounded as if it won't happen at all so we can stop the bleeding and the damage from getting worse." She takes another look at Leo and then goes to leave the room. "I'll be back after I make some rounds."

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She leaves and I pull my chair up close to Leo and my mother is by my side.

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"Are you hurt?" I ask her and she responds strongly.

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"I am good. Nothing that requires attention."

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"The wounds were so deep, he lost so much blood," I say and I grab his hand, but he doesn't grip it back leaving a void in my heart.

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"Leo is strong, and has the Moon Goddess herself watching over him. Have faith my love, and be here for him." She hugs me and kisses me on the cheek. "I'm going to go find your father, you should try and get some sleep, okay? I'll be back soon."

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She leaves and I get up to get a drink of water and I see Tai in the next room over, slumped over the hospital bed that Jack is lying in.

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"Hey," I whisper. The chaos of the hospital has quieted down as the night drifted towards morning. "How is he?"

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Tai looks defeated and he starts to cry, something I've never seen him do.

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"He's in a coma, that's what doc said. He hit his head pretty hard."

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"Oh, Jack," I walk closer and look at this gorgeous boy, his unruly blond hair dirtied with blood. "He's gonna be okay," I tell Tai but neither of us really believe it. He is such a huge ball of energy and positivity. He is going to be my Gamma, my protector. I can't bear the thought of his bright light being diminished.

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"How's Leo," Tai asks.

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"He's stable, for now. His injuries are bad, and he isn't healing himself the way we normally would. Dr. Mia said that has something to do with dark magic."

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"Is he awake?" Echo comes running and he bursts into the room.

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"No," Tai says and Echo hugs him tight. I leave them together and go back to Leo's room, eventually falling asleep as I grip his hand and rest my head on his bed.

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Leo's POV

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I have an odd sensation, a tingling all over my body, and I open my eyes and find myself standing in the middle of a field of daisies. It’s so massive that I don't see an end to them. The sun is shining bright and the air smells sweet. I don't know where I am but it doesn't frighten me, I'm calm and I feel at peace. I listen for familiar sounds but all I hear is the soft breeze rustling through the fields.

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I look out around me and I notice something, or someone, coming towards me. I squint to focus better and I see that it is a person and as they approach I see a hue of white light surrounding them.

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When I finally make out the face I am struck with emotion.

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"Dad?" I ask and this person nods and smiles at me. He runs towards me with his last few steps and he hugs me tight in his arms.

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"My son, my boy," his voice breaks as he holds me tight. "I never thought I'd ever get to hold you in my arms. Let me look at you." He gently pushes me out in front of him and I think I'm still in shock.

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"You might be bigger than I am!" he says with a chuckle.

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"I thought...how are you here?" I ask, unsure of what is happening. "I thought you were gone?"

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"You are with me, my son. You defeated my brother, you are a true warrior." He says with pride.

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"My dad," I exhale and I grab on to him tight, and I can feel love and closeness engulf me.

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"The Moon Goddess allowed me to visit you," he says, "but I can't stay here and neither can you. I just wanted to see you, to meet you and let you know that I love you son, I always did and I'm sorry that I couldn't be there to be the father you deserved."

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"Where are you going? I'll go with you!" I beg him to stay, or to let me follow him.

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"You have so many people who love you and are waiting for you, I would be selfish to keep you here with me. Just know that I will watch over you, but your mother and your mate need you. Our pack needs you. You need to go back."

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I try to stay with him but the fields dissolve and a faint beeping starts getting louder and louder. I can hear voices yelling and alarms going off.

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I suddenly open my eyes and I'm blinded by a light that feels like it is burning my retina's and a swarm of people are surrounding me.

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Welcome back Leo.

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Gideon's voice is back and I'm relieved to hear it.