Chapter 3

Christopher arrived fast. He took one look at me and knew my condition was dire.

"Lay her flat! Hurry!" he ordered.

Elsie, shaking so hard she could barely think, obeyed without question. Together, they eased me onto the cleanest patch of floor they could find.

Christopher snapped open his kit, but then he went pale. The supplies he carried for routine house calls were nowhere near enough for a hemorrhage this severe.

"I'm short on the right meds," he said, his voice tight with alarm. "We need a coagulant from the central infirmary immediately. But they won't release it without 100 dollars upfront."

Elsie emptied her pockets. The crumpled bills didn't even add up to five dollars. "Please," she begged, tears catching her words. "Can't you put it on account? Alpha Cassian will approve it when he gets here!"

Christopher hesitated. The infirmary never ran tabs. It was always cash and carry. But he looked at the blood spreading under me and the way my eyes kept drifting shut, and his jaw set with a hard resolve.

"I'll ask Alpha Cassian for approval," he said, pulling out his phone.

The phone rang and rang until someone finally answered. It wasn't Cassian but Mira.

"Alpha Cassian is in a meeting," she said. "Call back later."

"This is the pack healer, Christopher Murray," he said quickly. "Luna Sutton is hemorrhaging. She needs a coagulant right away, but we don't have the funds. Can we authorize credit and—"

"Credit?" Mira's tone shot up, sharp and nasty. "Absolutely not! Not a single cent! That is the rule! She's faking it again to fool people. Hasn't she pulled this trick enough times already? She just wants to swindle money! I'm telling you, make her reflect on her actions! No one is allowed to help her!"

"She is not faking this. She needs treatment now—" Christopher began to explain again.

"Oh, I get it," Mira cut in. "She paid you to say that, right? I knew she was hiding cash somewhere! Stop bothering Alpha Cassian with this nonsense. He is busy!"

The line went dead.

Christopher bristled at having his professional integrity questioned. He stared at the phone for a moment, then muttered a curse and pulled out his bank card. "Fine. I'll pay! The coagulant will be ready when we get there!

"Hurry! Get her to the infirmary now! If we don't, she won't just lose the pup. She could lose her life!"

After the emergency treatment, Christopher told Elsie to carry me on her back and rush to the infirmary.

When we burst through the doors, Christopher stopped short. The shelves were empty, and even the equipment was gone.

"Where are the meds I just ordered?" he snapped at a nurse tidying an empty room.

The nurse winced. "I'm sorry. Ms. Langford said her heart felt off, so Alpha Cassian had everything moved to her room, including the coagulant you requested."

Christopher shook with anger. For a moment, he looked like he might tear the place apart. Then, his shoulders dropped, and he stood there, at a loss for what to do next.

That was when Cassian's Beta, Leon Jackson, came around the corner. He saw the blood and the way I sagged in Elsie's arms, and his eyes widened in shock.

"Luna Sutton? What happened to you?" He rushed over to check on me, then he quickly pulled out his phone.

"Alpha Cassian, it's me! I'm at the infirmary! Luna Sutton is here and she looks critical!"

On the other end, Cassian sounded annoyed. "You must be mistaken. If she were out, the first place she'd go is the spa, or maybe a massage. You've got it wrong. Anyway, I don't have time for this."

With that, he hung up.

Leon lowered his hand, guilt and pity written all over him. There was nothing he could do.

Christopher let out a long, helpless sigh.

Elsie pressed a fist to her mouth to choke back a sob.

A wave of fire seared my back as my belly cramped again and again, the pain blurring everything around me.

I listened to their voices as the heartbeats inside me grew faint. Tears slid from the corners of my eyes, and at last, I let them fall shut, surrendering to despair.

...

Cassian had just finished paying for Mira's treatment when he stepped back into her room. She lounged back against the pillows and said softly, "Alpha Cassian, I want butter cookies. Could you get me some?"

"Cookies?" Cassian paused. The word stirred old memories.

Long ago, Sutton used to bake cookies for him on quiet afternoons. She'd slip on an apron and smile as she held a warm cookie to his lips, her eyes shining with love.

How long had it been since he'd tasted one?

The thought brought an unbidden irritation crawling under his skin.

He left the room to clear his head, but a broken, muffled crying sifted through the wall from the room next door.

It was Elsie's voice.

A jolt of unease went through him, rendering him uneasy. He quickly shoved the door open.

Elsie was folded over my cold body, shaking so hard she could barely breathe. "Luna Sutton, how could this happen? You're gone, and so is the pup!"