Chapter 3 While They Cared for Her

The hallway grew colder by the minute as the wind poured through it.

Mia's breathing became increasingly labored, her chest heaving violently with every breath. Even breathing itself had become difficult. It was a sign that the wolfsbane had invaded her lungs and her wolf soul was beginning to collapse.

A young nurse carrying a tray happened to pass by. She stopped to take a look, and the color immediately drained from her face. "Something's wrong with this pup! She's having trouble breathing. The venom has reached her lungs!"

She hurried over and started pushing the cart, intending to take Mia into a treatment room.

"Where are you taking her?" Elara approached slowly with several medical charts in hand and stepped directly in front of the cart.

"Elara, this pup's wolf soul fluctuations are almost gone. She needs Moondew immediately!" The young nurse's voice trembled with urgency.

Elara lowered her gaze and glanced calmly at Mia, her expression completely unruffled. "Don't make a fuss over nothing. The rapid breathing is simply from the wolfsbane. Start her on ordinary IV fluid and monitor her condition for now."

"But there are still empty rooms inside…"

"Those rooms are reserved for the warriors returning wounded from the front lines." Elara shook her head gently. "As a medical worker, you must uphold fairness. We can't recklessly consume our limited supply of Moondew simply because she happens to be my granddaughter, and the pup of the Alpha and Luna."

The young nurse lowered her head after being reprimanded, her eyes reddening. She could only turn around and prepare the IV fluid.

I stared at Elara's straight back, feeling a bone-deep chill.

Fairness? Was her idea of fairness sacrificing her own granddaughter's life so she could preserve her reputation for selflessness? Was it letting Layla occupy the best treatment room by herself, using all three remaining doses of Moondew in the entire pack, while everyone gathered around her, fussing over her and asking how she felt? Was my Mia supposed to only lie in the drafty hallway, watching her wolf soul slowly fall apart?

…

Night had fallen deep when a faint commotion came from inside the treatment room.

Layla complained of a headache, possibly from a psychic blast inflicted by the Blackridge Pack. Elara immediately became anxious and arranged for the physician on duty from the Wolf Soul Department to come over for a consultation in the middle of the night.

Damian and Kyle rushed back and forth, fetching medicines and adjusting equipment. No one remembered that a five-year-old pup was still lying in the hallway.

…

At 2 a.m., the motion-sensor lights in the hallway went out completely. The only sound was the distant howl of wolves, each cry more mournful than the last.

Moonlight streamed through the windows and fell across Mia's pale little face.

Mia's breathing suddenly stopped for a moment, and then her tiny body convulsed violently. The wolfsbane triggered a seizure as her wolf soul began to collapse. Her mouth fell open, but no sound came out. Her eyes rolled back, and her arms and legs spasmed uncontrollably.

I lunged toward the nurses' station like a madwoman, desperately trying to hit the emergency button, trying to sweep the medicines on the desk onto the floor.

Yet, my hands passed through everything again and again.

I could not touch anything, nor could I change anything.

I turned and rushed toward the treatment room, pounding against the glass and screaming until my throat felt raw.

Damian was carefully feeding Layla a cup of warm water. Kyle sat beside her, peeling fruit for her, while Elara studied her examination report. None of them could hear me.

Inside the room, the only voice was Layla's gentle one.

"Alpha Damian, the water's a little hot."

"I'll blow on it for you," Damian said and patiently blew across the cup of water.