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Chapter Quote:
"He was brilliant sunlight that drove away winter's chill."
~Wolfsbane, Andrea Cremer
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Chapter 58

Elsa

Knowing that my brother and my boyfriend were both in critical condition was too much to handle in my current state. Not wanting Dom to see me break down even though I knew he wouldn't care, I shuffled into the bathroom, trying not to fall because my concussion had thrown my balance off as well on top of my dizziness which already made it hard to walk.

I braced myself against the sink and shut my eyes, taking deep breaths to calm my rapidly raising anxiety. Barry, Nancy, Derek, Sabine, and Ethan were all gone. I tried not to think about the fact that Caleb and Spencer might be joining that list but my mind wouldn't let that happen. In fact, it amplified the terror I felt.

I bit my lip, trying my damnedest not to cry but a few tears slipped down my cheeks. Any moment Anna was going to be at the door, asking if I was okay. But I wasn't. I was far from it. I'd been preparing myself for Caleb's death after I learned about the prophecy. I'd prepared myself for the possibility that Spencer wasn't going to make it through. What I hadn't prepared for was the feeling I got when I realized Spencer was in trouble. It was the overwhelming sense that I was dying even when I knew it wasn't. It felt like the connection I had with Anna, only about ten times worse.

At the thought of the pain, my stomach churned violently and I rushed to the toilet. I was tired of throwing up every hour. The Searchers said that my Guardian blood would make the concussion go away sooner rather than later but I didn't believe them, not with the way this was going.

"Elsa?" Anna's soft voice came from behind me.

"Hmm," I groaned.

"Can I get you anything?"

"A cure for this nausea. I just want to go see Caleb and Spencer."

"What happened in the field, when you sensed Spencer was in trouble?"

"I don't know. The only time I know of non-related Guardians being able to feel stuff like that is when they've mated and yeah, Spencer and I did it before the war but the possibility of us mating is nigh on impossible."

"But it's still possible. Anything else weird happen where you sensed his feelings or vice versa?"

"None that I know of."

"Do you want to go see him?"

"Of course I do, but I can barely move without being sick, let alone walk all the way over there. I won't be of any help if I'm throwing up everywhere."

Someone knocked on our door, calling out our names. It was mom. I turned to Anna who had at this point knelt down next to me and whispered, "Don't tell her I'm still sick."

"Elsa, it's okay to show weakness, you know," my sister said.

"I've caused enough problems recently. Please, I'll be out in a minute. Just... go distract her for a moment."

Anna left the bathroom and answered the door. I quickly tried to freshen up so my mom wouldn't question my health. When I entered the room, mom was chatting with Anna. She smiled at me when I came out.

"How are you feeling sweetie?" she asked.

"I'm okay. How are you?"

"Tired. Your dad will be taken out of his medically induced coma tomorrow so that's good news."

"How much sleep have you gotten?" Anna queried.

"Not enough."

"Why don't you get some rest? I'll watch over him and Caleb."

"No, I'm okay. I want to be there when Ren wakes up. Lily is staying by Caleb's side. She's in shock, as most of us are in some way."

"Has she seen Spencer?" I inquired.

"She can barely process Caleb. If she saw Spencer in the same state, I worry what would happen to her."

As much as I ached to see my boyfriend, my heart went out to Lily. My pack, we all had at least someone to hang out with if the person we were closest to was unavailable. But Lily didn't. Both her husband and her beta were in comas, barely hanging on to life. The only person that she was semi-close to was me, or at least I wanted to think so. I had to take that chance.

"I'll go see her," I offered.

"You should get some rest, Elsa. You're in bad shape."

"I'm fine," I declared indignantly.

"I'm a Guardian and I'm your mother. I know you're lying and that the nausea is still hitting you. I can also smell that despite your efforts to try and hide it." I glanced over at Anna who shrugged her shoulders while giving me an expression that promised me she didn't say anything. "Go back to bed."

"But-"

"Lily will still be there when you're able to move without being sick. Anna, watch your sister and don't let her convince you to let her get up. I have to go do something with your brother. I'll check on you two later. I love you."

"Love you," Anna and I said simultaneously. Mom walked out of the room. I turned to my sister and said, "You're not really going to stop me, are you?"

"Mom just said not to let you convince me. She never said I couldn't convince myself. Take some more anti-nausea medicine and then we'll head out."

I grinned, already feeling slightly better. A positive attitude could do wonders. Popping a pill into my mouth and swallowing it down with a big gulp of water, I followed my twin to Caleb's room.

Upon seeing him, I froze in my tracks. He was hooked up to so many machines, he was so pale... not to mention the massive stab wounds in his stomach that had been stitched up.

"Elsa? Anna?" Lily whispered. Her voice broke me out of my trance. I blinked and looked at her. Her head had a gash in it that went from her temple down the left side of her face down to her chin. It had been stitched up and cleaned, but still looked nasty and painful. "What are you two doing here?"

"We came to see you," I said.

"Why? You should be resting."

"Because you're our sister. You married Caleb and you're our pack."

Something inside of her broke as she began sobbing. Anna and I rushed to her, pulling her in a hug. "I-I can't lose him a-a-and Spencer... not...at the s-same time. I've lost everyone else."

"Hey, if, god forbid they don't make it through this, you'll have us. You're our pack too," I promised.

"I'm an alpha. I've always been and I couldn't-"

"Then we'd follow you," Anna stated. I had wanted to say that but had hesitated, wondering if Anna would be okay with that. It turns out she was. "You, me, Elsa, and Dom."

"I can't ask you to leave your pack."

"You're not. We're offering," I told her.

She nodded. "Have you seen Spencer?"

I shook my head solemnly. "I haven't been able to move much without being sick since the battle. This is the farthest I've been from my room since they treated me. I'm heading to see him next."

"Any good update on him?"

"We haven't heard anything. He's still critical but they're seeing small, positive improvements," Anna explained. "What about Caleb?"

"Still critical with no improvements. But no decline either."

"Well I guess as long as there's no decline in his health, there's a chance he could survive."

"He's already flat-lined so many times..."

"He'll be okay. I know he will," I said firmly, sounding much stronger than I actually felt. I was terrified for my brother's life, but Lily felt enough terror at the moment and didn't need to know about mine.

"Thank you. Go get some rest. If you want to talk, I'm not going anywhere until he wakes up." Getting the vibe that she wanted to be alone, we each gave her a hug and left her be.

"Do you want to go see Spencer?" Anna asked.

"I do, but if you don't mind, I kind of want to go alone."

"Will you be okay if you do?"

"Yeah. After seeing Caleb, that's what I'm preparing to see with Spencer."

"Okay," Anna said hesitantly. "Dom has been messaging me like crazy so I'm going to go see what's up. Let me know if you need anything okay."

"I will." The two of us split up and I walked to Spencer's infirmary room. The first bed was empty but I got a whiff of the scent and realized it was Dom's bed. My eyes continued onwards, landing on the curtains separating another bed from the world. Taking a deep breath, I made my way behind the curtain to find my boyfriend in a very similar situation to my brother with the amount of machines he was hooked up to.

Gingerly I took his hand in mine, not wanting to disturb any of the wires that were helping keep him alive. His hand was cold to the touch, making me shiver ever so slightly.

"Hey you," I whispered. "I feel weird talking to you when you can't respond but you need to wake up soon okay? Lily needs her beta. I mean Anna and I are here for her of course, but she needs someone who's been with her through everything right now, and that's you. Especially if Caleb doesn't make it through this... she'll need you more than ever."

I stopped talking when I heard footsteps approaching the room. I tensed up, prepared for a fight, but it turned out to just be a Healer.

"Oh, Miss Laroche, I wasn't expecting you to be here. Are you okay?" the Healer asked.

"I'm fine. Just wanted to come see my boyfriend."

"Would you like a chair? I've noticed Guardians don't like to leave their mates' sides when they're injured."

"A chair would wonderful. Thank you," I said sincerely. She nodded, briefly disappearing before coming back carrying a super cushy-looking armchair.

"I figured with your injuries, you'd benefit from something softer than our normal chairs," she said.

"This is great. Thank you so much. How is he doing?"

"Well that's why I came in. We have our machines programmed in a way that when vitals hit a certain point or drop below one, we come to check on the patient. We got a notification that his vitals improved above a certain point. If this trend continues, we'll be able to declare him as stabilized. That won't necessarily mean he'll come out of the coma straight away but with your kind, it will be almost a sure sign that he'll come out of it soon."

"Thank god," I breathed. "Thank you for your help. Without you and the other Healers, I'm sure half of us would be dead right about now."

"It's an honor. Your parents saved mine in the last war. I feel the only way I can repay them is by making sure those that are alive stay that way. If you'll excuse me, I must go check on other patients. Do not hesitate to let me know if you need anything."

The Healer left the room, allowing me to be alone with my thoughts. I sunk into the plush armchair and before I knew it, I fell asleep, my hand still holding Spencer's.
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