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"Valentina fainted this afternoon, so we took her to the hospi-tal. She has a perforated appendix, the doctor said her life is in grave danger! She was taken in for emergency surgery! The doctor said she could die!" Her mother rambled on, sobbing uncontrollably.

Hospital!? Emergency surgery..!? Her sister had a burst appendix!? Tina could die...?

"Oh God, please stop crying, mother, please. Try to get yourself together, I'm coming, alright!?" She raised her tone higher, even as she tried her best to keep her panic at bay, "Do you hear me!?"

"I should have never i-ignored her when she was saying that her stomach problems w-w-were nothing. Oh, my Jesus! What do I do now,Ismena!? What do I do!? I'm so scared, I'm so scared! I hate hospitals so much, I'm going out of my m-mind!" Her mother cried, obviously too hysteric to listen to her daughter.

Ismena hung up the phone and quickly dialed her father's number. He picked up in the first ring.

"Dad? You are beside mom now right?" She said immediately.

"Yes, my daughter, I have been trying to calm her but—"

"\Please try harder, Dad. Calm her down as much as you can while I hurry to be there as fast as I can! You know how her blood pressure goes high whenever she's panicked like this. Please, dad!?" She pleaded, tears of worry for her sister and her mother filling her eyes.

"I will do everything I can, Mena." Her father vowed, sounding just as worried, "Don't worry about it and focus on coming here, okay?"

"Okay, dad. I'll be there as soon as possible." She hung up the phone, her head whirling on what to do. How to get out of here, how to be in the hospital as fast as she can.

Her poor sister... Oh, God, her poor sister!?

She took off in a dead run back to Eline's place, doing her best to hold the tears and keep herself calm.

At home, she was most grateful to see Eline in the kitchen making dinner as she hurried into the house like her feet were on fire.

Eline had heard her footsteps before she made it to the front door and as she entered the kitchen, the cougar sentinel pursed her lips.

Still stirring her fries, without looking at her, she said "When I taught you how to run, Ena, I didn't mean you should start running aroundhelter-skelter for fun—"

"Eline, please help me! Please, help me!" Came the desperate voice of Ismena as she hurried across the large space and grabbed hold of her friend's arm, "Help me, please."

The desperation in her voice took Eline by surprise. That was when she looked at her human friend only to see that she has been crying. "What is wrong, Ismena?"

"My sister...She's in the hospital right now and I need to get to her. I really need to get to her, please." Tears overflowed from her eyes.

"Oh, Ena, I am so sorry. But you know I can't take you out of Naturiah—"

"Please, Eline, I really need your help, please...!" She cried.

"But, your life is in danger, Ismena!" Eline admonished, trying to convince her friend, "What if those wolf hunters get the wind that you're back to Oklahoma!? They will hunt for you and kill you!"

"Not if you go with me, Eline! At this point, I don't care, okay!? I don't care! Even if you don't go with me, I will go to the Wild Forest myself and go to the boundary gates alone!" She screamed, needing to get Eline's help now more than ever. Her poor sister...

"You have to think clearly, Mena, please. The sentinels on duty will not open the gates for you because they know the Alpha King's orders"

"That is why you have to help me, Eline. Pleeeease! Oh, God, pleeeeease...!" She broke down and began crying in earnest.

The cougar sentinel was so worried about her friend and also the Alpha King's orders. He will really punish her this time around if she takes Ismena to the human world without his permission. The fact that Ismena's life is in danger only makes the problema bigger one.

But, her friend was crying so much, she can't NOT do anything. Even her cougar has become so restless and agitated, hearing the cries of their friend. It growled and paced inside her.

Turning off the stove, she turned to Ismena, wrapped her arms around her, and began consoling her with words. She told her that everything will be alright, even as it only made Ismena cry the more.

An idea came to Eline's head.

"Listen to me, Ena, listen to me." She pulled back and palmed Ismena's wet, flushed cheeks, "We will go to Alpha Alphose and beg him to help you, alright? If we can get him to agree, he can sneak you to your world to see your sister and bring you back safe before tomorrow is over. If anyone can protect you there, it is Alpha Alphose."

"Okay, okay, but will he agree?" Ismena cried. That Alpha is closest to the Alpha King, so he will most likely refuse.