Page 65 of Puck Your Friend

The doctor scrolls through something on the tablet in his hand. “She’s stable, but she’s in bad shape. Her blood panel shows toxic levels of unregulated hormonal suppressants.”

Wes stands still, arms crossed. “What does that mean?”

“It means her system has been running on these chemicals for years. They’ve suppressed her natural hormone production to the point her liver had begun to shut down. There’s a reason they’re only found on the street. No doctor would prescribe them. Omegas need to go through their cycles, even if they’re dampened. This kind of suppressant stops them entirely. It’s very dangerous.”

Logan tenses at my left. “Is the liver failure permanent?”

“We’re giving her IV meds to support kidney and liver function. She should be stable by tomorrow, and healed by the end of the month, as long as she stays away from the suppressants. We’ve started an IV protocol to flush the suppressants out and get her body near baseline. But when she’s awake...”

The doctor pauses and looks each of us in the eye. “Her body’s going to go into heat. Probably for the first time since she was a teenager.”

Jace swears under his breath.

Wes nods. “When?”

He shrugs. “Could be tonight. Could be tomorrow morning. Once her hormone levels stabilize, we’ll move her to a heat-prepped room in the Omega ward.”

The doctor gives us a moment to take it in.

“When that time comes, we’ll ask whether you plan to stay. Whether you’ll stay with her through it. If you won’t be there, we’ll need to call in Alpha Aid.”

We all growl at the thought of another Alpha touching her. I shake my head. “No need. We’ll be there.”

The doctor nods. “Then you’ll be moved with her once we transfer her. No contact until she regains consciousness. Understood? She’s too weak to be around you while being her scent match. If she asks for you, we’ll set up a video call so you can speak with her until she can be moved.”

We all nod.

He steps to the door. “We’ll update you as soon as we can.” The door clicks shut behind him.

No one speaks for a long minute.

Jace sinks into a chair, hands locked between his knees. “She could’ve died.”

Wes leans against the wall. “She didn’t.”

Logan looks at the floor. “She’s going to need all of us.”

I don’t look away from the door. “She’s going to have us. Every damn step of it.”

Chapter 13

11 years ago…

The counselor keeps a firm hand on my left arm. The trail winds toward the camp, but every step feels wrong. My vision pulses at the edges as the headache that had started to disappear in the clearing returns.

The bodice of my dress sticks to my spine. Sweat trickles down the back of my neck. My skin prickles, like it’s about to split open.

She doesn’t say anything, just keeps walking, glancing back every few seconds. I keep pace because I have to, but my legs don’t feel like mine.

Every part of me screams to turn around, to go back. I need to see, touch, and smell them.

Why do I feel like this? It’s like I’m going crazy.

I grunt under my breath as sharp cramps grip me just under my navel. Worse than the ones I get with my period. I clutch my stomach when the next one hits. My fingers shake against the satin.

She glances over at me. “You okay?”

I nod. “Yeah, I’m fine.” My voice shakes so hard it doesn’t sound like mine.