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I had assumed so, and with a shredded arm that led to an amputation, wouldn’t I have lost too much blood?

I wrote again.

How did I survive that?

Odie went to respond, but I waved at her to wait a second before adding, How are you and Cy? Oliver did a lot of damage.

“That’s part of what I was waiting to tell you. Alpha blood has healing properties. It’s fairly minimal and is used more as a way to keep things from getting worse. It’s one of the few things we have been able to keep away from Human knowledge. For your second question, Alphas also heal incredibly fast. I had a few gashes across my torso, but they are almost healed now, and Cy is getting there as well. By the morning, they will be completely scarred over.”

My jaw dropped open. Crazy.

“It is.” Odie paused, looking away. “I did what I had to do, and Gerard was not happy with me, but you’re alive and safe and it got him to back off, so it was worth it.” I tapped her arm and motioned for her to keep going, wanting to know why he had called off his dog so to speak. She sighed and looked away. “I’d rather not get into that right now. You handled the shock of your arm missing too well, so I know something is brewing in there.”

Her hazel eyes met mine, and I knew she was telling the truth. That didn’t stop me from being annoyed though.

No secrets. Thank fuck for one handed signs. This was going a bit easier than I thought. The longer and more specific questions would take time for everyone to relearn, but I wasn’t completely left in the dark for communication.

“Not a secret. I am going to tell you everything that happened and what it means, but I also need time to adjust to this news. It affects everyone.”

Oh, it must be something absolutely massive, then. Maybe she was right, and I should wait a bit and let everything sink in first. Healing and resting was one thing, but when I started to move around and be on my own, that’s when the breakdowns would start. Even getting a glass of water would be different, and that only takes one hand.

There’s a big difference between being injured and knowing it will all go back to normal once you’re healed to this, which will heal, but nothing will ever be the same again. My bad luck struck again, and I had to say, this was probably number three on my shit list, right behind losing my parents, then my grandmother. Given that their string of bad luck ended in death, I was winning to some extent, but getting rid of this curse couldn’t come soon enough.

The logical side of me knew that and accepted it as the challenge it was. I’d overcome it and be stronger and better for it. The mentally unwell and unstable side of me loathed this change with a passion. I had already had to deal with so much heartache and multiple disasters in my life. This was simply the cherry on top of the sundae and probably the nuts too.

I chose to write my thoughts out and handed the notebook over to Odie. It said, It’s okay. Take your time. I will be here healing and crumbling at the same time, no matter what. Not knowing will weigh on me, but from your reaction and theirs, whatever it is will weigh more, but Ellie sure seemed excited by it, so it can’t be all bad, can it?

Odie chuckled when she got to the end. “No, it’s not all bad. It’s shocking but not all bad.”

Good. The sign wasn’t correct, but I thought she got what I was saying.

“The soup should be done soon. I’d say you can lounge on the couch, but we had to burn it all.

There was a little too much blood to get out.”

I burst into laughter. Of course that’s what happened. I was gushing it everywhere, Cy coated the second couch in it, and Oliver probably splattered some over them as well. That mental image relieved some of the tension from the room, and I couldn’t wait to see what they picked out to replace everything. Plus, being bedridden meant I didn’t have to help clean any of it up, so yay me for once.

“Would it keep your mind off things if you helped pick out the new set?” Odie asked. “I’ll bring you my laptop, and you can search for something that you like.”

Once again, I was flabbergasted.

I pointed to myself in shock.

“Yes, you. You know our style from being here and like comfy things, so who else is better suited for the job? I’ll be right back.” Odie vanished but returned a moment later. I knew it was merely a minute, but it felt like forever. I’d like to blame having nothing else to do but sit here, but that felt like a lie. “Here you go,” she said, setting the laptop in my lap and the charger on the nightstand. “Have at it. Lying here even when exhausted will be boring, so you might as well use this while you’re trapped here. Watch movies, read, do whatever else. If there’s an online game or something you’d like, let me know, and we will put it on there. Anything you want.”

I wanted to call her out on being too nice again, but I was stunned into silence when she leaned forward and placed a kiss on my forehead before practically sprinting from the room.

What the fuck was going on?

I had no time to come down from the surprise when Ellie came in with a tray filled with a bowl of soup, some crackers, and more water. As she got closer, I realized an electrolyte packet was on there as well. I fucking hated those things, but it would help push along the new creation of blood, so it was worth it. Barely though.

She set the tray over my legs and held out the spoon. “If you need help, I’ll do it, but I figured you’d want to try before going into full baby mode.” Teenagers were ruthless, and right then, I loved her for it.

I didn’t want to be babied, but I knew I would have to be at times. This wasn’t one of them. I’d

get down what I could and practice some new feedings skills with my left hand.

She sat down by my legs where her sister had just vacated, forcing another pang in my chest from the thought of the forehead kiss.