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“I’m an attorney,” Theresa informed her.

“I’m one of the most sought-after attorneys in Europe.

I’m a senior partner at a global firm based out of London, and on the side I take vampire cases to help women pro bono.

” She narrowed her eyes at Ellie. “Because Amanda’s Hope kept blacklisting me from their program or any other I could help. ”

Ellie opened her mouth but then closed it, cussing under her breath. “I didn’t know. I didn’t do it.”

I sighed, figuring it out. “Alexis. She would do background checks and probably all the red flags went up when she filed a resume. She’s smart enough to do her homework.”

“Yes, and I’m absolutely sure at some point she asked me if I had siblings and I probably answered without thinking of why she might ask,” Ellie said before letting out a huge sigh.

Then she studied Theresa. “I will speak with her and take off the block—whatever she’s done.

I’m not involved in the day-to-day—the legal side. ”

“Ellie handles the hospital side,” I told her. “Facilitating the care and even getting patients out of other hospitals to ASH. Working with insurances even if under their husband’s everything.”

“Fine, thank you for explaining,” Theresa accepted after a few moments.

Then she focused on Ellie. “Hear me on this because your Alpha wolf confirmed it’s true.

” She waited until Ellie nodded. “I did not go there that night to kill you. I was sent there to kill you. There is a difference, and I have no idea what story you were told, but it’s wrong. ”

Ellie opened her mouth but then slowly closed it, sighing loudly.

Right, she said her magic or reading auras didn’t work on family members.

“She’s not lying, and I checked that her lies would register with me. She offered.” I held up my hands in surrender when she shot me a shit look. “Ellie, you needed to know this. Especially with everything that’s happened—what she just told me now.”

“Maybe,” Ellie sighed, scrubbing her hand over her neck. “But why bring this all up now? To see Aurora?”

Theresa scrunched up her face. “I have no desire to see that woman ever again. Her lack of decency is—she acts like she saved me from a fate worse than death, but she has no idea what I went through, especially after she sent me away when you ran. She never cared to ask when I suffered or find me after Father lost the coven and she just walked out with what she could.”

“You have gotten the wrong story on that,” I whispered, my eyes going wide. “She wasn’t given a choice or—” I frowned when my phone rang even if I had it on silent. It was some kind of software ASH had to override our phones if there was a big deal going on.

Apparently, Ellie got it too because she already had her phone in her hand.

“Please hold while you are connected to the President of North America,” the man on the other end of her call said, Theresa and I staring at her in shock.

But Ellie just acted like it was a Saturday like any other.

“What can I do for you, Mr. President?” Ellie asked when he came on the line.

“I need you to call in everyone you can,” he told her. “It’s bad this time and there’s no help around them. A sinkhole opened up—”

I was listening even as I checked my phone for the alert. “Holy fucking shite. A warlock opened a portal and brought a whole fucking bus to ASH. We have to go. They need everyone emergency and—Ellie, head to my car. I’ll drive.”

Ellie handed me her keys. “Drive mine. I’m authorized for emergency lights.” She looked at Theresa. “Aurora is here , and you have everything wrong about what happened. I understand—we have to go.”

“I’ll come with,” she offered. “I have medic training.”

Ellie didn’t have time to debate. “Sir, we’ll do whatever we can. You heard what Dr. Clark said?”

“Yes, and I doubt that’s the last that will break protocols.

Give me permission to overstep into ASH’s safety and security.

I want to dispatch everyone I can. Help for you, and then we can open portals and get them—I’m getting reports the sinkhole is in a major metropolitan but nothing like Atlanta. ”

That was about the nicest way to say poor backcountry with an overflowing town and no real help.

We were already hurrying along and Ellie gave permission before adding Alan to the call. He knew nothing except about the bus part and couldn’t get the emergency department attending on duty or anything. He had a feeling things were that chaotic already.

“Call in everyone,” Ellie ordered. “Mr. President, I would ask for any EMTs and first responders you can spare to help at ASH. New York, Chicago—where did this happen?”

“South America,” someone in the background said.

“The President of South America is on the line and asking for immediate aid. They have reports that the sinkhole is an eighth of a mile on the east side of town. They think there used to be a mine there and people didn’t—no one cared as they built new homes for poor people. ”

And new homes meant new shops, schools—all of it. Fuck.

“We’ll do the best we can, sir. Whoever you can spare that will take my orders so we’re not dealing with pissing matches,” she told him before glancing at her phone. “I’m getting a call from the ED department. I’ll update you.”

“We’ll hold,” the president said. “We’re putting you on hold as well.”

She nodded but then switched. “How is the warlock? Did he really bring a bus?”

“Yes,” a man sighed. “I doubt he’ll make it.

He used too much magic too fast. He—it was a school field trip.

He was one of the parent chaperones and did it to save his kid on the bus.

Right before it would have dropped into the sinkhole and they would all have been toast from what the kids are saying.

They were right at the center of where the ground opened up. ”

“Okay, see if our magics can help the poor man. I’m on with the president and they’re sending everyone.”

We were at her SUV by then and she showed me the emergency lights. We didn’t even need them, two police cruisers waiting for us out front. I flagged them, and once they saw her in the passenger’s seat, we got an escort to ASH moving faster than I would ever have thought through traffic.

So clearly, this wasn’t the first time Ellie had needed to be escorted in like this. Wow.

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing when we pulled into ASH. I headed right for the emergency department to get Ellie there faster and… My brain couldn’t make sense of it at first.

Yes, there was a bus, but the front foot of it was cut off like the warlock opened the portal while it was falling. And it had fallen through and onto its side. It was—the pretty fountain out front of the main entrance was toast. That was for sure.

And clearly, others had opened portals as well. I wasn’t sure if from their side or ours, but there was just chaos all over.

Security recognized Ellie’s vehicle and one of them jogged over. “I can park her vehicle and get her the keys, Dr. Clark.”

“Yeah, thanks, mate,” I accepted when Ellie nodded. I rushed over to where I saw Alan. I remembered Theresa at the last second and gestured to her. “This is Theresa Reed, she has medic training and wanted to help.”

Theresa elaborated and mentioned the specific certification and credentials she had.

Alan was impressed, and I was pretty sure it was the European equivalent of volunteer EMT status for catastrophes.

Alan called over the right person to get Theresa temp credentials and to be shown where she could lock up her stuff and change.

Yeah, that was definitely smart given she was in a professional suit and everything. I had to change as well and didn’t hesitate, racing to the trauma department’s locker room where I now had a designated locker.

Right as the National Guard showed up, all hell broke loose with more portals opening. Apparently, magics from all over South America had gathered at the site and were breaking international law to get as many people out of the area as they could.

“The ground is still unstable, and people assume the sinkhole will grow in size,” someone from ASH announced loudly, clearly understanding… Portuguese? I was fairly sure it was Portuguese.

I pulled out my phone and called Da. “You’ve heard of the sinkhole?”

“I just caught part of it now,” he muttered, sounding like he had a million other things going on.

“Magics helping from all around South America are bringing people here—injured and uninjured to get them out of range to somewhere safe.” I nodded when Da swore under his breath. “Yeah, you see the problem with that.”

“The traumatized uninjured who are worried about their family are going to get in your way and that could cost lives,” he said, cursing again.

“Yes, and while understandable, we’re—a warlock opened a portal to a falling bus full of kids to save a field trip. Guy probably won’t make it. That’s the chaos here.”

“Okay, we hear you, Hugo. We’ll enact our phone chains and get help there to manage the uninjured.”

“Thanks, Da,” I said, sighing in relief.

“Your heart is always in the right place and that should be supported.” He hung up before he said more, probably having lots to say about the execution of my plans or intentions.

Which really wasn’t unfair given what he thought I was up to with announcing I would eventually take over the pack. I should probably be disappointed he hadn’t figured out my true intentions, but… No one was perfect.

And it was better for my own sanity to not delve deeper into too much. At least when I could let it go.

The disaster in front of me was one of the many things that kept me busy and distracted. There was never a shortage of people to help or work to do at a hospital after all.