Page 2 of Resurrection (Devil Dogs of the Apocalypse #3)

Hesitation is clear and present in all our minds.

We don’t want to do this —obviously , we don’t want to do this—but if he’s fucking changing right before our eyes, I’d rather stop it now than let it progress.

It’s what Cole would’ve wanted. What we all agreed to back when everything first happened over a year ago.

“Aly, back up.” The words almost choking me as I speak them.

“No. Fuck that.” She shakes her head at me, not moving an inch away from him.

“I’m staying right here. He’s fine.” Despite her objections, I reach my arm out to make the decision for her, to move her away from him before it’s too late.

I manage to get my hand on her shoulder but she rips herself from my grasp before I can do anything.

“Just stop it! Take a fucking second, Goddammit! He’s fine !

” she cries out, shoving against my chest when I try again. “LEAVE ME BE, JAX!”

“Baby, look at him! If he changes, I don’t want you to be anywhere near him,” I indicate with my hand to where he lies, still twitching.

.. still groaning. He hasn’t attempted to bite anyone yet but it’s only a matter of time if he’s changing.

Not to mention, I’m not sure if the air around him is considered contaminated, yet.

To be honest, it might be too little too late at this point since each of us were practically on top of him all night, but I can’t help but attempt to protect what family I have left.

I lift my face covering just to be sure, motioning for Hawk and Aly to do the same.

Reluctantly, they follow my order. “Aly... baby... listen to me. Please. This is already hard enough. You don’t have to see this.

You shouldn’t have to see this.” I huff in frustration, understanding her need to stay by him but still needing to protect her, even from herself.

“Look, I’m not going to force you to do anything apart from moving to a safer distance away from him.

But if he’s turning... I have no choice. ”

Her entire body trembles as she takes one last look down at Cole and sobs, choking on her breath before nodding back at me, reluctantly standing and backing away. Her steps are shaky but eventually she makes it over to where Hawk is and stands slightly behind him.

He extends a hand across her stomach, clutching her opposite hip to make sure she stays put, or maybe he’s simply looking for a tiny bit of comfort right now.

Fuck, probably both. I can tell he’s forcing himself to remain stoic for all our sakes, but is barely holding on as he actively sheds reluctant tears while staring daggers at Cole.

..who’s drooling even heavier now than he was before.

Fuck .

I raise my pistol and aim it at him, steadying my breath and sending a silent prayer to anyone who’s listening.

“Come on, buddy, don’t make me do this…,” I be g his twitching form to settle, my voice cracking with desperation and despair as I plead with his unconscious form to not continue down this path. To not leave us.

To not force me to go down this road again.

Both Aly and Hawk shuffle their feet a bit at my words, waiting on the precipice of hope that Cole wakes in these final moments.

I wait a minute...

Two...

When his convulsing worsens, I pull back the hammer and take a final life-altering breath before I end it for good.

“Wait, wait, WAIT!” Aly calls out, startling the hell out of me.

Thankfully, I’m able to restrain myself from pulling the trigger accidentally and, instead, lift my finger back to the guard, waiting for her to continue.

“Did you check his eyes, yet, today?” she implores.

“Like this morning ? How white were they? Does he possibly have any time before….” She looks down at him then looks back up at both Hawk and me, her eyes darting between us as she licks her lips nervously, her arms waving around frantically as if she’s trying to catch a wish or a prayer floating around us and force it to come true.

“So we can say goodbye? Something ....” She waits for me to answer, but I can’t.

It’s like my brain just up and died as I remain standing here like a fucking statue of war, poised and ready to kill off a quarter of our family .

“Jax... did you check?!” Aly repeats her question, bringing my brain back on board but my heart to a fucking stop. I didn’t check his eyes.

I didn’t check his eyes…

I immediately lower my weapon to the ground, drop to my knees, and pry his eyelids open in one quick movement.

Flicking the switch on my watch, the flashlight feature blares to life, illuminating everything in the room with bright white beams. I shine the light down at Cole, straight into his eyes—his emerald green eyes—showing no sign of the tell-tale whitening indicative of the virus.

Holy fucking shit…

HOLY FUCKING SHIT…

At the flashlight’s intrusive brightness as well as my rough and abrupt movement, a miracle occurs.

Cole sluggishly reaches his hand up to mine and grips my wrist, his eyes not entirely focusing on me. “Jax, dude, what the hell? Sun’s not even up yet. Go back to sleep, asshole,” he groans, the words sounding like they were being dragged through an entire gravel pit on the way out of his mouth.

I’m left momentarily speechless. Stunned stupid.

Afraid to even lift a fucking finger at the events unfolding this morning.

That was the first response we’ve seen from him in days.

DAYS! His speech almost sounds like he’s drunk.

But he’s speaking… actual fucking words.

Not the crazy jimble-jamble that he was mere seconds ago.

“Holy fuc k!” Shocked and relieved, my hands lift to cover my face as my body trembles, threatening to break as I try to force the adrenaline surging through me to dissipate. I resort to rubbing my hands up and down my thighs, trying to center myself but, holy shit... That almost fucking happened.

Aly and Hawk fall to their knees on either side of Cole, anxiously grasping at him. Hawk takes his free hand and holds it stiffly between both of his, while Aly rests half her body on top of his torso, crying into his chest. None of us able to take our eyes off him.

“Cole, are you ok? Please tell me you’re ok. Please,” Aly asks, the questions broken by hysterical hiccups and sobs as I stay right where I am, unable to comprehend any of what’s happening, but grateful nonetheless. Just then, his voice grates with one request. “Water...Please.”

Thankfully—since Cole stocked his med-pack well enough that we had the right supplies to do so—we were able to give him an IV after the first day of him not waking, knowing he'd need the fluids. But, regardless, Hawk’s on it immediately, grabbing a bottle and letting him drink greedily from it.

When he’s had his fill, Cole takes a few gasping breaths, releases his grip from where it was on my wrist, and slowly, almost like he’s doing so in slow motion, pulls her up to his face, caressing her cheek.

“I’m fine, beautiful. My back feels like it’s on fire and my ankle hurts like a bitch, but I’m ok.

Are you? What’s going on?” He swallows, moving his tongue around his mouth, probably tasting the almost two-day old stagnancy of not brushing and practically being death turned over.

“Why are you crying? Talk to me.” Allowing her to collect herself, he continues rubbing her cheek with his thumb before looking up at me, blinking a few times and then finally opening his eyes completely, confusion marring his face, “What’s going on, guys? Did I miss breakfast or something?”

He cannot be fucking serious right now.

I can’t help my scathing tone as I recount one of the worst fucking hours of my life.

“Bro, you were fucking out . Like dead-assed. And then, just now, you were grumbling and flailing your arms all over the place. You fucking growled at me at one point. Snarling, drooling, the whole undead kit’n’caboodle.

I even shook your ass and you were completely unresponsive. ”

“What? Seriously?” Cole slowly drags his furrowed gaze around all of us, his focus going in and out as if he’s replaying what the hell might have happened. After a few seconds, the mystery is solved.

“Guys... Aly... look at me.” He gently pushes Aly off his chest, planting her in my arms as he explains.

“I took a few muscle relaxers and a bunch of pain meds before you guys started patching me up when we got here. Remember? The fucking stitches and everything else hurt like a bitch and my ankle was as swollen as a balloon. I took them out of my med kit while y’all were stitching me up.

Y’all were looking right at me when I did it.

You don’t remember?” His weary gaze turns to each of us for confirmation .

One by one, we look at each other, shaking our heads and confirming, no…

we did not, in fact, remember that helpful little nugget of information.

Hell... I’m not even sure we understood what was going on at the time apart from needing to fix his back and getting cleaned up after.

Of course we didn’t see him take a shit ton of meds.

We were too preoccupied with everything else to notice him taking what apparently amounted to be the equivalent of fucking horse tranquilizers.

Would have been fucking good to know, though… Fuck me, I was gearing up to shoot his ass…

As if it’s so simple, Cole nods sluggishly as we come to terms with his self-induced coma.

“So there you go. I’m alright.” His words, still slurred as his eyes begin to close once again.

“Now can we please go back to sleep? I’m fucking exhausted.

Fuck breakfast, wake me up when it’s lunchtime,” he grumbles out before his head returns to the cushion.