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S ol’s still bleeding, Rena's out cold, Lyle’s gone, Garrett’s pissed, and that Draven guy disappeared before we could do anything about him. Although I'm not sure we could've done anything anyway, his monsters were a fucking pain to deal with, and he wasn't much better.

Storm is on my back with Sol in his lap, as I run back to the castle. Garrett flies overhead with Serena in one of his enormous claws, and Blair brings up the rear.

What the fuck just happened?

It's a question for them, but also not. Honestly, I'm not sure they're going to answer. For all I know, they might be just as confused as I am.

‘We got our asses handed to us,’ Storm answers, and I can't stop the whine that’s ripped from deep in my chest hearing him. He's been quiet since we left the village; his worry for his twin is something I swear I can feel hanging in the air. Even his answer is solemn, no hint of his usual sarcasm.

Worry seeps into my bones, knowing this is bad.

I've never seen anything that can hurt us like this.

For the most part, we recover faster than we can be hurt.

It's part of being not only alphas but having extinct beasts.

But even with Garrett's healing light magic, Sol’s wound refuses to heal, and he's losing a lot of blood.

It doesn't make sense, though. The other guy took a hit from Lyle even after he turned into one of those things, and he healed.

He took that hit for Rena when the rest of us would have been too slow.

The beast in me doesn't like that he was able to do something for her that we weren't, but I also can't help but be grateful that he was there. Serena is safe because of him. Without him, she might be just as bad off as Sol, maybe worse.

Maybe that's why Garrett's so mad. Is he jealous of that guy, too?

Who the hell was that guy?

‘That was Ryker. He's Draven's abomination of a son.’

I didn't realize I was thinking out loud, and the heat in Garrett's tone catches me off guard.

He's been a pretty laid-back guy, given the way we treated him when we first met.

He even deals with Lyle pretty damn well considering the fact that he's a grade A asshole.

It's not like he's perfect. Garrett laid his ass out when we were sparring, but Lyle deserved it. Hell, he probably deserved a lot worse, but again, Garrett’s pretty laid-back.

This somehow doesn't feel the same.

‘It's not the same. Ryker is a murderer and a monster.’

‘She’ll find me if she needs me.’ That’s what he said before he left, disappearing into thin air before our eyes.

I can feel Garrett’s anger as it continues to build, and while I’m sure he can still hear my thoughts, nobody says anything, and I don’t push. Right now, we need to worry about Sol and Rena; nothing else matters.

The castle finally comes into view after what feels like forever, and I let the topic drop. I have so many questions; so much doesn't make sense about what happened tonight, but right now, the most important thing is getting Sol to the Queen so she can heal him.

She has to be able to.

There isn't another option.

The Queen is waiting for us in the garden where we first met her. This time, nobody dares try to stop us, instead moving aside as we rush through. She takes one look at Sol, and I see understanding flash in her eyes. She's seen this before, and judging by her shocked gasp, it's not a good thing.

"Take him up to the medical wing."

I don't stop; don't bother shifting. We'll get there faster like this.

Thankfully, the castle isn't as much of a maze as it was when we arrived. I've had time to explore, and even if I don't know every nook and cranny the way Lyle and Blair do, the medical wing is somewhere I'm familiar with, though I wish it weren't.

I feel more than see Garrett and Blair as they follow behind me, lagging slightly now that they've shifted back.

There's no way Garrett would have fit in here as his wyvern. That thing is easily the size of this whole wing. Blair, on the other hand, could’ve fit, but a quick glance over my shoulder shows he's now carrying Rena.

They must have traded off so that Garrett could shift back.

The second we reach the first room, Storm is moving, damn near jumping from my back and busting down the door to get his brother on the bed.

I slide to a stop and shift back, standing outside of the room in a state of shock as my eyes follow the trail of blood that leads from me to the bed that Sol now occupies. I hadn't realized when I was covered in fur, but now it's hard to miss the sticky, warm feeling that coats my back.

I'm covered in Sol's blood.

Something about the thought freaks me out. Sol might not be my twin, but he's my pack, one of my best friends, and he might very well be dying.

Fuck!

I peel my pants off, uncaring if I'm once again naked, even as Blair and Garrett come running down the hall. I'd rather stand naked in front of the entire kingdom than be covered in his blood; there's just something so morbid about it.

"Turn around." Garrett's voice startles me as I spiral, but I only hesitate for a moment before I do as he says. The second I turn, I'm hit with a wave of warm water, and I let out a sigh of relief as the feeling of it replaces the wet, sticky feel of Sol's blood.

"Here." He tosses me a new pair of pants, and I'm not sure where he got them from, but I don't care. Blair moves past Garrett into the room, with Sol and Storm leaving me and Garrett in the hall. My panic once again grips me while I wrestle to pull my pants up while still dripping wet.

"Fuck," I stumble but manage to catch myself before Garrett takes pity on me and hits me with a jet of warm air that has me dry in less than five seconds. I manage to get my pants up before I realize how fucking stupid that was. Air is my main element; I could have easily handled that myself.

"Get ahold of yourself," Garrett stalks toward me, and my first instinct is to tell him to fuck off. He doesn't know me. He isn't one of us.

But that's not true, at least not anymore.

We might not all see eye to eye, but Garrett isn't going away.

He's Serena's mate as much as Storm and Blair are.

Hell, he's been her mate for years, well before she even knew who we were.

No, Garrett is one of us. He's proved it more than once now, and I won't continue to make this a competition, not when we have other things to worry about.

"Serena’s going to be a mess. She will need us to have it together while we figure everything out." He reaches out and grips my shoulder, forcing me to meet his gaze, and I see how serious he is.

Serena needs us, needs me.

I nod as his words sink in, and I get it. Serena is what's most important to all of us, and I know just the way to help her.

Once again clean, I let my shift take me over just as the Queen comes rushing down the hall with two other women behind her, their arms overflowing with bottles, flowers, and other things I don't get a chance to see before they disappear into the room.

Garrett pats my head, and I bite back a growl from my beast. He hates being treated like a dog, but I don't think that was Garrett's intention, and if we bite his hand off right now, it's only going to make things worse.

Instead of going in, I choose to stay in the hall.

First, I pace back and forth before eventually lying down outside the door.

I can hear every word and movement inside as the Queen does everything she can to slow the bleeding and promote healing.

Before long, the two women who'd helped the Queen bring everything, leave.

The first damn near jumps out of her skin when they come out the door and find me, while the second looks like she wants to pet me.

Thankfully, she doesn't. Instead, she only smiles at me as she walks by, and I thank my lucky stars that she had some sense.

Eventually, Blair exits the room with Serena still in his arms. I'm not surprised he hasn't put her down, and it's not just because he doesn't have anywhere to put her with Sol all but bleeding out in the bed.

No, Blair is a possessive bastard, even if he’s really good at hiding it.

He'd spent the last ten-ish years chasing away every guy who came within a five-foot radius of Serena.

I appreciated it because fuck them, but also it kind of sucked because she always thought there was something wrong with her.

I make a mental note to tell her the truth later, when things are less tense.

He exits the room and sinks down to the floor on the opposite side of the door as me, looking exhausted.

"She slowed the bleeding enough that he won't bleed out, but she can't heal it. Now we wait and hope his body can handle it." I let out a whine, low and sad, and it perfectly sums up how I'm feeling, how this whole situation is going right now, if you ask me.

We'd run off to save the village, and while we'd succeeded in doing that, what was the cost?

I'd seen the way Serena handled herself at the end there, her shadows bending to her will to the point that it was almost as if Draven was running from her.

Had we made the wrong choice in leaving her behind?

If we'd brought her along, could we have avoided all this? Or would things have been worse?

There's no way to really know, and what-ifs like that can make you crazy. Instead of worrying about it and what could have happened, I choose to worry about the here and now instead.

I'm not sure how long it takes before the Queen finally leaves, but she looks exhausted. Garrett trails behind her, clearly trying to watch her but also trying not to look overly conspicuous. Somehow, I doubt the Queen is the type who enjoys people fretting over her.

She stops just outside the door, looking down at me and then at Blair, her lips pulled down in a frown that tugs at my heart. It's no wonder Serena decided to stay here as a child. The Queen is magnetic, drawing you in and making you feel loved and important.

"It's going to be a rough couple of days as his body attempts to work through the damage at a much slower pace than usual, but I think he'll pull through.

" She crouches down in front of Blair, swaying slightly.

Garrett quickly reaches out to steady her, only for her to glare at him and him to pull away.

It'd be funny if everything wasn't so damn depressing right now.

Her eyes fall closed as she presses a hand to Serena's forehead, takes a deep breath, and lets it out slowly. Her hand glows with a golden light that I've come to learn is light magic, but I still don't really understand it.

"Serena's going to be just fine as well.

She's just overwhelmed from the strain of using her powers.

" Pushing to stand, she looks at Blair before turning to me and finally to her son, who’s still standing ready despite her pushing him away a moment ago.

"Her darkness is strong. Stronger than anything I've ever seen, and that kind of power takes its toll, especially when she's yet to reach her full potential.

" She smiles, and it's strange with all the panic and sadness that has been weighing on us for the last few hours, but not unwelcome. "None of you have yet, but you will. It will be hard, but you need to remember why you’re fighting and that you’re stronger together.

Sol and Serena might not be bonded, but keep her close to him, and you all , as well.

The connection you have will help him to recover faster than any kind of magic I can offer. "

"Alright, Mom, let’s get you downstairs to eat, okay?" I hear the concern in Garrett's voice, and I think this time, she does too, because instead of fighting him or waving him off, she nods, before they head down the hall together.

Blair and I are left sitting by the door, and while I can hear the steady breathing in the other room, I can't fight the urge to go and see with my own eyes that Sol is still breathing.

I push to stand, stretching after lying on the floor for so long, before I cross the short distance to where Blair sits with Serena still tucked in his arms. She looks like she's asleep, well, kind of.

She looks like she's asleep without her nightmares.

Ever since Serena was little, she's been plagued by nightmares, but Blair has always been her safe place. I'm glad that with everything flipped on its head, that can still be true. Gods know she needs some fucking peace right now.

My beast whines before he tucks his head, rubbing our nose against her cheek. The warmth of her skin warms something inside of me. I can't explain it, but I need her like the air in my lungs.

"Let's go check on the twins," Blair says, pulling me from my thoughts as he stands up. You'd never know he has a whole other human in his arms, especially with how easily he moves.

Man's built like a fucking steel house.

Blair enters the room first, but I quickly follow, not wanting to be far from Serena.

What the Queen said about keeping her close to Sol for his benefit rings in my ears, and I can't help but think the same might be true for her, too.

Maybe my being around her can help? I know she's my mate.

My wolf can feel the pull to her. I just don't want to push it on her. I want her to want me, to choose me.

I want her to decide I'm good enough for her.

Fuck what the universe says.

Storm sits on the chair next to the bed, his eyes wide as he stares at his brother, his twin, who lies motionless and sickly pale on the bed in front of him.

Despite Blair’s attempt to assure Serena we would figure things out together, I know she doesn’t buy it, and I’m pretty sure he knows it too.

He did get her to eat, though, which is more than anyone else has been able to do yet.

The rain continues, and a gloomy day transforms into a gloomy night where Serena still refuses to leave Sol’s side.

Garrett had offered to move him to his room so she could sleep in the bed with him instead of in the chair, but she refused.

I’m pretty sure it’s a way for her to try and punish herself, and it’s killing me.

That’s one of the main reasons I’ve stayed in my wolf form.

I’m not sure if she even realizes it, but Serena tends to let me closer to her like this than she’s letting anyone else, and the last thing I want right now is for her to isolate herself more.

Tonight, she’d laid down next to me on the floor and curled up to my side, complaining that she was cold. I’m not sure if it was an excuse or not, but honestly, I couldn’t care less. She’s here, cuddled up with me, and that’s all that matters.