Pride Before the Fall (21 page)

"What now? I'm assuming if you need to give her blood that she will live," Kasey said with hope, not conviction.

"If I were all of you, I would pray that her body begins to heal the way only our race can. Human medicine has done all it will for her."

Cries erupted from Melissa. Tyrone pulled her into his arms. Conall and Amilynn embraced one another.

"Kasey, I need to talk to you privately please."

He nodded and followed the doctor deeper into the hall while his family waited around the corner. "What is it?" His heart was pounding in his chest and for a moment, he was sick.

"The bullet entered her body right by her uterus. The organ was damaged beyond repair. I did what I could, but I just don't think it was enough, sir. It's the main source of blood loss right now. Unless her shifter magic heals the uterus, I think we will have to remove it."

"She won't be able to have children." That's what the doctor was saying. He nodded. The organ was bleeding out and needed to be removed.

"I'm going to watch her for the next few hours, but I have a feeling I'm going to have to go back in and take it out. I'm sorry."

Kasey looked at him with all the authority and power in his blood as alpha. "You do whatever it takes to save her life. We can deal with not being able to have children, but I cannot, I
will
not live without her."

The doctor nodded and walked away.

* * * * *

Melissa sat watching Kasey. His whole life lay in a hospital bed fighting to live and he could do nothing. Members of the Pack had come and gone over the long hours. People who had only known Vivian and the Pride for a matter of a few weeks were coming in to pray with the family and offer words of encouragement and support. He was doing his best to keep face and not break down.

Finally, he came and sat by her. His elbows resting on his knees, he stared at the floor for a long time. Melissa looked at her mate. Tyrone tapped Amilynn on the shoulder and together they walked away, leaving Melissa and Kasey relatively alone. She put her arm across his back and stroked his neck.

"Can I ask you something, Melissa?" His voice was hard and scratchy like a machine that needed oil.

"Of course you can, sweetheart."

Kasey looked at her with his tormented blue-gray eyes. "Could you still love Tyrone if he took away your option to have children? Could you stay with a man who stole your choices like that?"

His question knocked the breath right out of her lungs. Why was he asking such a thing? And why would it matter right now?

"Of course I would still love him, Kasey. Ty is so much more than just my cat's chosen mate. He is my best friend. Only Vivian could rival his closeness to me and that's because she's my blood. Why would you ask me—" She knew the answer as soon as his eyes filled with tears. "Oh God. Oh, no." She gripped her heart.

"The doctor said that they could leave her uterus, but that it was the most damaged organ and was causing most of the bleeding. I told him to do what he must to save her life. I can't live without her, Melissa," he said apologetically. "I made the decision. And, now my wife will never be able to have children. I'll never be able to have children with her. We won't ever get to see babies with my eyes or her hair." Kasey bowed his head and cried. "Oh God, what have I done to her. This is all my fault. I should have put my foot down. I told her she didn't have to work at that club. If I had just made her obey."

Melissa pulled him into her body. Kasey wrapped his arms around his sister-in-law. She was the lifeboat in the middle of his storm-tossed ocean. "Kasey, hush, hush, sweetheart," she soothed. "You know as well as I do that no one on this earth has ever controlled her. You couldn't have stopped her if you wanted to. This is not your fault. You can't blame yourself. I would have chosen the same thing in your place." She pulled his shoulders so that he had to look at her. "Listen to me, Kasey. You've got to be strong for her. I know this is a tragedy, but you've got the Pack looking to you right now. Why don't you go take a walk or just go get some coffee? It's nearly midnight. We've been here all day, sweetheart."

"I can't leave. What if she wakes up?"

"I will call you. No one will see her until you do, you have my word."

Kasey wiped his face and took a deep breath. He nodded and smiled at Melissa, then walked down the hallway. Tyrone and Amilynn came back with coffees for everyone. Ty sat by her and gazed into her eyes. She replayed the conversation in her mind as her mate's face pulled together in pain.

"Would you love me if I couldn't give you children, Ty?"

"I'll never stop loving you, angel, just as Kasey will never stop loving Vivian." He saw right through to her fears. Could a dominant male love a woman who couldn't give him children? Ty touched her chin. "They'll overcome this."

Even though tears filled her eyes, Melissa nodded and let Ty kiss her sweetly. Then he wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Amilynn walked by Melissa and Ty cuddled up together, comforting one another, and wished like hell she had a love that deep to draw strength from. It was a beautiful thing and she was glad for her brother. Conall had stationed himself outside Vivian's room. God help the poor bastard who tried to get past him. He stood with his back straight, eyes forward and hands clasped behind his back like the soldier he was.

She walked further down the hall where Nate and Tom were sitting. The poor boy, Tom, had passed out giving blood, but had seemed to recover. Their eyes lit up when they saw her. She might not have had a mate, but she had two pretty good pals here who had somehow worked their way into her heart just as deeply as her family members.

She sat down with them and allowed both of them to touch her. Nate put his arm around her shoulder and Tom took her free hand. Ami sipped her coffee and the boys were silent for a long time.
 

"Ami," Nate said quietly.

"Yeah, babe?"

"Don't get mad at me for asking something, okay?"
 

Ami let out a huff and nodded. She knew what he was going to ask before the words left his lips.

"Are those accusations about you and Aunt V true? Were you really, you know, strippers and stuff?"

Ami's head pivoted to Nate then to Tom and back. Neither boy looked like they were expecting her answer to be yes. Nate didn't ask because he thought it was cool or because he wanted to go bragging to his buddies later. They had both seen the carnage of her apartment.

Knowing there was no way she could lie to the twins, and wishing like hell she could undo her life so it didn't affect these two precious boys, she answered, "Don't think less of me. Okay? I did what I had to for my family."

"Ami, we would never think less of you." Tom, the compassionate one of the two, rubbed the hand he held. "We just didn't believe all those things written on the walls."

Ami's stomach rolled and she wished she were a better person. Shame and self-hatred filled her head. "I've never worried about what other people thought of me. I've always done my own thing, been who and what I wanted to be, no matter how immoral it was."

And Ami had done her fair share of nasty deeds, from killing the men who tortured Vivian and beat her brother, to selling her body for sex to pay the rent. Her family didn't know all of the things she'd done in the sake of keeping them safe.
 

"Now I find myself at the mercy of two fourteen year old boys I wish I could hide my past from." Nate hugged her closer and Tom squeezed her hand. "Unfortunately what's done is done. So yes, boys, the things written on those walls were true, of me at least. Vivian always had more scruples. There's always one thing a girl can count on, no matter what city you go to. Men are men and they think of one thing and it doesn't matter if they are dating, engaged, or married to another woman. If they want sex, they will find it and pay for it."

"Ami," Nate said, gently wiping a tear from her cheek. She didn't know the last time she'd ever cried. "You don't have to do that anymore. We'll take care of you. We love you."

Tom kissed the back of her hand like a southern gentleman. "You're part of our family now. And we take care of our own."

It had been years, decades since Amilynn had let her guard down enough to cry in front of anyone. She'd often thought the tears had been beaten out of her. Here in this place with Nate and Tom acting more like adults than adolescents, Vivian's life still hanging in the balance, and all her years of past mistakes being forgiven, she couldn't help but let the tears fall. Tom plucked a box of tissues from the table beside them and handed them to Ami. Then the boys stayed silent while she gave in to the emotions she'd held in for so long.

Bianca and Sampson finally came around the corner. Bianca smiled at the three of them comforting one another.

"Boys, come on, we are going to go get some rest before the morning. We will be back as soon as we can," Sampson promised. The boys protested but when Sampson spoke the arguing stopped.

Bianca bent down to kiss her forehead, offering words of comfort and begging her to come get some sleep with them. Amilynn shook her head. Nate and Tom both kissed her cheek, and she gave them smiles as they walked away. She didn't want them to leave her, not the twins or their parents. She wiped her face and looked down at the wetness on her hands. "Damn pups turned me into a sprinkler." She muttered defiantly.

Amilynn had been staring at the wall for God only knew how long when Ezekiel came around the corner. It had been a few days since she had been near him and it pissed her off that his scent alone was soothing. He came and sat in the seat beside her. When she didn't move, he took action. Gently and slowly, he took the coffee cup from her hand, and set it on the table. Then he picked her up and settled her in his lap.

"Stop. I can't do this." But the truth was she didn't have the strength to fight the inevitable need for his presence.

"Shut up, Ami." He pressed her head to his chest and cradled her against the warmth of his body. Ami nuzzled against his neck and let the rich, spicy scent of his skin fill her lungs. Ezekiel ran his hand up and down her arms and before she could fight it, sleep took her under.

* * * * *

When Vivian woke, the first thing she registered was pain. Someone had inserted a lighted torch into her stomach. She took in a breath, but her nose and throat were sore. The lights in her room were bright as she fluttered her eyes open. Damn, her stomach hurt. She looked around the room. Kasey was asleep in a chair. He looked upset, even in slumber.

Vivian went over everything she could remember about the shooting. How had she missed Jake being in that room with a gun? There were scents that gave it away every time: metal, gun oil. She could kick herself for not paying more attention to the wolf spy. She could kick herself for a lot of things. How careless and reckless she had been by not watching her back.

Then Conall had killed Jake. A member of her Pride had killed a wolf. This was not going to go over well. It was her worst nightmare come to fruition. Granted, Jake had killed a human male, shot her, allowed Helena to string up kittens in their apartment and draw in their blood. But—

"But nothing." Kasey came to the side of the bed. He took her hand and pressed her palm to his mouth. "He nearly killed you and any assault on the alpha's mate is punishable by death. If Conall hadn't killed him, I would have. So do not waste your time feeling sorry for that bastard." It was a command—one that she was happy to comply with.

"You look terrible, punk."

Kasey laughed, his eyes rimmed in red. "You look just as beautiful as ever, kitty cat." He touched her face with a reverence that made her heart break. Vivian reached out with her mind and found a deep sense of guilt in him. There was something he needed to tell her and didn't want to.

For now, she just wanted to look at him, see the life in his eyes, feel his heartbeat. "I want you to do something for me."

"Anything, baby. Anything in the world."

"Tell me how much you love me and how quickly I get to go home to our bed."

"More than life and as soon as possible."

Vivian leaned her head against the pillow and shut her eyes. "Sounds perfect."

CHAPTER THIRTY

It was another couple days before Vivian could stay awake for more than an hour. Time seemed to drag on, but she had a steady flow of visitors. Nearly every member of the Pack had come by at least once. Those who didn't come were friends with Jake or Helena. Not that Vivian gave two shits about them.

Kasey had been distant and his mind always seemed to be on the oddest things when he was around her. It was hard to read him. His thoughts were guarded, his body language stiff, and when she caught him staring, he always looked like he wanted to cry.

On the last night of her stay in the hospital, Vivian sent everyone away but her mate. Not even a nurse was allowed in the room. Kasey sat on her bed, holding her hand and knowing damn well his time was up.

"Just get it out, Kasey," she demanded. "You've had something on your mind for days, and I know I'm not going to like it. But I refuse to go home the way we are right now."

He touched her golden cheek, kissed her forehead and took a deep breath. "I had to sit through the interrogation of my aunt this week. Helena told Sampson that I was a fool and that I'm ruining the Pack by integrating all these different species. She said my father would have been appalled at what's happening around here. And then," Kasey said, rubbing his forehead, "as if the insults couldn't get worse, she starts to tell me how Alias should be alpha and how he's the one who would have kept our Pack in line and kept the... whores out."

Vivian hissed, remembering her conversation with Alias. His opinion had been pretty clear that night after the party. She remembered how he'd been waiting for Kasey to throw Vivian away like a cheap plaything.

"That's exactly the verbiage Helena used," he replied, reading her thoughts. "So I began to wonder if Jake and Helena were really the masterminds behind all of this. It's too much of a coincidence that all three of them used the same words, expressed the same attitude towards you and the Pride. Sure enough, it took Sampson, Ian and three soldiers to apprehend him. Alias locked himself in his house, shot two of my men when they came peacefully to the front door. Broke Sam's arm when he finally tackled him. He shifted, fought dirty and Sampson had no choice but to..." Kasey trailed off for a second. "Let's just say Alias won't be making any more trouble."