Chapter Twelve
As soon as they reached the emergency department, Ale went straight to the desk to ask about Chester. The nurse glanced at them all, cleared her throat, and spoke in a low voice to Ale.
Ale nodded several times then walked over to them, his face falling with every step.
“That bad?” Mich asked.
“Not good, no. We’ll have to see how the surgery goes.”
“Won’t his vampire genetics help?” Miguel asked, taking a seat and looking at Ale. “Shouldn’t they help him?”
“A shot to the chest will kill them like it would us. Vampires do stand a better chance of survival but not much. The bullet’s still in, so we don’t know what damage it caused.”
“It nicked his lung. He was coughing up blood.” Jared slumped in a chair next to Miguel and dropped his head into his hands.
“The sheriff’s twenty minutes out.”
Jared lifted his head, his eyes widening in surprise. “He’s actually coming?”
“Yeah.” Ale sat next to him, as he talked. “I passed on what you said, but he said no.” Ale shrugged. “It has to be his choice. He knows what the ramifications are if they exchange blood.”
“The mating bond will strengthen.”
“Yes. We all know he doesn’t want to be mated to Chester.”
“Any reason why?
Ale scratched the stubble on his face. “Bad experience with an ex. Vampire.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah. Guess we have to wait and see.”
They sat in silence, watching the clock and jumping every time someone entered the waiting room. Jared paced the room, positive he’d leave track marks in the linoleum.
The whole situation kept playing through his head. Should they have known? What had they missed?
Had the police known and kept quiet? Jared shook his head. They’d find out soon enough, but for now, Chester was more important.
At some point during the long wait, Chester’s parents arrived, and Jared blinked when he saw them. He knew they were in their late seventies, but they certainly didn’t look it.
Ale stood, and they hugged, words passing quietly between them with Chester’s mom, Joan, burying her head in Ale’s shoulder. Chester’s dad, Arthur, patted Ale’s shoulder as he held his wife.
As they broke apart, the sheriff burst into the waiting room. He stopped and stared at them all, the stress of the situation written on his face. Lines bracketed his mouth and eyes, and he couldn’t look at any of them.
Ale approached him, his hand held in front of him. “Sheriff Bailey.”
“Silas. It’s Silas.”
Ale nodded, and they shook hands. Silas quickly pulled his hand away and shoved it into his uniform pants. “What’s the update?”
“He’s in surgery right now.”
“Prognosis?” Silas asked briskly.
He looked like he wanted to be anywhere else and his discomfort rose when Chester’s mom approached him. He took a step back, his wide eyes bouncing around until they finally settled on her.
She closed the distance and stood on tiptoes to whisper something to him, and eventually he nodded.
“I will, Mrs. Monroe.”
She patted his arm then turned back to her husband, who gathered her close and held her tight.
Ale coughed, bringing everyone’s attention back to him. “Have you thought-?”
“No. I’m sorry, I can’t...”
The doors opened and a surgeon in scrubs walked in.
“I’m Doctor Cole. Can I speak to Mr. Monroe’s parents?”
Chester’s parents and Ale walked over, and they held a hushed conversation. Chester’s mom collapsed and would have hit the floor if the three men around her hadn’t acted quickly enough. Ale carried her over to a chair and sat her down.
Tears streamed down her face. “Can’t he have my blood? I’m his mom. Won’t it help?”
Ale shook his head, and she cried out, “Please do something. I can’t lose my son. Oh God, please don’t take him from me.”
Arthur walked over and took hold of his wife, tears also streaming down his face. They swayed together, and Ale stood and walked away, giving them time alone as Silas left the room.
They stared in shock and horror. Jared stood and approached Ale, who was leaning on the wall, shaking his head.
“Ale,” he whispered.
Ale shook his head.
Jared swallowed, shaking his head vigorously. No, Chester couldn’t be dead. “He’s dead?”
“No, not yet. There’s always hope, right?”
Suddenly there was a commotion by the doors that led inside, and Silas stormed out, only pausing to say, “I don’t want him to contact me.”
“What-”
Silas continued out with Dr. Cole trying to catch up to him. “Sheriff!”
Ale rushed over, grabbing the man’s arm. “Dr. Cole. What’s going on?”
“Is he Mr. Monroe’s mate?
Ale frowned but nodded. “Why?”
“They exchanged blood, and Mr. Monroe’s stats are already stabilizing.”
“What?” Ale staggered back a step. “He said he wouldn’t...”
“I don’t know what more I can say. I can only tell you what occurred, Mr. Martin. If this current trend continues, Mr. Monroe should make a full recovery.”
“When can we see our son?” Arthur asked, Joan clutching his arm.
“He’s in recovery right now, but under the circumstances, he won’t be moved to ICU. Once he’s moved to a ward, I’ll come and get you.”
Jared quietly left the waiting room and walked outside, searching for Silas. He found him leaning on the hood of his cruiser, staring out across the parking lot.
“Hey, Silas.”
Jared saw him stiffen.
“What now?”
“I came to thank you for what you did.”
Silas snorted. “I don’t know why I did it. The pair of us are going to have fucking miserable lives now.”
“It doesn’t have to be like that.”
“What the fuck do you know?” Silas demanded. He glared at Jared, arms crossed over his chest.
Jared glanced at the ground then back up at Silas. “I’m mated.”
“Good for you. I’m fucking happy for you.”
Furrowing his brow, Jared tried again. “Silas, please-”
“No.” Silas slashed his hand through the air. “Just fuck off and leave me alone. He’s alive. I’ve done my part. Tell him never to contact me. We’re never going to be together.”
“Can’t you talk to him when he recovers? Maybe, I don’t know, explain how you feel about it to him?”
“He already knows. I’ve told you. I don’t want to hear from any of you again. Like I said, fuck off and leave me alone.”
Jared stepped back as Silas climbed into the cruiser and pulled away. He stared at it until it turned a corner and disappeared from sight.
“Shit,” he muttered, running a hand through his hair. Sighing deeply, he walked back into the emergency department.
❊❊❊
Knocking on Alessio’s office door, Sacha walked in and smiled at his father.
“Well?”
“He survived.”
Alessio smiled. “That’s wonderful. His mate came to him.”
“And then left,” Sacha added, sitting in the chair opposite.
Alessio’s smile fell from his face. “Oh. That’s a shame.”
“Jared told me his ex-partner was a vampire and I don’t think it ended well.”
“We can be as cruel as humans. We have the same weaknesses.”
Sacha nodded. “I hope they sort it out. They’ve started the bonding process. They’ll both be miserable now.”
“And, as you know, they’ll be able to sense one another. Not completely, but they will certainly be aware of the other’s emotions.”
“I could feel Jared’s when he was having a strong emotional response to a situation. Fear, pain, so they will too. That’s going to be hard on both of them if Chester’s mate is determined to stay away.”
“What must he have suffered to refuse his mate?” Alessio asked. Sighing, he shook his head. “Maybe if he sees mated couples, it would help to alleviate some of his concern.”
“I don’t think so. Jared tried talking to him after and told Silas he was mated, but he still left.”
“This Silas is scared. Understandable. He’s been hurt, wounded. The relationship damaged something inside him to cause him to leave the way he did.” Alessio shook his head and reached for a pile of paper in front of him. “I’ll have to cut this short. I have a meeting with Dawson’s.”
Sacha furrowed his brow. “Dawson’s?”
“I’ve offered to take on some of their staff. You’re aware they’ve gone into administration?”
“I’d heard it might happen, but I’ve been a little distracted.”
“I’m not surprised.” Alessio smiled. “However, they have a lot of experienced staff, and we’re expanding. I’ll see what I can do.”
Back in his own office, Sacha reached out to Jared, needing to feel his presence and hear his voice.
Jared.
Sacha.
Sacha paused, feeling the fear through their bond.
What’s wrong?
Don’t worry. I love you.
Jared. Tell me what’s happening. I can feel your fear.
He’s here.
Sacha frowned. Who was where?
Are you still at the hospital?
Yeah.
That’s it. One word.
Jared. What’s going on?
Fuck. The shooter’s here with us now. Pointing a fucking gun to my head.
Sacha gasped, dropping to the floor.
No.
Yes, Sacha. I’ve no fucking idea how he got away, but heads will roll when I find out. Some fuckers are going to pay.
Jared.
I love you, Sach. Remember.
The connection went blank, and Sacha reeled back in surprise. He couldn’t feel him at all.
Jared.
Nothing.
Jared.
Still nothing. Sacha scrambled to stand and rummaged through his drawer, pulling his cell out. When he called Jared’s number, it went straight through to voicemail.
“Oh god, no. Please no.”
“Sacha” He looked up and saw his father standing over him. “What’s wrong?”
“The man who shot Chester is at the hospital. Jared said he has a gun pointed at him. How did he escape the police?”
Alessio squatted in front of him, grabbing his shoulders. “You can’t get involved. Wait for him. He needs to have his full attention on the situation, and if you keep trying to contact him, you’re going to distract him, and someone could get injured or worse.”
“Father,” Sacha whispered brokenly. “My mate-”
“Knows exactly how to handle this type of situation. He’s trained for this. Trust in him and his ability to deal with the threat.”
Sacha leaned into Alessio. “Stay?”
“Of course, figlio mio.”