Blood Rites

By the time Dr. Steele walked into the room everyone was there, lining the wall of the room. Every face was draped in worry and fear for Jacquelyn. Fane heard the door open. He turned to see Dr. Steele walk into the room, and before anyone could ask her a question she held her hand up and headed for Jacquelyn's bed. The only sound was the whimpering and cries of his mate.

"Please do something for her." Fane found himself pleading with Dr. Steele desperate for something, anything to help Jacquelyn.

Dr. Steele listened to Jacquelyn's heart, and then she shined a light into each eye. She moved Jacquelyn's hands away from her stomach and began pushing on it in various locations, causing a cry to erupt. Fane growled but Dr. Steele was not intimidated. "Save it, wolf. I can't help her if you expect there to be no pain." She reached into her pocket and pulled out something Fane didn't recognize. He watched her run it across Jacquelyn's forehead and then look at a small screen on the side.

"It's a thermal scanner to take her temperature. She's at 105.2, which means if we don't get her temp down she will either have a seizure, go into a coma, or both." Dr. Steele looked over to Vasile. "I'm going to have to take her to the ICU. No one is allowed in there, the patients are all too sick to be exposed to the germs people would innocently bring in. You understand what this means?"

Vasile nodded. "I will take care of it."

They watched as she pushed a button that caused an alarm to sound, then they all heard footsteps moving fast towards the room. The next thing Fane knew he was being pushed out of the way. Decebel and his father grabbed him before he could lunge at the hospital staff as they transferred Jacquelyn onto a gurney. He couldn't focus on what Dr. Steele was saying as he watched his mate being taken from him to where he could not go…again. Once Jacquelyn was out of sight he finally looked at the doctor.

"What is wrong with her?" he growled.

"I don't know yet, Fane. You will have to be patient and let me do my job. You growling and throwing massive Alpha fits will not help Jacque get better."

Fane was taken aback by the doctors' boldness, but found that he respected her for it.

"Just make her well again. Please."

Dr. Steele put her hand on Fane's shoulder. "She will be fine." She stepped back then so she could look at the whole group crowded into the little room. "I will let you know as soon as I know something." And then she turned and walked out.

The room was quiet, no one daring to break the silence, for then they would have to acknowledge the fear that was threatening to consume them one by one. The silence was broken by a cursing Jen. Everyone turned to look at her and watched as she wrestled with the tape that held her IV in place. She wasn't paying attention to the fact that everyone was focused on her. "Hey, moron nurse number one said, look at this IV I just put in this chick, do you think I used enough tape? Absolutely not, said moron nurse number two, you have to wrap an entire roll around her arm so that nothing short of a miracle will get it off." Jen muttered the dialogue under her breath as she finally got the tape off of the IV in her arm. "Finally!" she announced triumphantly as she pulled the IV from her arm, blood trickled down towards her hand. She looked up and noticed everyone watching her.

"What?" she asked. Her eyes got bigger as Decebel began to walk towards her. He got so close that she had to strain her neck back to look up at his face.

"Why did you take that out?" His face was hard, unreadable.

"Because if I'm going to have to have a pole attached to me I would prefer it be one that I could get some use out of. But as it was this particular pole as my constant companion, it just wasn't doing it for me." Jen batted her eyes at him. "Besides, what the hell does it matter? My best friend has just been rushed off to the ICU and you're worried about my stupid IV?"

"Put it back," His eyes glowing gold as he took hold of her arm.

"Oh, yeah, sure thing. I'll get right on that," she said sarcastically as she pried his hand from around her arm. Paying him little more attention than if he were a gnat, she stepped around him so she could see the others.

"So what's the plan, Vasile?" She heard material ripping and as she turned towards the noise she watched as Decebel tore a piece of the sheet from the bed off and brought it over to her. He took her arm, gently this time, and wrapped the material around the spot that was still bleeding from where she had ripped her IV out. Without a word, he went back to the spot he had previously been standing while Jen watched his retreating back.

Vasile answered as if the peculiar scene had not taken place. "For now you and Sally will stay here and I will put a guard on the door. Fane and Decebel will stay in the waiting area for the ICU. Fane," Vasile looked directly at his son, "you will not attempt to defy what Dr. Steele has said. Are we clear?"

"As you say, so shall it be," Fane gave the formal response, neck bared in submission.

"Good," he continued, "Alina and Lilly will go home and rest." Lilly started to interrupt but Alina stopped her with a hand on her arm and gave a sharp nod of her head. Lilly swallowed the words she was about to say.

"Lilly, I understand that you want to be here for your daughter, but you need to rest and you won't get it here. Trust me, okay?" Vasile waited for her response before continuing.

"Okay," she answered, her voice resolute.

Vasile looked at his watch, it read 9:30 p.m. "I think it's time to call it a night. As soon Dr. Steele has information she will contact me and you will all know within minutes." Vasile turned to leave and Alina followed him. Lilly came up to Jen and hugged her and then did the same with Sally.

"Don't worry Ms. P," Jen told her, "Jacque's the most stubborn person I know. She will be fine." Lilly nodded and with eyes full of unshed tears, she left as well.

Fane gave them each hugs as well and told them to call him if they needed anything, to which Jen threw out, "I think Jacque would kick my butt if I called you for what I need." Decebel growled, but at least it got a small smile from Fane. That was what Jen had been aiming for. Jen turned to Decebel and stuck her tongue out at him like a petulant child.

As he and Fane left, Decebel turned back one more time. "You two. Don't do anything that you consider brilliant. The rest of us will consider it stupid." He shut the door just as Jen threw the nearest thing she could get her hands on, which happened to be the box of tampons that Sally had absently set out, so naturally tampons went flying everywhere.