Attor slowly cracked his eyelids, then closed them tightly against the offensive white walls which tried to blind him. Trying again, he opened only one eyelid, keeping the other tightly shut. Gently turning his eyes from left to right, he tried to work out where he was, and why heaven had a window. A soft snoring sound drew his eyes to the far left as he saw curled up on a chair was Taryn, her legs tucked up under her body and wrapped in a light pink hospital blanket. Her head was tilted back, mouth slightly open as she snored rhythmically, and it was the most beautiful tune Attor had ever heard. Taryn’s hair cascaded down her shoulders and covered half her face, but he knew it was her, he could feel her in him.

“Taryn…” he said trying to sit up. The white-hot pain that shot through his body nearly caused him to pass out. Attor groaned from the throbbing waves of torture that kept hitting his body like water pounding the beach in a cyclone.

“Tor?” Taryn said with a start, her own body sent a shot of pain through her as she jumped up. She doubled over as she waddled over to him. Reaching out her hand to tenderly run her fingertips down his cheek she said, “You’re awake?”

“Are we dead?” Attor asked with a wince.

“No, Tor, we made it. Although you were touch and go for a few days.”

“Days?” he exclaimed with shock. The agony of his sharp movement made him grit his teeth and whimper softly.

Taryn smiled as she ever so slowly slid her chair over closer to him. Tenderly sitting down, she took his hand in hers. “You’ve been unconscious for three weeks, four days. They told your brothers to prepare to bury you. The damage you sustained was extensive,” she said softly.

Attor’s brain was trying to swim to the surface from an ocean of drugs. “I thought I died…” His brow creased as he looked over at her. “I thought you died.”

“Can’t get rid of me that easily.” She grinned. “The knife missed my lungs luckily, but it caused some damage to my shoulder, though.” She swallowed. “I… um…” her head dropped, “… I’ve lost the use of my wings. They had to remove them in order to keep me from bleeding out.”

“Feathers…” he squeezed her hand tightly, “… I’m sorry. If I could have got to her first.” He shook his head with self-loathing. “I should have been looking. I should have been watching. I should have…” His face contorted with pain as his body tightened in anger at having not being able to protect his mate. “I’m so sorry, Feathers.”

“Tor,” she said her pet name for him. “Tor,” repeating it until he looked at her. “Please don’t. I’ve lost a part of me I didn’t know I had and didn’t know I wanted until it was too late. I don’t want to lose the best thing I have in my future, either.” Her words were accompanied by silent tears rolling down her cheeks. “You survived a freak bullet finding the one tiny place exposed under your vest. I survived a knife being driven deep into my spine. If you still want me, I just want to go and live the gift we’ve been given together.”

“I love you, Feathers,” Attor said, his eyes filled with tears of undying love for his mate. He didn’t know how he’d gotten this lucky, but he wasn’t going to let her go anytime soon.

“I love you, too, Tor.” Taryn stood up, she hid her own grimace of pain as she leaned forward and kissed her mate’s lips. She rolled her lips lightly over his, feathering him as she breathed in his essence. She’d waited weeks to kiss him, and it was worth it.

“Attor?” V walked in the door, followed quickly by the rest of the warrior brothers. “You’re awake,” he said with a sigh of relief. “Fuck, man, but you sleep like the dead,” V joked as a tension breaker.

Jo laughed. “Crap! I’d already planned to take your room, it’s bigger you know.”

“Sorry to disappoint you, Jo.” Attor laughed then grimaced against the pain.

“Ah…” He shrugged. “Shit happens.”

Attor looked at the brothers. “What the fuck happened? Did we win?”

V shrugged. “Depends on your definition of win, I guess.”

“I lost Q,” Ladon said, his voice flat. “I tried, man, but it was dark, and you were dying, and I just… fuck,” he growled at himself. “I failed to find the beast that tried to take your life.”

Jo clapped his hand on Ladon’s back. “Win some, lose some. We will get another chance.”

“I shouldn’t have lost him, I’m not worthy.” Ladon turned silently and walked out the room.

“He’ll be okay,” V said. “He’s just beating himself up.”

Wyvern said from the back, taking a few steps forward, “Q has gone quiet again. I will continue to seek his location. We will get the bastard, sooner or later. On a good note, though,” Vern’s voice lifted, “… Taryn here is off the hook with her family. The Spigoletti’s just wanted her safe. After I spoke to them about the accident involving their daughter, I also explained that she wanted to become part of our family and we would keep her safe.”

“They agreed to not hunt her down?” Attor asked.

“Well, it wasn’t them that were hunting her. It was Pettigrove, and you, well…” Vern grinned. “You took care of her, permanently.”

Attor looked over at Taryn. “You want to join our family, Feathers?”

V snorted at the nickname. “Feathers… perfect.”

Taryn smiled at V then looked back to Attor. “Tor, you and your lemon pie covered ass are stuck with me.”

“Your ass is covered in pie?” Jo acted shocked.

“When I get out of here it won’t be my ass covered in pie…” waggling his eyebrows at Taryn, “… and I looove pie a lot.”

“Fuck, yeah, Attor…” Kylee and Payton come walking in. “You love that pie. You love it so hard, her pie won’t be able to sit down for weeks.”

Attor laughed with a grimace as Payton slapped Kylee’s arm. “You can’t say that.”

Jo raised his hand for a high five from Kylee. “Yes, she fucking can, I think she is my long-lost sister from another mister.”

“I do have one question though, Attor?” V said.

“Mmm?” Attor hummed an answer as his mind was still entertaining thoughts of eating pie of his mate’s naked body.

“What the fuck is with the pink unicorn shirt?”

Taryn, Kylee, and Payton all burst out laughing simultaneously. “Long story, babe,” Payton said as she huddled under mate’s arm lovingly.

“Visiting hours are over people…” In stalked a matronly type nurse, her hair pulled up firmly on top of her head. “Out. Out. Out.” She shooed them with her hands. The brothers waved and said their goodbyes as they left. Attor recognized the matron from the same hospital Jo had been fixed in. It specialized in people other than humans.

“You too, miss.” She looked at Taryn. “You’re still on bed rest, and shouldn’t be up and about either.” She shook her head unapprovingly. “Back to your room, miss.”

Taryn leaned down. “I’m three doors down, I’ll sneak back later,” she whispered, placing a lingering kiss on his lips and she left under the guidance of the nurse.

Attor leaned back in the silence of his vacant room.

They had lived, he thought to himself.

Who would have guessed that would have been possible.