CHAPTER FIVE
- Tallulah -
The sound of raised, angry voices wakes me up and causes my head to ache even worse. I try to roll over into a better position, but my body throbs. A glance at the window shows it’s still light outside. I’m not sure if I’ve slept all night or if it’s the same day.
More raised voices, which I know from previous visits to the medical centre should not be possible to hear. The walls and doors are supposed to be soundproofed, so for me to be able to even slightly hear them, means they’re shouting as loud as possible. Or I’m in a room where the soundproof isn’t as up to scratch as it’s supposed to be. Groaning, I wish oblivion would take over. I’d rather be out cold than listen to idiots trying to kill each other. The sounds abruptly stop. Not really caring if or how they managed to hear my groans, I look over towards the door as it swings open, and Dad bursts into the room.
He rushes towards me, and I panic for a second, thinking he won’t be able to stop before he crashes into my bed. He surprises me though when he stops an inch away from the bed. Horror blooms as I take in his tear-streaked face.
Oh, hell. Dad’s been crying. This is bad.
He reaches out and folds me gently into his arms before he buries his face in my hair, while he whispers over and over, “Thank, god.”
Filling my nose with his familiar scent, I’m not afraid to admit I’m still a Daddy’s girl. “I’m sorry, I tried to get away from them, but there were too many.” Regret goes through me because I’d upset him.
“None of that, baby girl,” he soothes, then straightens and wipes his face clear of tears. “You just concentrate on getting better. We have plenty of stuff that needs to get sorted.”
I frown. “What needs sorting?”
His face instantly goes blank. “Nothing for you to worry about, sweetie. It will be fine.”
“Knock, knock,” a very familiar and sinful voice calls from the still open doorway.
Goosebumps cover my body when I take in who stands there. Kenji, Theo’s brother. The goose bumps bewilder me; I don’t understand how or why my body keeps doing these weird things, first with Theo and now Kenji. I snort in sheer disbelief. All I need now is to throw in Quimby, and I’ll have a full house of stupid hormonal reactions. God, I need to go for a run or train with the guards, anything to work this frustration out.
The smile plastered on my face makes me wonder if it’s forced or if I’m genuinely happy to see him. Maybe I’m just cuckoo because of the medication. “Hey.”
I watch in fascination as he saunters into my room and takes a seat in the chair at the side of my bed, opposite from my dad. He briefly raises his hand above my limp one as if he wants to hold my hand, until my dad loudly clears his throat. When I turn in his direction to check if he’s okay, his worried stare meets mine. I turn back to Kenji whose hand rests firmly on his thigh.
Had he been about to touch me? Better yet, why didn’t he?
“How are you feeling, darling?” Kenji’s sultry voice sends tingles all over my body.
From what I can make out of his body while he sits, he’s bulked up from the last time I saw him. His arms are more defined than what they used to be, but with his sandy blond hair and sparkling blue eyes, he still looks like the boy next door. It has me wondering if Quimby has bulked up like his twin.
I clear my throat to hide my reaction. Not sure if it’s caused by the pet name or not, “I-I’m okay. When can I go home?”
A dark expression flashes across his handsome face, but he hastily masks it. “Well, I don’t know about going home, but I came in to tell you that, when you’re up to it, Alpha Henrique wants to have a conversation with you.”
This can’t be good. Am I in trouble?
Maybe he wants to question me about the wolves who attacked us? I know they were from the Blood Moon pack. It’s well known their wolves all have solid black fur. Their rancid breath is another indicator.
They’re infamous for their less than stellar community, their less pure thoughts. I’ve also heard the rumours that they take dru— I choke in horror, my eyes watering as my breathing becomes choppy.
“Tally, sweetheart, what’s the matter? Calm down, sweetheart. Just breathe for me, please.” Panic fills Dad’s voice.
Through the roar of my heart in my ears, a loud, obnoxious buzzer sounds in the hallway, followed by the thunder of footsteps as someone barrels down the hallway. The doctor who calmly walks into the room grabs my attention.
“Right, Tallulah, let’s get your breathing under control, shall we?” He chatters on as he reaches above me for an oxygen mask and places it firmly over my face. “We don’t want you to pass out on us. Your dad has been worried sick.”
He turns a couple of nozzles, and pure oxygen is pushed through the mask. As it blasts into my face, I cringe away from it, but the doctor gently grabs my hands.
He firmly tells me to stop struggling and to breathe.
Already tired, forcing my body to calm down is a drain. I fight to get my thoughts together, so I can figure out why I freaked out in the first place. Panic hits me again full force. My breath hiccups, and I choke again. Oh, god!
“Breathe, Tallulah! Or I’m going to give you a sedative and knock your ass out!” the doctor demands hotly.
Crying as I try to fight it, I need to know, I need to ask. I barely sob out, “Di-did the wol… wa-was he on d-d-drugs?”
The doctor briefly looks at my father, and I do as well. Dad has a pained look on his face. My body shakes, and as much as I try to stop, it only gets worse because I know the answer. The doctor clicks his fingers sharply in my face, and my attention snaps back to him. I have to force my mouth to stay shut so I don’t snap at him in return.
Fucking asshole!
He takes his thin wire-framed glasses off his face and uses his uniform to slowly clean the lenses. My blood pressure instantly rises over how blasé he’s being over the whole situation.
My patience goes up in smoke, and I bark at him, “Will you just tell me!”
“His blood tested positive for Wolfsbane. Because he consumed such a high quantity, some managed to get into your system via his saliva. You were experiencing the resulting side effects when you were brought in.” Casually, he places his glasses back onto his wrinkled face and straightens up. “Normally with contamination from a bite, if the one being bitten isn’t an addict, they’ll be fine. You’ll be fine.”
“So, what happens now?” Kenji questions, with a no-nonsense attitude, his body held rigid in the chair.
A brief smirk flashes across the doctor’s face. “You’ll be watched for twenty-four hours to ensure you have no more side effects. There’s one other patient with similar symptoms I need to watch along with you. It will be best if you stay close to each other to make my job easier.”
“Another patient?” I ask, confused. I was the only one that came into conta— Then, it dawns on me. “Oh, hell no! I’m not going to stay anywhere near Theo! Are you nuts? He hates me.”
“He doesn’t hate you, darling. In fact, I can bet it’s definitely not hate.” Kenji laughs.
My voice squeaks in outrage. “Please tell me this is a joke. There’s no way I’m going to stay in close proximity with the flea-infested Alpha-wannabe. One of us will wish the wolf got the better of us.”
Kenji bursts out laughing, the doctor gasps in horror, and my dad shouts out, “Tallulah Mardak, you will watch your tongue!”
A snort escapes me at Dad’s red, angry face. “I’m sorry, Dad, but he thinks he’s the Godfather of the werewolf world.”
Before he can hide it, Dad smirks, and I know I’m not in too much trouble. “That he may be, sweetie, but you’ve got no choice other than to suck it up. Doc can’t be in two places at once, and you both need the care.”
A voice rolls out behind us from the door, causing all of us to jump. “So, my son is the Godfather of the werewolf world, is he?”
Kenji rolls around in the chair in hysterics at the situation I find myself in. I plop my head down on the pillow to hide my embarrassment.
Oh god, could this day get any worse?
Laughing at the situation, I take a few breaths before I end up hysterical like Kenji.
Even though I know it’s a wasted effort, I try to put my face straight and peek over my arms towards my new visitor. “Alpha Henrique,” I greet him with a nod of reverence. I may not respect his son, but this man is an awesome Alpha.
The power rolls off him as he walks further into the room. With being the Alpha, he stands at well over six foot four. As he gets closer, I realise his hair has greyed more at the temples over the last few months, and it has me wondering if he’s under more stress than usual.
His friendly green eyes lock with my own, and a soft smile graces his face. “Miss Tallulah, I wanted to stop by and thank you for saving the two pups.”
“They’re safe? They made it back unharmed, didn’t they? It’s just… I saw a wolf chase after them, and I couldn’t stop him. I’m sorry, Alpha.”
His smile, tender. “They made it back long before the wolf could get to them. They’re both currently in the kitchen begging for more pancakes.” He chuckles.
My face grows hot from embarrassment. Avoiding eye contact, I pull at a loose thread on the blankets. “I may have given them pancakes before all this happened. Although, they wore more of it than they consumed.”
Alpha Henrique leans forward and gently pats my hand. “I’m sure they were delicious. Now, when you’re feeling up to it, I’d like for you and your father to come to my office. I’ve some things to discuss with you both.”
“I’m not in trouble, am I? I mean, I sent the babies off, and I didn’t really protect them, and then there’s the house…” Disappointed with myself, I look to my dad because I added to the destruction of the house.
“I’m sorry, Dad, it’s destroyed.” Nervously, I scratch my nose. “I promise, once I’m better, I’ll get it all fixed.”
“Don’t you worry, you were outnumbered.” Dad reaches over and brushes the hair out of my eyes. “You heard the Alpha, sweetie, the pups are fine and let’s face it the house could do with a fresh lick of paint.”
My attention turns back to the Alpha. “I’d like to get this meeting over now, if it’s okay and you’re not too busy, sir.”
Alpha Henrique jokes, “I see. And you doing this now wouldn’t be so you can prolong healing in the company of my, what did you call him?” He rubs his chin as if in thought before a wide grin spreads across his face. “Ah, yes, the flea infested Alpha-wannabe.”
My eyes go wide, but I force my mouth to stay shut. How long did he stand at the damn door eavesdropping? I wasn’t about to admit to his observation, nor dig myself a bigger hole.
Turning back towards Kenji, I find a big, shit-eating grin plastered on his face. You ass, I silently curse. He knew his father was there the whole time and didn’t give me a heads up. My eyes narrow in a silent promise to kick his ass later. My attention returns to the Alpha with what I hope is a ‘butter wouldn’t melt’ expression.
Alpha Henrique walks back towards the door. Once he reaches the doorway, he turns and directs his statement to the doctor. “Make her comfortable, and be sure to get medication to treat Theo for the fleas. Such an itchy matter.”
He laughs loudly and continues down the hallway.