With the help of Sage, she weaves a net of vines using her manipulation of the forest vines. Thus Legend and the warriors are able to rush Nile to the pack hospital. The entire time, Legend whimpers in utter fear of how Nile and Britain are holding up.
Not only is Nile the first and only she-wolf that he's ever seen shift while pregnant, she is the only she-wolf he's ever seen almost at her due date. And definitely worth mentioning the fact that she was slammed into a tree. While shifted. While pregnant. So Rome's human mind is running a mile a minute and Legend's wolf heart is shattering, feeling his connection to Nile become more and more faint.
Finally getting her set up in the main operating room, the pack doctors get to work right away, but again no one has ever operated on a shifted pregnant wolf. As her family huddles in the waiting room, Rome emerges dressed and is immediately pulled into a group hug.
As they all weep and express their concern for Eden and the baby, nothing makes Rome feel better. And how can he? His wife and daughter are in critical condition, Jay died during the battle, and Dom is also in critical condition. As well as his father is currently in surgery, and Rome has yet to be able to check on his wounded pack members. So yes they may have won the battle against Ty, but possibly losing all their loved ones is the true war.
As his anxiety gets the worst of him, Rome paces up and down the waiting room hallways. If it wasn't polished imported marble, he definitely would have worn a hole in the floor with his incessant movements. But he literally can not stay still. Not with the adrenaline pumping through his veins.
"Daddy, where momma? She dropped-ed me and Bubbie off, but now she dis-parreared. Where she go?"
As he stares into Brooklyn's denim blue eyes and her little bottom lip trembles in concern for Eden, Rome bursts into tears. Picking her up, the two just hold each other and cry
"It-. It's gonna be ok, Brookie. Momma is gonna be ok. Alright?"
Struggling through his tears, Rome tries to comfort her the best he can.
"Alpha?!"
Hearing his title be called out, Rome pivots quickly with Brooklyn still in his arms and trots towards the doctor.
"How-? How are they?!"
"We stopped the bleeding. Um-. Britain came early, but she's a fighter, she's doing great, sir!"
"Thank the moon goddess!" The entire family praises being that they joined Rome and the doctor.
"And Eden?!"
"She had a great deal of trauma. Um-. From the shifting while pregnant, then the impact, and um-." Looking at Rome sketically the doctor gulps.
"What?!" He growls.
"We had to inject the luna with a small dose of wolfsbane to force her to shift back to her human form so that we could operate on her."
"You gave her the wolfsbane?! And before or after Brit was out?!" Squinting at the doctor, Rome prays he says after.
"Of course after, alpha. And only just enough to force Nile to give over control to Eden. Umm, also we struggled to control the bleeding in the cesarean section."
"So what happened?" Rome grits out as his eyes flash their dual platinum and amethyst.
"Well we finally got it to cease with many layers of sutures. So therefore, luna may have a lot of scar tissue."
"Ok and? Just spit it out already!"
Losing his patience for the doctor's flare for dramatic pauses, Rome is on edge.
"Hhhh, Brit may be you and Eden's final pup. She may not be able to conceive anymore pups due to the thickness of the scarring."
Hearing that, Rome's heart sinks. Like he told Eden he's always wanted a large family. But she told him she only wanted one, maybe two pups, max. So shaking his head he smiles softly to himself. Eden gets what Eden wants.
"Ok, we'll have to let time tell. But is Britain stable? May I see her? And what about Eden?"
"Uh, yes. Britain is stable. We have to keep her in an incubator to keep warm since she was a month early. We also have to finish her newborn tests. So she needs at least about another hour before you can visit. And Eden has about 30 minutes of surgery left. They're closing everything up."
"Everything like what besides the c-section?"
"Well with the impact on her pregnant body, she needed her lower lumbar vertebrae reset. We didn't put any screws or anything because with her alpha-luna healing abilities, she will heal correctly. Just dissolvable sutures and dissolvable cartilage-like rods. But being that she will not be able to shift fully for at least four months, we made it as tolerable as possible for her to walk and deal with it while in human form. Due to the fact that she can't shift, her healing abilities have sl-."
"Slowed."
"Yes, alpha. We're truly sorry about everything. But we are thankful she is so so strong. Otherwise this may have been a very different message I was delivering. As soon as she's up and ready, I promise I will personally come get you."
"Thank you so much."
Shaking the doctor's hand, Rome nods. As he continues to pace, definitely more than 30 minutes passes by.
"What the fuck is goin on?!" Gruffly mumbling to himself, he heads back to the nurse's station.
"What is going on? Thirty minutes has passed already!"
"Hi, alpha. Sorry for the confusion. Luna had 30 minutes of surgery left. But she has to be monitored in recovery for an hour before you're able to see her. But um,you might wanna get that checked out."
Pointing to the large blood spot on the sleeve of Rome's light colored sweatshirt, the nurse nods.
"Nah, I'm alright." Waving it off he shakes his head.
"Alpha Rome. I normally wouldn't question you, but being that you're an alpha, a minor flesh wound would be healed by now."
"I'm good. Thank you."
"No you're not. Look."
Pointing to the trail of blood droplets that mark the path of Rome's pacing, Asia takes notice of the nurse pointing. Walking to her son she inquires.
"What's going on, Rome?"
"Nothing, ma. Just tryna figure out why I haven't been able to see Brit and Ede-."
"No, why is Maya pointing to that blood trail?"
"Not-."
"Don't lie to me, Rome! I have enough on my damn mind with your father, Eden, and Britain in the damn hospital right now!"
As her eyes glitter Sparrow's pink, Asia is not backing down.
"Hhhhh, my arm is still bleeding, ma. No big deal."
"Let me see." The nurse holds out her hand.
"Nurse Maya, is it?" Watching her nod, Rome gives a tight lipped smile. "No."
"Yes, alpha."
"N-."
"Damn it! Rome Cannon Haven give her your gotdamn arm, now!"
"Tsk!"
Sucking his teeth he stretches his arm to the nurse. As she rolls up his sleeve, carefully, she gasps. As does Asia, as Rome scrunches up his face. Inspecting the gaping, bleeding, slightly festering wound, Maya knows something is wrong."
"Come with me now, alpha."
"What?! Why?!"
"I got the babies. Go Rome! Israel, go with your brother!"
Calling over Israel, Asia heads to handle the babies with Lily as they console Denise.
"What's up, bro?"
"This shit." Huffing Rome shows Israel as they follow nurse Maya.
"Fuck, Ro! What the fuck is that?!"
"A bite. It shoulda been healed."
"Exactly." Maya chirps as they get to the exam room. "Sit, please sir."
Putting on gloves, Maya gets the necessities to clean the wound. As she pours peroxide on it it bubbles furiously, much to a cursing Rome's dismay. Then she rinses it with saline water to see just how deep it is. And that's when they see the exposed bone. But not just any exposed bone, black exposed bone. And there is only one cause of that.
"Wolfsbane rabies?!"
They all echo simultaneously.
"What the fuck, Rome?!"
"Alpha?!" Maya gasps.
"Fuuuccckk!" Sighing, Romes shakes his head. "Now what?! We have to have anyone who had contact with those mutt ass rogues tested for fuckin Wolfsbane rabies! Just another fucking thing to handle!"
Abruptly standing up, Rome paces back and forth in the room. His blood pressure is spiking rapidly as is his temperature. He is internally stressing out because as of right now there is no definite cure for Wolfsbane rabies.
Wolfsbane rabies is a condition in which the host has been infected with a great amount of wolfsbane, but not enough to kill them. It degrades and degenerates wolves bones, organs, and most importantly their minds. It causes shifting to be excruciating, but many times it's the deterioration of the brain that kills them.
That's more than likely how Ty got so many to agree to help him overthrow Rome. Because truthfully no one in their right mind would go up against a powerful pack like RiverRun. But with deteriorating mental statuses and unchecked rage and aggression a rogue suffering from Wolfsbane rabies is likely to agree to anything.
And the worst part about wolfsbane rabies is it starts with a singular wolf or pack being poisoned. Then they go on infecting others by a poisoned bite. Whether a simple sparring match or a full on attack, all it takes is a simple poisoned bite.
So knowing this, Rome is on pins and needles with not knowing how many of his pack members have been affected by the health epidemic. So now adding that to his heaping plate of teeming issues, Rome is reaching his wits end. And the only person able to calm him down and make it even the slightest bit better is still unobtainable to him.
"Fuck, bro. So w-what are we gonna do? Cause if you got bitten I'm sure you're not the only one who was bitten. We can't have that shit running rampant throughout the pack, Ro."
"I-. Fuck! I don't know, Is. There's no cure. I mean even with E's healing abilities I don't know if it applies to Wolfsbane poisoning. And I can-. I can't be with her right now. God this is a fuckin mess!"
Sighing, he sits and drops his head in his hands. Realizing that all of this was over a feud between he and Ty over Eden is putting things into perspective. He's realizing he should have gone about the whole situation differently. If he hadn't reacted the way he did and called that petty hearing, none of this would have occurred. And that reality is a hard, harsh, enormous pill to swallow. Roughly rubbing his hands over his face and hair, Rome looks up as the door opens.
"Alpha, Britain is read-."
Hearing those words, Rome goes dashing through the hospital. With just his paternal instincts and the faint smell of her on that nurse's uniform, he goes barreling in the direction he feels drawn to. Stopping right before the room door, Rome inhales a deep shuddering breath.
Finally steadied, he gently pushes the door open. Finding the nurses oh-ing and ah-ing over her. His heart melts. She's exactly the same beautiful toasted almond color as her big brother Cairo. Her skin is so silky and smooth looking.
Stepping closer he sees her hair is a bit lighter than Cairo's. It has more red-brown highlights to it. Making it appear more auburn colored. Stepping closer, the nurses finally realize his presence and part like the red sea for him to be able to see the baby.
"Awe, Britti. Look at you mama. Gosh you look like a shrunken Eden." Cooing at his baby girl, he quickly wipes his seeping eyes. "C-can I hold her?"
Looking at the nurses, he smiles softly as they nod. Reaching into the bassinet that she was placed in after her testing, Rome picks her up more gently than a snowflake. Cradling her to his chest, he kisses her little face and smells her.
"Oh she smells so good! I swear to the moon goddess we make the world's most perfect pups."
"We do, Lege."
"No, I mean me, Nile, and Eden!"
Listening to Legend howl proudly, Rome can't help but to laugh. Taking a seat in the rocking chair, he holds the tiny new bundle by the name of Britain. As he watches her sleep snugly in her swaddle, Rome kisses her little face.
Shaking his head and blinking repeatedly, Rome's vision of Britain's perfect little light brown face and tiny nose becomes blurred. Trying to focus his vision better, Rome continues aggressively blinking in hopes of it clearing the white spots. Feeling his body become impossibly heavy, Rome's arms begin to droop and his only concern is dropping his brand new daughter.
"Brit-Britain!" Is all he's able to call out and in perfect timing.
As one of the NICU nurses turns around, with her wolf swiftness she snatches Britain up midair. Before she hits the polished marble floor.
"ALPHA?!" Is the last thing Rome hears before everything goes black.
Blinking in her own darkness, Eden finally wakes from her narcotic induced slumber. Pulling herself up, she winces at the uncomfortable pinching feeling in her lower stomach. Immediately she begins touching her stomach, to feel little flutters from Britain. But when she feels a softer, much flatter stomach, Eden panics.
"My baby! Oh my God my ba-!"
"Edee! Wait, mami! It's ok!"
"No Lily! Where is Britain?! Wh-where is my baby?!"
"She's ok! Ella esta muy bella( she is beautiful)! She's in the nursery, she's a fighter like her mami!"
"Oh my God!"
Clutching her chest, Eden falls back into her pillows as her heart pounds a mile a minute in her tight chest. Letting the tears slowly trickle from her eyes, Eden replays the last thing she remembers and that is Titan slamming her pregnant body into a tree.
"Lily, where is Rome?!"
"He's ok! Calmate, mi muneca. He's in the Nicu nursery with Brit."
"Thank God. And Cai and Brookie?!"
"Mami, they are all ok."
"God." Eden breathes deeply. "Shit, Tyson?!"
"I swear if you don't calm down! You just had surgery, espera(wait), Edee! Rest! He was captured, we lost some people, pero nosotros estamos bueno(but we are good). Pop Scott's surgery went well, your surgery went well, and Dom is stable, he's still out, but stable."
"Thank God. Wait, why did Pop need surgery?!"
"He-. He, um, lost the lower half of his leg in the-. The fight."
"Oh my God. I'm-. I'm so sorry."
Covering her mouth, Eden weeps bitterly.
"It's not your fault, Edee."
"Yes it is! I should have never been with Ty after everything with me and Rome. And-. And I shoulda never told him any of the issues I was having with Rome."
"Mamacita, tu no sabes( you didn't know)! Nobody would have known that, Edee! I told you, tu no sabes el futuro, mami.( You don't know the future)."
"I put all my babies and family at risk, Lils!"
"No Eden, fuckin loco ass Tyson wears that crown, solamente. Not you! No one, not even Cassius, knew how crazy Ty was. And he was Cass's fuckin lap dog!"
"I'm just so sorry."
"We know, babe."
"Where-? Where is everyone?"
"Hold on."
After a moment of silence, everyone comes bursting through Eden's door. Realizing Lily must have linked them, Eden smiles at her as she nods.
"My baby!"
"Hiiii, mommy!"
Hugging her mother tightly, Eden cries all over again. Especially as Elise places Cairo on the bed with her.
"Momma!"
"Hi handsome!"
As Cairo grabs Eden's face and kisses her, Eden can't help the happy tears pouring from her eyes.
"MOMMY!"
Running through the door, Brooklyn launches herself onto Eden.
"Brookie, be careful! Mommy had surgery!" Asia warns as she gives an apologetic smile to Eden. "Hi my darling!"
"I'm so sorry, ma!" Eden blurts out as Asia shushes her and hugs her.
"Oh, no my darling! You don't ever apologize. It's part of being a wolf, we fight, we get hurt, but as long as we get up and keep going that's all that matters. And Scott isn't gonna let losing part of a leg stop his ornery ass!" Giggling, she kisses Eden's damp cheek.
"I love you guys so much!"
"And we adore you sweet girl! Plus with those little stunts you and Rome pulled out there, we might not ever have to worry about any more enemies! Exploding whistling and howls?! Evaporating auras?! You two are a force to be reckoned with, Edee!"
"Yeah, it was pretty amazing to see."
"Amazin?! Lil luna that shit was dope and Jay would be proud of what you did."
"I'm so sorry, Isy!"
"Me too, lil luna."
Hugging each other, the rest of their crew joins their supportive hug. Knowing that they lost one of their members and another is still in a coma, definitely pulls on the heartstrings of the group.
"Where is Rome?"
Looking around, Asia asks no one in particular.
"Lils said in the nur-."
As Eden is responding to Asia she is cut off by a blaring alert through the pack hospital intercom system.
"RAPID RESPONSE IN THE NICU! CODE! RAPID RESPONSE TO THE CODE IN THE NICU!"
Hearing that, Nile is on edge. She knows that's the location of her mate and newest pup. Not even thinking a second longer, Eden leaps from the hospital bed. Ignoring the excruciating pain in her abdomen and body she goes racing out the door.
"EDEN?!" Everyone calls after her, but she doesn't even give them the decency of acknowledgement
She has a one track mind to get to that NICU.
Pushing past all the hospital staff, Eden makes her way to the front of the crowd.
"ROME?! NO, no, no, no!" Shoving the many pairs of hands attempting to hold her back, she breaks free and crawls to his side. "Baby?! Baby, nooo! Baby wake up! Please?!"
Stroking his face, she nestles her face into the crook of his neck.
"Edee?" His usually strong boisterous, authoritative voice eeks out in such a faint manner it seems so far away even to her close ears.
"Baby? What's goin on, Ro? Don't you dare try to leave me!"
Crying hysterically, she looks into his half opened eyes as they flutter in exhaustion.
"Never, mama. I'm-. I'm just tired, baby."
"Rooo, no! Please?! You can't! You-. You promised! You and Legend promised!"
Crying harder as she listens to his labored breathing, Eden's world is falling to pieces all around her, like swollen droplets of rain.
"Rome, I love you." She whispers.
"I l-love you more, princess." He struggles out with a small deep sigh.
"Rome?!"
Not receiving an answer she knows what she has to do. Swallowing thickly, she focuses fully on Nile.
"I know you're tired Ni, but we have to!"
"I know."
"AHHHHH!"
Feeling her freshly set bones break and elongate, Eden shrieks at the top of her lungs as she shifts. Feeling her fresh sutures shred in her lower belly, the pain is insurmountable. Her howling octave is so ear splittingly high, it literally shatters the windows on the entire floor of the hospital.
As Nile tiredly collapses to the floor, she uses the last of her strength to curl around Rome and lick at the oozing wound of the Wolfsbane poison site. Feeling the ill effects of both the excruciating shift and ingesting the poisoned blood, Nile succumbs to her weakened state. Just as Rome succumbs to his.
Cuddling into each other, they allow each other's auras and scents to waft around them and give them the last bit of comfort they can muster. Both of them releasing a satisfied hum before tiredly allowing themselves to be swallowed into eternal darkness.
___________________________________
😭🐺
Thoughts?
💗A.J