The doctors rushed Beckett into surgery, and after three long hours of waiting in the lobby, the surgeon came out.
“He’s going to be okay,” the doctor said, sliding the scrub cap off his head.
“Where is he?” I asked quickly. Rush placed his hand over mine to calm me, although he probably needed it more than I did.
“He’s in the ICU, we need to monitor him. He did some damage to his chest muscles and ribs with the blade, and he also nicked the muscle around his heart. We have repaired everything, but the anesthesia we gave him coupled with the poison from the water put him in a coma.”
Rush stood up, his chest shaking with a growl that wanted to come out.
“His brain activity and reflexes are stable. We will monitor him closely; hopefully, we can use the antidote to create a reaction to wake him up. Unfortunately, until he wakes up, we won’t know how far the poison has progressed into the ‘rogue’ phase.”
“Rogue?” I cackled bitterly. “Is that what they’re calling it?”
The doctor nodded and fiddled with the scrub cap in his hand.
“Can we see him?” Rush asked softly, his fingers unconsciously tightening around my hand.
“Of course, Alpha. Please try to keep your visit short, he needs to rest.”
The doctor showed us where Beckett’s bed was in the ICU and left us shortly after. Rush stayed by the door, leaning on the wall. He was trying not to show emotion, although Beckett was sleeping, and I was the only other one in the room. I let go of his hand and sat in the chair at Beckett’s bedside.
I took his left hand gently in my own, trying to bring him comfort even though I didn’t know if he could feel it.
“We’re here, Beck,” I said softly, glancing at Rush. “You’re going to be okay; we’re going to figure this out. You were so brave.”
Rush pushed himself off the wall and came to my side, standing halfway behind me.
“They won’t get away with this,” Rush mumbled, his hand resting on my shoulder.
“This is the last straw.” I shook my head sadly.
“What do you mean?” Rush asked, squeezing my shoulder.
“I don’t care anymore.” He bent down, squatting by my chair. “I stuck up for these humans for months, trying to protect them, trying to show everyone that they weren’t the monsters. I can’t anymore. They killed Isla, they killed Kenna’s dad, three of our pack members are dead, Beckett’s in a coma. They don’t deserve to be protected anymore.”
“Sloane, what are you saying?” Rush’s hand settled on my cheek, gently stroking my skin. I could feel my face becoming warm and red.
“I’m saying it’s time. No more death, Rush.” I grabbed the top of his shirt with both hands. “Now, we do something. If that means killing anyone who threatens us, then so be it. I won’t allow another pack member to die because I was trying to be a good person. If we’re all dead, it won’t matter.”
He paused, and a concentrated look settled over him; he looked torn.
“Rush, Beckett’s in a coma.” He sighed and closed his eyes. “That could have been you or me.”
“Okay,” he breathed, opening his eyes. His other hand reached up and took my face between both of his hands. A small smile drifted to his lips, a content smile. “We do this now. We make our move.”
One More Night
“We want you to step in as Beta,” Rush said. I sat on his right side, grinning eagerly at Jonah. Jahida sat next to him, frozen in surprise.
“You’re serious?” Jonah choked out. We nodded happily. “Of course!” he exclaimed. “I would love to; I want to do right by Beckett.”
“We do too.” Rush reached to the side to grab my shaking hands that were thumping on the desk.
“So,” I sang. “Now, we have to tell you about our plan.”
“You have a plan?”
“Of course,” Rush said confidently. “Do you trust that your fearless leaders would lead you into a war with no plan?”
“No.” Jonah laughed, rolling his eyes as the dramatics in Rush’s voice. “I just know it’s only been four days since Beckett…”
“Well, we’ve been working tirelessly, and we have a plan.”
“We’ve been talking with other Alphas, and we’ve all decided on a date.”
“A date?” Jahida looked up, confusion clearly written across her lips.
“Yes,” Rush’s lip hitched. “One day that we all move in. Each group seems to have one or two leaders. We will go to the human towns and demand surrender from those leaders, or we will declare war.”
“We take all the Warriors and Guards.” I kicked my chair back and stood restlessly. “The humans will know nothing of it, there won’t be enough time to formulate any plans or contact other cities. It will be their decision entirely.”
“Okay.” Jonah smirked. We began filling him in on the specifics and creating a plan for surrender and a plan for war.
It took only three more days to inform all Guards and Warriors of the impending raid. I stressed the importance of taking children and those who could not, or would not, fight as hostages. Anyone else who stood with Harrison would be seen as a threat to our pack.
I nervously stood in the front of the packhouse, watching men and women filter into formation. We were moving into the human town, united, and we weren’t leaving without Harrison or his lackeys.
A honey-peach glow from the freshly rained sky lit up our faces. I glanced from one to the next, from old to young, weathered and beautiful, dark and light, and through all of the differences in appearance, hunger was constant. We were tired of uncertainty and paranoia filling our stomachs. We had tasted
