#Chapter 46 Reoccurring Witch

Olivia’s POV

With the power back on, the hospital is scrambling to readmit all the patients that needed help when the blackout occurred. I thought having the power on that Reese’s care would resume, but the overwhelming amount of injured wolves in the rogue attack and the wolves hurt from accidents in the blackout, Reese’s care has been pushed aside.

For this reason, Eugene suggested bringing him back to Alpha Herold’s pack hospital, the amount of attention he would receive there overwhelming compared to how much he has gotten here. I settle in with the idea and curl up in a ball in Gabriel’s front seat, Eugene in the back with his brother while Reese gets a smooth ambulance transfer.

My mind is so depleted in turmoil that I feel as if I’ve died a second time and been thrust back into this chaotic mess of a life—again.

“Hey, relax, everything is going to be okay,” Gabriel breathes, his voice tamed and gentle. I bury my face into my knees, feeling like I’ll break back into my episode any minute now. “He’s going to be just fine, my dear.”

I feel his hand press to my arm, brushing me gently to sooth my nerves but I don’t know if it’s enough. I think of the horrible possibility that Reese’s soul has already left his body. The machines stopped in the blackout and the lapse between then and the moment the nurses stepped in could have been all it takes to end him for good.

I clutch Gabriel’s hand in my palms, pressing it against my wet, cold cheek as I need something, anything, to rely on. It’s not lost on me that the wolves in the back seat are watching me carefully, but I don’t care. I can’t care about that right now.

“Are you sure this is the best move, Eugene?” I ask, squeezing Gabriel’s hand like I’m at the doctor’s office expecting a shot. “Is this pack hospital overrun with the Royal pack overflow? Will he get enough attention here?”

“I’ll be here,” Eugene hums. “I’m not going to leave him stranded. Herold’s pack hospital has low numbers, even after taking a few overflow from the Royal pack already. It’s going to work out and we can keep him stable here until—”

My breathe catches in my lungs, my eyes shooting to the rearview mirror where I meet his kind, sympathetic gaze lingering on my own. “Until what, Eugene?”

“Until he wakes up, of course,” Alpha Herold hums, obviously elbowing Eugene in the side. He gives me a sure nod through the mirror reflection, his smile forced but calm. “It’s going to be just fine, Queen Luna. I promise.”

I shake my head, collapsing sideways against the door in exhaustion. Gabriel squeezes my hands once, reassuring me of his support, and honestly I have never needed it so much until now. I’m falling apart, I’m losing my sense of why I ever came back to this life, and I’m considering the outcome if my brother doesn’t make it.

The Queen Luna took her life once before. Would it be so crazy to do it again?

I pull away from that thought, the car slowing in front of the hospital doors. I walk with a heavy heart, an overwhelming grief, until I hear a soft muffle of a voice in the hallway as the nurses wheel my brother down the hallway.

“Am I—I okay?”

I rush forward, pushing my way to the bedside with wild and wet eyes but I don’t care about my disheveled appearance. Reese doesn’t either, his smile sharp on one end and drooping down on the other.

“Queen Luna?” he hums. “Or an angel?”

I cough a pitiful laugh. “It’s me, Reese. I’m here for you.”

I don’t know how he would know, but something tells me he understands perfectly what I’ve said to him today. He grabs at my hand, holding it for a brief section before he is wheeled away to the restricted intake hall in the back of the hospital.

Warm relief settles within me.

Gabriel arrives at me first and I throw caution to the wind, swiveling around to his towering exterior and flinging myself into his arms. He grips me so tight that my feet lift off the floor, my lips daring to find his in utter joy and happiness.

His lips dance with mine, his tongue brushing my teeth in the process.

It feels like ages before we separate, everyone watching the Queen Luna and the King Alpha have a moment in the hospital hallway but I don’t care. I’m so overjoyed that I feel like I could run a marathon or make out with Gabriel for hours. I consider that thought briefly, my head spinning as I spot a familiar face in the lobby.

Those sinister eyes find mine instantly.

“What’s wrong, my dear?” Gabriel asks, turning to follow my glare and finding the source of my hesitation and frustration. “Alpha Connor,” he groans, faking a happy greeting. “And this must be your…”

“I’m his girlfriend,” Alicia cuts in, smiling proud like the churlish viper she is. “We met before at the funeral held at Alpha Herold’s pack a few weeks ago.” She glances toward me, faking a grin and bowing her head in respect. “It’s great to see you again, Queen Luna.”

“I wish I could reciprocate that feeling toward you,” I growl.

Gabriel gives me a modest look of surprise but he doesn’t apologize for my behavior, no matter if he thinks he should or not. My fists curl at my sides and Alpha Herold steps in, his shoulder blocking me from her ridiculously mocked look of hurt.

“You were kicked off of my pack grounds a long time ago,” Herold sneers at her. “You have no right to be here. Leave, now.”

Alpha Connor seems upset at the bite in Herold’s tone.

I’m somewhat pleased by it, on the other hand.

“My pack has always been welcomed on your grounds for medical use, Herold, why the sudden shift of an exception now?”

Connor looks to Gabriel, as though the King Alpha would spare this as a small deal he could fix but I pull Gabriel back with a grasp on his hand, his eyes soft in my direction as he seems to understand what I mean by this warning of a look. Gabriel shrugs.

“This is a pack ordeal, not my problem,” Gabriel hums, shoulder-to-shoulder with Herold. “If he wants your company to leave, then I suggest you give her a ride back to your pack to avoid further conflict.”

Connor’s eyes grow wide in shock. “What would it take to reconsider? I came in because I was feeling faint and she’s the one who had to drive me here. I can’t shift right now, it’s too painful. Please, guys, give me grace here.”

Herold and Gabriel exchange a look that seems like they share a mind link but they don’t.

“It’s up to her,” Herold hums, side stepping to motion to me.

“Queen Luna’s choice,” Gabriel backs.

I stare through that filthy snake and picture her in the same hospital as Reese—the sole reason we are in this position in the first place.

“You can stay, but your whore has to leave.”