20. Chapter 20
Chapter 20
Jace
Two weeks later…
W ith the way Shin was doting on Callie, you’d think he was her actual dad. Ever since I caught him in our apartment, he’d been hyper-vigilant about everything involving her and the baby.
Doctor’s appointment? He needed to know.
A slightly higher fever? He needed to know.
She sneezed—you get the idea.
The most important of Shin’s rules? Callie was not to be left alone. And while I thought she was an adult—perfectly capable of not dying or burning the place down when left unattended—Shin wasn’t someone you defied.
Not if you wanted to stay alive, anyway. And me? I had a pretty girl and a baby on the way. I needed to stick around for at least five more years. Hopefully longer, but hey—I’d take what I could get.
That said, as over-the-top as Shin’s rules were, the guy had a point.
Callie’s body had adjusted to a higher dosage of suppressors far quicker than her doctors anticipated. And, while they still kept her abilities in check, Sawyer burned through them–pun intended. At first, I thought we could manage it.
Shin had loaded us up with a laundry list of remedies he’d used to help his wife during her pregnancy with Sulien. It was comforting to know we had tested ways to cool her down. But Shin’s wife still died, and according to Shin, Callie was heating up much faster than she did.
The only silver lining? Callie was a super, and Shin’s wife wasn’t. That made her more durable, so she’d probably be okay. Still, knowing all of this, I was grateful I’d officially given up my whoring-around days. Now, I could focus on being there for her.
She was due right after I started nursing school in January, so I’d be able to take care of her up to the final stretch. What happened after I started school? That was a future Jace problem.
For now, my only job was to make sure Callie drank her tea and ate the ice-cold pears Shin swore up and down would help. I wasn’t sure if there was any science behind his home remedies, but Callie liked both.
At least she had liked them—until a few days ago. She’d woken up on Tuesday and had refused to eat since. We assumed it was just the fever. If we could help cool her down, she’d feel better.
So, we cranked up two air conditioners, set them as cold as they’d go, and locked her in Sulien’s room. That worked to cool her down a little, the only problem? That made Callie fucking miserable.
She’d been shivering and crying anytime Kane or I left her alone, but that room was too God damned cold for anyone not running a 110-degree fever.
Because of all of that, I’d been wanting to take her to the hospital for two days, but both Kane and Shin said absolutely not. Unless it was an emergency, they wouldn’t help us.
With all of that in mind, I put on a hoodie and made Callie a glass of whatever citrus tea Shin had sent us. She said it tasted better warm, but unfortunately, I couldn’t justify heating it when she was the temperature of the sun.
The door creaked as I nudged it open, bracing myself both for the chill and the sight of Callie curled up in the bed. Somehow, it was easier to prepare for the cold. I wasn’t phased when the icy air snuck up the sleeves of my hoodie, causing a chill to run down my spine, but seeing Callie covered in sweat as she weakly cried into the pillow caused my chin to tremble. I ignored it, electing to clear my throat and put on a brave face.
“Hey, Princess, I’ve got some tea for you,” I said softly, sealing the door behind me.
Callie stirred at the sound of my voice, her head lolling to face me.
“Jace,” she whimpered, her voice barely audible over the hum of the air conditioners.
Forcing a smile was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. “Yes, beautiful?”
She heaved in a shaky breath before reaching up, her arms falling to the mattress almost as quickly as she raised them.
“I need you.” She pleaded.
The raw desperation in her voice gutted me, and without thinking twice, I crossed the room, placing the tea on the nightstand before crawling into bed beside her. The damp sheets stuck to my clothes as I laid down, allowing her to grab onto me as if her life depended on it. The second her head hit my chest, she erupted into tears.
I wrapped my arms around her, doing my best to pretend she wasn’t shaking like an earthquake as I pressed a kiss to her sweat-soaked hair. Her body burned against mine, the heat radiating off her almost unbearable, but I didn’t care. She needed me, and I wasn’t about to leave her.
“It’s okay. You’re okay.” Those words sat heavy on my chest, mostly because they felt like lies. “Daddy Jace has you, you’re alright.”
I’d hoped to make her smile or at least stop crying, but she held onto me tighter. It was like she was afraid I’d disappear if she even dared to let go.
“I’m so tired, and my skin is on fire.” Her words punched a hole straight through my heart.
I pressed another kiss to her temple as I tried to desperately fight off the tightening in my throat.
“I know, Princess. I know,” I murmured, gently rocking her, unsure what else to do.
Her fingers twitched against the fabric of my hoodie as she tried and failed to grab a handful. The second she realized she failed, she let out a shaky sob, one so powerful it seemed to rattle her whole body.
How the hell were we supposed to make it to January like this?
That thought caused my chest to feel like it was caving in as I held her. Her tears and sweat soaked through my hoodie, saturating my skin, and my first thought was to tell her everything would be okay. And, while I wanted it to be… right now, I wasn’t sure. She let out another gut-wrenching whimper. Directly after, her body went limp for a second before her breathing quickened.
I hadn’t loved many people in my life; usually, when I did, they died. My parents, Sulien, and everyone except for Kane had succumbed to the curse that was my affection, and unfortunately for her, I really loved Callie.
“Deep, slow breaths, Princess.” I patted her back.
Her breaths warmed my chest in rapid succession, but I could feel them slowing, even if barely.
“There you go, focus on me.” My voice broke a little as I took her hand, guiding it under my hoodie so it could rest just above my heart. “Focus on that… it’s all yours.”
Her shaking lessened as her breathing started to even out, and I closed my eyes, silently thanking a God I wasn’t sure existed. Then the sick bastard proved he was fake once and for all. Because her breathing continued to slow, and slow, and slow until she went completely limp against me.
“Callie?” My voice broke under the weight of her name, my entire body stiffening as if I subconsciously knew it wouldn’t work.
Her body remained unnervingly still as I gently shook her.
“Callie!” I said louder, pushing her off me, leaving her to fall onto the mattress like a rag doll.
Panic caused my vision to blur as I grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her far too roughly for something as beautifully fragile as Calista Voltaris. Still, with all of that, she didn’t move . Why wasn’t she moving?
I hadn’t even realized I was screaming until Kane busted the door open. His eyes were wide, his entire body freezing as he looked at the two of us, his lips rapidly opening and shutting like he knew he needed to say something but couldn’t figure out what.
Instinctively, I scooped her up into my arms, holding her close even though every thought in my brain told me to crumble, to lie beside her and pretend this wasn’t happening. But, unfortunately, it was. This was real, and I was about to lose the only woman I’d ever loved.
The hospital was cold and sterile. Despite the flickering overhead lights, the world felt impossibly dark. A nervous shake had infested my limbs during the ride here, one that I couldn’t get rid of, no matter how hard I tried.
I shoved my hands into my hoodie pocket as I leaned back into the stiff plastic chair, my leg bouncing up and down as I tried to get rid of the sick feeling clinging to me. Right now, I was useless to her. Kane was the one in the room, and Kane was the one answering all the questions. All I did was call her folks, and even then, I wasn’t sure that was the right thing to do.
Still, it was the only thing that made sense. When someone was sick, you called their parents. At least, that’s what my brain said was right. Unfortunately, my brain was fucking stupid, and everyone in the world could have told you that.
The glass door beside me whooshed open as Kane stepped out of her room. My lips quivered as I looked at him.
“Is she okay?” I sniveled through the words.
His lips pressed into a thin line as he walked past me, patting my shoulder twice before sitting in the chair beside me.
“She’s conscious. They’re pumping her full of ice-cold saline and have her covered in a cooling blanket… Sawyer’s okay. He’s kicking at the monitors they put on her belly,” Kane said, his voice completely void of all emotion.
What I wouldn’t have given to read his mind.
“Kane… What are we going to do?”
He closed his eyes as if he couldn’t bear to look at me before managing a weak, “I don’t know.”
“Is she going to die?” The very thought made me sick.
My partner’s eyes snapped open before narrowing in anger. “I just said I don’t–”
“Where’s Calista?” An impossibly deep voice boomed from just up the hallway.
I turned to see a towering man with long silver hair stomping toward us. Callie’s mom was there, too, nearly running to keep up with the man.
“I said: Where. Is. My. Daughter?” His voice ricocheted off the glass walls.
“You mean the one you fucking abandoned?” Kane challenged, standing toe to toe with the man. “Why the fuck are you even here? You don’t care about Callie.”
“I care more than you could ever understand. Now, tell me where she is before I treat you like the villain you are.”
Kane scoffed as shadows collected around his fingers, but Callie’s mom stepped between them, planting a hand on either of their chests. She seemed far too tense to be around her husband, almost like she was scared of him, but I chalked that up to the situation.
“Flynn, that’s the boy I told you about… The one who’s been taking good care of Calista for us.” She shot me an almost pleading smile.
His icy gaze flicked to me, and I stood, looping my arm in Kane’s.
“She’s uh… the baby’s making her sick.” I tried to be strong, but a sob forced itself to the surface.
I expected that statement to cause her father to worry more. But as his nostrils flared, and he rolled his eyes, I realized it wasn’t the case.
“I told her to abort that thing for a reason,” he said, turning to look down at his wife. “Why the hell did I let you convince me she could keep it .”
My nerves went taut as Flynn’s words hit me like a slap to the face. Callie was fighting to stay alive, and his first thought was to call her son– our son –a thing ? Fucking heroes.
The shadows coiled tighter around Kane’s hands as the muscles in his jaw bunched. “If you ever talk about Sawyer like that again, I’ll fucking kill you.”
“Hey… Can we not threaten the country’s most feared crime fighter?” I whispered, pressing my lips to the shell of Kane’s ear.
I didn’t like the guy any more than he did, but I didn’t exactly crave the feeling of Flynn Voltaris punching me.
“Oh, you mean like how you degenerates are killing my daughter?” Flynn scoffed. “When I kicked her out, she was meant to be gone a day, realize I was right, and then follow my orders. But you two filled her head with the idea she didn’t need her family.”
“We are her family,” Kane barked.
“You two are nothing .”
Kane tensed, and I slipped my hand to his, using my hemomancy to keep him anchored in place.
“How noble of the whore and the thief to protect my daughter.” Flynn continued. “I’ve had the entire medical team at Aegis dedicated to finding a way to keep her alive , but I’m sure she doesn’t need us.”
Flynn tugged on his wife.
“Come on, Ruby, obviously, Calista doesn’t need us. She has them .” He gestured to us, before turning to leave.
My heart dropped as I prepared for them to go and possibly take Callie’s chance of survival with them. What the fuck were we supposed to do? Should I chase them? Beg on my knees for their help?
Ruby started to walk away, her steps much slower than her husband’s, before she stopped and looked over her shoulder. Her emerald eyes glimmered with tears.
“We can’t abandon our daughter.” She breathed, tugging on her husband.
“Ruby… she made her choice, and now she’s suffering the consequences.”
“But what if she un makes her choice? What if we can convince her to come home?”
“She doesn’t need to unmake her choice ,” Kane barked. “What she needs is for you to stop treating her like a fucking pawn and–”
I clamped a hand over his mouth. No part of me wanted to send Callie home or convince her to marry TJ, but this wasn’t something our pride could win. This was life or death, and I couldn’t risk Callie dying just because we loved her.