Chapter Twenty-Six
Brennan
Asense of wrongness woke me in the middle of the night. I sat up and heard sobbing. Climbing out of bed, I realized who was missing.
Just as I entered the bathroom, Grace threw up in the toilet. She wiped her face with toilet paper and curled into a ball on the rug, crying. That weird smell from earlier filled the bathroom.
“Hey, it’s okay.” I sat down and pulled her onto my lap. “You’re burning up.”
“It hurts so bad,” she sobbed. “And the worse thing is that I want to be fucked. I hate it when I’m like this.”
“Grace? Grace, what’s wrong?” Evan stood in the doorway, worry on his face.
“She’s sick. I think we need to take her to the Center clinic.” This was most likely an issue for them, not the hospital. I cradled her in my arms as she sobbed. I could practically taste her pain.
“Shit.” Grace bolted out of my arms and threw up again.
I got a thermometer and some anti-nausea medication out of the medicine cabinet.
“Here, rinse out your mouth.” Evan put an arm around her and helped her sip some water. “It’s okay.”
Pressing the thermometer to her head, it didn’t surprise me when it turned bright red.
“Let’s see if this helps.” I got her to take the medicine. “There you go. I’m so sorry that you’re feeling shitty.” I wrapped my arms around her.
Grace squeaked and flew out of my arms, barely making it to the toilet.
Well, that didn’t work.
Jett joined us and handed me my phone. “Wes is calling.”
“Hey.” I leaned against the bathroom wall.
“Something’s wrong.” Wes sounded sleepy.
“Grace is sick. Fever, vomiting, and stomach pains that make her sob. I think we should take her to the all-hours clinic at the Center. Her scent is also really weird. Not just sick, but rotten and a few other things.” My heart broke as she curled up on the rug again, Evan rubbing her back.
“Yeah. Do that. Um. hold on.” There was muffled noise. “Spencer wants to know if we need to fly back now?”
“Why don’t we take her in, and we’ll call you. Just in case it’s only a stomach bug or something.” But I knew that wasn’t it.
“True. I mean, I’ve been expecting her to get a cold or something. There’s a good chance that she might not have resistance to things here. Yeah, bring her in and call us. The great thing about taking the company jet is that we can leave whenever we want,” Wes said.
“I’ll keep you updated.” I hung up and turned to Evan. “We’re taking Grace in. Um, I know she usually visits the Center in Midtown because she goes with you. But should we take her to the one down the street? I’m pretty sure it has a twenty-four-hour clinic.”
“Midtown has a hospital and more resources than the one right here. They also know her there. This smell, it reminds me of something, but I don’t know what.” Evan frowned. “I’ll get her some clothes and get dressed.”
“Sounds good.” I sat on the bathroom floor and held her as they got dressed.
Grace screamed.
“Evan, grab her while I put pants on.” I threw on some clothes and grabbed my phone. “I don’t think we have time to drive to Midtown.”
Jett was on his phone. “There’s one not that far from here with a hospital.”
“Oh, right, the new one. I haven’t been there. We’ll take my car.” Evan pulled one of her T-shirt dresses over her head.
We went downstairs and got in Evan’s car. I sat in the back holding her as we drove through our nice, forested suburb into a newer, ultra-fancy one. We drove up to a very shiny and pretty Omega Center and were stopped at a gate.
“Do you have an emergency room or a twenty-four-hour clinic? My mate’s sick.” Evan showed his Omega Center badge to the guard.
“Yes, go to the left.” He put something red on our windshield.
Grace had gone quiet.
“Grace, we’re here,” I told her. She didn’t move. “Fuck.”
We had barely parked the car when I was running for the doors that said Hospital 24-Hours, Grace in my arms.
A startled nurse in pink scrubs looked up at me from the emergency desk. Soft music played, and a few people sat in comfortable chairs.
“She’s unconscious and sick,” I called, Jett and Evan following me.
“I’ve got her Center card.” Evan held up her phone for the nurse to scan.
“Found her, let’s get her back,” the nurse said, as another nurse rushed over.
“She has a fever, vomiting, cramping, and is in a lot of pain.” I added as another nurse joined us.
A nurse led us back to an exam bay, and I sat her on the bed.
“Please, help her. She was complaining of her stomach hurting earlier tonight, and then she just started puking and sobbing,” I begged.
A doctor ran in, looking stricken. “Is that smell hers?”
“Yes. There’s something wrong with her. It shouldn’t be like this,” I pleaded, as the nurse started hooking her up to things.
“Please go wait in the lobby, we’ll come get you,” the doctor said.
“Can I stay?” Evan asked.
“Out.” He scowled.
Shoulders slumping, Evan squeezed her hand, and we went out into the lobby.
“Look at this place. Wow. Evan, you should get transferred here.” Jett looked around.
While Evan’s Omega Center, being a regional center, was state-of-the-art, this was just as fancy.
“I like where I work. But maybe in a couple of years?” Evan got on his phone and frowned.
I went to the cart and got us some coffee and little bags of cookies, then joined them on one of the couches.
“What do you think is wrong? Have you seen anything like this before?” I asked Evan as I took a sip of coffee.
“If she was an omega that grew up here, I’d say it could be heat sickness.
But she wouldn’t get heat sickness because she has us.
And well, you’d have to have lots of neglected or unfulfilled heats for that.
Years of trying to handle things yourself, badly, without ever going to a heat clinic or knowing what to do, or anything,” he explained.
Horror coated me. “What if she wasn’t having awful PMS?
What if she’s been going into heat for years but didn’t know it?
No one would know what it was or what to do, well, except for that awful woman who raised her, who could very well ignore it.
Not to mention what they did to her at that camp fucked her up.
Could that have something to do with it? ”
“Oh fuck. You might be right.” Evan put his hand to his mouth.
I got on my phone and called Wes.
“She’s sick, isn’t she?” Wes yawned. “Good thing Spencer has decided that we’re leaving.”
“Good. You need to come home now,” I confirmed. “We think she’s sick because she’s trying to go into heat–and failing.”