17. Feverish Expectations
17
FEVERISH EXPECTATIONS
~KAMARI~
S o warm…
Heat consumes me from the inside out, every cell in my body burning with an intensity that makes me want to claw my skin off.
The fever rages through my system like wildfire, turning coherent thoughts to ash and leaving only primal sensations in its wake.
Run. Hide. Escape.
My mind cycles through these basic commands as I race through an endless forest, though I can't tell if I'm actually moving or if this is just another fever dream. The trees blur together, their branches reaching for me like grasping fingers while shadows dance at the edges of my vision.
A whimper escapes my cracked lips as I stumble forward, my feet seemingly made of lead. Every step sends shockwaves of pain through my battered body, but I can't stop. Won't stop. The thing chasing me – the true monster wearing my ex-husband's face – won't let me rest.
Through the haze of delirium, a familiar masked figure appears in my path. The red and blue Xs of their eyes pulse in time with my racing heart, creating patterns that both hypnotize and comfort. Unlike the terror that chases me, this presence brings no fear – only a strange sense of safety that makes no logical sense.
Riot.
The name floats through my consciousness like smoke, there and gone before I can grasp it fully. I try to reach for the figure, but they remain just out of reach, those artificial emerald eyes watching me with an intensity that burns hotter than my fever.
Something blessedly cold presses against my forehead, briefly cutting through the inferno raging beneath my skin.
The sensation anchors me momentarily to reality, though everything still feels distant and dream-like.
"The new medication should break her fever," an authoritative voice cuts through the fog of my delirium. The words sound like they're coming from underwater, or perhaps I'm the one submerged. "But this reaction isn't surprising given the multiple compounding factors – physical trauma, psychological stress, and the impact of the crash."
I try to focus on the voice, to use it as a lifeline back to consciousness, but it's like trying to catch starlight with bare hands.
Other voices respond, but they sound far away as if speaking from the end of a long tunnel. Only the authoritative voice remains clear, close enough that I can feel the vibrations of his words in my bones.
"The scan shows signs of mild concussion, but thankfully nothing is broken," he continues, his clinical tone carrying an undercurrent of concern that makes me want to reassure him, though I can't remember why. "However, the combination of extreme stress and sudden exposure to multiple compatible Alphas..."
He trails off, letting the implications hang heavy in the air.
Even in my feverish state, I understand what he's not saying. My body burns not just with fever, but with something more primal and engraved in my genetic makeup.
My heat must be close…
"No," I whimper, the word barely a whisper as it escapes my parched throat. I’m not even sure if my word of revolt left my lips.
If I’m floating, dreaming, or hallucinating all of this.
The thought of experiencing my first heat now, after everything that's happened, sends a fresh wave of panic through my system.
The Knot Their Omega Movement's new laws are still being implemented, still trying to establish protections for Omegas in heat.
The timing couldn't be worse.
Then again, when has time ever played by my side?
"I know," another voice soothingly states, and something cool and damp replaces whatever had been on my forehead. Their touch matched with sweet scents immediately tame the bubbling panic rushing through me, giving me a sense of calm as I seem to float between consciousness and delirium.
"We'll do everything possible to delay it, but biology can only be suppressed for so long. Based on my analysis, you're already showing early signs. The timeline is..."
His words fade as another wave of fever pulls me under, dragging me back into that endless forest of my dreams. But this time, the scene shifts.
I'm no longer running – instead, I stand in Cardinal's VIP section, watching as Damon and Kieran move around me in perfect synchronization.
The memory burns bright and clear: the taste of vanilla ice cream on my tongue, the weight of their attention making me feel seen in ways I'd never experienced before. Their scents wrap around me even in this fever dream – Damon's whiskey and leather mixing with Kieran's cappuccino and toffee to create something intoxicating.
But new scents weave through the memory now.
The clean, sharp smell of rain and lightning, before fire ignites and the smell of rubber burning grows and grows. It’s like a nightmare waiting to happen.
All of it is confusing.
The combination makes my head spin; my body responds on an instinctual level that terrifies me. Even in this semi-conscious state, I can feel something building, a pressure that threatens to consume me entirely.
"Her temperature's rising again," the authoritative voice cuts through my delirium. "We need to?—"
But whatever he says next is lost as I'm pulled under once more, this time into a memory that feels more like prophecy. I'm standing in a room I don't recognize, surrounded by four Alphas who look at me like I'm something precious rather than property to be claimed.
The vision is so vivid I can almost taste it – their combined scents create a symphony that makes my body sing with recognition. In this dream space, there's no fear, no need to run or hide. For the first time in my life, I feel completely safe and accepted.
Home.
A sob catches in my throat as the scene dissolves, reality bleeding back in fragments. The cool compress against my forehead grounds me momentarily, but everything else feels distant and unreal. My body alternates between burning heat and bone-deep chills, my skin too sensitive even against the soft sheets beneath me.
"The suppressants in her system are fighting against the natural progression," the voice explains to someone I can't see. "It's creating a sort of biochemical war in her body – her Omega nature trying to emerge while the medication attempts to force it down."
Another voice responds, this one carrying familiar notes of authority and danger. Damon. But his words are too far away to make out, lost in the space between consciousness and dreams.
"Precisely," the first voice agrees with whatever was said. "And with the Movement's new regulations about heat cycles, we need to be extremely careful. The laws are designed to protect Omegas during their most vulnerable periods, but they're still being implemented. The timing of this couldn't be more precarious."
I want to tell them I understand – that I've read every article, every proposal, every piece of legislation the Movement has put forward. Want to explain how I've followed Blair Vesper's work specifically, knowing my best friend Astraea had a hand in crafting these protections.
But my tongue feels too heavy to form words, my thoughts scattering like leaves in a storm.
Instead, I drift back into that forest of my dreams, where a masked figure with emerald eyes watches over me with the patience of a predator protecting its mate.
The fever burns through me like wildfire, but this time I don't run. Something inside me recognizes that these flames aren't meant to destroy – they're meant to transform.
Like a phoenix burning away its old self to emerge renewed, my body wages war with itself, fighting to become something stronger.
Something worthy of the pack that found me.
The thought surfaces through the haze of delirium, bringing with it a clarity that cuts through the fever for just a moment.
I see them all so clearly – Damon with his dangerous grace, Kieran with his quiet intensity, Ezekiel with his protective authority, and Riot with his barely contained wildness.
Four Alphas who shouldn't work together, who represent different worlds and opposing forces. Yet somehow they've created something beautiful in their chaos that calls to the deepest parts of me.
I can only crave I get a chance with each of them before I’m forced to return to the man who’s every intention is to use me until I’m no longer beneficial…