Epilogue
Ryder Bosu
“I’m fine.”
My tone was hard and frustrated as the nurse offered me a blanket, again.
I had already wrapped all three of her previous attempts around Effie.
I think that she was trying to be nice after realizing that there wasn’t a chance in hell that I was going to be leaving this room, let alone get checked by one of the many available doctors here.
If they were that concerned, they could come in here and check me while I sat next to Effie, my gaze focused on her stunning face.
My hand tightened slightly around her pale, almost blue, fingers, my head resting against the hospital bed by her side as I obsessively waited for her eyes to open.
I was exhausted, but that was nothing compared to the need I had to make sure she was okay, that this had not permanently injured her.
My magic was fixing most of our injuries done by the plunge into Lake Michigan, and despite being exhausted, I felt the urge to use our connection to make her feel better.
I just wasn’t positive if it would do more harm than good.
I knew that in part her recovery was slowed by the connection I had forced into place upon saving her.
I hated myself for any pain I’d caused her, in all senses of the word, and I planned on punishing myself for it later.
Most likely by constantly staying by her side but never allowing myself to give in fully to the connection between us.
She deserved far better, and I hadn’t been lying—there were many reasons why she should want nothing to do with me.
I couldn’t just leave her alone, though, now.
I knew it was impossible. I had a vested interest in her safety, and it wasn’t because she was my student.
Although, her interest in the field I was in was attractive.
I wanted her to wake up so that I could talk to her…
about what? What the hell would I talk about with Effie that wouldn’t bore her to death?
She was already close enough to death as it was.
In part, it was the fall into frozen water.
But it was also more than that. It was the sudden connection I’d forced past the initial marking.
It was what that brought forth what she was, where her heritage lay.
My main priority right now was making sure she was stable.
Thank the Goddess that I could at least be assured of that.
Unconscious but stable was enough to calm me moderately.
The emergency care center was currently quiet, their service reserved for the supernatural population in town only.
I drove her here myself after using my magic to get us the fuck out of that situation.
Luckily, my power was a direct contrast to ice and water, so it had made it somewhat easy to melt the snow around us and pull us ashore while keeping her warm.
It made me know the Goddess, in part, knew what she was doing, because I didn’t want to imagine what would have happened if I hadn’t been there.
She probably wouldn’t have climbed up there to begin with if I had just left her alone.
Then again… ‘probably’ left a lot of room for error.
Also, the amount of information Effie had unloaded at once left me feeling a shit ton of emotions between fury at the president, a realization and very heavy understanding of the fact that our world was hyper-focused on mating, and a need to protect her from all of it.
I knew I wasn’t the only one who felt that way, either.
I hadn’t had a chance to call her mates, but I had no doubt they would show up soon.
We had only been here for maybe twenty minutes so far.
It wouldn’t do any good for them to see her like this, as it was, but especially not when we had first arrived and she looked half-dead.
She was already looking far better now that the nursing staff had changed her into fresh sweats and a hoodie, her wet hair pulled back and wrapped in a towel away from her face.
They had once again tried to force me from the room and I had refused, keeping my head turned despite knowing and having felt exactly what Effie’s sexy little body felt like pressed against me.
I cared far more about her getting warm than trying to see her naked, although I couldn’t lie—I would very much like to do that as well.
I shook my head, refusing to think about the panic I’d felt watching her plummet into the frozen lake. My chest tightened, watching her color slowly return to her, as I thought about the tears that had covered her face before disappearing from sight.
I did that.
Not all of that, but part of it had been on me. The creature at the center of my soul viciously growled at the thought that we had hurt her. Hurt our… mate.
Our mate that we shouldn’t have. Our mate that wasn’t anything like me or my kind. No. Unfortunately, I knew exactly what Effie was, and it was more than she even realized. How that resulted in us being mates, I had absolutely no fucking idea.
I ran a hand across my chest as it ached.
I wanted her to open her eyes, and I wondered if the thermal blankets on top of her were enough.
My fingers gently pushed up the sleeve of her warm hoodie to reveal the stunning mark I had left on her.
The flames moved under my touch, and my gaze tracked upwards, realizing that she truly had accepted the bond today, whether she realized it or not. Something I loved and also feared.
There were no options anymore. No ignoring the bond. It was what it was, and there was no escaping it.
I studied the markings above my own, four moons that all seemed to be in different phases—full, quarter, half, and new.
I knew what they stood for, but it would also result in her other mates realizing just how unusual Effie was…
not that it would be shocking to anyone.
The woman had an aura to her that was so much more than any mortal shifter or creature I’d encountered. I would know.
I heard one of the nurses demand that someone stop, my eyes flickering up as Tore appeared in the doorway, looking furious.
I should have moved faster, but I was a bit drained and completely unsurprised when I was slammed against the wall, his hand around my throat as a growl broke from his chest. I considered breaking his hold, but when Effie shifted slightly, it was no longer a problem.
Tore dropped me and took my seat, grasping her small, delicate hands between his as the others walked in.
“What the fuck happened?” Julian demanded on a low hiss, a flash of something that anyone in their right mind would fear crossing his face. I rounded Effie’s bed and sat on the edge, running a hand down my face.
“Fell through the ice caps,” I murmured, running a finger over her cheek.
“What the hell is on her arm?” Caedmon asked, his voice dark.
“Your buddy marked her yesterday,” Dakota explained, his voice low and threatening. “Although it seems to have grown.”
“The moons don’t have to do with me,” I explained softly, wondering if Aaren had already filled them in on all the other bullshit that had occurred today.
I was very hesitant to bring it up right now, because if it made me furious, I am positive they would lose their shit.
They had less years of practice at tempering their emotions, and wolves in general were more volatile.
This was a close space, and I didn’t want to risk Effie’s safety.
“I have never seen a wolf carry markings like this.” Caedmon’s voice was concerned as Julian continued to glare at me. I wasn’t worried he would do anything. Mostly. Dakota or Tore were more likely to kill me, and right now, both of them seemed far more focused on Effie.
“Well, that makes sense,” I hedged, thinking through what exactly Effie was and wondering if they should be made aware now or after she woke and I told her.
“What the hell does that mean?”
Meeting each of their gazes, I let out a long exhale.
“It means your mate, our mate… She’s not a wolf.”