Chapter Eight
There was silence on the line. Then she sighed. “Fine, but you better be heading here tonight.”
“I am, I promise.” I sighed.
“What’s wrong?” Like a light switch, her anger was gone, and it was replaced by her worry.
“I have to call the king.” I felt the pit in my stomach open.
“Oh, sweetie.” I could feel her amusement through the phone, but she kept it in check. “It will be fine. You act like you are walking to your execution.”
I rubbed my eyes and pinched my nose. “Because I am. Do you not remember the other night?”
“I do, and I think you are going to be perfectly fine.” She sighed. “I love you. Make the call. Go see Vince. Wrap up your work and then come home.”
“Will do.” I sighed. “Love you.” Then I hung up the phone. I looked at my call log and grimaced. I saw Rick’s name and jumped at the chance. I dialed him.
“Hey…is everything okay?” He sounded worried, but also out of breath.
“Yeah…are you okay?”
“Yeah.” He blew out a breath. “Got an alert. Someone is hacking into the system. So I’m getting my shoes on to head back to the office.”
“Please daddy, stay.” I heard the soft cough from Abby and my heart clenched.
“I’ll do it.”
He scoffed. “You are in the hospital.”
I put the phone between my shoulder and my chin. “I’m done. They are bandaging me upright as we speak. I’ll handle the breach, I’ll have enough time to get there.”
He was considering it. “Fine. When you are done, wrap up any open tickets you might have, and then forward me the rest. I assume you are leaving tonight?”
I grinned. “Right after our dinner. But I have a few odds and ends to tie up around here first. How much time do you think I’ll have before it’s critical?”
He paused for a few seconds. “An hour or two. But the faster you get there, the better.”
“Of course.” I pushed my laptop into my bag as a plan formed in my mind. “I have to run for a few things for dinner, and if I handle work first, I won’t be able to get it all done.”
“Fine, just make sure you message me when you’re finished.”
“Will do, boss man. Hey…Can you grab Alannah and Ternen on your way to dinner? They are coming over to do laundry.”
He snorted. “Yeah.” Then he sighed. “I think I’ll miss you.”
I laughed then. “I know.” I hung up and then the nurse walked in. She had been flitting in and out, cleaning up the blood, trays, and floor, while I was talking to Rick and my mom.
“Are you ready?” She nodded to my blood covered chest. She squinted. “We had to cut your bra…so the doctor handed me a top for you. He figured you would be more comfortable with me handling this part.”
I nodded. Smart man. “It’s fine.” I waved her over and then hissed. “But I thought he was going to wrap me.”
She nodded. “I’m going to clean you up and I found an extra tensor for your chest. He will come in after you’re fully covered again.” She coughed. “He’s been forbidden from seeing you without being covered.” She looked up and smiled. “Someone called the office a minute ago and demanded it.”
I groaned. “Oh, gods.” She giggled. “Do you mind if I take a call while you do this?”
She smiled. “Go ahead. Luke got yelled at enough that I figured as much.”
I groaned again. “Man.” I grabbed my phone and hit Rowan’s name and clicked speakerphone.
When he answered, he was calm…too calm. “Hello Amy.”
“My King, you are on speaker and we are not alone.” I got that out before he let out a slow growl. “I’m assuming you heard I was attacked?”
He chuckled, but it was dark. “Oh. You assumed right.” His voice was a deep rumble.
“Well… I guess you already know. So we can skip that.” I tried to move on, but he let out a small growl.
“No.”
“No?” I stopped short.
“No. We are not glossing over your attack. What happened?”
I felt my mouth drop open, and the nurse laughed. I glared at her, but she just shrugged. “He wants to know.”
“See…who is that?” He asked.
“Jenn Morals. I’m Alpha Amy’s nurse.”
“See Amy. Jenn understands. So just tell me.”
I rolled my eyes, but blew my lips. “Fine. Brandon was cheating on me with Shannon. She told the pack that our mating ceremony, in a week, was actually theirs. I told him to figure out who he wanted to be with. They both came to my house last night, and in front of the pack, he sided with her. Then he showed up in my office and pretended like it had never happened. I simply asked him if he had brain damage. Rick, my boss, laughed. He lept across the table and attacked me.”
The silence was thick on the other side of the phone. The nurse pulled me forward, and I grunted. “What’s wrong? What’s happening?” Rowan sounded slightly panicked.
The nurse snickered. “I moved Amy forward so I could clean up her back and then wrap her chest.”
“Wrap her chest?” He sounded confused. “Why are you wrapping her chest?”
I dropped my head but the nurse just smirked.
“When we cut away her top so we could get to her ribs. We also had to cut away her bra. So for her privacy, this was the solution.” There was a soft intake on the other side of the phone.
But then she kept going. “Also because someone called the clinic and yelled at the doctor. He didn’t want to chance anything to be misconstrued.
The doctor was clearly afraid of whoever called.
” The nurse wiggled her eyebrows at me at the silence on the other end.
She nodded to the phone with her lips. I shook my head but I couldn’t stop the smile.
She winked. “I’m wrapping her chest so he can come in here and properly wrap her ribs. ”
There was another awkward silence for a moment. Then he coughed. “Well, as long as Amy is taken care of.” There was another silence.
I coughed this time. The nurse giggled again. “Lift your arms as high as you can so we can tuck these away.”
I laughed at that. “My King.” I shook my head as Jenn blushed. “I hoped that because of the broken mating agreement, and this attack, you would give me permission to transfer out of this pack by midnight tonight?”
His voice was soft. “I’ve missed that.”
I furrowed my brow. “I asked if I could-”
“I heard you.” He interrupted me. “Yes. I will give you permission to transfer. What pack are you transferring to?” He asked, but I knew he knew.
“I would like your permission to take the chance of going back to my father’s pack lands.” The nurse paused for a second before finishing.
“I’m done here. Call when you are done.” Jen pushed the call button into my hand. She helped me lie back against the bed with a hiss. Then she left me alone with a soft click.
“Do you think that’s wise?” He sounded genuinely curious.
“It’s the only option my wolves agree with. We could go to Toya’s pack, but she’ll be our Alpha…”
“And you are stronger than she is.” He finished.
“Yeah.”
“Nix will force you to take over.”
“And I wouldn’t want to do that to Toya.” He sighed. “I’ll be safe. I’ll scope it out first. See if there is recent rogue activity.” He snorted. “I swear. If there is, I’ll transfer to another pack.”
He was silent for a few minutes. “Fine.”
“Can you possibly send a letter with the approval to my office fax?”
“Why?”
“Because if you send it just to Vince, he will say he never received it. Then spend the next week trying to convince me to still marry his son.”
He growled, but then agreed. “Okay. I’ll send it to your office now.”
“Actually. Could you wait?”
He groaned. “Why?”
“Because I need to get there first.” Obviously.
Nix chuffed out a laugh. He’s a man, he isn’t that smart.
Or… Megan cut in. Maybe he is just so blown away by speaking with you, he isn’t thinking straight.
I snorted. But he laughed too. “Yeah, I didn’t think of that.” He knocked once on a table. “Yeah, just text me when you get there and I’ll send it to you first. Then I’ll send it to Vince.”
“Thank you, my King.” He disconnected before I could say anything else. I sighed, then pushed the call button.
Luke and Jenn walked in. “All done?” I just nodded. “Perfect. Let’s get you wrapped and out of here.” He grabbed the tensor and started to wrap. “We just need them to stay in place until whatever is in your system clears out, so you heal properly.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
He came around to face me. “Jenn told me you are planning on going back to the office today?” I nodded. “I need you to be extra careful. You are still bleeding internally, and your ribs are really fragile. One wrong move and it’s going to pop out of the skin again.”
I nodded. “I understand. But I need to.” He looked at me for a second before nodding.
“Okay.” He held out his hand, and Jenn came up to the other side of me. “Then let’s get you up.”
I puffed out my cheeks as I slid to the side of the bed, then I got to the edge. “Wait.” Jenn grabbed something from the bed and then slid it over my head. “Your shirt.” She helped me move my arms into the sleeve while I growled. “There you go.” Then they helped me get to my feet.
And then I puked.
I limped into the pack house. Every step was a struggle because I still refused Nix and Megan’s offer to heal me. I needed to smell of antiseptic and blood.
You are as dumb as Rowan is. Nix growled as I forced myself up the stairs. I walked slower than I needed to, but I really needed the pack to start gossiping.
An Omega came over and offered his hand. “Thank you, Jeffrey.” I gasped as he walked me up the stairs.
His smile was soft. “You remembered my name?”
I smiled back at him. “Of course I did. You brought me my lunch a few times.” He nodded. “Why wouldn’t I remember your name?”
“Most Alpha’s wouldn’t.” He whispered it, like it was a secret.
I just laughed. “I’m not like other Alphas.” The laugh forced me to pause, so I could cough. Blood spewed from my mouth but I wiped it off with my shirt.
“Are you okay?” His voice was soft, worried.
I nodded. “I just need to get to my office to get the last of my work done.”
“Last of your work done? Are you going somewhere?”