Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
“Begin.”
At the sound of Hannah’s voice, Gina threw her head back. Power slammed into her, and she gripped Quinn’s hand. She hated herself for craving his touch, craving his need. Then she pushed that away, knowing this wasn’t about her and Quinn, but about a little boy who needed them both.
Magic filled her body, scraping along her skin before wrapping around her organs.
The hair on her arms rose, and she tried to swallow, only to come up dry.
She’d never felt this much power before.
It wasn’t as if she was a strong witch. No, she was a strong wolf who happened to spew fire from her palms when she thought real hard about it. There was a difference.
She forced herself to look down at Quinn’s son and what was happening in front of her.
Hannah and Walker chanted over Jesse, their arms moving in unison as they pulled on their bonds to Heal him.
Josh and Reed had their arms around Hannah’s waist, holding her steady.
Brandon and Gideon had their hands on their brother’s shoulders, keeping him still.
Quinn sucked in a breath next to her, and she braced herself.
A wave of pain crashed into her, and she bit her lip.
The fire in her veins blended with her magic and wove a spell around the pain, dissipating it.
She didn’t know how she did that, only that it was inherent. Her birth mother had taught her enough to protect herself and other people, but they hadn’t gotten to the lessons about using her powers.
She wasn’t a Healer, nor was she a witch who could help others. At least that’s what she thought. It wasn’t as if she’d seen any evidence to the contrary. She could only use what she knew, and that was to take whatever pain Jesse, and subsequently Quinn, held and make it go away.
She kept her eyes open and on Jesse. If she focused on him, she could deal with the pain and anything that came afterward. She licked her lips, knowing if she broke her concentration she’d ruin it for all of them. She couldn’t—wouldn’t—be that weak link.
The process took hours, and by the end of it, she was drained, emotionally and physically.
Sweat covered her body, and she had a hard time staying upright.
She blinked a couple of times, then sucked in a breath when Quinn leaned into her, thereby keeping her from passing out. She looked down and swallowed hard.
Throughout it all, though, she never let go of Quinn’s hand.
Hannah’s earlier words echoed through her head, but she ignored them, pushing them away. There would be time to make decisions and deal with the consequences of a woman’s betrayal. A woman Gina had never met.
Gina’s pain and loss would be worth the life of a young boy.
She knew that, but she didn’t want to think of it.
Not yet.
“That’s all we can do,” Hannah said softly, her voice tired.
Gina leaned into Quinn, her hand still in his. She didn’t want to think too hard about it, the feel and scent of him against her. She needed only his strength so she didn’t pass out.
“How is he?” Quinn growled out. His wolf sounded close to the surface, but Gina had a feeling it was only because of the exhaustion weighing on all of them.
Walker sighed. “The bond between him and me as a Healer seemed slightly stronger, Quinn. That’s a good thing.
He isn’t in pain right now.” He met Quinn’s eyes, and Gina squeezed Quinn’s hand.
She might not know what she felt right then, but she knew the father, not the man who hated her, needed support.
“I think, between this group, we gave him more time,” Hannah said slowly.
More time.
That was something at least. Time for what though? That was the question. Either it was enough time for him to find his own mate or for Quinn to try to mate on his own and provide another bond for Jesse to latch onto.
Every single person in the room knew what the answer had to be.
Every single person knew who would supply that answer.
Anything else would be horrific for that little boy.
She’d just have to deal with the consequences.
She let out a breath then released Quinn’s hand. Her wolf whimpered, but she ignored it. This was not the time to deal with anything but sleep and her own thoughts. The loss of the heat of Quinn’s touch was something she’d have to push away for the time being.
Maybe forever.
“Thank you,” Quinn said, this time his voice sounding more himself. “Thank you for doing all you can.”
“He’s a pup. He’s one of us,” Hannah said simply.
The others gave her a look then quietly left after saying good-bye and giving Quinn instructions about when Jesse would wake up.
Uncle Josh leaned down, kissed her temple, whispering so low that only she could hear. “We’re not leaving you. We’ll be right outside.”
With that, she, Jesse, and Quinn were alone in the room.
She got up off the bed, her legs shaky. She hadn’t been sleeping or eating right in the past couple of days, and with the added-on magic, her body was feeling it.
She knew she needed to take better care of herself, but it had been hard when her heart hadn’t been in it.
Now she didn’t have a choice.
“I’m going to go home and eat and rest,” she said finally. Quinn had his eyes on his son, not her, so it made it easer for her to speak.
He turned toward her, and her mouth went dry.
His wolf was in his gaze, the gold rim around his irises glowing. “Thank you,” he said, his voice strong. “Thank you for coming here when you didn’t have to and saving my son. I will never be able to repay you for that.”
She raised her chin, her heart pounding even as her soul died just that much more. “I wasn’t going to let a pup be hurt because of my—no, your—issues.” There. She felt a smidge better. Not much, but at least she wasn’t lying to herself.
Quinn’s jaw tightened, and he nodded. “Thank you anyway.” He let out a breath and looked down at his son. “Gina…”
He was going to ask her. After all he’d done to her, after all he’d said, he was going to ask her about the mating. She knew they would have to in order to save Jesse’s life, but she didn’t know if she could handle hearing it in her weakened state.
She raised her hand and stopped him. “I’m going home to sleep and to eat.
We can talk about everything that was said here and previously after we’re rested.
” She paused and looked at Jesse. “He’s more important than anything, Quinn.
I get that. But right now? I’m not in the right state of mind to talk about anything. I hope you get that.”
Hope and something else she couldn’t quite place flittered through his gaze before he nodded and stood.
“I’ll come to you this time,” he said softly. “Tomorrow?”
She shook her head. “We’ll meet in neutral territory.” She shrugged at his look. “My family isn’t in your fan club right now, and I don’t want to test them.”
He nodded. “I understand.” He let out a breath. “Tomorrow okay though?”
“Yes. In neutral territory after sunrise, so we can get it over with.”
Not the best way to talk about mating someone who was supposed to be her soul mate, but at this point, she couldn’t put too much emotion into it. If she did, she’d lose whatever part of herself she had left.
“We can talk about what we need to talk about,” she said, being vague. “Council matters can come later.”
He let out a breath. “It’s getting complicated.”
She gave him a sad smile. “It was always complicated, Quinn. Don’t lie to yourself.”
With one last look at a sleeping Jesse, she left the room and then the house. She passed the Talons, not looking at them. She didn’t want to see the questions in their eyes, or the pity.
Her family waited for her on the front porch, and she moved out of the way of their touch. If she let them hug her, console her, she’d break. She only had to make it to the car outside the wards, and then she could cry until she made it into the Redwood wards.
She could do that.
She was far stronger than she felt.
At least she hoped so.
By the next morning, she was slightly more energized and ready to get this talk over with.
While she might have stayed up all night thinking, Hannah and her mother hadn’t let that happen.
Instead, her family fed her then made her drink tea that would make her sleep deeply.
Thank the goddess she did because she wasn’t sure she’d have made it here this morning if she’d stayed up all night tossing and turning.
What she was about to agree to was going to kill a small part of her. She knew that, but she didn’t see another choice. She ran a hand over her hair, trying to center herself.
When she was a young girl, she’d been afraid of mating, though she’d never said it out loud. She’d been afraid of finding a wolf, falling in love, and creating a bond. Because once she did that, she’d have children, and those children could be left alone if she died.
Her birth parents died because a traitor had used them to try to frame another wolf for their deaths. The traitor had died painfully, as had the wolves that had used him in the first place, but in some ways, it would never be enough.
She’d never be held by her mother, never be lifted off the ground by her father again. She’d had more years with the both of them than Mark ever had, but those years hadn’t been enough.
Melanie and Kade had brought her into their home without a second thought. They’d helped nurture her wolf and her soul while trying to find a way to balance the magic within her veins. They’d never judged her for what she could do if she lost control.
She was a fire witch. A deadly one if she ever tried to use her powers for dark, rather than light. She could use the flame to burn those in her path or, if she focused hard enough, control a flame already made.
She’d used that inner flame to help Heal Jesse, and yet that magic hadn’t been enough to save him fully.