Chapter 104

Erin’s POV

“You were right, Kelsey had the camera footage of the entire incident, and it clearly shows that Susanna broke her own neck,” Henry said to me as he came into the living room.

I held a towel to my mouth because I couldn’t seem to stop coughing and whenever I coughed, blood came with it. I was growing pale, and I knew it before Henry said anything.

“Erin… you aren’t looking so good,” he said with a frown, pressing the back of his hand to my forehead. “You’re burning up. We need to take you to a doctor. I think you might have consumed something bad.”

“We need to get the footage to the press…” I breathed, trying to maintain my breath but it was growing more difficult with each passing moment.

“I already had it sent,” Henry said, sitting down beside me. “Now, we need to take care of you…”

“I just need some water,” I said, standing to my feet.

As soon as I stood up, I regretted it because I grew incredibly dizzy. But I didn’t make that known to him; at least, I tried not to make it known.

My heart began to flutter rapidly and it was making it even more difficult to breathe. Henry was close behind me as I grabbed the kitchen table in an attempt to not fall over.

“Erin, please sit down. Let me get the water for you.”

“I’m fine,” I said to him. “We don’t have time to—”

My words trailed off as my vision became incredibly blurry.

Soon, I could hear his distorted voice shouting my name just before everything went black.

…

Gavin’s POV

“Where is she?” Gavin demanded to know as soon as he was in the hospital waiting room. Henry was nearby and quick to confront Gavin, trying to get him to calm down.

“They won’t let anyone see her right now,” Henry told him. “They are examining her right now. But it looks like she inhaled too much of that smoke and that lightning bolt did a number on her.”

“When will we know if she’s going to be okay?” Gavin asked.

“Hopefully, soon,” Henry answered.

Gavin sat in the waiting room for what felt like an eternity. He found himself falling asleep until the sun began to rise the next morning. He was startled awake when Henry had to leave for work.

Shortly after Henry left, the doctor came out into the waiting room.

“Mr. Pierce,” the doctor said as he stood in front of Gavin.

Gavin stood to his feet quickly, wiping the sleep out of his eyes and straightening his stance.

“How is she?” Gavin asked.

“She’s going to be okay. Her lungs were collapsing because of the smoke she inhaled and the lighting. But we were able to patch it. She’s sleeping now. There’s no telling when she will wake up, but you can see her whenever you want.”

“Thank you,” Gavin said as he headed toward Erin’s room.

Erin lay in the bed with bandages wrapped around her body. She had a breathing tube and a food tube in her mouth, along with a couple of IVs in her arms pumping her with fluids and antibiotics.

Her heart monitor was steady and gave a low beeping that sounded in the small hospital room.

Her features were incredibly pale, and she looked a little thinner than when he had last seen her. Which wasn’t long ago.

He ran his fingers down her soft hair, trailing the nape of her neck before his hand fell to the side of her pillow.

What he would give for the opportunity to mark her and make her officially his. That’s all he’s been wanting since high school.

Seeing her lying in his bed made his heart ache.

He reached toward her and grabbed onto her hand, holding it gently and not wanting to let her go. Soon, he found himself laying his head on her pillow and falling asleep, only to be woken a few hours later by the sounds of whispering nurses.

“He hasn’t left her side since yesterday,” one of the nurses whispered to the other.

They were in Erin’s room adjusting her IVs and giving her more medication. Gavin kept his eyes closed because he didn’t want them to know he was awake and could hear them.

“It must be nice to have Gavin Pierce’s loyalty,” the other nurse chuckled. “They make a strange couple. Isn’t she just a waitress?”

“Yes, she’s incredibly boring. Nothing like Gavin Pierce. I’m surprised he even looks her way.”

“Shh, not too loudly,” one of the nurses scolded. “He clearly loves the girl. She’s probably going to be his Luna.”

The girls chuckled just as they left the room.

Gavin opened his eyes and lifted his head, frowning at the closed door.

It would be nice to have Erin as his future Luna, but Gavin feared that his secret would soon surface, and Erin would never forgive him. She had lost so much in her life and knowing the things that he knew would destroy her.

He didn’t want to be the cause of that.

He ran his hand down her narrow features and sat back in his chair.

Gavin wanted to give her the world.

Once she was healed a little more, he was going to take the rest of her pain away and transfer it to himself. If he knew she was injured like this earlier, he would have done it sooner. But considering she was already at the hospital, he figured he’d just let the doctors handle it.

“Alpha, Jill is planning on leaving in a couple of days. Should we keep the safe house on reserve for her in case she changes her mind?” Seth asked in a mindlink.

Jill was being incredibly stubborn and not doing what Gavin had requested. He wanted her to be safe just like their parents and go to a safe house so she could be hidden from the views of his blackmailer.

A masked beauty that goes by the name April.

She has eyes and ears everywhere and has a lot of men and women doing her bidding. Her scent was off to Gavin, but she was said to be the most powerful wolf in the world.

She had threatened Gavin’s family on more than one occasion unless Gavin did exactly what she wanted. So far, all she’s wanted was her monthly sex sessions. If he refuses, it’s his family on the line.

Until he could figure out who all the wolves that are helping her are and how to put an end to her rein, Gavin was forced to oblige by her rules.

Now that Erin is back in the picture things are a little more complicated. Gavin’s love for Erin will put Erin in immediate danger. Not only is the leader of the Slayers after her, but Gavin’s blackmailer, April, is also after her.

Gavin’s phone went off, bringing him back to the present moment. He’s not sure how long he’s been in the hospital, but nurses and doctors kept coming in and out to check on Erin who remained asleep.

He grabbed his phone from his pocket and looked at the missed text message; he grew worried when he saw that it was an unrecognizable number.

“I need an extra session tonight, Gavin dear. Meet in our usual place?”

It was April.

There was no way Gavin was going to leave Erin’s side. Besides, he just had his parents moved; there’s no way she would be able to figure out where they are this soon and do anything harmless to them.

“Can’t tonight. Busy,” Gavin texted back.

He was about to shove his phone back into his pocket when it went off again.

“I’m surprised in you, Gavin. Saying no to me even though you know what I can do and what I’m capable of. You might think you are smart by hiding your parents, but do you really think I can’t find out where they are? I have eyes and ears everywhere…. oh, and plus, a little birdie told me that a young sibling had just returned to town. Perhaps I should pay her a little visit.”