Chapter 157

Rachel POV

"Your mother is doing well considering," Art said.

"Considering what?" I asked.

My body was hot yet numb at the same time. I had a baby monitoring band wrapped around my waist to monitor my daughter, a pulse oximeter to monitor my oxygen and pulse, a blood pressure cuff for exactly that, and two IVs to make sure the hospital had access to my bloodstream as fast as possible "just in case."

Saying I felt out of sorts was putting it mildly.

"Considering the quack caring for her had kept her overmedicated for the last two decades," Art said, shrugging a shoulder, "I think they did all they could to keep her barely conscious to avoid her fighting for her freedom. According to Justice, she can't even speak."

I frowned, the muscles in my face moving as sluggishly as the rest of me, "According to Justice? You haven't seen her?"

Art shook his head, "No. I distracted the facility attendants while Justice got your mother from her room. Elena was perfectly safe with Justice. Her magic is much more impressive than what I can do. Trust me: I'm cursed for eternity thanks to her."

Curses sounded far-fetched to me even as a member of the supernatural community. I might turn into a wolf at will -when I wasn't pregnant- but I had very little experience with magic. All the curses I'd heard of were on TV or in movies or books.

Art was definitely something though and he claimed that 'something' was cursed. I tried to believe for him. He didn't have a reason to lie to me as far as I knew.

"Why can't my mother speak?" I asked.

Music was a part of my life as important to me as my ability to breathe. I couldn't imagine a world in which I could no longer sing; I didn't want to imagine a world without the sound of my mother's voice.

I'd just gotten her back yet they were already taking her away from me piece by piece. It wasn't fair. It wasn't right! Nothing was going right!

Crying, I realized I was losing control of my emotions only by the startled expression on Art's face. The sound of the monitors going off had gotten drowned out with my tears. Two nurses came in together to check me while I wiped my face on the bedsheet.

"I'm sorry," I said, "I'm so sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"You're okay, honey," the first nurse said, picking my hand up to rub it briskly, "Here, let's take some deep breaths. You need to slow down a little. That's all."

The second nurse poured me a cup of icy water, offering it with a smile, "I was a wreck the last three days before I had my first. All the possibilities of what could go wrong? I just couldn't stop thinking. You're in good hands here! Drink some water. Focus on taking your temperature down."

The heat was bad for the baby. I felt as if I was baking so if I felt that way, did that mean my daughter felt the same? Was she cooking in my stomach? Her miniature body overheating with no way to cool down?

Just the thought was enough to have me crying more. I obediently tried to drink some water. The chill didn't hit me until I'd downed one small cup. I offered it for a refill.

"More, please," I said.

I could try everything in my power to drop my temperature.

My pregnancy was still in the second trimester. I knew I had to get through as much time as I could for my daughter to continue to grow.

Every time the doctor tried to explain her survival rate to me at this stage of her development? My mind shut down. I couldn't tolerate thinking about her chances of survival because it implied the possibility she wouldn't survive and that could not happen.

My baby could not die.

After I finished a second cup of water, I asked, "Have you seen my mother? They say she can't speak. What would cause that? She's an Alpha. She's strong. She's still young."

The nurses exchanged a look before the first offered, "We haven't seen her. She is the talk of the hospital though. No one here has seen anyone on the amount of medication she was on and still conscious. It's honestly a little bit of a miracle."

The second nurse nodded her head, "You can thank the Moon Goddess she's able to do anything at all. Those dosages for that many years? I don't know how she didn't die from poisoning."

"So she is strong," I murmured, feeling the cool water chasing away the heat from my body as it flooded my system, "I want to see her. Can you have her brought up here? Can she be here with me?"

"I'll ask," the second nurse offered.

I nodded as she left the room and closed my eyes to try to focus on the cold. I wanted to get cold more than I wanted to see my mother and I wanted to see my mother so, so badly.

The cold was necessary though. The cold would protect my baby girl. The cold would keep her inside me where she was safe and growing.

"Rachel?" Tyler called to me, shaking my shoulder gently as my eyes opened in a daze.

How long had I been asleep? Was I sleeping? Had time passed?

Some time must have passed because Tyler was here -back from making his many phone calls or checking in with his father- and Art was gone. I supposed the Alpha Inspector had been called away to check in with the Alpha Council or had he been sent to check on Ethan? Was my brother okay?

I couldn't tell much difference in the room because I couldn't see the sun or the moon. There was no open window for me to check the time of day. All I had was the television and the clock which read 4 o'clock. Was that AM or PM?

I had nothing to give me any clues about my brother. I didn't even have flowers from him to remind myself of his love.

"Your mother is here, Rachel," Tyler said, making me focus on him instead of the time or my comatose brother and I could see the worry lines drawn tight near his eyes and mouth, "Did you hear me? Elena is here. She's got her own IV so don't pull on her too much."

Turning my head on the pillow, I saw myself standing just inside the doorway to the room. I was older. I had matured gracefully, but there was still no white or grey in my dark hair. I was curvier than usual, but in a sexy way, not in the way I was now when I was swollen from pregnancy.

It took me a full series of minutes to realize I was seeing my mother instead of myself.

"Mom? Mama?" I asked, my voice sounding small and scared in a way I didn't like, yet couldn't help all the same.

My mother stumbled and shuffled across the distance separating us by holding onto the IV pole at her side. She smiled with her whole face in the way I remembered. Exactly the way I remembered. Her hand looked older where it grasped the pole for support, but I realized it could have been from the way she didn't look quite healthy.

Had they starved her? Was she allowed any exercise at all? How had they cared for her all these years or had they just kept her prisoner like some animal in a cage?

Mama lay over me as she hugged me to her and her face was wet as she pressed her cheek against mine.

I realized she was crying and hugged her tightly, "No, no, no. We're together now! You don't have to cry. We aren't going to lose each other again. We're going to be together forever. I love you so much, Mama. I didn't know. I swear. I would have come for you if I'd known!"

Now I was crying and we were holding each other and it was almost perfect.

My monitors were going off again. I couldn't help my pulse racing or my heart rate going up. Who would blame me with my mother returned to me from the dead? Wasn't I allowed a minute to mourn and celebrate all at the same time?

"Ray---" Mama tried, her voice a gruff croak, "Ray-chel. Love. You."

"I love you too, Mama. I love you so much!" I said, giving in to the urge to hold onto my mother and cry for all the time we'd lost, all the memories we'd never made, and all the memories yet to come.

I might have missed my mother for years, but my daughter wouldn't miss her grandmother.

Elena Campbell was home for good now.

"Have you seen Ethan? How is he?" I asked only no one would meet my eyes, "How is my brother?"