Chapter 331

Gavin’s POV

The battle stretched on for what felt like hours. There were lives lost, but most of them were the lives of rogues. I felt sick to my stomach as I stared down at the bodies of some of my men. One woman who didn’t make it inside on time. I felt like I had failed them; as a Lycan, I was meant to protect them and keep danger out of their reach… and yet they were dead.

The rest of the rogues who stormed the pack had fled; we captured a few of them for questioning, one of whom happened to be a pregnant she-wolf who held a gun but couldn’t shift. She was tearful and terrified as she faced me, begging for her life and the life of her unborn pup. Taylor escorted her away and towards the holding cell with the others who were captured.

I winced at the sting of a bullet that pierced the side of my body. It was laced in silver, so it hurt like a mother fucker, but it wasn’t a fatal wound.

“I think that she-wolf rogue is the one who will spill all the secrets,” Taylor said as he stood beside me, his arms folded as we watched the rest of the rogues being rounded up, dead or alive.

I nodded.

She seemed as if she would do pretty much anything if it meant keeping her life and the life of her pup.

“Question her first, then,” I said, turning back towards the packhouse. “I need to make sure Judy is okay.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Taylor said, but there was hesitation in his voice that made me pause.

“What is it?” I asked, before I moved another step, my patience running thin.

“It’s just that… the fact that they knew that most of the Silver Crescent pack, the Redmoon pack, and the remaining Redcliff pack were here tonight… it proves that our system was hacked. They saw that we were here, and they attacked accordingly.”

“And you think Levi had something to do with this attack?” I asked.

He didn’t have to reply for me to know what he was thinking.

“Yes…” he said after a slight pause.

“Find out what you can,” I said as I started towards the packhouse. “Whatever Levi is planning, it ends soon.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Taylor said before he went off on his own mission to gather information.

Just as I made it back to the packhouse, one of the Gammas rushed towards me.

“Alpha, you’ve returned. Has the battle been won?” He asked, a hopeful yet a worried look in his eyes.

“Yes… It’s over now. We are closing the borders. As of right now, all surrounding packs are on lockdown,” I told him. “Make sure the word is spread.”

“Dad!” I heard Irene screaming as she rushed towards me, tears in her eyes as her body trembled.

I knew she was worried about me and the future of the pack with the rogue attacks. She wrapped her arms around me and sobbed.

“The threat is gone,” I assured her. “I won’t let my guard down again. You are safe, Irene.”

“It’s not that,” she sobbed. “It’s Judy…”

My entire body froze at the sound of her broken words. My wolf was immediately on edge at the thought of something happening to our mate.

“What do you mean?” I asked, aware that my tone was darkening. “What happened with Judy?”

“I don’t know,” she sobbed. “They wouldn’t let me go with her. She was fine one minute, strong as ever, and the next, she was complaining about stomach pains, then the blood…” she cried, her bottom lip trembling as she pulled back. Her eyes had gone wild. “There was so much blood.”

My blood ran cold.

“What, what do you mean by blood?” I nearly roared.

“There was blood between her legs… I think it might have something to do with the baby,” she cried, covering her face with her hands.

“Where is she?” I asked, my voice coming out as a roar. “Where is my mate?”

“They took her to the hospital,” Irene informed me. “I wanted to go, but only a couple of us could, so Nan and Judy’s mom went with her.”

Without another word, I was already shifting into my wolf form, my clothes shredding on the spot as I sprinted out of the packhouse and down the road. I ran as fast as lightning; everything blurred around me, and I could barely see straight as the hospital came into view. I could also smell the sweet scent of Judy despite the fact that she was inside the hospital already.

When I got to the hospital door, I shifted back, not caring that I was completely naked. I ran into the hospital in my birthday suit and glared around at all the familiar faces. Some of whom were people who fought alongside me during the battle.

A nurse rushed over to me with a change of clothes; thankfully, I keep spare clothes all around the packs and in different buildings, including each hospital, so if I were to ever show up in wolf form and I didn’t have a chance of clothes, I could change into them easily.

“Where’s Judy Montague?” I demanded as I pulled on the shirt and pants, ignoring the stares of everyone else.

“Alpha Landry…” I heard Judy’s mother, Michelle, say from nearby. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, and her face was pale. Nan was seated next to her in the waiting room, equally distraught. Both their bodies were trembling, and their lips were wobbling as they stared up at me.

My heart shattered when I saw them, and I rushed towards them.

“Where is she?” I demanded, my voice harsher than intended.

“She’s being treated as we speak,” Michelle told me. “They are doing what they can. They say the stress was too much for the baby, and they are trying to prevent a miscarriage from taking place.”

I needed to sit down because my legs no longer worked.

A miscarriage.

That was the word that I was dreading. The word that I feared with every fiber of my being. What if we lost this baby? What would happen? It was almost too much for me to handle at this time, and I needed to close my eyes and decompress.

Michele reached out and touched my hand gently.

“Judy is strong,” she murmured softly. “She’s going to pull through.”

I nodded, knowing she was right. But I couldn’t bear the thought of losing her or our pup. I knew losing this baby would kill Judy in more ways than I could count, and I wouldn’t want her to face that struggle.

“It was so scary,” Nan whispered. “She dropped to the floor and screamed in pain… At first, we thought maybe it was because you were hurt…” Her eyes scanned the mark on my neck. “Because you are now mated to her…”

There was no malice in her words, but I could tell she was questioning our motives. I instinctively reached up and touched the mark on my neck. The gunshot wound on my side was completely forgotten, the pain was long gone, and my mind was elsewhere.

“But then we saw the blood,” Nan continued. “There was so much of it, Alpha… Her last words before she blacked out were to protect her baby.”

“That was how we found out she was pregnant,” Michelle said, her eyes finding mine. “I shouldn’t have had to find out like that…”

“We were going to tell everybody during the announcement… before the attack,” I admitted. “I apologize for not telling you sooner.”

“If I had known sooner, I would have tried to protect her sooner. Maybe make sure she wasn’t as stressed and worried so something like this wouldn’t happen,” Michelle murmured, her eyes downcast.

“It has to be more than stress,” I said, shaking my head. “You say she was bleeding?”

“A lot of blood,” Nan said, closing her eyes as she remembered the events that took place. “I was saying the same thing… that it’s hard to believe that stress caused this. But they said something about it being stressful for her wolf… so that is an added bonus.”

I shook my head, still wrapping my head around it.

“I need to see her,” I said as I started towards the emergency room.

“They won’t let us,” Michelle said quickly. “They say she’s in treatment and can’t be disturbed, or it could be detrimental to the baby.”

“I have to see her,” I said through my teeth. My wolf was hounding me to see his mate. He was worried sick… as was I.

“I know… but you must do what’s best for Judy right now. If seeing her disturbs her treatment, then we need to stay calm and out of their way. They know what they are doing. They are doctors in your pack. We have to trust them,” Michelle told me, using her calm mom voice.

“Alpha, have you been hurt?” Nan asked, eyeing the blood patch on the side of my shirt. My wound had bled through, and it drew my attention to my own injury. I almost forgot about it.

“I’m fine,” I muttered without sparing it another look.

“You are bleeding,” she said, her frown deepening. “You should get that looked at…”

“I’m not leaving until I know that Judy is okay,” I said, my eyes darting in Nan’s direction. I’ll survive.”

“Judy won’t like it when she wakes to find that her chosen mate is nearly bleeding to death,” Nan said, folding her arms across her chest.

“I’m not her chosen mate,” I said through my teeth, my anger flaring slightly as frustrations clouded me. “I’m her second chance, mate, and I’m not leaving until I know she’s okay,” I repeated, my Lycan aura leaking through, silencing her into a stunned silence.

“You’re her what??” Michelle gasped before I realized what I had revealed.

Before I could speak another word, the door to the emergency room opened, and a doctor walked out. I frowned at the sight of him; I’ve seen him very briefly in the past, but not enough to know his name. He looked around with a frown until his eyes landed on Michelle and Nan.

Michelle straightened at the sight of him.

“Dr. Johnathan… is there any news on my daughter?” Michelle asked.

I furrowed my brows.

“She’s recovering well,” the doctor said with a nod. “It was stress that caused the baby to go into distress, but we are hopeful that we can save them both…” Though his words were joyous, they didn’t quite meet his eyes, giving me an uneasy feeling. Michelle and Nan didn’t seem to notice, though; they were overjoyed by the news.

“Oh, thank Goddess,” Michelle breathed, hugging Nan. Both of them had tears in their eyes.

“Can we see her now?” Nan asked, turning back to the doctor.

“I’m afraid not,” the doctor said, making my wolf growl. “She’s still in a fragile state and needs the peace right now. But perhaps at a later time.”

Both their faces fell at the same time; I wasn’t going to stand around and let this strange doctor speak anymore. I stepped forward, pushing my aura forward. He turned his attention to me, and his eyes widened.

“Alpha Landry…” he breathed, bowing his head slightly. “What are you doing here?”

Was he for real?

“You are treating my mate, and you dare ask me such a question?” I asked through my teeth; granted, nobody knew that Judy was my mate, so I couldn’t fault him for not knowing. But I was furious and I wanted him to know it.

“I… uh…” confusion, regret, and something else that resembled crippling fear flashed through his eyes.

“Why hasn’t anyone called Elizabeth Peirce to the hospital yet?” I growled, my voice booming. “Get her here… NOW!”