Everything went dark. I heard voices, distant and muffled, like I was underwater. Someone was crying. Nonna. I knew her voice anywhere, even as my consciousness slipped further away.
"No, healer, she cannot die. Use the chest compressor, resuscitate her, do anything you can. In fact, I am stepping in." That was Richard. His usually calm voice cracked with desperation.
I wanted to tell them I was fine, that I could hear them, but my body refused to cooperate. The darkness pulled at me, thick and suffocating.
"What happened? Is Aurora fine?" Another voice cut through the fog. Jack. Even half dead, I recognized the Alpha King's commanding tone.
"Richard, save Aurora's life." Nonna was sobbing now, her words breaking apart.
I felt pressure on my chest. Once. Nothing. My heart stayed silent.
"Do not say that last word, Richard." Nonna again, desperate and fierce.
The pressure came again. Twice. Still nothing. My wolf was quiet, too quiet. She had retreated so far inside that I could barely sense her.
I heard footsteps, rushed and frantic. The sound of fabric rustling. More pressure on my chest, harder this time. Someone was praying. Richard. His voice was steady but his hands trembled against my sternum.
"No, Aurora, you cannot just die like that. Think about Cody, just think about your son." Nonna was pleading with me now, as if I had any control over whether my heart decided to beat.
Cody. My son. The thought of him pierced through the darkness. His small face, his laugh, the way he called for me every morning. I could not leave him. I would not.
"She is the reason I am alive and her life is gone." Jack's voice broke. I had never heard him sound like that, raw and shattered. "If Aurora ever comes out of this healing chamber alive, I would owe my life and the rest of my existence to her."
The third compression came, and this time something inside me lurched. My wolf stirred, angry at being pulled back from the edge. My chest jerked violently and suddenly I was gasping, dragging air into my lungs like I had been drowning.
"She is alive again." Nonna's voice was thick with tears but triumphant.
I heard movement around me, the steady beep of equipment, hushed voices conferring. My eyes would not open yet, but I was aware now, floating in that strange space between consciousness and sleep.
Time passed in strange jumps. I was moved, the healing chamber giving way to something quieter. Voices argued above me.
"She does not have a right to stay there. And besides, she might frown at it when she wakes up." Nonna sounded worried.
"She is the mother of my son and that makes her my mate. She would stay in the chambers meant for my family." Jack's tone left no room for argument.
"He is right, Nonna. Aurora has the right to everything that is owned by Jack and the royal family." That must have been John, Jack's brother and beta.
I was moved again, wheels rolling smoothly beneath me. The air changed, became warmer, smelled of expensive oils and clean linens. Not the sterile scent of the healing wing.
Someone adjusted the blankets around me with gentle hands. The bed beneath me was impossibly soft, nothing like the hard healing chamber table.
"I will stay with her tonight." Jack's voice was close now, right beside the bed.
"You cannot, Jack. You have no reason to be here overnight because of Aurora." Richard's voice was sharp, hostile. I had never heard him speak to anyone like that, especially not to the Alpha King.
I wanted to open my eyes, to tell them all to stop arguing, but my body still would not obey. Sleep pulled at me, heavy and insistent.
"The patient needs rest. You are all free to go." Richard was using his healer voice now, the one that meant he would not be argued with.
Footsteps moved toward the door, but one set stayed behind. Jack. I could smell him, pine and smoke and something uniquely him. He was not leaving.
"Seeing the atmosphere is getting tense, maybe we should all step outside for a moment." John's diplomatic tone cut through the silence.
The door opened and closed, muffling their voices. I drifted, my wolf finally settling into a healing sleep. The last thing I felt was a hand wrapping around mine, warm and steady, and the brush of lips against my knuckles.
"I am sorry," Jack whispered, so quiet I almost missed it. "I am so sorry, Aurora."
I wanted to tell him it was not his fault, that I had made my choice. But the darkness came again, gentler this time, and I let it take me under.
When I woke, everything would be different. I knew that somehow, felt it in my bones. The Alpha King thought I was his mate, claimed me in front of witnesses. The pack would expect things from me now, things I was not sure I could give.
But first, I needed to heal. I needed to find my way back to myself and my son. Everything else could wait.
The voices outside grew louder, argument bleeding through the door. Someone laughed, bitter and sharp. Richard. He was still angry, still fighting for me even when I could not fight for myself.
My wolf stirred again, stronger now. She pushed healing energy through my battered body, knitting torn tissue and mending broken vessels. It would take time, but we would survive this.
We always did.
The hand holding mine tightened, and I felt Jack shift closer. He was not leaving, no matter what Richard said. Part of me was grateful. Part of me was terrified.
But mostly, I was tired. So tired. I let myself sink deeper into sleep, trusting my wolf to keep watch. Tomorrow, I would open my eyes. Tomorrow, I would face whatever came next.
Tonight, I would simply rest.