Chapter 262

Charles

A shrill, panicked scream pierced the quiet of the morning, shattering the fragile peace that had settled over the house. I bolted out of bed, racing down the hallway toward the sound. It was coming from Richard's room. I heard Grace stumbling out of her room as I reached the room.

Richard was in his crib, his small body wracked with uncontrollable tremors, his face flushed with a feverish heat. He wailed again before vomitting, a sickly yellow liquid stained the sheets, but it was the streaks of blood around his head that was the real problem.

Grace came up behind me, she rushed forward, but I put up my arm.

"Move!" She snarled.

"He could be contagious," I said, holding her back. "And you're in--"

"He's my baby!"

"I know," I said, gently. "Just let me go first, okay?"

She sobbed, shaking and looking pale. I approached the crib quickly, but I already knew what this was. Richard had Crescent Flu, but how?

I picked him up, rumbling at him and casting a gentle healing spell that would knock him out. At least he wouldn't be in pain.

"He has Crescent Flu."

"You can't--"

I looked back at her. "I am."

She shook her head. "He's too young for the vaccine!" She reached for him, but I put up a barrier. "Charles!"

"He's too young, and there's no telling how you would react to the vaccine in your state," I said. A cold dread settled in my stomach. I looked down at him and checked his eyes. They were turning blue. This was different. Worse than the original Crescent Flu.

"There has to be something!" Grace pleaded, her voice trembling with desperation.

"The hospital?" I asked.

She went paler. "They... They won't take him."

I set my jaw. "More than half lycan?"

"And... his age."

Just as well, there was no sense in letting this mutated version spread.

I took a deep breath. "I'll take him to the base."

"But that's so--" She swayed on her feet. "I don't--"

I surged forward, catching her before she hit the ground.

Shit!

Panic surged through me. She vomited on me. She smelled terrible, like the sickness was taking over. There was no choice. I hefted her onto my shoulder and rushed down the hall to get Cecil. She was feverish and shaking in bed. I levitated her from bed and wrapped her up in her sheets. Another sheet flew after us as I raced down stairs, screaming for Gregory to get the car ready.

"To the Enforcer Base, immediately!"

Hours passed without a word. When I'd arrived with the three of them, everyone jumped into action, but there had been nothing. It was agonizing. I had gotten word to Esme and she was on the way, but that was a small comfort.

Hours turned into an agonizing eternity. Finally, a tall, silver-haired woman emerged from Grace's wing, her face etched with a curious mix of concern and… amusement?

"Well, Your Majesty," she began, her voice surprisingly gentle, "you've brought quite a trio to my doorstep."

"Give me the worst of it first."

"... I think not." I bit my lip and took a deep breath.

"The best then."

"Matter of perspective."

I shuddered. "In order."

"They've been infected with the original werewolf virus."

I looked up. The fury filled me.

Sean had done this... Infecting Grace when he came to visit first and she'd spread it to the kids, which meant that son of a bitch was an original, or closely related to one.

I'd bet Fenris was one too.

"And?"

"Little known fact that the Crescent Flu is a mutation of the werewolf virus, in these three it mutated further. It's a... dangerous combination, I'm afraid."

I swallowed and nodded. "Wait and see?"

She nodded. "I've called in some favors. It's just a matter of seeing if it worked."

"Can I see them?"

"After you go through a scan."

I let them scan me. As expected, I needed to change out of my clothes, but I wasn't contagious, nor had I contracted it. Witch blood had a way of keeping that from happening.

The sterile white walls of the observation room closed in on me. I felt like a caged wolf, pacing restlessly, the rhythmic beeps of the monitoring equipment irritated me. Through the glass window, I could see Grace, Cecil, and Richard – all three unconscious, their faces pale against the starched white sheets.

My gaze lingered on Grace. Even unconscious, her beauty was undeniable. I wanted to hold her hand, to feel the warmth of her skin against my own, to assure myself that everything would be alright. But all I could do was watch.

The long hours stretched into night, punctuated only by the occasional check-ins from nurses and the low hum of the machines. Finally, a flicker of movement from Grace caught my eye. Her eyelids fluttered open, revealing a glimmer of confusion before recognition dawned.

Her gaze met mine through the glass, a silent conversation passing between us. Relief, concern, and a flicker of a question.

I couldn't speak, and I couldn't go in. I could only offer a reassuring smile and press my hand to the glass. She smiled back before falling back asleep.

Then, I settled in to wait the rest of the night, hoping that by morning there would be good news. I heard the nurses coming in and out, someone put a blanket over me, but no one tried to move me.

A sliver of light speared through the window, dragging me from my light sleep. I jolted awake, my muscles stiff from hours spent hunched over in the chair, my gaze darted to the observation room window.

Grace's eyes were open, a flicker of awareness battling the lingering fog of sleep. Relief washed over me, a wave so strong it almost stole his breath.

I pushed to my feet, just as I reached for the handle, it swung open, revealing the healer, her expression etched with a somber gravity.

"How is she?" Charles rasped, his voice thick with sleep and worry. "The kids?"

She stepped aside, allowing him a clear view of Grace. Her gaze met his through the barrier around her bed.

"I'll be back," I said as the door closed. I followed the healer away into the observation room.

"The prognosis Alpha Wolfe... it's not good. The combined effects of the mutated virus and the strain already put on her body are accelerating her decline. With the best treatment, the potions, the therapies… she might have a year at most."

A year.

I felt sick. How was I supposed to tell her that?

"There has to be something."

"You wouldn't have to have the Elixir of Life handy?" I glowered at her. "I didn't think so. I don't mean to be crass. I just need you to understand."

"It's practically a legend," I said.

"I think you know that legends have kernels of truth," She said. "But getting it would be near impossible."

"I know," I said.

The Goddess had not open her true temple in centuries.

"And the kids?"

"They're just fine," she said. "Fully lycans for all intents and purposes."

Like Eason. I took a deep breath.

"Can I see her?"

She nodded. "For a little while."

I'd take it. I walked into the room, and took the seat beside her bed.

"Why can't you touch me?"

"You've been through a lot."

"I can barely move," she croaked. "Richard? Cecil?"

"Just fine."

"I don't understand." Fury crackled in her tone. A strangled cry escaped her lips, a mixture of grief and rage. "How? How could this happen?"

"Sean," Charles said, his jaw clenched tight. "He's the one who infected you, probably during his visit."

Grace's eyes widened in realization.

"But why?" she whispered, her voice trembling.

"I don't know for sure," Charles admitted, his frustration echoing hers. "But my guess is… it was an attempt to kill you."

Grace shuddered and she gripped the blankets around her.

"That... bastard targeted me and my children," she whispered. "Again."

She shook as tears streamed down her face.

"What now?" she asked, her voice regaining some of its strength. "What do we do?"

I took a deep breath. "You regain your strength. I get the house cleaned..."

I pressed a hand to the barrier. "And we fight."

She looked at me. "Why are you looking at me like that...."

I closed my eyes and rest my forehead against the barrier, feeling more hopeless than ever.

"We fight for a cure, for a way to reverse this, so you can have all the time you want with them, with us..."

"Charles?" She whispered. "What is it?"

I met her gaze through the barrier. She must have seen it in my eyes, the truth because she sobbed and as much as I wanted to hold her, I couldn't. I could only pressed my forehead to the barrier and breathe through the grief.

"I promise, Grace. I'll... I'll find a way. I'll find a way."

Somehow. There had to be something to be done.

Goddess... please.