Dimitriâs POV
She wasnât going to take that plant. If something happened and she wasnât able to mind-link me I would fucking lose my shit.
But on the other hand, her powers made her sick. She was hurt because she was trying to help me. How could I let her be in pain when there was a solution to it all?
âI have that lunch with the Lunas today,â Maddie said as she tried to get up.
I growled and pulled her back to my chest. She was crazy if she thought I would let her get out of this bed.
âItâs way past lunchtime, Mads,â Will said. âIt is almost 6 p.m.â
âShit,â Maddie mumbled. âYou should have woken me up.â
âLike I would have let you go,â I said, growling again. âYou heard what Oliver said. You need to rest.â
âDonât worry about it, Mads,â Ellie said. âI talked to the Lunas and I arranged for breakfast tomorrow. I told them you werenât feeling well and they completely understood.â
Oh, she wouldnât be going to that either. She was going to spend the day in bed. She was going to rest and I wouldnât let her do anything or go anywhere until I was completely sure that she was okay.
âShe isnât going,â I said, making both Maddie and Ellie look at me. âShe is going to rest.â
âI have to go, Dimitri,â Maddie said. âI made them a promise.â
I growled and wanted to argue, but Ellie interrupted me.
âWe will see how she feels in the morning, okay?â she said, giving me a knowing look. âI know you want to make sure that she is okay, but she has obligations, Dimitri. She will go if she is feeling well.â
I raised my brows at Ellie. She really had some nerve telling me what would happen. I could feel anger boiling inside me.
âDonât start, Dimitri,â Will sighed. âEllie is right and you know it.â
Maddie turned her head and placed a soft kiss on my chest. I relaxed immediately.
But then I figured out what she did and I growled.
âMaddie!â I exclaimed as I cupped her cheeks and made her look at me. âYou have to stop doing that!â
She sighed and closed her eyes.
âI am so sorry,â she mumbled as she opened her eyes again. âI am just used to it.â
I shook my head and placed a soft kiss on her lips.
âMy princess,â I said softly. âYou need to stop. You are hurting yourself.â
Maddie nodded and buried her face into my neck. She took a deep, slow breath and I could feel her relaxing. I placed my hand on the back of her head and held her close to me.
âMaybe Oliverâs idea isnât a bad one,â Will mumbled and I looked at him. âShe is obviously having trouble controlling it.â
I growled and narrowed my eyes at him.
âI need to be able to mind-link her, Will,â I said. âI need Skye to be able to talk to her.â
What if I wasnât with her and something happened? What if Skye wouldnât be able to let Skol know what was going on with her? My princess had a bad habit of not telling me everything I needed to know. She had a bad habit of thinking that she was protecting me by hiding things from me. That was another thing I needed to talk to her about. She had to stop doing it. She had to be completely honest with me. But until she learned how to do that, Skye was my way of making sure that my princess was okay.
But Will was right. She was having trouble and it was only hurting her.
âShe is never alone, Dimitri,â Will said. âOne of us is always with her. You would always be able to reach her and you would always know where she is.â
I tightened my hold on her. I wasnât sure. I still wasnât fucking sure.
âOliver said that the side effects were only a possibility,â Ellie said. âMaybe she wonât have them. She could try to take it and see. The effect of the plant should wear off after a while.â
âShe will probably have the side effects,â Ali said quietly, making Will, Ellie, and me look at her.
Maddie lifted her head and looked at her as well.
Ali looked at me and I could tell that she was very nervous. I tried to soften my gaze. I knew I didnât make the best first impression on her and I didnât want her to think that I didnât like her. She was important to both Maddie and Will and that made her important to me too.
âHow do you know that, baby?â Will asked as he ran his fingers through her hair.
She looked at him and took a deep breath.
âBecause I believe that I know what plant Oliver was talking about,â she said. âItâs wolfsbane and it would surely block her mind-link and her connection with her wolf.â
My eyes widened and a feral growl escaped me.
âWolfsbane?!â I screamed. âHe wants to give her fucking wolfsbane?!â
I wanted to get up and go find the fucker, but Maddie stopped me.
âNot in the amount that would harm me in any way, Dimitri,â Maddie said calmly. âHe is going to use small amounts and mix it with other plants.â
I furrowed my brows and shook my head.
âHow do you know that, Maddie?â I asked.
âBecause he used it to help my mom,â she said calmly. âHealers use wolfsbane in a lot of their potions. It is not dangerous in small amounts.â
âShe is right,â Ali added and I looked back at her. âOliver will probably make a tea with a mixture of different herbs, one of which will be wolfsbane.â
I clenched my fists and gulped.
âBut you are sure she will have those side effects?â I asked and Ali gave me a small nod.
âI am sure that Oliver didnât say anything because he didnât want to scare you,â she said. âBut even a small amount of wolfsbane would cause her to lose the ability to mind-link and talk to her wolf.â
I tightened my jaw and forced myself to remain calm. I couldnât let the fear and the anger overwhelm me. I couldnât give Maddie a reason to use her powers. I was sure that she would do it if she felt me get angry or afraid.
âAre you sure that he would use wolfsbane?â Ellie asked. âMaybe he was talking about another plant.â
Ali furrowed her brows and bit her lower lip.
âMaybe,â she said. âBut I doubt it.â
I took a deep breath and released it slowly.
âYou donât have to decide right now, Dimitri,â Will said. âMaddie needs rest anyway. Sleep on it and we can talk about it again tomorrow. Itâs a tough decision.â
Will was right. We didnât have to make that decision now.
âYou are right,â I said, giving him a small nod. âWe will talk about it tomorrow. Do you need me to go back to the office with you?â
Will shook his head and relief washed over me. I didnât want to leave Maddie.
âEverything is ready for tomorrow,â Will said. âI will just go over some details one more time before going to bed.â
âMind-link me if you need anything,â I said and he gave me a small nod.
He looked at Maddie and smiled.
âGet some rest, okay Mads?â he said softly. âI will see you tomorrow.â
âGoodnight, Will,â she said, smiling back at him.
Ali and Ellie approached the bed and hugged Maddie.
âI will see you tomorrow, Maddie,â Ellie said, smiling a little. âGet some sleep.â
Maddie nodded and smiled at them. I watched them walk away.
My lips were on Maddieâs even before Will closed the door.
âHow about I prepare you a warm bath?â I asked as I lowered my lips to her neck.
âOnly if you will be in that bath too,â she said and I chuckled.
âOh, that is surely going to happen,â I said as I stopped kissing her neck. âI canât wait to feel your naked body pressed against mine, princess.â
Maddie smiled and I kissed her lips again. I was going to show her how much I loved her. I was going to show her that I wouldnât leave her. I was going to show her that she was my entire world and that I wouldnât be able to live and breathe without her in my arms.