I vaguely saw Darius rush to my side. When he saw the empty bottle, he let out a curse and went on his knees in front of me. He lifted me so I was cradled in his arms and slapped my cheek so I would face him.
"How many?" he asked but I stayed quiet. "Goddamit, Leindra, how many of the fucking pills did you take?"
"Twenty,' my voice came out garbled but somehow, he heard me.
Without warning, he shoved two of his fingers into my throat. I tried to thrash against his hold but he was not having it. He shoved his fingers as deep as they would go and until I was throwing up. To my shock, he searched through the vomit and counted the pills. He repeated the process until he had twenty puke-coated pills.
Once he counted twenty, he let out a sigh of relief and pulled me into his chest. He pressed his face into my hair and I felt him try to speak a few times but it was like he had lost all possible words. His clean hand affectionately stroked my back and he repeatedly pressed small kisses to my hair.
My throat and eyes burned and I felt weak. He pulled back and I saw that Ian, Amy and Jared were standing in front of the destroyed door taking in the scene with wide eyes. Amy had a guilty look on her face and I knew it was because she was the one who gave me the pills. I wanted to assure her that it wasn't her fault.
"Instead of fucking standing there maybe one of you could prepare the car so I can take her to the hospital," Darius spat and they all scurried away. He waited until they left before he turned to me with furious eyes. "Are you fucking crazy? What were you thinking? If I didn't feel something was wrong through the mate bond do you realize what would have happened?"
I nodded and he ran his hands through his hair in frustration. He looked like he was unsure of whether he wanted to strangle me or kiss me out of relief. I hoped it was not the latter because my mouth tasted like vomit and it would have been disgusting. Thankfully, he was saved from doing either when Amy returned to the door. As soon as he sighted her, he picked me up and carried me into the car.
He sat in the backseat with me while Ian and Amy drove. I could see them glancing my way through the mirror but I couldn't meet their eyes. I had failed. I couldn't even help them right. The drive to the hospital was so quiet and so tense that I felt like I could reach out and cut the tension with a knife.
Darius did not let me go until we got to the hospital. He walked past the array of people and into a doctor's office. The doctor bowed to him and I knew without a doubt that the doctor was a werewolf. I was placed on the bed while Darius explained what had happened to the man. Shame filled me as the doctor glanced over at me. I cast my eyes on the ground.
When he was done talking to Darius, he made his way over to me and gave me a small smile. "I am Doctor Peters and I'm going to be looking after you today, is that okay?" "Whatever," I mumbled.
I had never been so dismissive before but it was the only emotion I could muster.
He spent about half an hour with me then left the room. I was hooked up to an IV to ensure that I had enough fluids. Darius remained in the corner of the room where he stood during the entire checkup. He hadn't spoken a word but there was so much that was unspoken between us. His eyes were fixated directly on me and I had to look away because of how intense his stare was.
"Are you going to say anything?" he asked after a beat of silence. "Will you at least give me a reason as to why you did that? Did something happen in that cave that I don't know about?"
I stayed quiet through his questions and that only seemed to frustrate him more. He crossed the length of the room and stood by the side of my bed. I wouldn't look at him so he grabbed my chin and forced me to face him. I wanted to look away but his gaze was so intense that I couldn't bring myself to turn away from it.
"I need an answer, Leindra." His voice had taken a pleading note. "I need to know why you decided to do this. Did Faye do something to you or say something to you? Whatever she did, we can work it out together. I cannot live without you, do you understand that?"
"If this is about Faye's mate, you don't have to feel guilty. I already reached out to his family and left an anonymous donation. It won't replace their son but it is all I can do." "Do you even know his name?"
"Frederick George the Third. He was twenty-two when he died. I didn't know that then but I know it down. Whatever it is, whoever he was, he is not worth your life. Nothing is."
A stray tear leaked onto my cheek and Darius was quick to wipe it away. I had to shut my eyes to prevent more tears from falling down my cheeks. I wish I could tell him what I knew but I couldn't. When I finally opened my eyes, there was raw pain etched all over Darius' features. We were so close and yet I had never felt so far from him.
He opened his mouth to speak but there was a knock on the door and it opened to reveal my Grandma. I was taken aback for a second because I didn't think Darius would call her but when I glanced at Darius I realized he looked just as confused as I
was.
"A friend of mine saw her being brought in," she answered our unspoken question then turned to Darius. "Can you give me a second with Leindra?"
If you're loving the book, nel5s.com is where the adventure continues. Join us for the complete experience-all for free. The next chapter is eagerly waiting for you!
He looked like he was about to refuse but at the last minute, he nodded and left the room. As soon as the door clicked shut behind him, Grandma rushed over to my side of the bed and pulled me into a bone-crushing hug. I inhaled her scent with a sigh of relief. There was something familiar about being in her arms and I didn't want to let go.
She pulled away first then dragged over a chair so she could sit down. "There is talk in
the halls about an attempted suicide. What were you thinking Leindra?"
"I was trying to help."
"How does killing yourself help anything?"
Once the words started flowing, they wouldn't stop. I told her about what Faye had said in the cave about how if I died, then they would go back to being humans. Grandma listened without saying a word and patiently waited for me to finish. By the time I was done, she let out a deep sigh.
"You innocent little girl," she mused as she stroked my hair. "Faye lied to you. Your death will achieve nothing except for driving Darius mad. Losing a mate is the worst thing that could happen to a wolf."
"But she told me that it was the only way."
"Amaris told me everything that happened before I came in and I think she just wanted to make Darius suffer the way she did when she lost her mate. She wasn't trying to help you or him. She was trying to ruin him. Your death won't turn them human, it will just make it impossible for their curse to be broken."
Shame and embarrassment filled my entire body. I could not believe that I allowed myself to be deceived by Faye. I could not believe that I almost killed myself at her orders. My hands flew to my mouth as I realized just how bad my actions were and the kind of effect they could have had.
"Can you call in Darius?" I asked in a small voice and she nodded.
Less than two minutes after walking out, Darius walked in. He didn't look as furious as he did earlier but he was on edge. He slowly made his way over to me gauging my reaction as he did so. He took the seat Grandma had vacated and took my hand in his. "I'm sorry," I blurted out. "I honestly thought I was helping when I did that. I mean, Faye said-"
"What did Faye say?" His eyes narrowed at me. I swallowed deeply and told him everything. When I was done, he let out a deep sigh. "I wish I could kill her again."
"Don't say that, she is your sister. You should never have to kill your own family. I feel terrible for putting you in that position in the first place."
He laughed.
I was confused because I didn't see anything remotely amusing about the situation but Darius was laughing. Once he had calmed down, he shook his head at me.
"Faye wanted me to kill her. She has wanted to die for a very long time and I can't believe it took me so long to see." I opened my mouth to protest but he cut me off. "Do you know how I know? It is because if you died then I would have followed right behind you. Faye wanted to be with her mate. I did her a favor."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, let me worry about my choices, Leindra. I admire your devotion to me but I can handle myself."
I sighed but nodded. I figured it was the least I could do after everything that happened. He pressed a kiss to my forehead and stood up to leave but I stopped him. "Darius." He turned to me instantly. "I love you."