Chapter Eight

Celina

“Jenna,” I yell, the moment I get to my bedroom. The moment I open the door I gag at the smell of vomit. Following the rancid smell, I nearly scream at what I see. Her auburn locks rest in her vomit while she groans on the floor; next to the toilet. Her skin is sickly pale, and she’s sweating.

“Jenna,” I beg, lifting her and cradling her in my arms. “Jenna, what’s wrong?” Along with vomit stains, her dress now has a huge wine stain on it. There is a sharp bitter smell almost masked by the smell of her sick. What is that? I glance into my room and see a broken wine bottle on my carpet; soaking the rug in wine. Did she drink something?

“Jenna, sweetie, please talk to me,” I beg, pushing the hair from her face. “Please tell me what’s wrong?”

Her brow furrows, suddenly focusing on me. I yank off the stupid mask and touch her face gently. “It’s me, Celina.”

She groans, her lips paling under her crimson lipstick. It’s smudged. Was she kissing someone? Is that why she ditched me at the ball? “My stomach. It burns.”

My eyes narrow on her hands, realizing they’re cradling her stomach. Going against all instincts, I take a deep breath and gag. Wolfsbane. Someone poisoned her. “Help!” I scream out loud and to the pack’s head doctor through our mental link. She’s asleep. I try again. “Help. Somebody. Anybody.”

“Celina,” a robust voice sounds as my door opens.

“In here,” I call, trying to get a better grip on her.

“What happened?” Prince Christopher demands, stepping into the bathroom.

“Someone snuck Wolfsbane into her drink,” I tell him while he picks her up. “Please carry her to the infirmary,” I beg, already getting to my feet. “Follow me,” I instruct, already running.

I pull my aura out, immediately calling attention to me as I race through the halls. “Healer Benson,” I growl through the pack’s mental link. I feel her mind jolt awake. “Infirmary now. Wolfsbane poisoning.”

With my werewolf speed and his lycan trotting, we make it to the infirmary in less than two minutes. “Put her on the bed,” I tell him when I open the doors to a blinding white room. I go to the medical supply room and quickly grab ipecac. In a flash, I’m back at Jenna’s side. She’s still pretty out of it so I have to hold her face while I force the foul liquid down her throat. Within minutes, she’s throwing up into a bucket Christopher had found, while I keep her up by keeping my hand on her back.

“What the hell is going on here,” Healer Benson yells, opening the door to the infirmary in her pink nightgown. She has her green hair pulled up on top of her head. She looks at me, realizing I’m still wearing my formal clothing. She glances back at Jenna and then back to me. “You said something about Wolfsbane?”

I nod. “I lost Jenna during the party, and I couldn’t find her. She linked me after ten minutes of searching for her to tell me she doesn’t feel so good, and she was in my room. I smelt the Wolfsbane. Judging by the wine stain on her dress, and the broken bottle of wine in my room and on my carpet, I take it that’s how she ingested it.”

“I’ll go investigate,” Chris says quickly, leaving almost immediately.

“I gave her some ipecac to induce vomiting,” I tell Benson while I go to hold Jenna’s hair up.

“Keep her sitting up,” she instructs me before leaving. She’s back after six strong heaves from Jenna. She attaches an IV and pushes another medication through the IV.

After fifteen minutes, Jenna starts to relax. After a nod, Benson allows me to lay Jenna back on the bed. She puts an oxygen tube through Jenna’s nose and moves her bed to a sitting-up position.

Jenna opens her eyes, her chocolate eyes still showing life. “Well one of us looks like crap, and it’s not me.”

I laugh in my relief. “Don’t scare me like that.” I squeeze her clammy hand. “I thought you were going to die.”

“I’ll die after I kick my ex in his prized jewels since he clearly likes them to be played with.” She raises her eyebrow, “unless you care to do it.”

“I’ll let you do it.” I give her a wink. “Something to look forward to in the years to come.”

She groans. “I don’t know if I’ll get that chance, considering I won’t survive the Claiming like this.”

I put my hand on her face. “Jen, I’m personally excusing you from this year’s Claiming. I’ll slit any councilmen’s throat that wants to argue with me.”

She grimaces. “I’ll still get matched up.”

“Hey, me too,” I chuckle. “Maybe we’ll get lucky and get matched to each other. We’ll go start the Amazonian Pack and abolish all forced mating practices.”

She gives me a wet laugh. “I’ll settle for Eddy’s head on a pike. I mean, who the hell fakes a three-year engagement just to get out of the Claiming? The fucker could have waited one more month.”

“A coward, that’s who,” I tell her; suppressing my anger toward that pathetic flea for the moment. “Is that why you were in my room?”

Tears start to fill her eyes and nods. “I tried to kiss someone just to get my mind off him. It did nothing and I became disgusted with myself. I couldn’t find you, so I went to wait for you in your room. I thought I’d help myself to a glass of wine while I waited.”

Her eyes suddenly widen. “You didn’t drink any of that stuff, did you?”

I shake my head. “No, I didn’t. Let’s just focus on you. I’m worried about you right now.”

She crinkles her nose. “It smelt different, but I thought it was just the brand. I’ve never seen it before. Pour Mon Pote. What does that even mean?”

“It sounds French,” I say as I think. It’s a clue I guess, but I know a lot of people that speak french. I’m still learning though. I’m in my second year at school. For my…for my what?

Dread hits me the moment I realize what it means. Slowly, I lift my head. “For my mate. Whoever gave me that bottle was trying to poison me.”

Jenna pushes herself up. “Were they trying to kill you?”

“I-I don’t know. If that wasn’t their intention, I can only assume they were trying to stop me from entering that stupid Claiming.”

Jenna grimaces, “Well it looks like I screwed that up for them.”

I flinch. “Sorry about that. I didn’t really suspect anything, or I would have called the guards.”

She squeezes my hand. “I’m as much at fault. I didn’t think anything of it either. I only smelled you in the room, and there wasn’t a scent coming from the bottle…” she trails off when we both hit that realization.

“There wasn’t a scent,” we say together, locking eyes.

“Jenna,” a woman calls, making us turn our heads. A woman with fire-red hair and deep blue eyes has just entered the infirmary. Her pale skin is decorated with freckles, enhancing her beauty. This is Miranda and is Jenna’s mother. Zeke is trailing behind her.

“What happened?” Miranda demands, sitting on the other side of the bed, and taking Jenna’s other hand.

“I drank some bad wine, Mom, I’m fine,” Jenna says quickly, giving me a hard look to stop me from speaking.

Zeke puts his hand on my shoulder. “Please be careful with what you drink Jenna. I saw Celina’s room. The cleaners are in there right now to clean up your mess.”

He squeezes my shoulder, making me look up at him. “You’ve been summoned by the Lycan King and your father.”

I sigh. “Is there any chance you can tell them you didn’t find me?”

He points to the door. “Both princes are waiting for you.”

“Is that a no?”

“Prince Christopher was the one to bring Jenna here,” Zeke implies; his body tense. “They’re in your dad’s office.”

“Princess Celina,” a hard voice comes, and I see Ruben’s face by the open door, “are you coming willingly, or do I have to drag you there?”

I give Jenna my best-annoyed face before hugging her. “Remember, you’re excused from the Claiming, so I better not see you out there.”

“Stupid failed attacks by moronic idiotic beasts,” I mutter under my breath as I get up and walk over to them. I continue muttering more profanities under my breath as I walk to my father’s office.

I bare my neck the moment I open the door, stopping my ramblings and lifting my head with grace. My father and the Lycan King are sitting on the edge of his desk with a chair in front of them. Goody.

Without being told, I sit down. “Whatever it is, no.”

“Celina, you need to consider that in under forty-eight hours, you’ve been attacked twice.” My dad folds his arms. “King Exzecial has offered some of his soldiers to protect you from these rogue attacks.”

“It wasn’t a rogue,” I tell him unwillingly. I know exactly what’s going to happen when I tell him this. Bye freedom.

He opens his mouth and then looks at me. “Young lady, you need to explain that sentence. Were you trying to get out of the Claiming?”

I snort. “Yeah right.” I compose myself and answer. “The wine on the table showed up while I was getting ready for the party. I didn’t think anything of it since it didn’t have a smell, and there was no scent around it. I thought it was just some random gift from another guy who wants to claim me.” I resist the urge to roll my eyes. “The name of the bottle was Pour Mon Pote. It’s French for “For My Mate.”

I see Chris tense when I said that, but I ignore it. “I’m assuming it came from someone from the party because there was no scent.”

“Stay here,” my father orders. “Exzicial, will you and your sons investigate who came into her room? I’ll handle the horny wolves.”

I close my eyes and throw my head back to let out a big groan. “Can I just go to bed? I have teeth to dodge tomorrow.”

“You can go to one of the rooms where the other female Claiming contestants are staying. They have strict security there. I’ll have your mother bring you a change of clothes.”

“Christopher, please escort her there, and make sure there are guards watching her at all times. Then return to me,” Exzecial instructs, following my father out.