Chapter 138: FALLEN BETA
CALLUM’S POV
Unconscious.
The word refused to leave my head as I sat in the SUV.
Dane wasn’t reckless. If anything, he was usually the one reminding everyone else to think before acting. He had survived border wars, rogue attacks, ambushes and missions that should have killed lesser wolves. I had seen him stagger back into the estate bleeding from wounds that would have put most warriors in a grave, only to crack a joke before Doctor Fenn could even begin stitching him up.
For someone like him to be found unconscious... Whatever had happened had to have been serious.
The driver finally slowed as the clinic came into view.
Before the vehicle had fully stopped, I was already reaching for the door and rushing into the hospital and into the bustle of everyone rushing about.
"Nurse, bring another—"
"His blood pressure is stabilizing."
"Doctor Fenn is still inside."
Voices overlapped from every direction. They were rushing into rooms and around, nurses looking worried.
Shit.
The moment they saw me, several of them straightened.
"Alpha."
I acknowledged them with a brief nod but didn’t stop walking.
Doctor Fenn emerged from the treatment room just as I reached the door, her sleeves rolled to her elbows, faint traces of blood still staining one glove. "You came quickly."
"How bad?"
She studied me for a moment before answering. "Worse than I have seen from him"
My chest tightened.
"He has three fractured ribs, a concussion, multiple deep bruises and several cuts that required stitching. Whoever attacked him didn’t want to incapacitate him. They kept going after he was already down. Could be a murder attempt."
I felt rage boil up in me, Damon already stirring. "Is he alive because they chose to leave him alive?"
"I don’t think so." She removed the gloves slowly. "I think they believed they had already killed him."
For a second, I didn’t say anything. "Can I see him?"
She stepped aside. "Briefly."
The room was quiet as I stepped inside, the beep of machines filling the air.
Dane looked nothing like the man who had walked beside me only hours ago.
One side of his face had swollen from repeated blows. Fresh bandages disappeared beneath the collar of his shirt, wrapping around his shoulder and ribs. His arm rested in a temporary brace, and several cuts crossed his knuckles as though he’d fought until he physically couldn’t anymore.
I had known Dane for years. Long enough to know he never stopped fighting.
If he’d ended up like this...the people who attacked him had either outnumbered him or caught him at exactly the wrong moment.
I stared at the bruises darkening his skin. "You’ll wake up," I muttered quietly. "You still owe me a report."
Doctor Fenn allowed the silence to linger for a second before speaking again. "I’m transferring him to my private hospital. The equipment there is better suited for observation over the next twenty-four hours."
"Do it."
"I already have." She gave a faint smile. "I expected you’d say that so I put everything in place already. We’ll get him there now."
***********
By the time Dane had been settled into one of the private rooms at Doctor Fenn’s hospital, the tension inside my chest had eased only slightly.
At least he was still alive.
Doctor Fenn returned nearly an hour later carrying a chart. "The bleeding has stopped, and his vitals have remained stable since we arrived."
"And the concussion?"
"It will take time." She closed the folder. "I expect him to wake within the next day. He’ll be sore for weeks, but he’ll recover."
Thank the goddess.
For the first time since receiving the news, I allowed myself a slow breath, just as I heard footsteps rushing down the corridor and I looked up.
Someone rounded the corner so quickly she nearly collided with one of the nurses.
"Callum!"
It was Keisha.
Her hair had partly come loose from its braid, strands clinging to her flushed face. She was breathing so hard she couldn’t manage another sentence immediately, her eyes darting frantically around the corridor until they landed on the room behind me.
"Where is he?" she asked between breaths. "Is... is Dane..."
"He’s inside." I tried to grab her in place but she was already moving before I finished speaking.
She reached the glass panel beside the door and froze.
Through the window, Dane lay motionless beneath the hospital blanket, fresh bandages evident against his skin.
The colour drained from her face. "Oh..." Her voice broke so quietly I almost didn’t hear it.
For several long seconds she simply stood there, one hand pressed against the glass, staring at someone who only yesterday had been laughing with her as we walked along the garden path.
"This..." she whispered. "This wasn’t supposed to happen."
I walked over until I stood beside her. "He’ll recover."
It didn’t seem like she was listening as tears welled in her eyes as she continued looking into the room. "It’s my fault."
"No."
"If I hadn’t told him about Orin..." She wrapped both arms around herself as though trying to keep from falling apart. "He wouldn’t have gone looking."
"Keisha."
She finally turned toward me, guilt written plainly across her face. "He was trying to protect me."
"Don’t say that. He was doing his job."
"He almost died because of it."
"No." My voice remained steady. "The people responsible are the ones who attacked him."
She lowered her head, tears slipping free despite her efforts to stop them. "I keep thinking..." she said hoarsely. "What if next time it isn’t Dane? What if someone else gets hurt? What if Orin keeps coming after everyone around me?"
I waited until she looked up again. "Listen to me carefully."
She held my gaze.
"You are not responsible for another person’s cruelty."
Her breathing hitched.
"You did not bring Orin back into this pack. You did not order anyone to attack Dane. And you are not responsible for the choices made by the people hunting him."
She swallowed hard. "But—"
"If you carry their crimes on your shoulders, you’re giving them exactly what they want."
She stared at me for a long moment before her eyes drifted back to the room. "I am so scared."
"I know."
"I thought... I thought when I got here..."
Her voice failed her completely.
Without another word, she leaned against the wall outside Dane’s room and I stepped back, careful not to be too close to her.
Not right now. I couldn’t risk adding another scandal right now when I was still trying to get other things in order. But I made sure to stay close enough and kept looking at her, making sure she was okay.
Keisha remained outside the room long after her tears had subsided. Every few minutes her eyes wandered back to the small glass panel on the door, checking that Dane was still there.
Doctor Fenn had assured us more than once that he would recover but it didn’t stop the doubt from lingering in our minds.
Neither of us noticed the lift doors opening until soft footsteps echoed through the corridor.
Vera stepped out first, dressed far more simply than she usually was, her expression composed despite the concern evident on her face. Nadia followed closely behind with a bottle of water clutched loosely in one hand.
The moment her eyes found the room Dane was resting in, she instinctively quickened her pace, but halfway there, her gaze briefly collided with Keisha’s and she paused.
Keisha managed a small smile despite the redness around her eyes. "Nadia..."
Nadia’s fingers tightened around the bottle and for one fleeting second, it looked as though she might answer.
Instead, she lowered her eyes and continued walking, stopping outside Dane’s room without another word.
The smile disappeared from Keisha’s face just as quietly as it had appeared.
Vera watched the exchange from the corner of her eye, her expression softening with understanding but she didn’t say anything. "How is he?" she asked, turning her attention to me.
"Doctor Fenn believes he’ll make a full recovery."
She nodded. "Thank goodness."
She stepped closer to the viewing window, studying Dane’s sleeping figure for several minutes before releasing a slow breath. "I’ve always admired how stubborn he is," she murmured. "If anyone can fight his way back from this, it’s him."
"I was thinking the same thing," I replied.
A faint smile crossed her lips before fading again. "I suppose this is my cue to stop postponing the inevitable."
Keisha looked at her, finally tearing her gaze away from Nadia. "What do you mean?"
"I’ll be leaving tomorrow."
Surprise flashed across my features.
"So soon?" Keisha asked.
Vera nodded. "I’ve been living at my own penthouse for months now. Originally, I only intended to stay for a short while with Callum after returning from the border, but one thing led to another." She laughed quietly, shaking her head. "Somewhere along the way, I forgot I actually have a home waiting for me."
"You’ll still visit, won’t you?" Keisha asked.
"Of course." Her answer came without hesitation. "My penthouse isn’t halfway across the kingdom. If anything, you’ll probably grow tired of seeing me because I’ll keep dropping by unannounced."
That earned the smallest smile from Keisha. "I don’t think that’s possible."
Vera glanced toward Nadia, who hadn’t moved from the doorway since arriving. "We should let Dane rest, Nadia," she said gently.
Nadia gave a quiet nod, tearing her gaze away from Dane before she walked out with Vera. And not once did she look at Keisha.
Keisha continued staring after them until they disappeared around the corner.
"I don’t know if she’ll ever forgive me." Her voice was so quiet I barely heard it.
I looked at her. "Do you intend to stop trying?"
She shook her head immediately. "No."
"Then that’s your answer. I won’t either. This is...a lot for her."
A sad smile tugged at the corners of her lips. "She was my first real friend. I keep thinking about everything we’ve been through together. It feels impossible that we’re standing on opposite sides now."
Doctor Fenn emerged from Dane’s room once more, assuring us that he was resting comfortably and that there was nothing more either of us could do for the night.
I turned back to Keisha. "I need to return to the estate."
She looked up. "I’ll stay here a little longer."
I nodded. "I won’t be gone long. I’ll get a guard here for you and a few more for Dane." I stepped closer, my voice dropping slightly. "I’ll be back soon, okay?"
She nodded stiffly. "Okay. Okay."
With that, I hurried out of the hospital.